The Body of Hope

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beatitudes, comforted, compassion, Corinthians, encouragement, holding one in prayer, Jesus, mourn, pain, suffering, the body of hope, The Sermon on the Mount, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Perhaps because the weather promises to be wet and wild today, making my body know it is aging, my first thoughts upon waking were of suffering. Watching the news puts the topic front and center – especially because of all the destruction from floods and tornadoes – but also in my mind were so many conversations I have had over the past week with people whose lives have been tinged with sorrow or disease that has turned their world upside down. As is often the case, I found Scripture to be a reference for reflection on the topic and a place to find some solace. First it was Paul  who engaged the topic (2COR 1:1-7) saying, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of all compassion and the God of all encouragement, who encourages us in our every affliction, so that we may be able to encourage those who are in any affliction with the encouragement with which we ourselves are encouraged by God.” Although a little wordy, the meaning of Paul’s message should engage us, I think, in an inventory of all the times and ways that we have felt God’s presence in difficult circumstances. In that way, we might be able to listen deeply to others when they need an encouraging word or a shoulder to cry on. Note that I did not say “a solution to their suffering” because that is not always possible. Rather, Paul speaks about sharing in encouragement as we share in sufferings and thus have a hope born of compassion.

In addition to Paul’s voice, today we have the teaching of Jesus in his sermon called The Beatitudes or the Sermon on the Mount (MT 5:1-12) which includes Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. There is no when or how in the promise but only the promise itself. So I guess it all comes down to the theological virtue of hope. Just as in everyday life when we hope with expectation of fulfillment of our desires, so too in our faith. The added component for people of faith, however, is that as we place our trust in Christ’s promises, we rely not only on our own strength to realize our hopes but also on the grace of the Holy Spirit and the support of the community of believers.

All of this brings me back to my earliest thoughts, recalling those people whom I know to be in pain. Holding them in prayer – each in turn and all together – will be my responsibility and my offering today to the building up of the body of hope. Won’t you join me there?

Saints in the Making

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All Saints Day, beatitudes, children of God, John, John the Evangelist, Matthew, psalm 24, saints, St. Paul, The Sermon on the Mount, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Today, after a night of “trick-or-treat” where even animals were dressed in costume as someone other than themselves (See the NBC Evening News, 10/31), we celebrate the saints. St. Paul used to call those he encountered on his travels “saints” to impress on them, perhaps, what John the Evangelist meant when he wrote, “See what love God has bestowed on us that we may be called children of God. Yes, we are God’s children now…What we shall be later has not yet been revealed…when it is revealed we shall be like God…(1 JN 3:1-3). This all presupposes an understanding of the process of becoming mature, fully human persons – not perfect at the outset, but by the time we meet God, ready and able to look into God’s eyes and see ourselves as God sees us because we have done our best to become whole/holy. Psalm 24:6, the refrain for this morning, sings repeatedly, “This is the people that longs to see your face…” It seems to me that this is a good expression of the impetus for living life in the best way we can, which is, I believe, all that God asks.

It is true that history focuses on the “great saints” – many of whom have led lives of luxury or debauchery until some cataclysmic event or deep suffering has caused their conversion. Happily, today we are able to point as well to those whose steadiness and goodness all their lives have given us such example that we – if not in an official way – recognize them as saints. The Sermon on the Mount (MT 5:1-12) gives us this morning a “guidebook” of practices that lead to the fullness of life that we call sainthood. Jesus calls “Blessed” those who are poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek and merciful, the clean of heart, the peacemakers, those who hunger and thirst and/or are persecuted for the sake of righteousness.

Perhaps today is a day to reflect on what Jesus set out for us as a starter kit to saintliness, seeking in our lives examples of the “categories” listed above. And remember: God is on our side as we seek; “we are already God’s children!” And then we might look around – with God’s eyes – for other “saints in the making” and spend this day as a feast of gratitude. Happy All Saints Day!