Sometimes I worry about this task I have taken on, wanting to say something every day that will be useful to at least one of the people who reads my words. Then I think of that phrase: my words. They are never just mine—these words that come to me sometimes with little or no effort, and sometimes as if I were a woman in labor, seeming to push each one out with a mighty force, in order to convey a thought, a feeling or an image. I know I can never adequately express the effect that the sun has on the mountain outside my window, especially on a frigid day like today when some of the frozen trees create a zigzag path to the top that only a nimble giant would attempt to scale.
Today, on the feast that notes the conversion of St Paul, I wonder how he felt when trying to express his experience of the light that changed his life that day on the road to Damascus…or on any day that followed. There are lines in the Scriptures that can touch our hearts with a power that we cannot understand but only recognize. There are poems that take our breath away and lines that when put to music move our bodies even without our consent because they cause such a stirring in our souls.
So today I celebrate those women and men down through the ages who have given us the gift of language and the facility to make words do for us what we cannot do ourselves to express and praise and love and explain ourselves—especially to the One in whom we live and move and have our being. (Acts of the Apostles: 17:22-28)
In a rare move this morning, I chose to explore the NY Times briefing instead of queuing up the readings of the day from the Roman Catholic lectionary. The stimulus for my choice was a headline that read “Oxford Dictionary International Word for the Year.” I had to read through several headlines to find that entry but that in itself was instructive of the culture we live in and what seems to be – or is – important to know of the world today. Much of it was still political as we wait for election results, some of which may be delayed due to unreadable ballot signatures – part of the fallout from the fact that children are not always taught good writing skills in this electronic age. Then there was the potential impending downfall of Theresa May because of her unsatisfactory planning for “Brexit,” and so on around the world.
Sometimes it’s necessary to count on the words of others for inspiration or solace. That’s one of the primary reasons for my frequent references to biblical texts or modern inspirational writers at this season when bad news seems to vie with inclement weather to wipe out most, if not all, spiritual energy. Joyce Rupp is my “saving grace” this morning with the conclusion to a prayer service for peace in her book, Prayer Seeds. May it be a motivator for you as well.
It is interesting to me that today’s psalm response from the lectionary is part of 119 – the longest psalm of all in the Bible. Fitting, I thought, after a week away that held so many diverse moments, including childhood memories as well as experiences of new places and events. Commentary says that “each segment of Psalm 119 could be read as a separate voice from individuals praying out of their various perspectives” or “one individual experiencing all the various perspectives that one knows along the path of life.” I’m not sure I have integrated all the impressions, information and feelings of the week as it was so full and far-reaching. One thing I do know is that it provided an opportunity (as most events do if we are awake) for self-reflection and gratitude. Thus, I pray this morning with the psalmist as I return to my blessed “normal” life.
I always marvel at the way good writers can convince readers of their stated purpose or evoke emotional response just by a turn of phrase. I am also well aware of the fact that each of us is affected differently by language, given our personality, culture and life experience. That’s why I sometimes use alternate translations from the Scriptures. Today is a good example for me because I find myself responding with joy to verses in Psalm 103 from both the lectionary translation and from Ancient Songs Sung Anew: the Psalms As Poetry. A sampling of lines from each may lean you toward a favorite or may allow each to touch you in a way that expands your appreciation – or you may find a translation that suits you better than both. Take a look and see what you think.
I’m always interested in the various ways of using a word that cause different images to arise. This morning I was stopped by the gospel acclamation which preceded the text from Luke 16 about the rich man and Lazarus. The acclamation said: Blessed are they who have kept the word with a generous heart and yield a harvest through perseverance.
Interestingly on this “ordinary day” – Tuesday of the Eighteenth Week in Ordinary Time in our Church calendar, to be exact – there are two possible gospel readings from which to choose. If I’m not mistaken, that usually happens on big feast days or when a long gospel passage appears first and is followed by a shorter version of the same one. Today we have two completely different texts – the first being the familiar aftermath of the feeding of the five thousand that includes not only Jesus but Peter walking on water (MT 14:22-36). There’s a lot to talk about in that passage. It is the second text, however, that caught me this morning (MT 15:1-2, 10-14). It’s all worth pondering but it includes a sentence that I think is uniquely timely and important for each of us and all of us as foundational to our spirituality. Jesus says, It is not what enters one’s mouth that defiles a person; but what comes out of the mouth is what defiles one.
