The Flowering Root

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Come O God, God's plan, Isaiah, Jesus, Joseph, King David, Mary, Micah, O Antiphons, Root of Jesse, sign, synchronicity, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, worship

The O Antiphon for today comes from a prophecy in chapter 11 of the Book of Isaiah in the Hebrew Scriptures which says: “A shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom.” (Vs. 1) “And on that day, the root of Jesse, set up as a signal for the nations, the Gentiles shall seek out, for his dwelling shall be glorious.” (Vs. 10) One would have to know that Jesse was the father of King David and that the prophet Micah, in chapter 5 of his prophecy, had written that the Messiah would be born “of the house and lineage of David and be born in David’s city, Bethlehem.” And one more thing leads to Jesus being recognized as Messiah. Although they lived in Nazareth, Mary and Joseph were required to travel to Bethlehem, as members of the lineage of Jesse, to enroll there in the census at the end of Mary’s pregnancy.

We can look at many important happenings of our lives as “synchronicity” (meaningful coincidences). Some people would describe the above circumstances as such. Believers the world over would have another explanation, however. They would call it “God’s plan.” Today’s O Antiphon cries out in that belief.

O Root of Jesse (or Flower of Jesse’s stem), you have been raised up as a sign for all peoples; kings stand silent in your presence; the nations bow down in worship before you. Come, let nothing keep you from coming to our aid.

Integrity, Part Two

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blameless, integrity, love your neighbor as yourself, salvation, synchronicity, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

One of the interesting facets for me of this blogging activity is the ability to track not only numbers of “hits” but also where readers come from. The numbers range usually somewhere between 20 and 40 readers in a day and generally the majority are residents of the United States. Last fall there was a period where – for a few weeks – numbers were consistently between 60 and 80 each day before they settled again into the 40 – 50 range. It all seems random to me but interesting nonetheless.

You may imagine my surprise when I checked yesterday and found that on Thursday, when the title was Integrity, the readership number spiked to 184 views by 171 visitors! (Sometimes people read more than one post on a particular day.) The previous top number had been somewhere around 85! Not having time when I saw that fact yesterday to check on what prompted the spike I assumed it was the topic and was overjoyed that so many people are obviously touched by the determined response of the young survivors of the latest school shooting in Florida.

This morning I was determined to follow up with this theme and was happy that the lectionary readings agreed with my choice. Then I just happened to look again at the statistics and found that only ten of all those readers had chosen to read the post about integrity! So what do I do now?! I asked myself. Using the statistics under false pretenses for my purpose would cause at least a small chink in the armor of integrity, wouldn’t it? Undoubtedly…but who would know? And who would be hurt by it? It’s just such thoughts as these, perhaps, that start us down the slippery slope of using information incorrectly for our own purposes.

While taking note of the reminder in the paragraph above, I prefer to think of this whole incident as one of synchronicity and to leave you with a few of the most powerful lines from Scripture that I find to be lessons in the lifelong quest for integrity.

1. Today the Lord is making this agreement with you: you are to be a people peculiarly his own as he promised you…DT 26
2. Blessed are they whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord…PS 119
3. Behold, now is a very acceptable time; behold, now is the day of salvation…2 COR 6
4. “You have heard that it was said, You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemies. But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you…MT 5.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Purely Personal

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blog, divine Spirit, kind, love, nurture, patient, practice, ready to forgive, spirit, St. Paul, synchronicity, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, uplift

This weekend has been all about family for me – and about the love that we hope will last forever for Paul and Gemma who were married on Friday. That was the message that I proclaimed for them, one of the most commonly quoted Scripture passages of St. Paul. It’s the one that tells us all about the qualities of love (kindness, patience, never boastful…) and ends with the certainty that “love never ends.” I would add: if we continue to nurture it. Actually there was a lot of love being spread around the venue then and into yesterday morning at breakfast.

It is a great grace that not only my generation of cousins (the “old guys”) are truly fond of one another. The 16 cousins in the younger generation – all of whom but one attending the event – traveled from near and far and were delighted to be together as well. The eldest, the ‘missing one’ (my godson) was even there by the miracle called FaceTime, so he was included in the “cousins photo” where they all held up their numbers in the birth order over a span of 30 years. Even the fact that Peter now resides in South Korea couldn’t ruin the perfect joy of the night; he was there as surely as the love that conjured him on a telephone screen. And then there were the several babies & little folks who were incredibly happy and well-behaved. It was the kind of experience that lifts the spirit and calls us to be our best selves.

Speaking of things that help us grow, I was surprised to realize that this blog post is number 1,200 for me! It seems uncanny that I have been able to sustain such a practice in the early hours of most days (although not today!) for the better part of four years. What drives me, however, is my desire to do something – no matter how small – to uplift the spirits of good people, some of whom are struggling to make sense of our world. And although I use the prompts of Scripture on many days, in addition to various contemporary writers on others, I am quite often astounded at the message that unfolds. Some call that synchronicity; I believe it is the divine Spirit directing what needs to be said. I sometimes think it might be time to close up my computer and find another path to roam. Days like that are the ones on which someone usually writes or calls to say something like, “Your blog this morning was so helpful for me! Keep them coming.” Then I go back to read it again and find it helpful for me too! It’s all part of the mystery and beauty of how God works.

So if you can keep reading on the days when the result is a bit “ho hum” I guess I’ll keep listening and writing what comes for a while, remembering that love is patient, love is kind…love is always ready to forgive.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lighting the World

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candles, Christ, Christmas, Hanukkah, light, light of the world, love, Peace, synchronicity, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, world

Tonight there will be candles lit all over the world in celebration of light. In a wonderful coincidence (a happening of two things at once) not only will Christians celebrate the birth of the Christ beginning with vigil services in the evening, Midnight Mass, and/or celebrations tomorrow throughout the morning, but this year will also see tonight the lighting of the first candles as Jewish families and congregations begin the eight days of Hanukkah, the Festival of Lights, celebrating the dedication of the temple in Jerusalem.

As often happens, the above synchronicity has led me to the lyrics of two songs, the first which was occasioned during a phone conversation yesterday. Somehow in the midst of remembering “the good old days” of Peter, Paul and Mary, their song Light One Candle entered our conversation. Although we were not speaking of Hanukkah as they were in 1982, I thought of it this morning as the first verse begins: Light one candle for the Maccabee children…The punch line, however, the clear and emphatic theme that begins the chorus was our topic. P, P & M actually seemed to be pleading with the world as they sang: Don’t let the light go out! It’s lasted for so many years…Then as I began writing this morning, a second song – this one from England in 1977 – came to mind: Light of the world, shine on me, love is the answer…

There are all sorts of examples of what the word “light” can mean. For a great percentage of the world’s population one or the other or both of those songs hold great meaning. Whether we begin a celebration at our dinner table with the pure flame of a small candle or find ourselves clicking the flashlights on our iPhones in an audience of thousands of people swaying to words that call for peace, light is the metaphor whose underlying reality we most desire. Let us all light a light tonight, taking a moment to find peace in ourselves and then sending that peace out to our world.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Synchronicity

Tags

Carl Jung, Cynthia Bourgeault, John, Luke, psalm 119, Revelation, spirit, synchronicity, the Kingdom of God is among you, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, understanding, wisdom, Wisdom Schools

Years ago I learned the term synchronicity that describes a concept developed by psychologist Carl Jung to describe an “acausal connecting principle in which events, both large and small, in the external world might align to the experience of the individual, perhaps mirroring or echoing personal concerns or thoughts.” (Merriam Webster)

Today I am off to North Carolina where a grand experiment will take place. People from all over this country and beyond will gather for a “mega wisdom school” with Cynthia Bourgeault. There will be over 200 people spending a week together to delve the Wisdom tradition of Christianity, presented by Cynthia and shepherded through the different practices by a number of “interns” who have participated in numerous but smaller events during the past decade. Being part of the planning and execution for this event has been a great privilege and, at some moments, overwhelming. The opportunity to gather with those who have shared some part of this inner journey with me will be a great joy.

So why should I be surprised when today’s first reading begins: In Wisdom is a spirit intelligent, holy, unique, manifold, subtle, agile, clear, unstained, certain, not baneful, loving the good, keen, unhampered, beneficent, kindly, firm, secure, tranquil, all-powerful, all-seeing and pervading all spirits…(WIS 7:22) And, as if that were not enough to calm any nervousness in me as I make final preparations for departure, Psalm 119 adds: The revelation of your words sheds light, giving understanding to the simple (vs. 130). The gospel acclamation proclaims, I am the vine, you are the branches, says the Lord: whoever remains in me bears much fruit (JN 15:5) and in the gospel I hear Jesus attest that The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed…for behold, the Kingdom of God is among you. (LK 17:20)

It’s clear to me, if I believe Professor Jung, that today must be the start of something great. As I look up from my computer screen I see a sky painted pink with the promise of light breaking through and I am grateful for all the messages of this and every morning. I have no idea what the week will hold of miracles but will report as I am able as the week unfolds. Blessings and beauty be yours today and all days!

 

The Right Thing to Say

Tags

conversation, feelings, Holy Spirit, honesty, John, Matthew, synchronicity, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, truth

Coming late to this usually first of my daily tasks, I have had two significant conversations in the past four hours about honesty regarding feelings, especially about our responses to the requests (or even demands) others make of us or our time. It isn’t always easy to tell the truth in difficult situations, especially if the difficulty arises because of the good intentions of those who are telling us what would be good for us.

I found it interesting that the gospel verse for this morning from John’s gospel said, When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you to all truth and remind you of all I told you. Following that, Matthew records a message of Jesus to the disciples that says in part: …do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say. You will be given at that moment what you are to say. For it will not be you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.

Some would call that coincidence. I think, rather, that it is synchronicity and find it to be very good advice. Knowing that God “has our back,” so to speak, should make it easier to say what needs to be said in these situations. I’ll have to pass that along to my conversation partners of this morning.