Some of the most wonderful gifts from God come in the form of whispers.
They are the small gifts. The gifts for a particular moment, not to be grasped at, but merely accepted. And if the taker is alert and awake, the heart will swell with gratitude.
On a Sunday not too long ago, I was the fortunate recipient of a bevy of such gifts.
First, a little background. For most of my life, I was a vocalist and songwriter …
The greatest joy as a vocalist was leading the singing at Sunday mass. My parish, St. Luke the Evangelist in Westborough, MA is a blessed community full of active, generous and loving people.
The church building is a minor cathedral, acoustically perfect with high concrete ceilings, carved pillars supporting graceful Corinthian arches, and shiny slate floors. Voices ring and linger in that sacred space.
Each Sunday I enjoyed the privilege of choosing the music and leading the congregation in prayer through song …
I led music for most of my adult life. In 2010, all that changed …
My husband represents the East as a deacon in the Eastern Catholic Melkite Church. The Eastern Catholic Churches celebrate the Byzantine liturgy with its many beautiful and meaningful rituals. Their sanctuaries are full of beautiful icons with gold backgrounds; they appear at times translucent, permitting the eye and the imagination to travel beyond this world to heavenly heights.
It’s the Orthodox tradition: experiential, sacramental, mystical, rich and deep.
I represent the West as a Roman Catholic. My home parish is a mini cathedral with carved pillars supporting graceful Corinthian arches. Light-filled and colorful, the stained glass windows tell stories of the Gospels through the rosary mysteries. Paintings of the stations of the cross line the walls, inviting one to prayer. And the golden tabernacle, holding the true presence of Christ in the host, is positioned in the place of honor at the front of the church, behind the altar.
I come from the Roman tradition, also sacramental, rich and deep, but based more on reason perhaps than experience.
I love living in an East-West household, receiving the benefits of Eastern thinking, augmenting, and softening perhaps my Western way of thought.
My husband and I share many lively discussions about our faith.
His conversion to the Eastern Catholic Church was one of the greatest gifts to our marriage.
I enjoy learning about his approach to faith and can do so readily through a website known as Ancient Faith Radio. One can listen 24/7 to beautiful Byzantine chant and learn from the many podcasts espousing Orthodox teaching.
My favorite is “Search the Scriptures,” hosted by Dr. Jeannie Constantinou, presenting “interesting and accessible bible study for busy people.” Dr. Jeannie, thanks to her vast education in a variety of settings, combines a passionate love for the Bible and Orthodox spirituality with her love of ancient history. She makes the pages and people of the Bible truly come alive.
Today she taught about Isaiah, chapter 6 which describes the prophet’s vision of heaven
It reminded me of why mystery is such a wonderful and freeing concept.
The first three verses of chapter 6 read as follows (New King James version):
In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above it stood seraphim; each one had six wings: with two he covered his face, with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. 3 And one cried to another and said:
“Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory!”
Dr. Jeannie went on to explain, citing her favorite Church Father St. John Chrysostom (aka, “The Golden Mouth), the impossibility of describing the nature and essence of God. As God is formless, there is no way to physically describe Him. Why even the seraphim are formless!
So how can Isaiah write this description of heaven?
Isaiah needed a way to convey the truth of what he saw in his vision: the utter majesty and glory of God. Even though seraphim are not known to have form, the traditional image is of an angel with wings (and in this case, six). By having the seraphim covering his face and feet with his wings, Isaiah is demonstrating how the being could not look upon the countenance of God, for His glory was too much for him. St. John Chrysostom goes on to explain the meaning of the feet being covered as well as the face, as a means of demonstrating the seraphim’s knowledge that he was a lowly creature in the sight of such magnificence.
Dr. Jeannie cited other parts of the Bible, including the Genesis creation story as similar examples of writers using human examples to describe the indescribable so as to convey important theological and spiritual truths.
Looking at the Bible that way, backed up by rich ancient history she provides, surely does make the pages and people come alive.
But the reason why I so enjoy hearing the Bible taught in this way, through the lens of Orthodoxy, is that it reminds me of the utter mystery of God.
Rather than trying to explain difficult concepts such as the Holy Trinity or the essence of God, how much more enjoyable, fruitful and freeing it is to just release the need to understand and go with the flow of the mystery, allowing it to sweep me along.
This, of course, requires a Guide (the Holy Spirit), thus I need to remain in prayer to continue the journey safely.
The book I cited in my last post, The Naked Now, presents a simple and profound way to remain in prayer at all times and it fits in perfectly with the indescribable magnificence of God.
Author Richard Rohr
Richard Rohr, in talking about the name of God, said that word Yahweh (in Hebrew, YHVH) “was considered a literally unspeakable word … From God’s side the divine identity was kept mysterious and unavailable to the mind; when Moses asked for the divinity’s name, he got only the phrase that translates something to this effect: “I AM WHO AM … This is my name forever, this is my title for all generations.” (Exodus 3:14-15) (page 25, The Naked Now by Richard Rohr).
Rohr says the word was not spoken; no, it was breathed. The first and last thing we do each day, and at the beginning and end of life. The thing that we must do to live.
We breathe, thus speaking the unspeakable, over and over again.
Breathing and mystery … wonderful things to lose myself in today …
I belong to a wonderful group of women from the Diocese of Worcester, Massachusetts known as the Commission for Women of the Diocese of Worcester. Established in 1989 by Bishop Timothy J. Harrington, the following mission statement of the commission explains its goals:
“The Commission for Women shall serve as an advisory board to the resident bishop of Worcester in regard to women’s issues. It shall function as a liaison between women in the diocese and the resident bishop, raising and promoting awareness of the evolving role of women in the church and society. The commission shall strive to bond together the women of the diocese through spiritual, educational and social programs.”
I help out with the blog and wanted to invite you to join our Virtual Book Club. We are studying The Cup of Our Life by Joyce Rupp. It is a wonderful spiritual guide with an array of exercises involving a written reflection by Joyce, quiet prayer time, and prompts for journaling.
Joyce Rupp recently presented a retreat day for women with subject being “The Art of Self Compassion.” It was a truly blessed day and you can read all about it here.
Because of the enormous success of this day, we are following up with this study of The Cup of Our Life (I will be writing the blog posts). Our hope is to create online discussion as we reflect upon the spiritual wisdom offered in this book.
I believe in God. And I can see evidence of His existence and care for humanity, told through the stories He has left for me to find.
The more I immerse myself in God, the more these stories come to life. I’d like to show you what I saw yesterday during my lunchtime walk.
It’s October. Cool air and gray rainy days are becoming more frequent. Today a soft rain fell, covering the land in a shimmering mist.
The leaves are peaking here in Massachusetts, turning vivid shades of red, orange and yellow. They flash their colors for all to see only to fall to the ground.
Off in the distance I saw a tree, its fallen leaves creating a colorful circle around the trunk.
I started to think: leaves derive their sustenance
from the tree. Once the leaves fall, they will shrivel
up and die.
God was telling me a story.
“I am the tree,” He says, “and each of you are leaves. If you remain connected to the tree, you will flourish. If you decide to fall away, you will die.”
Reflecting on that thought (not unlike John 15:5 when Jesus calls Himself the vine and we the branches), I began examining the leaves on the ground.
Some were still supple and beautifully adorned, just waiting to be admired. Others were brown and dry despite the mist.
And it occurred to me: we, like these leaves, may fall away from our Source of Life and flourish for a time but eventually, the color will fade and life will ebb away until we too are brown and dry.
Even a leaf covered with raindrops cannot survive forever on its own. The drops will evaporate and the leaf will wither. It needs the tree to live.
Thus the story of the vital relationship between God and humanity, told through His creation.
And there is more to this story.
No healthy tree bears only one leaf. Healthy trees are covered with leaves providing the traveler with relief from the heat under shady branches.
God did not intend for us to be alone. Without each other, we also wither and die.
He means for us to be a community, just like He as a Trinitarian God, forms the perfect community of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
A seamless circle of love, continuous and unbroken for all eternity. Perfect love, perfect harmony and we are invited to join.
And unlike leaves which are temporal, dressed in their best colors for a brief moment before fading and dying, we can become perfected as the image of God we were meant to be.
This blog is supposed to be about making connections.. Lately it’s felt more like a hodgepodge, just a collection of unrelated posts. This blog is certainly challenging me to live out what I preach: living life in a single flow.
It ain’t easy!
This weekend however, it suddenly got a lot easier. I was blessed to attend two extraordinary events which practically shouted “Connections! Connections!” to me. The pen couldn’t move fast enough across the page of my notebook to capture all I was hearing so I could share it with you.
I will begin with this past Sunday night.
I teach CCD to high school students and needless to say, it is a challenge. Instead of our normal class last night, the students were treated to a one-man play about the Gospel of St. Luke. It was written and performed by Frank Runyeon.
Frank is a successful actor in television and movies. His bio reads, “He starred for seven years as Steve Andropoulos on As the World Turns opposite Meg Ryan, a storyline that garnered the second highest ratings in the history of daytime television. He next appeared for four years as Father Michael Donnelly on the Emmy award-winning Santa Barbara, and as tycoon Simon Romero on General Hospital, opposite Emma Samms. Frank has also guest-starred in recurring roles on L.A. LAW as talk-show host Brooks Tapman, on Falcon Crest as chess genius Jovan Dmytryk, on Melrose Place as Father Tom, and on All My Children as Forrest Williams.”
But Frank would rather be associated with the art closest to his heart: spreading the Good News of Jesus Christ through his vibrant performance of the Gospels.
He debuted his latest one-man play, “Luke, Stories on the Road” at the parish to which I belong, St. Luke the Evangelist in Westborough, MA.
Ah, the first connection!
I came with low expectations. I’m not a big movie-goer nor have I seen a lot of live plays. I had had a fight with my husband, was blown-out from a weekend of endless activity and just wanted to crawl under the covers.
So it took a bit of time to warm up.
About a half hour into the performance I felt a sudden urge to whip out my notebook and write. Frank spoke and I’d write. His performance became riveting.
The camera soon followed. As a former girl scout, I am always prepared!
Dressed in a simple robe, Frank wove stories from the Old and New Testament, focusing first on the story of King David and his disastrous affair with Bathsheba and moving into the stories of Jesus as recorded by Luke the Evangelist.
In each story, he shared a similar and striking insight: the stories, in many cases, had open endings.
The reason? WE are the ending to the story.
How can that be? These stories are thousands of years old. But inspired by the Spirit of the Living God, their truths are as pertinent today as they have ever been.
And Frank made the scriptures come alive with his talented way of weaving a tale.
Past and present – another connection.
Frank made an important association between the story of King David and Bathsheba (2 Samuel 11; 2 Samuel 12) and the parable of The Rich Man and Lazarus found in Luke 16:19-31.
In the story of King David, Bathsheba found she was pregnant after their affair. To cover up their relationship, David arranged to have her dutiful warrior husband killed in battle (2 Samuel 11). Nathan the prophet was sent by the Lord to point out David’s sin (2 Samuel 12) and he did it through a heart-wrenching tale of a rich man robbing a poor man of his only lamb who had been a member of the family so that he could roast it for his friends.
David was incensed. Who was that man? He should be punished!
It was then that Nathan turned the story around on David, using it to accuse him before God of his sin.
Frank put out the palm of his hand: the story was a mirror clearly showing David’s guilt.
David listened, made the connection and repented of his sin.
The Rich Man and Lazarus Meister des Codex Aureus Epternacensis (source: Wikipedia)
The rich man did the same with poor Lazarus, committing evil against him by not offering him food or comfort as the poor man suffered outside the door of his home.
When both died, Lazarus, in the bosom of Abraham became the mirror to the rich man in agony in Hades. The rich man listened but too late: he must suffer the consequences.
The rich man had Moses and the Prophets, but he didn’t listen.
He failed to make the connection.
Frank shared many such stories from the Gospel of St. Luke, the most powerful being The Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32) and The Publican and the Tax Collector (Luke 18:9-14).
In both cases we are most definitely the end of the story. And it’s not the character that you would imagine.
Frank beautifully conveyed the deep emotion in the story of Prodigal Son, showing the arrogance, ignorance and finally, redemption of the younger son, the deep, generous love of the father, and the bitter resentment of the older son.
The so-called “good” son.
The Return of the Prodigal Son (1773) by Pompeo Batoni
The father and the younger son reconciled. The older son, faithful in service to his father, complained, feeling entitled to better treatment.
And as Frank pointed out, the ending with the “good” son was open-ended.
The “good” son is us. We have to create our own ending.
The same was true with the Publican and the Tax Collector. Both praying in the temple, the Publican pontificating before God about how much he tithed and how much better a person he was than the wretched Tax Collector.
The Tax Collector, knowing he was an outcast in Jewish society, never raised his eyes to God but begged forgiveness.
He was justified. The “good” Publican was not.
And the mirror shines back on us – are we that Publican?
Do we consider ourselves as the “good guys?”
Frank Runyeon, through his vibrant, deeply emotional performance, demonstrated the deep connection of the Living Word of God to our daily lives. We at St. Luke’s were fortunate to have him tell these stories, opening our ears and eyes, helping us to listen and make those connections.
Bring Frank to your church
Frank is available for bookings throughout the country with “Luke: Stories from the Road” and other biblical one-man plays, all written by him. Visit his website at frankrunyeon.com.
Sometimes we need a place to jot down our thoughts and feelings.
We learn something new.
We screw up. Big time.
We receive a surprise blessing.
I wanted to establish this quiet space to share things as they happen to me with the hope that you will see yourself here too. Free free to comment and I will answer. Let’s talk and share.
In this journal I will be sharing insights I learn from scripture, experiences of prayer, encounters with people and with the world … whatever I run into that leads me to God.
I am hoping that in my sharing you will find something that resonates with your spiritual life.
We are never alone. God is with us and not just in church. He in our hearts and souls. He is in each one of us. And he is in the world around us.
In the Catholic lectionary, today’s Gospel from Luke chapter 6 reads as follows:
Jesus said to his disciples: “To you who hear I say, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. To the person who strikes you on one cheek, offer the other one as well, and from the person who takes your cloak, do not withhold even your tunic. Give to everyone who asks of you, and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you …”
When I heard the beginning of this reading I found myself saying,
“No, no, not today, not after all that has happened!”
Of course I am referring to the horrendous murders of the Ambassador to Libya and three other diplomats, and the overpowering of our embassies in Egypt, Yemen and possibly beyond.
I remember learning from Father Robert Barron’s excellent video series, Catholicism that the meaning of this scripture was that our apparent passivity (meaning our radical goodness) would reflect the evil back onto our enemy like a mirror, causing the enemy to repent. And if that person did not repent, you, at least, remained innocent, earning your reward in heaven.
Applying this scripture on an individual basis is possible (especially with the help of God’s grace). I believe however that scripture has a universal application. Therefore, the question:
If we are to love our enemies, what is the proper response to the chaos in Egypt, Libya and the rest of the Middle East? How are we to respond to the heinous murder of our diplomats? May their souls rest in peace and may God console their families.
What would Jesus do?
ADDENDUM: While driving home from work I prayed the Divine Mercy, a prayer honoring the sacrifice of Christ on the cross for the salvation of the world. The prayer is short:
“Eternal Father, I offer you the body, blood, soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ in atonement for our sins and for all the world. For the sake of His sorrowful passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.”
As I prayed this prayer, I looked at a picture of the crucifix on my dashboard and it began to dawn on me that Jesus lived His teaching:
He loved His enemies. He turned the other cheek.
He allowed Himself to be tortured and crucified, surrendering His earthly authority and submitting to the Divine Authority of His Heavenly Father. As a result, a total humiliating defeat was transformed into a miraculous victory: He was risen from the dead.
Jesus employed radical love, as He taught in Luke 6 and the results were more powerful than could ever have been achieved from any human effort.
What does this mean?
In trying to apply this insight to the chaos happening overseas, I realized that first we must lay down our own earthly authority and submit to Divine authority. We do that through prayer.
Prayer for our enemies. Prayer for guidance. And the humility to say, “Lord, we have no idea what we are supposed to do. Lead and guide us.”
We all can have a part in this. We all can pray.
As a nation we need to petition our Heavenly Father. Perhaps we can begin with the prayer of Divine Mercy:
“Eternal Father, I offer you the body, blood, soul and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ in atonement for our sins and for all the world. For the sake of His sorrowful passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world.”
Here we can begin.
I would love to hear your insight. Surely this is a teaching that all Christians grapple with.
On occasion while driving I will listen to the Ancient Faith Radio app on my iPhone. My husband, an Eastern Catholic and deacon in the Melkite Church introduced me to this treasure. Tuning in I can listen to glorious Byzantine chant sprinkled with prayers and sayings.
One set of prayers frequently used is known as Prayers by the Lake by St. Nikolai Velimirovitch, a modern day Orthodox saint.
Today’s prayer ended this way:
O my illustrious King and my God, to You alone I bow down and pray. Flood into me, as a raging stream into thirsty sand. Just flood me with Yourself, life-giving Water; then grass will easily grow in the sand and white lambs will graze in the grass. (Prayers by the Lake, XIX)
The Holy Rover is one of my favorite spiritual blogs; in part, it inspired this blog with regards to spiritual writings. Blogger Lori Erickson presents spirituality in a way that makes me hunger for more. I will be featuring teases from some of her posts with links back to the full post, and I hope you will enjoy them as I do.
To Work is to Pray
The Trappist monks at New York’s Abbey of the Genesee bake bread to help support their community. (Abbey of the Genesee photo)
On a recent trip to upstate New York, my family and I visited the Abbey of the Genesee, a Trappist monastery overlooking the green, rolling countryside south of Rochester. In its gift store, loaves of bread made by the monks were prominently displayed. “Monks selling bread?” my son asked. “Why do they do that?”
One answer, of course, is that monks, like everybody else, need to make a living. Religious houses often operate businesses, from cheese making and dog training to raising chickens. In my home state of Iowa, Our Lady of the Mississippi Abbey sells delicious caramel candies while New Melleray Abbey makes finely crafted wooden caskets.
These enterprises do much more than bring in income, however: they are also a way to craft souls …
Some of the most wonderful gifts from God come in the form of whispers.
Click to Tweet & Share: We live our lives in compartments; feeling disconnected. How about living life in a single flow? Where might it lead? http://wp.me/p2D9hg-x
Would you like to learn along with Susan how to live your life
Click to Tweet & Share
Be as One 