Personnification

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Lynn Bauman, nourishment, praise God, psalm 98, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

On the verge of our Thanksgiving Day in the U.S.A. when we are being reminded of the gifts of God to us, we ought perhaps to stop and remember all of what comes from the earth to nourish us – as this was the goal and celebration of the first Thanksgiving meal here in our country. Our earth is a great gift that keeps on giving, regardless of how we misuse or ignore her participation in our lives.

In preparation for tomorrow, let us enter into a prayer of praise with the earth for the God who gives us all good gifts. Try to picture the prayer, PS 98 in images, vivid as they are, in the words of Lynn Bauman – and be sure to smile as you pray.

Praise God till all the earth itself becomes a song, till seas and all the waters flow and waves begin to dance with land and all the peoples sing. Let every river lift its hands to clap in time, while hills and valleys join in song to offer hospitality to the Holy One who comes to right our every wrong. This God will weigh the worth of everything that was, and is, and shall ever be, so mercy can be known in full and justice here be balanced with compassion.

God and the Weatherman

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affirmation, Brother Luke Ditewig, encouragement, perspective, psalm 98, resurrection, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

It sounds today like the psalmist has no idea of what’s going on in our world! I would have expected a more dire offering in keeping with our situation. Here it is, though, Psalm 98, calling us to: Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done wondrous deeds. Of course that’s true but it certainly doesn’t feel like that today.

First of all it’s the 9th day of the most beautiful month of the year (May, of course!) and it’s 25 degrees F. outside. That’s seven degrees below freezing! The highest we’ll see today is 36 or 37 and that will be accompanied by more of the snow we got yesterday. God is certainly not related to the weatherman! There has to be some other perspective in the wind…for the world.

Actually, there was a clue from Brother Luke Ditewig at ssje.org to remind me that we are still in the Easter season. He said the following today: “Resurrection comes small, like seeds and leaven. One little word of encouragement, one affirmation, perhaps evoking one smile or laugh. One little gift can change us.”

I guess I can manage that today. Actually, I’m already smiling about God being related to the weatherman, who, if he’s anything like me, would much rather be called a meteorologist!

Sunday Song

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compassion, hospitality, Lynn Bauman, mercy, psalm 98, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

I love the psalms that speak of the natural world doing what we think is reserved to humans. It’s easy to see the trees swaying and to interpret the movement as a dance; why not imagine more participation of the earth that was made long before humankind? Here’s the last part of today’s lectionary psalm (PS 98) as expressed by Lynn Bauman. I highlighted the most meaningful part for me. See what you can see.

Praise God till earth itself becomes a song, till seas and waters flow and waves begin to dance with land and all the peoples sing. Let every river lift its hands to clap in time, while hills and valleys join in song to offer hospitality to the Holy One, who comes to right our every wrong. This God will weigh the worth of everything that was, and is, and ever shall be, so mercy can be known in full, and justice here be balanced with compassion. (Ancient Songs Sung Anew, p. 247)

Sing a New Song!

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choir, enthusiasm, feeling, music, pirit, praise God, psalm 98, raise, singing, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

I love to visit churches where the services are punctuated by vibrant singing. I learned the beauty and joy of music most likely because my mother crooned us to sleep when we were babies and sang virtually every day for some reason, at home, at church, in parish shows (some of which she produced) and into her last days on earth. She had a lovely voice and used it to praise God in every situation. Irish to the core, my father loved to sing as well and my earliest memories of adult gatherings at our house included “sing-alongs” that were as important as food and friends.

Music reminds us that we are more than intellectual beings by causing our spirits to soar with joy or to experience deep feeling with the words we sing or the music itself. Consider the beauty of harp music, the call of a violin, the majesty and joy of trumpets and the reach into the heart of piano music…

I wonder why we don’t spend more time singing since it is known to be good for us as a psycho-physical exercise. Perhaps we might consider music as a good companion for this new year. Psalm 98 has been called “A New Song to the Holy One” and I can hear the St. Louis Jesuits leading us for years at Church calling us to “sing a new song unto the Lord! Let your song be sung from mountains high…” How can that be done without some energy and building enthusiasm? (Swaying is essential as well.) Do we think about what we’re singing? In your church or anywhere you praise God, might you use any of the following to describe the music? Does is have enthusiasm, vigor, buoyancy, exuberance, spirit, animation, zeal, ardor, gusto, or any notable feeling? Perhaps that sounds silly to you but what activity where we might add music is more appropriately passionate than our praise of God? As a last word I offer part of my favorite translation of Psalm 98, the psalm for today and an image that also gives us the reason for the song.

Raise high each voice till all can hear the joyous news you bear. Praise God till earth itself becomes a song, till seas and all the waters flow and waves begin to dance with land and all the peoples sing. Let every river lift its hands to clap in time, while hills and valleys join in song to offer hospitality to the Holy One, who comes to right our every wrong… (vs. 7-9)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Learning to Flow

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A Deep Breath of Life, Alan Cohen, balance, big picture, change, control, fight, flow, God, hospitality, power, present, psalm 98, reaction, response, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, universe

It’s clear to everyone in the United States of America – and beyond – that things will be changing for us very soon. It’s difficult to be sure of what form those changes will take but change there will undoubtedly be. I’ve spoken before about possible reactions and responses to change. This morning I was again thrust into that reflection by the final verses of Psalm 98, presented in a lyrical way by the following translation.

Let every river lift its hands to clap in time, while hills and valleys join in song to offer hospitality to the Holy One, who comes to right our every wrong. This God will weigh the worth of everything that was, and is, and shall ever be, so mercy can be known in full and justice here be balanced with compassion. (vs. 9-10)

This sense of all things conspiring to offer hospitality to God reminded me of the difference between reaction and response. Turning to Alan Cohen for more insight I read this:

When you come up against a situation that you cannot control, trust that the universe is working on your behalf. When we fight what is, we lose our power. The sage capitalizes on the energy at hand and makes it work on his behalf. Cohen then adds a plea to God, saying: Help me to remember that You are present in all situations, guiding me home even when I cannot see how. (A Deep Breath of Life)

It seems to me that these two messages – one from millennia ago and one from the present age – give the same message. No matter what our feelings about the year that has just begun, we would all do better to stay in the present rather than conjecturing what will or will not unfold. It is God who has the “big picture” and it is ours to take our rightful place in relationship to God, yielding to what is – contributing our best selves to every situation while giving God every opportunity to be our guide on the way forward.

Hospitality

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God, honored guest, hospitality, praise God, psalm 98, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

I facilitated a retreat once for lay ministers on the theme of hospitality. It consisted of three segments: hospitality to ourselves, to others and to God. Hospitality to others was easy enough for people to comprehend but the other two were new concepts for some. Welcoming ourselves means accepting ourselves as we are now in the totality of our being – which does not, of course, mean complacency with those aspects of ourselves that need improvement. Once we got over that hurdle, in theory at least, we had to consider our willingness to treat God as an honored guest in our lives – maybe by remembering to say grace as we gather for a meal to remind us that God is present. And that’s just the start. Offering God a home – a comfortable place – at the center of our hearts takes a deeper kind of awareness and welcome. I’m reminded of that effort this morning by Psalm 98 that speaks of the whole of creation offering such a song of welcome, led by us. It sings:

Praise God till earth itself becomes a song, till seas and all the waters flow and waves begin to dance with land and all the peoples sing. Let every river lift its hands to clap in time, while hills and valleys join in song to offer hospitality to the Holy One, who comes to right our every wrong. (vs. 8-9, alternate translation)