I think if we are honest with ourselves, the main battleground in quiet, meditative prayer and Bible reading, is our wandering minds. It has been wonderful, several times a week to gather with a few others and prayerfully, meditatively read scripture. We gain wonderful insights and blessings from approaching this discipline communally. But it is in those moments of silence, when I should be pondering profound passages like, "But not so with you; rather the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves" (Luke 22:26), that my mind wanders to what I need to pick up at the store later, what's coming up class work-wise, or sometimes I'm on the brink of falling asleep. It is at those times that I feel a bit like one of those sleeply disciples Jesus scolded for not being able to stay awake while he prayed in Gethsemane.
Yes, I know God is gracious and merciful and knows my heart, but it is exasperating how difficult it can be to be fully present to hear what almighty God wants to say. When I first heard about the Anglican/Protestant rosaries, I wondered if this could be helpful, but never followed through. Last weekend at the retreat, I found out one of my friends now makes them. Once again I toyed with the idea and decided to take the plunge.
Concerning the beads, Kimberly Winston wrote, "The physical act of grasping a bead, of rotating gently between the fingers, of feeling it, will anchor you to the words of the prayer attached to the beads...If you feel your mind wanderting, squeeze or hold the bead tighter. Your attention will come back to the presence of God" ("The Anglican Rosary," adapted from Bead One, Pray Too: A Guide to Making and Using Prayer Beads).
Now I have not given much time to this practice yet. Today is really the first time that I consciously made use of them with morning prayer and scripture reading. Seeing that it's still pretty early and I haven't finished my first cup of coffee, I have to say they have helped to bring my attention back to the Lord. So we will see how this goes. By the way, the picture is of my beads that I bought last weekend. May God guide each of us as we seek to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength.
In my Gospels class, each of us has been working with the same passage from one of the four gospels throughout the semester. For me, it was John 10:11-18, the Good Shepherd passage.
Along with a classmate we have looked at this passage from numerous perspectives: form criticism, text criticism, redaction criticism, Old Testament in the New Testament, etc. From our weeks of study, we each put together an integrative project. Mine is another blog, Shepherding God's Flock. Initially, it was just for the class and that was it, but at the prof's suggestion and my own enjoyment in putting it together, I've decided to keep it going. I invite you to join the discussion and let's see where it takes us.
I FOUND THE FOLLOWING IN MY 'SAVED DRAFTS" WHILE EDITING ANOTHER POSTING. I SUPPOSE IT IS A "GIFT" IN THAT I WROTE THE FIRST VERSE OF THE SONG PARODY BELOW. AS THE PREAMBLE INDICATES IT WAS WRITTEN AND SAVED TO DRAFTS ON APRIL 20 2009 BY SOMEONE WHO HAD HACKED OR OTHERWISE ILLEGALLY OBTAINED THE PASSWORD TO THIS BLOG'S EDITING FEATURES. ALTHOUGH IN THIS CASE I WILL PURSUE THE MATTER NO FURTHER (AND AS FAR AS CONTRIBUTIONS GO I DO APPRECIATE THE EFFORT BUT NOT THE HACKING ) IT NEEDS TO BE NOTED:
WARNING!
ANY FURTHER ATTEMPT TO UNAUTHORIZED ENTRY TO THIS BLOG WILL BE TREATED AS THE CRIMINAL ACT IT IS. VIOLATORS WILL BE PROSECUTED TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF THE LAW. SUGGESTIONS MAY BE MADE IN THE COMMENTS. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO VIOLATE THE EDITORIAL SECURITY OF THE ALEXANDRIA DAILY POOP!
YEP THIS IS APRIL 20TH WHICH IS ADOLF HITLER'S BIRTHDAY and he is having a little dirt nap, so sorry we will not be serving ice cream and cake. However, we have always thought the Horst Wessel Lied to be a catchy tune so we will appropriate the music but put modern conservative lyrics to it. THIS IS NOT A PEAN TO WHITE SUPREMACY OR NATIONAL SOCIALISM BUT RATHER A PARODY AND A RALLYING SONG FOR EVERYONE WHO LOVES FREEDOM:
"Raise high our Flag,
Close ranks! Now all together,
Citizens march, with firm, determined tread!
Souls of Our Troops and friends killed by the enemy
March with us too, and swell the ranks ahead!
Now clear the streets for the patriotic masses!
Make clear the streets for conservatism's men!
Freedom's light shines, and beckons all the millions,
As a seminarian from The New England Synod in Region 7, I had the opportunity to apply for a scholarship to this triennial WELCA retreat and won it. This was an excellent retreat on many levels. It came at a time when I desperately felt the need to get away and rest. I didn't even bring any homework with me!!
This is the only retreat I've ever been to, where we were told from the very beginning that it wasn't necessary to attend everything. Not only was there built in time to do as we wished, but we were encouraged to walk outside, take a nap, whatever we needed to do. That was different. Worship and fellowship were wonderful at Mt. St. Alphonse in Esopus, NY. The retreat center overlooks the Hudson River. The picture at the right was the view from my room.
The keynote speaker, Sr. Anne Bryan Smollin, author, nun, counselor etc., was a hoot. She got her point across with wonderful humor. We were dying from laughter when she spoke. Other speakers and presenters were wonderful as well. We prayed, laughed, and cried together this weekend. It was so amazing.
And what did we take home from this? Not only were old friendships renewed and new ones made, but it was so vividly demonstrated to us what a teaching tool well done humor can be. If we all had God's joy bubbling up through our lives, people couldn't stay away from our churches.
"TEA PARTY' PROTESTS HAVE BECOME COMMONPLACE here in America and April 15th (tax deadline day) was a day of much activity. Hundreds of these protests were held nation wide. The liberal drive-by media tried at first to ignore them. But the movement is so large that these slugs have taken to attacking and belittling them. They have stooped to Junior High School locker-room insults about "teabagging" and the like, these "journalists" who want to be taken so seriously.
BUT IF YOU LISTEN TO THE REPORTING you will notice a note of fear in their voices. The pressure cooker is rattling ever more loudly. The common American Citizen is beginning to realize that he or she has been bamboozled by these types and the politicians whose synchophants they are. In the rattling of the pressure cooker they hear echoes of the rattle of the rattlesnake: DON'T TREAD ON ME! And they are not wrong in this regard, and they know it, and they tremble.
THIS BEING EASTER I THINK IT BOTH FITTING AND PROPER TO STATE WHAT I BELIEVE AND WHY. Throughoout the history of mankind there have been many attempts to explain the relationship between human mortals and the supernatural. Of all of these, the only one that makes complete sense is Christianity.
The Justice of God is Perfect Justice, God being perfect. So many today claim to be for "justice". But how can someone who is guilty of multiple offenses single out another for a single offense and demand "justice" on that individual without bringing the justice for his own offenses upon his own head??
Fruit A man kills five people. He is sentenced to death and executed. But his blood can only pay for one murder. Wherewith can he pay for the rest??
How many minor (or major) offenses are any of us guilty of?? How many of us can say we are otherwise perfect, and do penence for just that one thing? And even were it so, how can we call back our wrong and the pain it has caused?
Lots of people think that Adam and Eve's sin was in eating a forbidden "apple". In fact, they were forbidden only to eat of "the fruit of the tree of the kowledge of good and evil". The fruit of the tree of Eternal Life was hanging there waiting for them to discover. BUT. Before they did, a rebellious angel known now as Satan decided to screw things up. Satan was jealous of the new humans. He had wanted to kick God out and take over, and now here were two new creations "made in His image". He had to o something QUICK before we ate the tree of Eternal Life and took over.
So Satan decieved them into doing what God told them NOT to do, BEFORE they found the Tree of eternal Life.
As a rebel in the Kingdom of heaven, Satan was and is under a sentence of Eternal Damnation. And from the Garden unto today he accuses every single human being on Earth of the same rebellion he is guilty of, and demands (according to God's Perfect Justice) that we suffer the same fate he is doomed to.
But there is a loophole. If a guilty man can only atone for his own guilt for one offense with one death, he cannot therefore atone for the many other offenses he has committed with that death. But if a TOTALLY INNOCENT AND PERFECT MAN sheds his blood in the name of all other men, THAT is a perfect atonement.
And so God became one of us, born of a virgin, and lived a perfect life. And in the end, we killed him. And He went willingly to His torture and death. He always said he was there to save first the Jews, and when they cried to Pontius Pilate : "LET HIS BLOOD BE UPON US AND OUR CHILDREN!!" they (although they did not know it) were staking first claim upon the most precious gift God haad ever offered, or ever will.
And so on this Easter, Anno Domini 2009, please allow me, an abject and totally unworthy sinner, to say "Thank you, God, for providing so great a Salvation.
Many non-Christians quote what they say are the "central tenets" of Christianity" in response to spiritual debate. The "Central tenets" are these:
(1) I believe that Jesus of Nazreth is God, the Son of God. (2)I believe He was born of the Virgin Mary and lived a sinless life (3)I believe he was tried and executed on the Cross by Pontius Pilate (4)I believe he died, was buried, and on the third day after arose. (4)I believe that He will soon return to establish His Kingdom on the Earth.
Adoramus te, Christe, et benedicimus tibi, quia per sanctam crucem tuam redemisti mundum. Qui passus es pro nobis, Domine, miserere nobis.
We adore you, O Christ, and we bless you, because by your holy cross you have redeemed the world. O Lord, who suffered for us, have mercy on us.
1. How will you pray and worship today? I had planned on joining the seminary community in the stations of the cross this afternoon, but I took a tumble the other day and am very sore. Today, weather permitting, they will be done outside, going to various stations around the campus. But tonight I will be at Rural Lutheran assisting with the Good Friday liturgy.
2. Share a powerful memory or memories of Good Friday past. One year when I lived in the Holy Land, an ecumenical group gathered and did a prayer walk to the various places Christ went prior to the crucifixion. We completed our walk at the Church of All Nations. What made this such a profound experience is that it hammered home to me the reality of our faith. These events of Holy Week happened in real places, in real historical time.
3. How have you grown and experienced God's love during this past Lent? I have had a greater sense of God's presence and have found grace to keep things in perspective when it comes to mountains of reading and work and relationships with God and others. Somehow, I have not been flipping out with the work as much and have been able to be more present for my husband and friends. It's all grace.
4. In whom do you see the face of the suffering Christ most clearly? In the people of Gettysburg. The community has been rocked with two very unexpected acts of violence, one just yesterday. It is a shock for this small town. Please keep everyone in prayer, especially those of our sister institution, the Gettysburg College community.
5. Where do you find hope for resurrection? By looking back throughout my life and remembering God's continual faithfulness. At the risk of sounding trite--in God, I find hope for resurrection.
Bonus: Share a song, poem, or prayer that makes the paschal mystery come alive for you. There are so many, but what has been running through my mind most of Lent has been "O Sacred Head Now Wounded."
As BobDylan wrote, “The times they are a changin.’ This Sunday is one of those changing, transitional times in our church year. The end of Lent is near as we move through Holy Week towards Easter.
Today, we’ve heard and participated in the celebratory parade with Palms, singing “All Glory Laud and Honor,” walking down the Mt. of Olives with Jesus during his triumphal entry into Jerusalem. Did you hear the hosannas? This crowd was excited. They wanted to crown Jesus as king!
When I lived in the Holy Land in the 1980s, on Palm Sunday, Christians of all denominations and languages would gather on the Mt. of Olives. We would sing, pray, and joyfully walk down the Mt. into Jerusalem. We were Christians of all nationalities and languages singing and shouting, “Hosanna!” It was like being transported back in time to Jesus’ time. Can you imagine what it must have been like on that first Palm Sunday?
This morning our readings take us to other places as well however—places where we do not hear “Hosanna.” Did you hear our gospel reading? Was Jesus being praised? Did people still want to crown him as king?
Instead of hosannas, we heard, “Crucify him!” We not only walked with Jesus to Jerusalem, but we also journeyed with him as he was tried and crucified. We went from the parade to the Passion. We are now hearing the words of Jesus’ suffering and death, which will continue with Maundy Thursday and Good Friday. The words we hear each year are so familiar. We know them so very well,but do we really hear them?
What does our first reading from Isaiah have to say?
“The Lord God has given me the tongue of a teacher, that I may know how to sustain the weary with a word. Morning by morning he wakens— wakens my ear to listen as those who are taught.”
The people of Israel were weary. The people were in exile in Babylon. Their faith was on life support. God had a wonderful message of good news for them--that he would bring them back home. The prophet was sent to encourage the discouraged.
God teaches, and then the prophet teaches. He is both a speaker and a listener. He can only speak because he listens. His ears were as engaged as his tongue. The prophet will listen both to God and to the people. By listening to the people, the prophet will understand their experience, their weariness. By listening to God, he will know how God is acting in the midst of the grief and weariness.
Didn’t Jesus do the very same thing? In John’s gospel he said, “The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own…” He only spoke the words God gave him to speak. And he could only do that because he listened to the Father.
Have you ever wondered how Jesus was able to endure the suffering and pain he knew was awaiting him in Jerusalem? The crowd shouting hosanna wanted to crown him king. Do you think it was tempting to go with that plan instead of the cross? What sustained him when he knew what lie ahead?Remember how he prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, “My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what you want.” How could he know what his Father wanted? He listened. We read in the gospels that Jesus would go off by himself to pray, just as he did in the garden.
I heard a story recently. A man had a special place in his home where he would spend time in prayer and reading the scripture. He was spending around a half an hour a day before going to work. He was having a great time in prayer and devotion and really sensed God’s presence. He started getting busier and busier at work. He was under such pressure and was so tired, so the time was cut back to 10 minutes. Then some days he just didn’t get up early enough to pray and maybe once or twice a week he made the time. After a while he couldn’t remember how long it had been since he’d gone to his special prayer place…maybe a month or more. So, one Saturday, he walked into the room and saw someone there. Jesus was there waiting for him. Jesus had not gone anywhere and was just waiting to talk with the man if only the man would stop long enough to listen!
What would happen if we treated members of our family that way? What if your spouse or children only talked to you when they needed something and never told you how much they love and appreciate you? MartinLuther said the busier he got, the more time he had to spend in prayer, not less.
God wakens our ears to listen.
We all have those hard things in life we have to face: sickness, death of a loved one, divorce, or betrayal by a friend. What has sustained you through the rough times? What has been the touchstone for you? Have you allowed God to speak those words of encouragement and healing? In my life there have been those times when all I could do hold on to was God. What about you?
God has called each of us into his service by virtue of our baptism. We are called to speak and live for Christ even if we do not realize others are listening and watching.
A couple of Fridays ago, a few of my classmates and I went to a restaurant in Gettysburg. After a while, a gentleman from another table approached us. He asked if he had heard right that we were involved with faith and church. We told him that was correct. He then proceeded to tell us about a serious situation regarding a woman who had just given birth and was in critical condition. He asked us to remember her in prayer. We assured him we would add her to the prayer list.
Old Testament scholar, WalterBrueggemann has written this prayer:
Holy Week is almost upon us, I suspect that ordained or not, other revgal/pals calendars look a bit like mine, FULL, FULL, FULL.....
Jesus was great at teaching us to take time out, even in that last week, right up to Maunday Thursday he withdrew, John's gospel tells us he hid! He hid not because he was afraid, but because he knew that he needed physical, mental and spiritual strength to get through...
So faced with a busy week:
1. What restores you physically?
An afternoon nap.Usually my dog will join me.
2. What strengthens you emotionally/ mentally?
Going out for supper Friday night with friends. This grew into a ritual after having Greek till 4:45 in the fall semester. We were so drained and this helped to rejuvenate us. It is now a tradition.
3. What encourages you spiritually?
Gathering with the community for prayer, whether it’s chapel, lectio divina, or compline.
4. Share a favourite poem or piece of music from the coming week.
O Sacred Head Now Wounded.
5.There may be many services for you to attend/ lead over the next week, which one are you most looking forward to and why? If there aren't do you have a favourite day in Holy week if so which one is it?
I am most looking forward to the one that will begin my leadership role this week, Tuesday chapel. One of my good friends and I are paired up for it. Then from Thursday on I’ll be at my teaching parish assisting with the services. This will be the first Holy Week that I’ve been in a leadership role in each service.
I think if we are honest with ourselves, the main battleground in quiet, meditative prayer and Bible reading, is our wandering minds. It has been wonderful, several times a week to gather with a few others and prayerfully, meditatively read scripture. We gain wonderful insights and blessings from approaching this discipline communally. But it is in those moments of silence, when I should be pondering profound passages like, "But not so with you; rather the greatest among you must become like the youngest, and the leader like one who serves" (Luke 22:26), that my mind wanders to what I need to pick up at the store later, what's coming up class work-wise, or sometimes I'm on the brink of falling asleep. It is at those times that I feel a bit like one of those sleeply disciples Jesus scolded for not being able to stay awake while he prayed in Gethsemane.
