Once More With Feeling!

Tags

Happy New Year, joy, reboot, slow work of God, Teilhard de Chardin, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, The Wisdom of the Desert, Thomas Merton, trust, vigor

As I opened to my last post to add a new one today, I had to check my calendar to verify that we are already on the fourth day of this new year. I guess I should wish everyone a belated “Happy New Year!” My sister has been home from the hospital since Sunday, the nurse and physical therapists are amazed at her progress and I traveled home yesterday on what appeared to be the least traveled day of the holiday season because of very little traffic and none of the usual slowdowns along the way. The year seems to be flying by already!

So now what? It feels as if a “reboot” is in order. While I looked around a room that I had hoped would be totally de-cluttered and re-arranged by year’s end, I thought of Teilhard de Chardin’s adage: Trust in the slow work of God. Then I sat up a little straighter because of having randomly opened Thomas Merton’s book, The Wisdom of the Desert, in preparation for a February retreat. Here’s what I read:

Abbot Pastor said: If you have a chest full of clothing, and leave it for a long time, the clothing will rot inside it. It is the same with the thoughts in our heart. If we do not carry them out by physical action, after a long while they will spoil and turn bad. (p. 42)

So it looks like today will need to be a time to dive in to the new with vigor and joy at having a new start – even if I have to create it as I go. May it be so with all of us!

Slow Work

Tags

Letters to a Young Poet, mothers, patience, perseverance, prayer, Rainer Maria Rilke, St. Augustine, St. Monica, Teilhard de Chardin, the slow work of God, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Often a saint’s memorial in the Church calendar brings lots of diverse thoughts to mind. Today Christianity celebrates the feast of St. Monica whose son, St. Augustine of Hippo, had much more overt influence on Church practice than she did. Monica has special remembrance, however, in the lives of Christian mothers who trust God to hear their prayers for their children. Monica is remembered for her perseverance in prayer and thereby credited in large part with the conversion of her son. Clearly, the story of their lives is more complex than that and other influences on Augustine (e.g. St Ambrose) had a part to play. Nevertheless, Monica has been a friend of mothers down through the ages.

Today, in considering the steadfast care (sometimes seen as somewhat over-enthusiastic) of Monica for her son, I think once again of the words of Teilhard de Chardin who counseled trust in the slow work of God. Monica prayed tirelessly for Augustine’s conversion to a good, faith-filled life and was rewarded just before she died with his baptism as a Christian. Similarly, Rainer Maria Rilke wrote in his Letters to a Young Poet about the need to “be patient with all that is unsolved in your life…” and “live the questions now.” Monica certainly needed that kind of advice!

Then there are the two children’s songs that help me by making me smile and hold things more lightly when I think I will never come to the end of a task that seems monumental – like clearing clutter or finishing a book I need to read. When those tasks get in the way of seeing the beauty of life I know I can sing: Inchworm, inchworm, measuring the marigolds, seems to me you’d stop and see how beautiful they are…Or maybe even better: Inch by inch, row by row, gonna make this garden grow…

 

 

 

 

 

Once Again, A Reminder

Tags

answers, beauty, Hearts on Fire, impatience, instability, listen, progress, questions, Rainer Maria Rilke, slow work of God, strength, Teilhard de Chardin, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, time, trust

There are two adjacent ranch-style houses on our road whose owners each planted four trees in a row across their front yard. I have watched them grow over the years and sometimes wonder if it was the desire of the owners to have a lot of shade, to hide from the road or just to satisfy their love of trees. They have seemed to me as they’ve grown like a line of sentinels from one yard to the other. Because I am always driving when I pass them, I really don’t know if they are the same kind of trees; I just admire their beauty and their strength.

On my drive home early yesterday evening I was luxuriating in the lush green all around me (not much traffic on our road at 7:00 on a Sunday) when I was brought up short by those trees! Suddenly, after years of tiny incremental growth, they are mammoth and have totally obscured the houses! Today I wonder if I need to pay more attention to the obvious lesson that I have been getting on our own land and now elsewhere about what Teilhard de Chardin calls “the slow work of God” and Rilke describes as living the questions rather than being impatient to find answers. Sometimes it seems as if they have conspired with God on the same message!

I was not surprised this morning on opening the Jesuit prayerbook, Hearts on Fire, to find Teilhard’s words on the page before me. So once again I will try to slow down and listen carefully.

Above all, trust in the slow work of God. We are quite naturally impatient in everything to reach the end without delay. We should like to skip the intermediate stages. We are impatient of being on the way to something unknown, something new. And yet it is the law of all progress that it is made by passing through some stages of instability – and that it may take a very long time…(p.102)

 

 

 

 

 

Let All The Earth Cry Glory!

Tags

Christ, divine influence, existence, God, Lord, power, radical transformation, Teilhard de Chardin, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, unity, universe

After a weekend of observing radical transformations of vast fields into vibrant green carpets and watching the waning sun splash patterns of color like the best abstract artists – not to mention the truest blue of the sky, I turn to Teilhard de Chardin for a fitting prayer of gratitude this morning. He does not disappoint.

Glorious Lord Christ:
the divine influence secretly diffused and active in the depths of matter,
and the dazzling centre
where all the innumerable fibres of the manifold meet;
power as implacable as the world and as warm as life;
you whose forehead is of the whiteness of snow,
whose eyes are of fire,
and whose feet are brighter than molten gold;
you whose hands imprison the stars;
you who are the first and the last,
the living and the dead and the risen again;
you who gather into your exuberant unity
every mode of existence;
it is you to whom my being cries out
with a desire as vast as the universe:
“In truth you are my Lord and my God!”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wait For It…

Tags

dawn, hope, silence, slow down, slow work of God, spirit, sunrise, Teilhard de Chardin, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Having set up the coffee last night for the Sisters staying on the guest floor at our Province Center, I was surprised to be the first arriving in the kitchen this morning. I thought someone would have been awake before 6:30…I could hardly click the switch on the coffee maker, however, so glorious was the scene unfolding outside the window. The still darkish dawn sky was splashed with waves of deep magenta, growing brighter by the minute! But there was nothing hurried about the sun’s rise to the top of the hills across the Hudson River in Troy – nor of the coffee maker, I might add…

Joined by another Sister seeking a wake-up, we stood in silent stillness, companioned by the trees – unmoving as we all were in the silence, facing east – waiting for the brilliance that was sure to come. We watched as much of the magenta turned to gray, leaving a center patch that slowly morphed into deep gold…then a lighter, less ostentatious backdrop. Occasionally we shared a whispered hope for this day of deliberation at the Province Assembly: “May we move from the enthusiasm of our greetings with one another, carrying good feeling to the work of the meeting…”  “May we slow down and quietly wait for the Spirit to speak among us…”

It sounds strange to describe something that has been so deliberately awaited as sudden, but the actual breaking of the first rays of the sun and the swift blinding light that followed over the mountain was a breathtaking event! As I arrived back in my room, the clock told me we had been there for a full half-hour! I was reminded of Teilhard de Chardin’s famous adage: “Trust in the slow work of God!” Clearly God’s work of today has been marvelously begun. Now it’s up to us to join our effort to God’s in the work that awaits us. May we all trust the certainty that God’s loving light will unfailingly lead us!

 

 

 

 

 

Slow Work

Tags

gratitude, impatient, instability, Letters to a Young Poet, new spirit, patience, progress, Rainer Maria Rilke, Teilhard de Chardin, the slow work of God, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, trust, work

Today as I sit in my chair waiting for light to come I have a sense of urgency because there is a lot to achieve before my head hits the pillow again, so to speak. The days are getting shorter now. I was dismayed to know that when my alarm woke me a while ago it wasn’t a mistake. It was 6:30 and still dark outside. And yesterday we needed lights on in our living room by 6:00PM. I wonder why I was so astonished; the solstice was almost two weeks ago! I guess it is true that the older I get, the faster time seems to go.

Lest this devolve into a lament about old age which I refuse to allow because of my reverence for the wisdom of my elders, I remind myself of the advice of the great Jesuit paleontologist and theologian Pierre Teilhard de Chardin who is often quoted as saying: “Trust in the slow work of God.” I’ve known that line for a long time but this morning I came across the text from which that line originates.

Above all, he writes, trust in the slow work of God. We are quite naturally impatient in everything to reach the end without delay. We should like to skip the intermediate stages. We are impatient of being on the way to something unknown, something new. And yet it is the law of all progress that it is made by passing through some stages of instability – and that it may take a very long time.

And so I think it is with you; your ideas mature gradually – let them grow, let them shape themselves, without undue haste. Don’t try to force them on, as though you could be today what time (that is to say, grace and circumstances acting on your own good will) will make of you tomorrow.

Only God could say what this new spirit gradually forming within you will be. Give our Lord the benefit of believing that his hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete.

As I was copying Teilhard’s words, they seemed similar to Rilke’s “Letters to a Young Poet” wherein similar advice about patience in life was given. I smile as I consider the necessity of hearing about the ongoing need for patience with myself and with the flow of life at my age. It is perhaps never totally achieved but maybe that is a good thing as it calls us to always reach for “the more” while accepting what is at this very moment. So on I go, slowly enough to notice the birdsong and the emerging color in the maple leaves that have now come into view, but ready as well to tackle the tasks of this day in patience and gratitude for life in this world in this time.

 

 

 

 

 

The Slow Work of God

Tags

anxiety, believe, forming, grace, hurry, impatient, incomplete, instability, mature, slow work of God, suspense, Teilhard de Chardin, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, trust, universe

This morning, pondering a meeting I attended yesterday of the Long-Range Planning Board of my religious community and a subsequent conversation with one of our “younger members” I was reminded of a valuable quote from Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, a theologian and paleontologist who had much to say about the universe and its workings, including those of humans who seem always in a hurry to get things done. It is always good for me to return to his wise advice. I share it today in hopes that we might draw from it some consolation in our troubled times.

Above all, trust in the slow work of God. We are quite naturally impatient in everything to reach the end without delay. We should like to skip the intermediate stages. We are impatient of being on the way to something unknown, something new. And yet, it is the law of all progress that it is made by passing through some stages of instability – and that it may take a very long time.

And so I think it is with you; your ideas mature gradually – let them grow, let them shape themselves, without undue haste. Don’t try to force them on, as though you could be today what time (that is to say, grace and circumstances acting on your good will) will make of you tomorrow. Only God could say what this new spirit gradually forming within you will be. Give Our Lord the benefit of believing that his hand is leading you, and accept the anxiety of feeling yourself in suspense and incomplete.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Can You Hear It?

Tags

Ancient Songs Sung Anew, divine energy, Divine Presence, evolution, instruction, listening, natural word, nature, reality, silence, still, Teilhard de Chardin, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, universe

In keeping with what I said yesterday about Chardin’s vision of evolution in the universe, today we have Psalm 19 in the lectionary readings. One commentator sees this psalm as containing “a grand cosmological vision of a vast universe, alive and full of the divine Presence.” In this psalm we hear the message that God’s word is heard through the natural world as well as in church sermons and our life experiences. I am always happy to read and hear others speak of the importance of the natural world as a conduit of God’s presence and teaching since I learn a lot from observing the depth and function of nature. Here is a suggestion for all of us, the busy people of the world, that might be something to try with the goal of opening us more fully to a deeper way of seeing.

Sometimes our difficulty is that we are not silent and still long enough to hear the subtleties of this quiet yet pervasive form of instruction. Allow yourself to become still and silent for a period of inner and outer listening. Listen with your whole being. Ask this divine energy and communication flowing through you to become a cleansing wind blowing the dust and debris away and opening you more fully to God’s inner Reality. (Ancient Songs Sung Anew, p.46)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hyperbole

Tags

behavior, compassion, consciousness, Earth, evolution, religion, responsibility, sacrifice, science, servant, suffer, sympathize, Teilhard de Chardin, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Yesterday I was in a wide-ranging conversation about elements of a future world that would not only include acceptable behavior of all citizens but also be compassionate toward all creatures and to the universe itself. It seemed that we have a long way to go toward consciousness if we are, in fact, to even approach the possibility of such a world. One element that we saw as necessary was the responsibility of each one of us to move the world toward that goal.

This morning I read a prayer written by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881-1955), the French Jesuit paleontologist whose writings integrate science and religion in a way that sees evolution as not only a reality but a responsibility of all of us. It seems he is ready to take the lead in accepting his role in this endeavor where compassion is the foundation of the effort. Although he sounds somewhat haughty about his position in such a process, it seems we would all do well to act from a position of the broadest vision in order to “kick start” our enthusiasm and assure at least some progress in our time. Here is what he said in his Prayer for Compassion:

Oh God, I wish from now on to be the first to become conscious of all that the world loves, pursues and suffers: I want to be the first to seek, to sympathize, and to suffer; the first to unfold and sacrifice myself, to become more widely human and more nobly of the earth than any of the world’s servants. (Hearts on Fire – Praying with the Jesuits, p. 107)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A Teachable Moment

Tags

Benedictine, Christ, Christian, crucifix, fullness of life, joy, Jubilee, overcome, presence of God, Roman Catholic Church, sign, spiritual journey, St. Boniface, Teilhard de Chardin, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, the way of the cross, weight of the cross

I keep trying to ignore my first thought for today’s post. It comes from the reflection I just read on the life of St. Boniface whose feast the Roman Catholic Church celebrates today. Boniface was an English Benedictine monk who gave up being elected abbot to devote his life to the conversion of the Germanic tribes in the 8th century. It was not an easy task, http://www.franciscanmedia.org reports. I had determined to abandon that topic for something more upbeat or light-hearted when I read the line of the commentary following the biographical information. It said: “Boniface bears out the Christian rule: to follow Christ is to follow the way of the cross.”

While I would not dispute the teaching that suffering is part of life and that Jesus is a model of how to accept and bear one’s suffering as a transformational practice, I take issue with the inference in the above statement that the cross is the entire or desired way of life for the Christian. The often quoted line of Teilhard de Chardin provides a needed balance for me. “Joy,” he said, ” is the most infallible sign of the presence of God.”

So why am I still talking about this? As it happens, I had an experience two days ago that moved me to a deeper place. It’s one of those analogies that seems far-fetched and maybe irreverent, but it helps me so I beg the indulgence of those who do not see it so.

On Saturday I participated in a very joyous Eucharistic liturgy for the family and friends of one of my “jubilee companions.” There are only five of us who entered the convent together 50 years ago so we plan to be present, if possible, at each of these individual celebrations. My participation in this event included the task of carrying the cross in the entrance procession at the beginning of the liturgy. I had never before performed that particular task at our Motherhouse and was surprised at the weight of the heavy metal, 5-foot crucifix when I lifted it. To hold it high processing down the very long aisle to the altar was no small task. At the same time we were singing joyfully: Let us bring the gifts that differ and in splendid varied ways, sing a new Church into being, one in faith and love and praise.

What struck me in that moment was very symbolic (perhaps only to me). Feeling the weight of the cross at the same time as the joy of such a communal gathering was a powerful image of possibility in the Christian life. Although our lives can be fraught with difficulty at times, we needn’t be overcome. The joy that comes from the spiritual journey in community, modeled in the life of Christ with his companions and the Spirit that remains with us, can and must enliven faith and engage our hearts in love. These realities are not separate but constitute a unified whole that is, in fact, the way to the fullness of life.