Meditation in Eastertide ~ Saturday, Week 5 '24: The Constant Pursuit Of...

May 4, 2024 ~ Saturday, Week 5

It is the very pursuit of happiness

that thwarts happiness. 

 

~ Viktor E. Frankl* 

 

So, God,

      Where did some of us get the idea that happiness is our birthright? We spend so much of our lives chasing after it and even worrying about how to get it, and then how to keep it. How many of us have said: If I can just have that car, if we can live in that neighborhood, if that promotion comes through, if I win the big lottery, then I'll be happy. We waste whole days of living looking back crying or regretting about "if only _X_ had been different" and looking ahead thinking "if only I can have _Y_" that we completely miss today. I want to stop missing now by spending my time wishing to change the past while dreaming about having all the things I think I want to have in the future.  Please, Lord, while I know it's useful and responsible to make plans and work toward fulfilling current and future goals, at the same time help me see that this moment is the place to fully be and live with whatever is happening. 

      Oh, while you're at it, push me to see and understand the luxury and advantage of the life I have with all its ups, downs, and sideways moments with the sheer privilege of choice to just think about how to attain certain "things" that may fill me with happiness.  As I muse about me, uncountable millions of Your children are hungry, desperate, in fear for their lives, imprisoned, tortured, enslaved, reviled for the color of their skin, their gender, their sexual orientation, their religion, their nationality, ethnicity, and so much more, and much of it in the name of You in some misguided and dangerous religious fervor and the damaging primacy of nationalism.

    As a child finds joy in blowing the seeds of a dandelion into the breeze, let me seek and experience the joy in the present as the fruit of the past, with lessons learned as the seeds of the future. Endow me with the grace to accept wherever and however the seeds of today fall, fail, and blossom. Remind me each waking hour to keep myself grounded in You in heart, mind, and spirit, rather than the constant pursuit of that mostly indefinable something I could call Happiness. Guide, or even shove me, into being far less selfish in order to bloom into being more selfless, in this Your Ground with the gift of living in it. I'm beginning right now. amen.    

*Viktor Frankl, [1905-1997] an Austrian neurologist and psychiatrist, focused some of his early studies on depression and suicide and set up a youth counseling center in Vienna that successfully reduced teen suicide. Later he set up a suicide prevention program in a psychiatric hospital for women from 1933 to 1937. Being Jewish, he was required to close his practice as the Germans annexed Austria and he was interned in the Nazi Holocaust of concentration camps for three years losing his wife, his mother, and his brother. His seminal work, Man's Search for Meaning, chronicles his imprisonment. It was through this unimaginable time he realized the importance of finding meaning in all forms of existence even under the most difficult and nearly  indescribably horrible experiences and yet finding reasons to continue to live. As he said, crisis offers new opportunities to live as if for the second time. He authored many other books including Yes to Life In Spite of Everything, published 11 months after his liberation from Auschwitz. 

 

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Meditation in Eastertide ~ Friday, Week 5: The Road to ....

May 3, 2024 ~ Friday, Week 5

You are what you do, 

not what you say you'll do.

~ C.G. Jung* 

Dear Spirit of All Good Intentions ~

       I am often guilty of following the path of least resistance, also known as the prettier and easier way to procrastinate. Equally as often, I make elaborate plans to do so many good things but then allow myself to fall into the bottomless pit of more or even less enjoyable distractions. I can also jump easily into being overly busy at both necessary and superficial pursuits or worse, slacking off altogether. As Paul says in Romans 7:19: For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. Well, I'm not out there doing so much evil, I mean, I don't think I'm doing bad things so much as I'm just not doing as many good things as I could. Or, maybe, it's just that my intention planning or completion are off track as so many bad things are happening all over at an overwhelming pace so I just walk past to buy cupcakes.

       I can easily race through a day, a week, a month thoughtlessly, without really processing WHY I'm doing things and what exactly are my intentions be they good, not-so-good, or just neutral.  

      Please help me by-pass the mere intent to do. Stoke within me the doing and not merely saying. Push my head and heart to begin and end each day with the prayer I need to kickstart my engine from idea to initiative to action. Help me to walk through each part of the day with You as my reason for being, with You as my reason for doing, with You who inspires all Good Intentions. Um, do You mind if I take the walk along that pretty path while I pray?  I'll consciously work to stay intentionally focused on doing what must be done afterward while still carrying my prayer with me. amen

*Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and psychotherapist and is known as the founder of analytical psychology. He developed the concept of archetypes, extroversion and introversion, and the collective unconscious. His deep and collegial friendship with Sigmund Freud lasted about 6 years until a serious disagreement broke the relationship. Jung believed, in part, that spiritual development, a journey of transformation was essential for human well-being. His study of many religions gave rise to his thought that in what he called individuation, a journey to meet the self also leads to meeting the Divine.

 

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Meditation in Eastertide ~ Thursday, Week 5: This Guy...

May 2, 2024 ~ Thursday, Week 6

Image from Psalm Prayers on Facebook/Etsy  

    The Lord did not come to make a display. He came to heal and to teach suffering [people]. For one who wanted to make a display, the thing would have been just to appear and dazzle the beholders. But for Him who came to heal and to teach the way was not merely to dwell here, but to put Himself at the disposal of those who needed Him, and to be manifested according as they could bear it, not vitiating the value of the Divine appearing by exceeding their capacity to receive it.

~ St. Athanasius of Alexandria*

 

 *Renowned, Significant, Profound, Influential ~ there are too few superlatives to fully contain the work of St. Athanasius of Alexandria [c. 296-373] who is celebrated today. At age 30 he became the 20th Bishop (Archbishop/Patriarch) of Alexandria, Egypt with a tenure of 45 years. He is also known as Athanasius the Great, Athanasius the Confessor and, primarily in the Coptic Orthodox Church**, Athanasius the Apostolic. He has been named a Doctor of the Church by the Roman Catholic Church, Father of Orthodoxy by the Eastern Orthodox, and Father of the Canon by Protestant theologians.  

   Despite being exiled 5 times by 4 Roman Emperors for political and theological reasons, it is his Trinitarian theology that defines mainstream Christianity today.

   His first great theological struggle was against Arius, a priest from Libya, at the first Council of Nicaea in the year 325. Arius denied the divinity of Christ and his "Arian" orthodoxy was the prevalent theology of the day. It was denounced and ultimately trounced by Athanasius who argued for the dual nature of Jesus ~ human and divine ~ declaring that only one who was fully human could atone for human sin and only one who was fully divine could have the power to save us. He said, that "Those who maintain 'There was a time when the Son was not [divine]' rob God of his Word, like plunderers." Arianism is now considered as heresy. 

   Athanasius' view of the Incarnation is what informed the structure of the Nicene Creed that is used today and he was also the first to identify the 27 books that make up the New Testament canon we use as well. Not without his detractors even today, nonetheless, even if you've never heard his name, if you are Anglican/Episcopal, Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, or Coptic Catholic ~ and any other Christian who reads the New Testament, you have the benefit of this man's work. Diminutive in stature, he was and continues to be a giant in the history of Christianity.

God, our Creator ~ God, our Redeemer ~ God, our Sanctifier,
     You, as 3 in 1, are simply yet complexly God.  It is to each, all, and only You that I pray at this moment. My head cannot understand or define You in Your three-in-one-ness, but if I could, then You could not be You. Let me not be too concerned with the depth and breadth of all the philosophical and theological stuff that others much smarter than me, like Your servant Athanasius, have argued over. Just help me to remember, that each day in my life, all I only need is You to walk with me on the Way. amen.

 **The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, is the primary Christian Church in Egypt also serving elsewhere in Africa and the Middle East. Their first Bishop is considered to be St. Mark, the Evangelist from whose “See,” or “seat” is still held by the Pope of Alexandria.

 

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Meditation in Eastertide ~ Wednesday Week 5: Who ARE These Guys?

May 1, 2024 ~ Wednesday, Week 5

May 1 ~ Feast of:

 St. Philip and  St. James

       Saints Philip and James are on the Anglican/Episcopal Church calendar today, two of the original 12 Apostles called directly by Jesus to follow Him (see Mark 3:13-19). What little we know of Philip is that he lived in Bethsaida, in Galilee, the same town as Peter and Andrew. After meeting Jesus, Philip told Nathaniel that Jesus is "the one about whom Moses and the Prophets wrote" (see John 1:43-51). 

     We don't know much about James except that he is the son of Alphaeus and he is called James the Lesser ~ and he is not the son of Cleopas, nor is he James the son of Zebedee who is known as James the Greater, nor is he considered to be the author of the Letter of James in the New Testament. 

     We do know that they were pretty ordinary guys called to follow an extraordinary man. It appears from some of the discussions all the Apostles had with Jesus at one time or another that they weren't always swift on the uptake. Jesus was a bit impatient at times with their lack of "getting it" (see John 14:8-9a) but they ultimately understood and, as Jesus said they would, they received the power to heal, and preach, and teach in His name. They were each an integral part of the foundation that Jesus laid and He, the Cornerstone, called them, and us, to continue the work after His resurrection.

 

  Jesus, Fisher of Souls,
       You called these everyday-men to give up their ordinary lives to follow You, and they did.  Without completely understanding everything that You were about, they trusted, they believed, and they grew into all that You wanted them to be. Even though there was uncertainty, they sometimes squabbled, asked frustrating questions, and they were occasionally fearful, You reached their hearts, and minds, and bodies. You molded them into Your earthly legacy that comes down to us today.  
      Thank You, Lord, for the example of these men. They remind me that, as an ordinary everyday person who doesn't always understand everything, with You as the Cornerstone of my Faith, I am also part of the continual building on the foundation they began, living in and through all that You taught. In this Easter season, help me Day by Day* to know You more clearly, love You more dearly, and follow You more nearly, each and every day.  amen. 

 

*Click here for: Day by Da

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Meditation in Eastertide: Tuesday, Week 5: Sometimes a Little Kick Can Help

April 30, 2024 ~ Tuesday, Week 5

We should ask God to

increase our hope when it is small,

awaken it when it is dormant,

confirm it when it is wavering,

strengthen it when it is weak,

and raise it up when it is overthrown.

~ John Calvin*

      Well, God, I think I'm a pretty hopeful person. But as I think about it in this moment, I'm not always sure what I'm hopeful about. When I was young I was hopeful about a happy marriage and great kids, a successful career and lots of travel.  Some of it has happened.  Some of it went a very different way. There were times when things were so bleak I didn't care enough to even want to have hope. But then, through no action of my own, hope blossomed again.

      SO, what am I hopeful about now?  Mostly, I want to be hopeful even when hope by itself  doesn't change things. Of course I hope for the usual list: good health, healthy family and friends, world peace, ending hunger and violence, etc. But so much these days, well, I guess most of the time, is beyond my control and that takes me down a path of despair, or, at the very least feeling disheartened. 

     I want to and hope to be a better follower of Jesus, taking to heart, especially His commandment to love You and all my neighbors and myself. Some days are better than others with those. At the very least, I know that when life is painful and chaotic, I can pray for the desire to hope and for, as Reinhold Niehbuhr says in his prayer, the wisdom to accept the things I cannot change and change the things I can**. And, when I am feeling hopeful, send a reminder for me to give thanks to You ~ an unexpected butterfly or a child’s smile, or the neighbor's dog who runs to me and licks my hand even with no treat in it! While I do know that You are always here, sometimes a little kick somewhere can help.  amen.

  

*John Calvin [1509-1564] was born in France and so would have been addressed by the French pronunciation of his name mostly lost to us over time, which is approximately Zhawn Cal-vawn. The ordained Calvin left the Roman Catholic Church and became a major player in the Protestant Reformation. His writings were contentious and he was influential in at least one execution. He and his contemporary, Martin Luther, had respect for one another early on though each had a differing theological view. There was a disagreement between Luther and a Reformer in Zurich, Huldrych Zwingli, over the interpretations regarding the Eucharist. Calvin's opinions on the matter caused Luther to equate Calvin with Zwingli. From those tempestuous beginnings, Calvin's theological perspective is seen as the major influence for the Reformed, Congregational, and Presbyterian churches throughout the world today. While not my favorite theologian, the lesson to be gleaned is that there is always something useful to be gleaned from reading and/or listening to someone with whom we disagree.

 

** Here is the full, original, unabridged Niebuhr text of the famous Serenity Prayer:  

God, give us grace to accept with serenity the things that cannot be changed,

Courage to change the things

which should be changed,

and the Wisdom to distinguish

the one from the other.

Living one day at a time,

Enjoying one moment at a time,

Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,

Taking, as Jesus did,

This sinful world as it is,

Not as I would have it,

Trusting that You will make all things right,

If I surrender to Your will,

So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,

And supremely happy with You forever in the next.

Amen.

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Prayers of the People: It’s Personal ~ Sixth Sunday of Easter '24 Yr B

For Sunday, May 5, 2024; Readings: Acts 10:44-48, Psalm 98, 1 John 5:1-6, John 15:9-17

The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out, even on the Gentiles...Then Peter said, "Can anyone withhold the water for baptizing these people who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?" [Acts 10:45, 46b-47]

    Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things...He remembers his mercy and faithfulness to the house of Israel, and all the ends of the earth have seen the victory of our God... In righteousness shall he judge the world, and the peoples with equity. [Ps 98:1, 4, 10]

    Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the parent loves the child…For the love of God is this, that we obey his commandments…for whatever is born of God conquers the world. And this is the victory…our faith. Who is it that conquers the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? [1 John 5:1, 3a, 4-5]

    Jesus said to his disciples, "As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love...This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you...And I appointed you to go and bear fruit, fruit that will last... [John 15:9, 12, 16b]

     NINE YEARS AGO, that is, in 2015, I wrote the following:  How intrusive is this [Gospel] message against the backdrop of mistrust, hatred of "the other," and the seemingly endless and rampant violence across the world and in our local communities? Them vs Us, You vs Me, This is Mine, You can’t do/have/be…is as ancient as Caine and Abel and never tires of repeating. As the reading from Acts tells us, the circumcised believers...were astounded that the Holy Spirit was given even to the Gentiles. Peter was clear that the water of baptism cannot be withheld from those who are different because they have received the Holy Spirit just as we have... And Jesus was even more clear: This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. I see no room for negotiation here. Yet we continue with judgment that is meant only to be God’s when the prevailing thought is those people are doing terrible things so how can Jesus possibly expect us to love them? Well, what we think he expects is irrelevant, he commands it. IF we believe in Jesus, then we must bear the fruit of God's love to all people, in all places, and everywhere. NO MATTER WHAT ANYONE THINKS ABOUT “THEM,” EVERYONE IS INCLUDED IN HIS COMMANDMENT! And yes, I am shouting!

    Today I find it more than disheartening to realize that things, nine years later, are now exponentially worse on so many levels especially in issues of race, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, and politics ~ talk about lions and tigers and bears, oh my! ~ not to mention dragons and snakes and skunks. Yet there are some seeds of hope grounded in love, amidst the anger, frustration, and despair, that are rising up, beginning to flower, and showing great potential to bear sweet and sustaining fruit for sharing. I have to stop often to remember that Jesus didn't require us to "like" anyone, only love them. We are to seek not only Jesus but ourselves in another. "Oh, really," you say, "nothing of Jesus or me is found in THAT person." Look harder and listen more closely. What you and I think and feel ~ and say? ~ about those we label as them may very well be what they think and feel and say about us. We are likely to uncomfortably discover that we are not so very different from them after all. Maybe, if we go beyond the “Golden Rule” to employ the “Platinum Rule” those others might be slightly easier to love. What is the platinum rule? “Do unto others as they would have you do unto them.” If I only do what I want done for me how is that helpful to another? For example, if I invite you to dinner and fill the table with all my favorite foods without asking if you have preferences or allergies or serious dislikes, who is more comfortable? Is not Love for another to go beyond our wants and wishes?

     That said, the stark truth must be acknowledged: Our loving of them does not require ~ nor will it regularly result in ~ reciprocation. The dangers, fears, and tensions of the world will not suddenly evaporate because we are more intentionally loving people. Yes, there is evil intent in this world that no amount of love or understanding will resolve. But judgment belongs to God. As the psalmist says: In righteousness shall he judge the world and the peoples with equity. [Ps 98:10]

    As we listen, hear, and remember the Gospel message together, we can work as a team to learn and practice how to love, through the experience of intentional relationship. After all, even in a loving family, not everyone is happy with everyone all the time, but we work through it because of the connections we want to maintain. And sometimes we have to let go of the things we don’t like about another in order to sustain the relationship.  

    Of course, we are not called to pursue “relationships” with everyone, especially with those who intend harm. We are, however, to reconcile our first thoughts and actions through the lens of Christ’s love. It’s hard and often un-rewarding work in this life. Yet, we are promised much more than a rose garden for following Christ’s commandment. This life is short though it can feel endless when we encounter very demanding, difficult, and desperate days ~ and people. Feeling supported in the trials of faith by the presence of Christ and the Holy Spirit, and in community, we can come to believe that working to act in, through, and by love ~ first, last, and always ~ as best we can in this mortal time, is always personal, whether directed outwardly or inwardly. 

LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY

Leader:  ~ Christ Jesus, Born of God and Woman, as You chose us to be bearers of the fruit of Your eternal love, lift us from the shadows of doubt. Awaken our souls to follow Your Commandments to love one another and to fully abide in You as You abide in us.

                                 Oh Lord of Mercy and Faithfulness                                         

     RESPONSE:  Guide us to offer Love first, last, and always     

~ Christ Jesus, Born of God and Woman, grant us such consciousness of our gifts from the Spirit, that we hold ourselves and those who govern accountable, throughout this Planet, this Country, and this Community; acting always to uphold Your standards of righteousness and equity, on behalf of all people everywhere. We pray especially for: add your own petitions

                                              Oh Lord of Mercy and Faithfulness

                                              Guide us to offer Love first, last, and always

~ Christ Jesus, Born of God and Woman, lovingly embrace with healing all who are ill in body, mind, or soul, and all who give them love and care. We now join our hearts to pray for those in need… add your own petitions

                                                 Oh Lord of Mercy and Faithfulness

                                                 Guide us to offer Love first, last, and always  

~ Christ Jesus, Born of God and Woman, with trumpets and the sound of the horn You shout with joy, as those who have risen above this earthly plain are welcomed to the everlasting peace of new life in You. We pray especially for… add your own petitions

                                                 Oh Lord of Mercy and Faithfulness

                                                 Guide us to offer Love first, last, and always

~ Christ Jesus, Born of God and Woman, we pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials… add your own petitions

                                                 Oh Lord of Mercy and Faithfulness

                                                 Guide us to offer Love first, last, and always

~ Christ Jesus, Born of God and Woman,  we offer special thanksgivings for those among us who are anointed to teach and lead us in Your Word and Ways. Grant them continual renewal of purpose and endless replenishment of vim and vigor. We pray especially for: add your own petitions 

                                                 Oh Lord of Mercy and Faithfulness

                                                 Guide us to offer Love first, last, and always

The Celebrant adds: Almighty and Ever-Loving God, infuse us with the inner peace and fortitude to let the actions of our lives be the instruments of rejoicing playing new songs of faith and love, each and every day. We ask through Jesus, our Loving Redeemer; and the Holy Spirit, Your Truth; who together with You, are One God, now and forever.  Amen.

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Meditation in Eastertide ~ Monday, Week 5 '24: Catherine of Siena

April 29, 2024 ~ Monday Week 5

To show the love that we have for Him,we ought to serve and love

every rational creature and extend our charity to good and bad 

-- as much to one who does us ill service and criticizes us 

as to one who serves us. For, His charity extends 

over [the] just men and sinners. 

~ St. Catherine of Siena*

Our Risen Lord Christ, 

     We need Your help, more than ever, to live into Catherine's description of Your Great Commandment. When we feel maligned, insulted, or emotionally wounded by others, keep us conscious of the lives we touch and the similar impact we may have on them whether intended or not. Remind us to apologize when we have injured, and to hold back anger, un-judge, and respond with kindness in all circumstances. Guide our minds to love and forgive with You in our hearts. It is always the right place and the right time to remember the right teachings You give to us all.  amen.

*Catherine [1347-1380], the 23rd of 24 children, began having visions of Jesus at age 6. She had such visions often in which Jesus spoke to her and although she attempted to live a “more worldly life” for several years as requested by her parents, she lived almost a hermit life in her family home until she reached an age to live in a monastic community. She was a Third Order member of the Dominicans ~ a lay person, not a vowed member of the community but an adherent to its principles and rules. She was the first woman to wear the black and white Dominican habit. Catherine was a Scholastic Philosopher and Theologian and although never learning to read or right, she was no shrinking violet. Her dictated writings and thoughts to Bishops were so critically important in male dominated times, she convinced Pope Gregory VI to move the papacy back to Rome from Avignon in an extended time of conflict within the Church itself. She was named a Doctor of the Church (one who has shown significant importance in theology and doctrine) by Pope Paul VI in 1970 along with Teresa of Avila, the first two women so named to one of the Roman Church's highest honors.

  Only 33 at her death, Catherine's profound spiritual writings and tremendous political influence were highly exceptional for her times and she remains greatly respected today.

 

Of the 35 Doctors of the [Roman Catholic] Church, the other 2 women are St. Therese of Lisieux (also known as The Litte Flower), and St. Hildegard of Bingen.

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