What Kind of Power?

Tags

Ancient Songs Sung Anew, baptism, blessing, humility, Jesus, John the Baptist, listen, manifest, Peace, power, psalm 29, sovereign, strength, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

The theme of everything I have read so far this morning is simply the word POWER. The gospel for today speaks of God’s power manifest in the baptism of Jesus in two ways that I can see. God speaking when Jesus emerges from the water is impressive: “This is my beloved Son; listen to him!” I am struck by both the soft expression of paternal pride and the booming imperative of what follows that sounds like it carries great consequence. (This is, of course, only my personal take on that moment.) Prior to God’s role at the event, however, Jesus shows a different side of power: the humility that is the necessary companion to any recognition or manifestation of personal power. John doesn’t feel worthy of baptizing Jesus, but Jesus knows the necessity of affirming John’s call and ministry as well acting out his own place in the human family.

Sometimes it’s tricky to navigate the heady waters of positions of power when the ego rushes to the fore and tries to grab all the adulation. (Jesus is a good model here.) The best leaders are those who are conscious of potential missteps in relationship – whether in a family or the world community – and who remember that they are just like the rest of us in the eyes of God.

Once again it is the daily psalm (29) that captures for me the depth of these thoughts in speaking of the power of God. The juxtaposition of manifest supremacy and caring love for all of creation is extraordinary and culminates in a message that can only evoke gratitude in those who comprehend its totality. Here are some excerpts from Ancient Songs Sung Anew:

O all you many powers of heaven and earth, know this, that it is God who fills them full, a God of strength and beauty…It is the voice of God that rides in beauty upon the waters. It is a voice of power that peals like thunder across the world. God’s voice is strength itself, majestic in its scope and range. So strong it snaps in two and splinters mighty cedar trees, so soft and delicate it sets the newborn lambs to dancing or sends the brash young bulls to skip and play…And yet above the brimming energies of earth and sky, the fullness of the oceans and the forest deep, our God as sovereign sits in perfect rest, and gives the people strength to love, bestowing blessing over all, and covers us with everlasting peace.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elizabeth Regina

Tags

authority, destiny, divine, judge, leadership, psalm 97, Queen Elizabeth, sovereign, The Crown, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, weighty

The “common cold” has been getting a lot of attention recently. We’ve been warned about the danger of being heedless as it could lead to pneumonia – and that to death, especially for the elderly. Whether it be an excess of caution or a very serious infection, Queen Elizabeth of England has joined the ranks of those of us afflicted in this season, to the extent that she missed participating in her traditional Christmas church service for the first time in 30 years!

I was reminded of the Queen as I read a translation of this morning’s psalm (97) that used the word “Sovereign” for God in the first verse. It is God, I AM, who is sovereign over all, it said. We have been watching at our house the Netflix original series called The Crown which so far (only one season produced thus far) chronicles the period of Elizabeth II’s early life and the first decade of her reign as queen. The introduction to each episode is quite strikingly artistic, beginning with strands of molten gold, flowing and swirling and eventually forming the weighty (5 pounds, they say) crown of the queen. Just that piece and the title give a perfect introduction to the main theme of the entire series: the role of the sovereign which, as is clear from the oath at her coronation, comes directly from God. A weighty destiny indeed.

I have stopped after writing the above, not knowing where to take that thought. There is so much that flows from its meaning. Her serious demeanor seems rarely left behind, usually only when she has been seen walking her dogs in the countryside, for instance. That makes more sense to me now, having seen images of her struggling with the impossible task of one who is seen to have divine authority but at the same time is bound by centuries of protocols and traditions that seem ironclad, thus immune to her differing opinions. I feel a new compassion for her, rather than just a passing curiosity about what she is wearing or whether she is smiling when she appears on the news. Wherever this leads, it reminds me of the serious “job” of leadership and the task of the rest of us to research before we judge.