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mind, Peace, period of silence, stillness, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, turning inward, vision
Well, I feel as if I made a start yesterday. It was a small step, a toe in what seems like an ocean of tasks before I sense a concomitant clearing of mind and vision, but it was a start. With a desire to accept whatever hardship accompanies this day, I look to those whose words first energized me yesterday (see yesterday’s post).
There are many wise people recommending a period of silence in each of our days and many modes of prayer that can lead us there. In my notes from yesterday, however, there was a sentence that focused in a slightly different direction from most but engaged me quite strongly, partially because the hoped for state was not silence but stillness — a related but not matching outcome. It said simply:
If your mind is still, you can sense the peace that emanates from the earth.
As I consider this, I reflect on the appropriateness of the thought for today when it would have seemed highly inappropriate yesterday. Today peace abounds outside. The sun is shining. There is no wind, no snow or sleet or rain. (We had examples of each of those conditions yesterday.) I am confident that stepping outside to experience the light, to breathe in the fresh air, to feel the earth under my feet, to bow to the steadiness and longevity of the trees and the fragile strength of flowers who are still alive after the storms…all of this leads me to stillness. And I am renewed with confidence in this day because, you see, stillness comes from the inside, regardless of outer events.
You may think I’m contradicting myself in comparing yesterday and today as regards the source of peace and how it comes to us. I would agree but the value of assessing both experiences is the conviction that, while silence is more easily achieved when there is no noise or disturbance around (not an easy place to find sometimes), stillness does not depend on any outer circumstance but comes simply by turning inward and taking a breath. While we cannot always control noise vs. silence, we can move to stillness as long as we live, literally until our last breath.
Note: This post was created for November 13, 2018.
In his small book, Praying with the Earth: A Prayerbook for Peace, John Philip Newell writes each morning and evening of the week a prayer for the life of the world. Brief as they are, they are compelling in their depth and intensity, calling out to God with vision and yearning, always capturing quickly and quietly a trust of the God that will never disappoint. Here is what he offers on this – and every – Saturday morning.
St. Clare of Assisi, whom we celebrate today, was a great example of the adage “Behind every good man, there is a good woman.” While he did not see her often, St. Francis counted on her holiness and wisdom to shore up his determination in times of doubt and difficulty. Clare was a clear mirror of the presence of God for Francis and for those women who followed her to the convent of San Damiano, and he was the same for her. She was a woman of great strength and perseverance who believed that she was the one who knew best what should be written in a rule for women in a religious order. Although she easily accepted the rule that Francis has written in the early days, after the death of Francis she continued for 27 years to submit a revised rule to bishops and popes until she finally received and signed a constitutional document of her own two days before her death on August 11, 1253.
We all come to God in our own time and in our own way. Whether we are born into a religious tradition that nurtures our faith in an organic way for the duration of our life or have a moment of recognition brought on by an extraordinary event, our life journey is as unique as our thumbprint and just as special.
Psalm 119, the longest in the book of 150 psalms, has 176 verses and can be the study of a lifetime. In a commentary this morning I read that the subject of these prayers is the hard learning one gains in light of a multitude of hardships and circumstances encountered on the spiritual path…Experiences are often repeated again and again. As we go over the same territory learning it in new ways, truth becomes grounded. Insights are gained from each spiral of ascending experience.
Last Sunday, as I listened to a dramatic reading of the entire gospel of Mark, I was struck by the number of exorcisms Jesus performed. In the different ways that “evil spirits” manifested in people, Jesus commanded those “spirits” to “come out!” and the people were healed. I’m wondering this morning if all the synoptics were similarly engaged in reporting such events. My attention was a caught because today’s gospel from Luke (11:14-23) begins with Jesus “driving out a demon that was mute, and when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke and the crowds were amazed.”
The gospel this morning tells Luke’s version of the encounter Jesus had with a blind man. I am always struck in the healing stories when Jesus asks the desire of the person he meets who is in need. I never doubt that he can see that condition in the person, so either he is looking for a statement of faith or he wants to be sure of the depth of the person’s intention or desire to be healed. Although life might be easier for the man if he gets his sight, there may be new responsibilities attached to the healing as well. Maybe he will have to find a job, rather than sitting by the side of the road begging. Certainly he will need to become attentive to people who are in need of help with certain life tasks because of infirmities. Who better since he has been there himself?
I have a conference call today, the third (or maybe fourth?) in a month, as my colleagues and I do our best to prepare for the event we are offering at the end of this month. It is the first of its kind for us – similar in a way but not matching all the “Wisdom Schools” we have presented over the past five years. This one is called “Wisdom Group Leadership Training” and is defined as practical training in skillful “post-holding,” including ’embodying the wealth of wisdom’s vision’ and developing group skills for greater integration. 