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20 Ways to Say “Clean Up After Yourself” Professionally
ByDCImmersionMarch 5, 2024
These practices were adapted from ways to clean up after yourself professionally. Originally referring to the workspace in an office environment. It does not take much effort to apply these practices to our daily living.
“‘You shall not defile the land in which you live, in which I also dwell, for I the Lord dwell among the Israelites.’ (v 34 in numbers). Ancient Israelites wanted to avoid polluting the land because God was holy. Anything that was unclean or polluted could not come into proximity of God because of God’s supreme holiness. It was thought that too much uncleanness could drive God away.”[2]
It is not hard to believe that uncleanliness could drive God away. I would encourage you to look to the land where we clear cut. Mudslides and runoff become uncontrollable. Look at the area where we strip mine leveling whole mountains and destroying habitats. Look to where we build new communities ignoring the natural environment manipulating it for our needs and what happens? Flooding, wildfires, famines, people and animals are displaced, and we sit back and feel sorry and wonder why.
“It is fascinating that the writer (of Numbers) links violence with the defilement of the land. In this instance, in verses 33 and 34, murder will pollute the land… The linkage of transgression and pollution of the land occurs in several other Hebrew Bible passages, such as 2 Samuel 21:1-14; Ezekiel 36:17-19; and Hosea 4:2-3. One might make the comparison with the countries of today. A country that has significant issues with widespread violence is likely to have problems with environmental degradation. The two difficulties seem to go hand in hand.”[3]
This is an interesting hypothesis, but it actually is fact. “Individual and social characteristics are attributed to violent behavior in schools, yet environmental hazards may play an understudied role. Ambient air pollution has been linked to neurological dysfunction that inhibits decision-making and may result in violent behavior in adult populations.”[4]
Yes there is an actual study that shows that “results indicate that the highest levels of carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide and fine particulate matter concentrations were associated with increased violent disciplinary incidents.” The numbers were astounding 775.62 or 95% out of 100000 students committed some sort of violent behavior in the areas where pollution was highest as compared to rural areas, “violent incidents per 100,000 students per school year respectively. Schools in urban settings shared a larger burden of violent incidents associated with air pollution compared to rural schools.”[5] Students living in areas of high particulates pollution were 95% more likely to engage in violence.
If we want our children to be healthy and whole, if we want to live in a world with less violence, we will want to provide healthy land, air and water. “If we want to live in a truly peaceful society, we will need to decrease the amount of violence and we will want to provide for a healthy land. If we seek to promote viable soil, clean waterways, and breathable air, we will also want to shape a nonviolent society.”[6] The study shows clean environment leads to less violence.
One of the great concerns we hear about is drinkable water or here even swimmable water. “Most people have heard Earth referred to as “the water planet.” With that name comes the rightful image of a world with plentiful water. In photographs taken from space, we can see that our planet has more water than land. However, of all the water on Earth, more than 99 percent of Earth’s water is unusable by humans and many other living things – only about 0.3 percent of our fresh water is found in the surface water of lakes, rivers, and swamps.”[7]
Remember the Flint water crisis? It was ten years ago and yet human rights watch reports that the people in flint still don’t have clean water. “The number of children and young adults in Flint-area schools who now qualify for disability services has climbed since the water crisis, and far outweighs the resources schools can offer.
People in Flint and Jackson are advocating for their local governments to undo the harm they created by reimbursing them for water bills, replacing damaged water pipes and water mains, providing health and education services, and including local residents in decision-making.”[8]
At the time of the crisis my friends in Mustards retreat wrote:
Telephone rings, have you heard the news?
Carrion, crows, coming home to roost
Over at the plant you know something went wrong
Take the children and run
They say they’ll fix it if we only stay calm
Go back to your factories, Go back to your homes
Don’t get excited, don’t you lose your cool
And those bosses will share their power with you
Take the children and run
Take the children and run
Most politicians lying through their teeth
Say “there’s nothing to fear, except fear itself.”
And none of them can tell us if and when it will stop
And they may come and visit, but they won’t drink a drop
Take the children and run
Take the children and run
You’re on the commission and you’re sixty years old
You make a deal with the devil and the profits unfold
But twenty years down the line and that little girl
Is in the prime of her life, and her blood cells grow wild
The thing is the poor cannot run. They cannot flea intentional environmental racism. Now flint may or may have not been intentional environmental racism at the onset, but the results and the lack of appropriate responses were and are.
Psalm 51 says “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.” Unfortunately, when it comes to government and or big business This is not always true and so Once we learn to be accountable to ourselves than we must call our government to account as well.
But much like the gentleman who needed to get to the monastery to feed his soul we too must feed our souls so that we can do the work that is before us. It can be weary making when we push and plead for our cause, and it seems to fall upon deaf ears. Our souls grow tired. If we are in care of ourselves, we can easily become spiritually tired and give up.
“God has the power to make us over … if we continue in daily prayer… God’s graciousness and mercy are abundant. There is no reason to settle for a blocked state. ( a tired soul) God has the transformative power — to give us a new and enduring spirit… to grant a daily reprieve…God desires steadfastness in the inward self and will teach us wisdom for our sanctification.”[9]
“of Psalm 51’s powerful prayer. Ask God to purge you with hyssop and make you whiter than snow. Ask God for a clean heart and a new and enduring spirit. Then, hang onto your hat, for you will never be the same.
Conversion and sanctification prepare us to face the environmental crisis and give us the spiritual strength to address it in an effective way. Spiritual sustenance through prayer is necessary to continue to do the work of addressing climate change.”[10]
Paul says “we know that the whole of creation groans” I believe that if it was groaning then it is screaming out in torture today! We require spiritual strength to endure the challenge for the environment before us.
“Creation and many sibling creatures are longing for humanity’s growth and maturity as children of God and to be liberated from human degradation of the environment and wanton destruction of life. The Earth and the community of life are struggling for liberation. Humanity could step forward and make significant progress in living compassionately and more ecologically responsible for nature. Here we might edit Paul in Romans to read, “Who can separate us from the love of Christ” in the soil?”[11]
We need to reconnect to our spirituality and connect that to the earth…God’s table. Recall our ash Wednesday blessing we are of the earth and to the earth we shall return. Diarmuid O”Murchu claims, “Our earthiness is the umbilical cord linking us to the source of our holiness (read wholeness) through the earth, not in spite of it, and certainly not beyond it. In brief, our earthiness is the royal cord to deep incarnation”[12] Sally McFague argues that God becomes shockingly physically present to and within the Earth and, at the same time, more.[13] We learn that our earthiness links us to the Earth intimately ensouled therein. Literally, if we work with our hands in the soil, we become sensuously bonded with the land. Robin Wall Kimmerer observes,
“Recent research has shown that the smell of humus exerts a physiological effect on humans. Breathing in the scent of Mother Earth stimulates the release of the hormone oxytocin, the same chemical that promotes bonding mother and child and between lovers. Held in loving arms, no wonder we in respond.”[14] That response begins with us cleaning up after ourselves, physically. Caring for ourselves, spiritually. Then Loving the earth as we would love ourselves. Amen.
[1] https://dcimmersion.org/ways-to-say-clean-up-after-yourself-professionally/
[2] The Earth Justice lectionary Rev. Dr. Robert E. Shore-Goss and Rev. Dr. Sarah Melcher
[3] Ditto
[4] Rau, A.T., Harding, A.B., Ryan, A. et al. Ambient air pollution and the risk of violence in primary and secondary school settings: a cross-sectional study. Inj. Epidemiol. 11, 24 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40621-024-00512-6
[5] Ditto
[6] The Earth Justice lectionary Rev. Dr. Robert E. Shore-Goss and Rev. Dr. Sarah Melcher
[7] https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/earths-fresh-water/
[8] https://www.hrw.org/news/2024/05/20/ten-years-later-flint-still-doesnt-have-clean-water?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwooq3BhB3EiwAYqYoEsHzhwRGcqlcBinqaELkJLn0B1xw6lUvtA1wgSVuZTBl93xD54dD6hoCjiwQAvD_BwE
[9] The Earth Justice lectionary
[10] The Earth Justice lectionary
[11] ditto
[12] O’Murchu, Ecological Spirituality, 51
[13] McFague, Models of God, 112
[14] Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 235
The season of creation originated in Australia and moved into north America and Europe Hebrew scholar Norman Habel originated the season of creation and tested it out in in the Uniting Churches in Melbourne and was tested out in 50 churches from 2001 through 2005. Since then, it has become a growing practice in churches all over the world.
Habel writes, “Accordingly, we are seeking to read the relevant Bible texts also from the perspective of the Earth and of its members of the Earth community. We have become aware of that in the past most interpretations of texts about creation—Earth or our kin on the planet—have been read from an anthropocentric perspective, focusing on the interests of humans The task before us is to begin reading also from the perspective of creation”[1]
In other words, it isn’t always about us! It is about everything living breathing animals, soil, air, water and how we are part of it all!
Pope Francis wrote “listen to the voices of creation… We need to learn to listen to the voices of nature and learn the languages of the more than human life and the Earth…If we learn how to listen, we can hear in the voice of creation a kind of dissonance. On the one hand, we can hear a sweet song in praise of our beloved Creator; on the other, an anguished plea, lamenting our mistreatment of this our common home.”[2]
So many of us are not listening. We are not hearing creation cry out! We do not see the scars of destruction we are leaving behind. In a radio interview, Evelyn Underhill, an author of early studies of mysticism, states.
“But so many Christians are like deaf people at a concert. They study the program carefully, believe every statement made in it, speak respectfully of the quality of the music, but only really hear a phrase now and again. So, they have no notion at all of the mighty symphony which fills the universe, to which our lives are destined to make their tiny contribution, and which is the self-expression of the Eternal God”[3]
It is a poor choice for a metaphor, and I can explain that for a few hours, but do you hear what she is saying. We often can be amid awe and wonder but only glimpse a small part of the true splendor of the universe and this planet. How many times have I headed out to a place and just drove through the beauty and grandeur that is creation and ignored it because I am going from point a to b? How many times have we stopped to pause just where we are and take in God’s splendor and beauty? We really cannot change our behavior until we truly appreciate what we are making changes for.
Thomas Keating Thomas Keating, a Trappist priest and one of the principal developers of centering prayer reflects on Beauty. “without some beauty in one’s life as a regular experience or practice, most people will find it hard to maintain the spiritual level of peace or rest amid their very active lives.
Life in the west, at least, is more active, more frenetic, noisier, and more intrusive from information, most of which is negative. Thus our poor little psyches are battered day and night with information, news, noise, at an accelerating pace.
I’m reminded of a peace activist during the time of Vietnam war. He was always getting himself in jail from trespassing on federal property. And so he would spend a good deal of the year in jail, which is perhaps one of the worst environments on earth, because it’s always noisy and there is no beauty easily at hand. It’s an intense experience of human misery for most inmates.
He used to say that he needed to come to Snowmass, where the mountains are significant, beautiful, and the colors are exquisite in so many directions. He said that he couldn’t continue this demanding ministry of witnessing to peace and getting arrested [without coming) to the monastery to live monastic life with us, because he said, “I can’t keep this up without some experience or proportion of beauty in my life. Just looking at the mountains is a relief for me.” Being in an intentional community of love, service, simple work, fellowship – all of these things were refreshing for him and gave him not only the courage but the psychological strength and resources to go back to bang on the doors of federal or industrial military complexes of one sort or another. This really inspired me to realize that a place for beauty every day in our life is part of the spiritual journey. Because how can you know God – who is beauty itself – without some experience of it?”[4]
We seldom appreciate fully our bonds and interconnections to all of creation around us. We do not slow down to become mindful of what is available and immediate to our senses and feel gratitude for the gift of the Earth, a gift of the Creator that provides the necessities for life: air, water, soil, sun and the life around us. Few slow down to realize our interconnectedness unless we practice some contemplative practice intentionally engaging our immediate environment. Nature has a sacramental presence of the Spirit and of the incarnated Christ. Thomas Berry often quotes, “The universe is not a collection of objects, but a communion of subjects.” We swim in the presence of life entangled with the Spirit.
During these next few weeks we are going to be expanding upon the basic theme of House rules for Ecological Transformation as expressed in the Earth Justic lectionary which is in production stage as I speak.
Reverend Doctor Robert Shore-Goss writes; “There are a number of programs on the Home Garden Television network that inspire “DIY” (Do It Yourself) transformation of homes. The Season of Creation is DIY season for personal and social transformation. Many Christian denominations have set up guidelines to become a creation-centered church and begin the transformation. The Season of Creation, in one sense, functions as the capstone of the liturgical year in that it focuses, in an intense period of time, on developing your skills for house renovation and to restoration our house. The house (oikos) metaphor has been used to include the planet Earth. It includes the administration (polity), economy, sustainability, and preservation of the house for habitation and for future generations. God is understood as the owner of the house, but God lives in that house and remains active in the household.”[5]
Today’s story in exodus contains an interesting command by God. Everyone is to gather as much as they need. And each who followed God’s command had just as much as they needed not too much not too little. But God also commanded that they consume what they take. Those who tried to save it for the next day had a mess. How many times as children did, we hear do not take more than you can eat.
Just food alone so much is wasted. “40% of all food is thrown away or plowed over. In California, 100 billion pounds. In California alone, over 5 billion pounds of prepared food is thrown away every year.”[6] In exodus God is teaching us to be more attentive to our ties to creation, to the world around us. We should be grateful for the abundance creation offers and use it wisely.
So, I mentioned food waste, did you know there is an app for that! Like many things in this world there are people trying to make a difference. Waste no Food is the name of the app. “Service organizations want access to excess food, but there are barriers — locating the excess food, establishing their credentials, and efficiently deploying resources to transport food. Waste No Food breaks down these barriers.”[7]
I know the app has partnered with Tampa bay but if you know any restaurant owners you may wish to let them know they just send out a notice they have food then volunteers pick it up and get it to the appropriate charities.
I also read from psalm 24 today;
1 The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it,
the world, and those who live in it,
2 for he has founded it on the seas
and established it on the rivers.
This “affirmation establishes a theological basis for care of the earth. It does not belong to human beings to extract whatever pleases us. It is under God’s jurisdiction, not ours, thus suggesting that we should respect whatever belongs to the Divine. The earth and all that is within it were established by God and should be treated with utmost care since it comes from the Creator. We are part of the earth – granted — but in this psalm we are not given power or dominion over creation. Rather, we are part of what God has created.”[8]
This psalm is about entering into God’s temple. Now we know the Church is not a building and we will say it many times. We need to live like a church without walls. Our Sanctuary is the community and the world around us. Though Psalm 24 focuses on the sanctuary of the temple, Norman Habel argues that we can perceive the sanctuary in broader terms: “A fundamental way to allow God to reorient us in worship, then, is to see Earth, rather than the walls of our own church building, as our sanctuary. In this respect, as we worship, Earth is for us a sacred space, a place where God is active and where God encounters us. Scriptures reveal God’s presence permeating all creation and making it sacred.”[9]
In exodus we encounter a bountiful God. Exodus 9:7-8 “7 Each of you must give as you have made up your mind, not regretfully or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to provide you with every blessing[a] in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share abundantly in every good work.”
God truly has blessed us with an abundance through the earth and all of its bounty. But here God states that we are blessed abundantly that we might share abundantly. Not waste abundantly.
“Our capitalist culture promotes a socio-economic ideology which makes it an individual goal for increased accumulation and consumption. Humans need more than neighbors, and there is never enough. Earth’s economy is not unlimited, and by living within limits, there are enough resources to share to meet everyone’s need but not human infinite greed/ E. F. Shumacher argues for a “small is beautiful” mode of economic living.[10] Likewise, Sallie McFague claims, “The good life is not having ‘more and more’ but ‘enough.’ Enough of what? Not money as such but what money can give people: adequate food, clothing, shelter, education, medical care, creative and spiritual opportunities, fellowship and leisure time and space.”[11] Take what you only needs expresses a spiritual orientation and participation in the Earth’s economy of abundance that instructs us to do with the minimum and not the maximum levels of consumption before the whole planet dies from ecocidal, extractive economies that ignores the resource limitless of the Earth.[12]
We as the UCC proclaim an Open Table all are welcome and all share equally in the bread of life. We do not come to the table and take a whole loaf of bread. That would be ridiculous. If we think of the world as our sanctuary, then the earth itself is Gods table and though that table is abundant we should treat with the respect and frugality that we treat the eucharist.
Ethnobotanist and indigenous author Robin Hall Kimmerer claims that there are consequences to comprehending Earth as gift: “But when everything became a gift, I felt self-restraint. I didn’t want to take too much.”[13] A sense of gratitude of the natural world produces self-restraint. Similarly, Wendell Berry notes, “It is more than likely that we will have to live with limits… or not at all.”[14]
The Creator Spirit supplies the seed to the Sower and bread for food will multiply abundance for all life by restraint and only taking a fair share. This frugality arises only as intentional spiritual practice of loving God and loving God’s creation. In love, we often make self-sacrifices for our loved ones. If we love God and God’s earth, we will make sacrifices of love for others. We might realize the truth of Jesus’ feeding stories, when each person shared what they brought for a meal, there was an abundance of leftovers. Amen!
[1] Norman Habel, The Season Creation: A Preaching Commentary, Minneapolis, Fortress Press, 2011, 11
[2] Read Pope Franics’ message: https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/messages/pont-messages/2022/documents/20220716-messaggio-giornata-curacreato.html
[3] Evelyn Underhill, The Spiritual Life, Morehouse Books,184
[4] Edited from theThomas Keating original recording September 27-28, 2007 in Houstan Texas shared In Contemplative outreach magazine vol 41. Number 2. July 2024
[5] The Earth Justice lectionary Rev. Dr. Robert E. Shore-Goss and Rev. Dr. Sarah Melcher
[6] https://wastenofood.org/
[7] Ditto
[8] Earth Justice lectionary, Shore-Goss/Melcher
[9] Dale B. Martin, The New Testament History and Literature, New Haven, Yale University Press, 2012. 226.
[10] E. F. Schumacher, Small Is Beautiful: Economics as If People Mattered, New York: Harper and Row, 1973.
[11] McFague, Abundant Life, 111.
[12] Earth Justice lectionary, Shore-Goss/Melcher
[13] Robin Hall Kimmerer, Braiding Sweetgrass, 29
[14] Wendell Berry, The Unsettling of American Culture and Culture, San Francisco, Sierra Club Books, 1977, 94.
Today is creation Sunday …In today’s The Gospel Jesus Calls the leaders hypocrites…Bob has called our conference out as being hypocrites. At the annual Gathering eucharist, while focusing on care for the earth we used plastic cups with juice and a wafer sealed on top. Sometimes it is hard to do our due diligence when it comes to creation.
The season of creation used to follow a set Pattern for years it was land, ocean, forest, air and blessings of the animals. Over the three year cycle the names of the Sundays changed but the themes were basically the same. It May have been wilderness, water, mountain you get the idea but what has any of that to do with Jesus challenging the leaders of the church?
“Jesus is challenging them as to how their traditions contribute to them fulfilling their mission. And I think this is just where this week’s sermon might bring this odd passage to bear on our shared life. I mean, maybe we don’t seem at first blush quite as fussy about tradition as Jesus’ opponents did, but what if you were to suggest tinkering with some of our own traditions? Perhaps changing worship in order to make worship more understandable and accessible to a younger generation? Or what if you were to drop the lectionary in favor of moving through the narrative of the Bible? Or what if you were to cancel all committees in favor of a more nimble way of governing the congregation? Or what if you were to suggest make the sanctuary space more flexible so you could offer it to some community groups? Or what if each fourth Sunday folks didn’t come to church at all but rather were engaged in community service throughout your county? Or what if…?
You get the idea. We each have traditions that are more than traditions. They are markers of what has been accepted as right and wrong and thereby serve to lend us a sense of stability. (Never mind that our traditions do in fact change over time – what’s important is that they appear unchanging in the moment!) This passage serves both to relativize our traditions – should we really hold them sacred? – while also pushing us to the far more important concern of the law to help us care for each other. ”[i]
The broader context into which this interchange between Jesus and the pharisees occurs presents an interesting backdrop. On the one hand, there are two generous feeding of the hungry multitudes (6;30-44; 8:1-10), and an extravagant summary of Jesus’ healing s in and around Gennesaret (6:53-56). They pose a sharp contrast to the restrictive issue of washing the hands before eating. On the other hand, the interchange of the Pharisees is followed by the stories of the persistent faith of the Gentile woman of Syrophoenician origin, who asks only for the crumbs from the table and her daughter is healed. And the restoration of hearing and speech to the deaf man living in the gentile area called Decapolis (7:24-37). It is as if Jesus’ critique of Kosher laws (“thus he declared all foods clean,” 7:19) is then documented by the healings of these non-Jewish people.”[ii]
It is not what we put in our bodies but what comes out of our hearts and lips. Proclaiming that the kingdom of God belonged only to the Jewish people who followed only certain rules and regulation as opposed to offering peace, healing, food, welcome, to those beyond their borders was what was wrong. You can keep your traditions as long as they are not interfering with the work of Gods kindom here on earth.
Letting people know they are loved welcomed and cared for isn’t always easy. Sometimes it contradicts our own “traditions.” We are called as Christians to grow, study , learn…as a result we have ONA churches. “Open and Affirming (ONA) is the United Church of Christ’s (UCC) designation for congregations, campus ministries, and other bodies in the UCC which make a public covenant of welcome into their full life and ministry to persons of all sexual orientations, gender identities, and gender expressions.”[iii]
We have immigrant welcoming churches. “In a world becoming increasingly globalized, more people are leaving their homelands to seek better lives and opportunities in new countries. Their reasons for leaving are diverse and complex: economic necessity, war, or persecution. The U.S. has long been a nation of immigrants, and we have consistently been conflicted about this. We gratefully welcome immigrants and their contributions, and we exclude them, discriminate against them and, at times, inflict grave harm upon them.
As Christians, we are called to love our neighbors. The Bible is unambiguous in calling us to welcome aliens and strangers in our land, and to love them as we love ourselves. In these times, let us listen to the voice of the still-speaking God. We will learn how to respond to these new sisters and brothers residing among us.”[iv]
We are an earth Justice Denomination…
This video I want to share maybe 6 year old but just as relevant today
Since we are beginning the season of the season of creation one can look up climate events happening around the world or just here in Florida. The climate instate of Florida has a list of events and actions such as Heat; the 4th Biennial juried art exhibition in Gainesville, a symposium on flooding adaptation, or a climate leader training online.[v]
Florida right to clean water actually has a series of events occurring around the season of creation.
“Celebrate the Season of Creation (September 1st through October 4th) by learning how the FL Right to Clean Water = GOOD STEWARDSHIP!
September 1st – DAY OF CREATION – Click here to see a “Message of His Holiness Pope Francis for the World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation.”
In the St Augustine area? September 2nd – Rosary Walk in Saint Augustine. Information can be found here, or email Elyse at [email protected].
In the Fort Myers area? Every Wednesday in September (6th, 13th, 20th, and 27th), you’re welcome to join a Walking Meditation on Bunche Beach from 7:30-8:30am. Click here for the event link on Facebook.
September 7th, 4pm – “Call to Prayer / Meditation,” an online event open to all who wish to be (re-)inspired and (re-)connected. Click here for the event link on Facebook.
In the Orlando area? September 10th, 4pm – Season of Creation event, presenting the Right to Clean & Healthy Waters – an in-person presentation hosted by Broadway United Methodist Church, 406 E. Amelia St, Orlando. Panelists include Jim Durocher (FL RTCW initiative), Gabbie Milch (St Johns Riverkeeper), and Dr. Jeff Greenberg (Indian River Lagoon Roundtable). Feel free to access and share this flyer!
September 14th, 7pm – “Living Waters: A Call to Creation Care Stewardship,” an online event featuring our guest speaker, Monsignor Haut. Click here for the event link on Facebook. Click here to register for the event!
October 2nd, 7pm – “Healing Waters, Saving Lives: The time to act is NOW!” — an online event featuring our guest speaker, Reverend Dr. Latricia Edwards Scriven, Senior Pastor at Saint Paul’s United Methodist Church. Click here for the event link on Facebook. Click here to register for the event!
October 4th – time and title TBD – We will host an event in celebration of the Feast and Birthday of St Francis of Assisi, closing out the Season of Creation, hoping that all the faith communities we were able to reach have been inspired to activate “good works” in support of this initiative for Creation Care Stewardship.”[vi]
According to blessed tomorrow our food and faith are connected to our climate as well.
What You Need to Know Food is an important part of how we express our faith in our daily lives, many worship services, and some religious holidays. What foods we choose to eat also impacts the climate.
And so we have a proposal to work with our preschool and create some raised beds where we can better practice what we preach and engage our kids in learning how food is grown and how fresh produce tastes much better and is much better not just for our bodies but for the earth.[vii]
Over the next few weeks, we shall focus on how we can better care for ourselves and all of God’s creation through this season of creation. Please feel free to engage, bring up opportunities in the community and share maybe something you’re doing to help make a better tomorrow.
Let us pray,
Triune God, Creator of all,
We praise you for your goodness, visible in all the diversity that you have
created, making us a cosmic family living in a common home. Through
the Earth you created, we experience love and nourishment, home and
protection.
We confess that we do not relate to the Earth as a Mothering gift from
you, our Creator. Our selfishness, greed, neglect, and abuse have caused
the climate crisis, loss of biodiversity, human suffering as well as the suf-
fering of all our fellow creatures. We confess that we have failed to listen
to the groans of the Earth, the groans of all creatures, and the groans of
the Spirit of hope and justice that lives within us.
May your Creator Spirit help us in our weakness, so that we may know the
redeeming power of Christ and the hope found in him. May the groans of
the Spirit birth in us a willingness to serve you faithfully, so that we may
hear and heal Creation, to hope and act together with her, so that the
firstfruits of hope may blossom.
Loving and Creator God, we pray that you will make us sensitive to these
groans and enable us to have the same compassion as that of Jesus, the
redeeming Lord. Grant us a fresh vision of our relationship with Earth, and
with one another, as creatures that are made in your image.
In the name of the one who came to proclaim the good news to all Crea-
tion, Jesus Christ.
Amen.
Amen.
[i] http://www.davidlose.net/2015/08/pentecost-14-b-tradition/
[ii] Brueggemann, Walter, and Charles B. Cousar. Texts for Preaching: A Lectionary Commentary, Based on the NRSV. Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1993.,pg. 492
[iii] http://www.ucc.org/lgbt_ona
[iv] http://www.ucc.org/justice_immigration
[v] https://floridaclimateinstitute.org/events/upcoming
[vi] https://www.floridarighttocleanwater.org/events
[vii] https://www.onehomeonefuture.org/community-garden
[viii] https://blessedtomorrow.org/
John 6:56-69 nrsv
New Revised Standard Version
56 Those who eat my flesh and drink my blood abide in me, and I in them. 57 Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like that which your ancestors ate, and they died. But the one who eats this bread will live forever.” 59 He said these things while he was teaching in the synagogue at Capernaum.
The Words of Eternal Life
60 When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This teaching is difficult; who can accept it?” 61 But Jesus, being aware that his disciples were complaining about it, said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? 63 It is the spirit that gives life; the flesh is useless. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. 64 But among you there are some who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the first who were the ones that did not believe, and who was the one that would betray him. 65 And he said, “For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted by the Father.”
66 Because of this many of his disciples turned back and no longer went about with him. 67 So Jesus asked the twelve, “Do you also wish to go away?” 68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom can we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”[a]
John 6:56-69
The Message
53-58 But Jesus didn’t give an inch. “Only insofar as you eat and drink flesh and blood, the flesh and blood of the Son of Man, do you have life within you. The one who brings a hearty appetite to this eating and drinking has eternal life and will be fit and ready for the Final Day. My flesh is real food and my blood is real drink. By eating my flesh and drinking my blood you enter into me and I into you. In the same way that the fully alive Father sent me here and I live because of him, so the one who makes a meal of me lives because of me. This is the Bread from heaven. Your ancestors ate bread and later died. Whoever eats this Bread will live always.”
59 He said these things while teaching in the meeting place in Capernaum.
Oh Lord this reading is hard…we have been talking about this for weeks and yet Jesus goes on speaking about the bread of life, about him being the bread of life and how we must consume that bread and drink his blood. Ugh! Does he have to be so graphic? Why is this so hard to hear? Why do his own followers walk away?
One commentator believes we need to move away from the metaphor…
“In Jewish culture, the idea of eating meat with blood was taboo. In fact, it was a prohibition given to humanity in general after the flood in Genesis 9: 4. The Law repeats this prohibition to the people of Israel (Lv 17:11, 14; 19:26; Dt 12:23). In addition, blood and fat were the parts of the animal that were to be given exclusively to God in the sacrifices (Lev 3: 16-17; 4: 18-35; 9: 18-20). Thus, the reference to the flesh and blood in these words of Jesus has nothing to do with the Eucharist (although historically it has been interpreted that way and some believe that this section about flesh and blood was added to the original discourse) , but with the sacrifice of the tabernacle or the temple that restored or celebrated the communion between the believer and God. Truly, we must not concentrate on the metaphors of bread / meat / blood that Jesus uses throughout the chapter, but on what is done with those elements: eating. To eat the manna in the desert was to receive life. To eat the separated loaves for the priests of the temple was to have communion with God. Also to eat the sacrificed meat on the altar was, for the believing Jew, to have communion with the same God. Eating is synonymous with accepting, receiving, believing, trusting, welcoming, staying, etc., all words that the Gospel of John uses repeatedly to describe the challenge with which Jesus confronts us-the obligation of the true disciple or the true disciple. to remain faithful to the Lord and to remain in communion with Him. And given the context of sacrifice in the words “flesh and blood,” the nuance here is that we must accept Christ, not only descended from heaven but also raised on the cross (Jn 3:14). In this approach, according to which the person and the way of Jesus are understood both through the cross and through the resurrection, all the gospels are in agreement.”[1]
I like his explanation sort of but for me it robs John’s Gospel of it’s approach though he does keep the heart of the message.
How does Johns Gospel open?
In the beginning was the Word,
And the Word was with God,
And the Word was God.
This [Word] was in the beginning with God.
Everything came to be through [the Word],
And apart from [the Word] nothing at all came to be.
What came to be in [the Word] was Life,
And the Life was the light of human beings.
And the Light shines in Darkness,
And the Darkness did not master [the Light] ….
The Genuine Light, which enlightens every human being, was coming into the World.
He was in the world,
And the world came to be through [the Light];
And the world did not know [the Light].
[The Light] came to his own,
And his own did not accept him.
But as many accepted him,
He gave them power to become children of God.
[They were the ones] who believed in his name,
Who were not born of blood,
Nor of will of flesh,
Nor the will of man,
But of God.
And the word became flesh…[2]
The commentator wants us to move away from metaphor and struggle with the literal concept of consuming that which feeds us with God at table. But I hear something different if we listen to how John opens this Gospel with Metaphor as Jesus being the Word of God with us from the beginning through which all things are made then the word became flesh and walked among us ministered to us taught us and then returned to heaven leaving us nothing but…His word, the word. We are called to feast upon the word of Christ. We are called to feast upon the Gospel.
“Eating is synonymous with accepting, receiving, believing, trusting, welcoming, staying, etc., all words that the Gospel of John uses repeatedly to describe the challenge with which Jesus confronts us-the obligation of the true disciple or the true disciple. to remain faithful to the Lord and to remain in communion with Him.”[3]
I suspect some people in Jesus’ crowd heard these words with this exact interpretation some did not but those who were challenged by Jesus words used the excuse that his words are too hard. Much like the young man asked how to get to heaven…he was already doing what was easy for him. Keeping the Sabbath…Tithing, feeding the hungry…So Jesus says let’s go a step further sell all you own give it away and follow me…the man went away sad because the call was too hard….
“Throughout this chapter’s discussion about the bread which gives life, Jesus’ words have been greeted with misunderstanding, confusion, and objection from the crowd, referred to either simply as “they” or “the Jews.” In verse 60, we hear about the reaction from the “disciples” (in John not to be equated with “the twelve”; see verse 67). We may expect better things from them. After all, they were the ones who sat together with Jesus at the beginning of this text, who followed Jesus’ instructions in gathering up the leftovers of the bread and fish, and who were rescued from the storm at sea by Jesus. Perhaps most importantly, we expect that “the disciples” belong to “us,” and not to “them.”
Thus, we may be stunned when we hear that the disciples are now the ones who are bothered by what Jesus has said. We may have been tempted to simply write off the rest of the crowd as stubborn and obtuse, but the reference to “the disciples” sounds uncomfortably close to home. In verse 61, the disciples begin to grumble (NRSV “complain”), just as “the Jews” did in verse 41. Here, the problem seems not so much that the disciples have difficulty understanding what Jesus is saying; they understand quite well but cannot believe and follow what Jesus has said. How often do we find the same to be true about ourselves?
As has been Jesus’ habit throughout this conversation, he meets objections by sharpening the point of his message, raising the offense rather than softening it, and thereby bringing the conversation to a crisis. In verse 62, Jesus points to his “going up” (NRSV “ascending”). We may think first of Luke’s ascension scene, but we need to remember that this is John’s story, and in John’s telling Jesus returns to the Father by being lifted up on the cross.”[4]
Some of the followers of Christ can already see where all this is leading there have been a few hints along the way as Jesus has upset some of the Leadership of the community. This is too hard…others just hear the literal as opposed to the metaphor and do not even try to understand and dismiss Jesus. Others are still seeking literal food not understanding that they will just be hungry again and not fulfilled.
Another commentator reflects;
“The text tells us: “Since then many of his disciples went back and no longer walked with him” (v. 66). Why did they stop following Jesus? Is it because they did not understand the way Jesus offered the eternal bread? Is it possible that some have believed that Jesus would give them a bread that literally would not end? In a society of scarcity like Jesus’, the idea of endless sustenance would undoubtedly have attracted many. But we see through the scriptures that God’s plan has never been to serve as a food-providing machine. The earth in its fullness has always been able to supply humanity and the creatures of the world with what is necessary. But human greed has created systems of inequality that favor a few and leave most people in a state of need.”[5]
This statement made my mind jump my train of thought, honestly my mind often jumps the track, but this time it jumped to a good track, I hope, for this led me to think about feeding the hungry and what it means especially since one of the greatest inequalities in this world remains food!
As you know by our welcome screen and the advertisement on the welcome loop we collect food for the food bank. It is not a lot when you read their wish list;
Here is a list of critically needed items:
CANNED VEGETABLES
BABY CEREAL & FORMULA
CANNED FRUITS
MAC ‘N’ CHEESE
PEANUT BUTTER
JELLY
BOXED RICE
BOXED PASTA
CANNED SOUPS
CANNED MEAT
100% FRUIT JUICES
BREAKFAST BARS
OATMEAL
POWDERED MILK
APPLESAUCE
DRIED BEANS
TRAIL MIX
HEALTHY CEREALS
They also accept pet food, baby food, diapers, and other items to distribute through our Baby Basket program as well as to other families in need.
Every little bit helps.
But what does it mean to be hungry? Bread for the world explains it this way.
“Everyone feels hungry on a daily basis. Most people are able to satisfy this craving and need. Even if not immediately, they can count on having a meal or snack within hours. This is not the type of hunger that Bread is concerned with.
People who suffer chronic hunger don’t have the option of eating when they are hungry. They do not get enough calories, essential nutrients, or both. People who are hungry have an ongoing problem with getting food to eat. They have a primary need — how to feed themselves and their children today and tomorrow. They have little energy for anything else…
It is commonly known that the cause of hunger in the world is not a shortage of food but rather access to food.
Some people are hungry because food is in short supply in their area and for a specific reason. It may be because they can’t afford to buy enough food. It may be both.
Some countries have a “hunger season” every year. It’s when the previous harvest is gone, and the next harvest is not yet ready. It can last as long as three or four months.
The U.S. doesn’t have that kind of a hunger season, but for many families, some weeks are hungrier than others. These usually come toward the end of the month, as families run short of food before they have money to buy more. People can’t simply decide to spend less on rent, but, if necessary, they can spend less on food.
For many low-wage workers, retirees, people with disabilities, and their families, even careful planning cannot stretch the grocery budget throughout the month. Less expensive — and less nutritious — filler foods can keep children’s stomachs from growling, but they can’t provide what children need to grow and learn. Adults who are missing meals because they can’t afford to buy food can’t concentrate as well at work…
People in certain conditions, whether they live in the developing world or the United States, are extremely vulnerable to hunger. A month of bad weather for a farmer or an illness for a worker and a loss of income can mean less food and the prospect of hunger.
Food insecurity is the more formal term for this condition. People living with food insecurity lack a stable, reliable means of getting the meals they need.”[6]
I thought I could share a few statistics with you as well. According to second harvest;
“On March 31, 2021, Feeding America released local-level food insecurity projections for 2021 which show that food insecurity has remained elevated compared to pre-pandemic levels for 96% of counties. In Central Florida, Feeding America projects that 13.8%, one in seven people and 20.1%, one in five children, live in households that may be food insecure in 2021.
The study, The Impact of the Coronavirus on Local Food Insecurity in 2020 and 2021, provides a snapshot of food insecurity at the state, congressional district and county level prior to the pandemic and presents the likely impact the ensuing economic crisis has had on food insecurity levels in the U.S. In addition, for the first time, Feeding America has produced local-level projections of very low food security, a more severe range of food insecurity that involves reduced food intake and disrupted eating patterns.”[7]
“95 million more meals a year are needed to fill the hunger gap that exists in Central Florida.
One in seven people are facing hunger in our community.
More than 500,000 people in Central Florida don’t know when or where their next meal will come.
One in five children in Central Florida face hunger.”
“What are the Effects of Food Insecurity?
Chronic Disease
Food Insecurity is associated with higher probability of chronic diseases such as high blood pressure, coronary heart disease, hepatitis, stroke, cancer, asthma, diabetes, chronic pulmonary disease and kidney disease
Child Hunger
Hunger can harm a child’s opportunities to reach their full potential and contribute fully to their communities—which affects society.
Children from food-insecure homes may be more likely to:
Have lower math scores
Repeat a grade in elementary school
Experience developmental impairments in areas like language and motor skills
Have more social and behavioral problems
Be less prepared for the workforce as adults
Senior Hunger
Seniors who are food-insecure have:
Higher rates of chronic diseases
Poorer general health
Three times higher prevalence of depression
Diminished capacity to maintain independence while aging”[8]
.
As we feast on the word of God…and when we share in the table of remembrance called communion we also share a table with those who around us are hungry for real food.
You see “God’s plan has always been to live in communion with his people; God is still waiting for us to create a world that reflects the image of God-in love, justice, fulfillment, mercy, equality, etc. We see it in Genesis, when God created the human being to share in the work of creation. We see it in the Law, according to which the sacrifices have in mind a companionship between God and the person and community. We see it in the Prophets, who insist on the responsibilities of the people to form a just society. And John, at last, tells us that the Word that created the world became flesh to call people to a community to opposed to the values of the Roman Empire and any political or economic system that dehumanizes the being”[9] Jesus is always calling us to be an anti-Imperial, anti-hierarchical society in which its members, are empowered by the Spirit that Jesus emphasizes in the fourth gospel, live in communion with God and with one another. We are called to Feast upon the word and share in communion as one people, as one spirit, and as the one body of Christ. Amen
[1] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=3779
[2] King, Nicholas. The Bible: A Study Bible. Buxhall, Stowmarket, Suffolk: Kevin Mayhew, 2013.
[3] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=3779
[4] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=372
[5] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=3779
[6] http://www.bread.org/what-hunger
[7] https://www.feedhopenow.org/site/SPageServer/?pagename=about_hunger
[8] Ditto
[9] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=3779
I am the Bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. Well, here we are folks just as we promised last week. When we last saw our hero, he had just made this statement. The people in the crowd had sort of explained their anticipation that they expected more literal bread or mana from heaven just as Moses had given the Israelites. However, Jesus explained it was not Moses but God that gave bread from heaven. Then he makes the statement…
I am the Bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
“In last Sunday’s text, the center of attention was upon Jesus as the gift from the Father for the life of the world. Building on that claim, this Sunday’s text focuses on Jesus as the center of faith to which the Father draws people. The movements within chapter 6 for these two Sundays are certainly interconnected, but they are not identical. Jesus is not simply repeating himself, and John is not writing in circles.
John is writing something specific here and he is very intentional. In verse 35 we hear the first of the I Am statements of Jesus. Does anyone know where we first hear I AM…Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.’”
‘I am the bread of life’ is the first of the seven ‘I am’ statements in John’s Gospel. These statements are unique to John and in many ways encapsulate the distinctiveness of John’s presentation of Jesus. The ‘I am’ beginning of these sayings is more emphatic in the Greek than can be expressed without awkwardness in English (Greek ego eimi).
‘I am’ often reminds readers of the revealed name of God from the burning bush story (Exod. 3:14), and to be sure, from the opening verse Jesus’ divine nature is front and center in John (“… the Word was God,” 1:1). The striking feature common to all of the ‘I am’ sayings in John, however, is that they all express Jesus’ relationship to humanity. The other six are: “I am the light of the world” (8:12), “the gate for the sheep” (10:7), “the good shepherd” (10:11), “the resurrection and the life” (11:25), “the way, and the truth, and the life” (14:6), and “the true vine” (15:1).”[i]
One Commentator asked this intriguing question “What does Jesus mean by proclaiming himself “the bread of life”? At one level, the answer can be put simply: Jesus means that he is the source of eternal life for the world, an explanation expressed straightforwardly in verses 47-48. If the meaning were this simple, however, there would be little reason for Jesus to have used the symbolism in the first place.”[ii]
Alas if it were but that simple However
Jesus’ I am statement is not just about who He is metaphorically, but it can be seen literally as to telling us from where he originates. This is where things start to get interesting. If you note last week Jesus was addressing the 5000 whom he had just fed but in today’s text Jesus dialogue companions suddenly shifts to “the Jews.”
Now before we proceed we must recall that in John “The Jews” are not all the Jewish people but in some contexts it refers to the Jewish people who are opposed to the Followers of Christ, in other context it refers to Jewish people who feared other Jewish people and in some context the phrase is used to refer to Jesus himself.
“One prominent feature of the Fourth Gospel is its repeated mention of “the Jews.” The Greek word Ioudaioi, generally translated “Jews” in our English Bibles, appears sixty-seven times in the Gospel of John. In many cases, the people so designated are opponents of Jesus; eventually, “the Jews” actively seek his death…some of these verses make positive statements about Jews. In John 4:22, Jesus (himself a Jew, as we read in John 4:9) states that “salvation is of the Jews” (KJV). Moreover, a number of the passages cannot possibly refer to the entire Jewish community of that day-e.g., those in which various Jewish individuals or groups are said to act cautiously “for fear of the Jews” (7:13; 9:22; 19:38; 20:19).[iii]
In John’s Gospel the word Jews has multiple implications…In this case it is very clever remember when they referred to Mana from heaven feeding the people taking us back to a time with Moses in the desert… and just like back then “the Jews started complaining”
So Jesus has made an I am statement “Both this phrase and the phrase “bread from heaven” were references to the story of the manna. Jesus’ initial statement in verse 35 associates him with the life-giving power of the manna. In the wilderness, the Israelites had neither food nor drink and would have died without God’s provision. So also, Jesus has just provided miraculous food for 5,000 people (John 6:1-14).
Also like the manna story, Jesus is not only talking about the relief of literal hunger. The manna story is a story about trust in God. God saved Israel from slavery in Egypt through the waters of the Red Sea (Exodus 14-15). But once in the desert, Israel did not trust God to provide for them. Even so, God provided both food and water throughout their forty years (Exodus 16:35).
Just as the Israelites complained to Moses, so also the Jews complain about Jesus. The word “complain” (John 6:41, Greek: gonguzo) is a cognate of words used in (the Old Testament) to describe Israel’s grumbling against God and Moses … The grumbling of the crowd characterizes them as the Israelites in the Exodus story. They have experienced God’s salvation and yet do not fully trust in God.”[iv]
Jesus takes this a bit further by introducing the statement of being drawn. No one can come to me unless they are drawn by the father. Here we have God at work again. God draws people to Christ one commentator even suggests something a bit more dramatic.
“The first time, it is stated negatively: “No one is able to come to me unless drawn by my Father” (verse 44). The verb translated as “drawn” could be translated as the more intensive word “dragged.” No one comes to Jesus without the Father’s pull.”[v]
How are we drawn to Christ? What is this mystical pull that the creator offers to us? I would put forth it is the ancient texts. Jesus is saying that all we have learned of the human experience and our relation to the creator keeps leading us on. Jesus even states it is a step further
“In the next verse, Jesus refers to scripture (Isaiah 54:13) and states it positively: “All who heard from the Father and learned from what they heard will come to me.” Here, the teaching from God and the learning from that teaching will result in coming to Jesus.
Different church contexts have different understandings of what it means “to come to Jesus.” John’s own context and community had different layers of meaning for this also. It may be important to invoke some of the options. For the Jews in Jesus’ context, it would be to choose the messianic understanding of their own tradition. For the Jews in the context of the Gospel of John, it would mean choosing to step outside the Jewish tradition and moving into the Christian context. In today’s context, it might mean moving outside the typical pattern of our own culture and choosing a radical Christian understanding of the world.”[vi]
In today’s context we need to step outside our cultural context and choose a radical understanding of God operating in the world today and how we are called, drawn, pulled and sometimes dragged into that.
In this text Jesus is calling to those who have one concept of how the world works, who have one concept of how God operates within it and what their role is. We are being called to evaluate, re-evaluate and evaluate once more over and over what our role is as Christians is in this world. We are asked to rethink again and again how we perceive, conceive and understand God to be operating in this world.
This does not happen in a vacuum it is dependent on learning and seeking God’s words. It is dependent upon us seeking that connection to God and it is through that connection to God we are drawn to Jesus. It is about being open to new possibilities and new realities in and through Christ. This sometimes means letting go of what we “know.”
“Perhaps this is what happened to the crowd with Jesus; they knew too much for Jesus’ words to ring true. Jesus said, “I am the bread that came down from heaven” (John 6:41). The Judeans object. They murmur among themselves. These are the insiders, the ones who know the history — they know how God does things and how things should be done.”[vii]
This is the way we have done it. This is the way it has always been done. So, this is the way it will be done. God sent us Moses…Moses led us…fed us…taught us…and we know Moses and you sir are no Moses… The Judeans knew a lot they knew how God operates, and who God would work through.
“They also know Jesus’ origins. “Who does he think he is?” They mutter, “Claiming to have come down from heaven? We know his folks. We know he came from Nazareth, not from heaven!” (verse 42) These Judeans also know their scripture. “The bread from heaven was the manna fed to our ancestors back in the time of Moses,” they correctly point that out. And these Judeans know the law. “The Lord God said, ‘I am the Lord your God; you shall have no other gods.’” They know it all.”[viii]
It is fun to note that we have heard this grumble against Jesus before in Mathew; “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary, and aren’t his brothers James, Joseph, Simon and Judas? Luke, 4 “Is this not joseph’s Son?” Mark “is this not the carpenter, the son of Mary?”
On commentator reflects “Maybe they know too much. Or perhaps they really don’t know enough. When I was in seminary, I took a trip with then president of a Lutheran college. He was driving, and I was reading the student newspaper to him aloud. A pre-seminary student had written an editorial espousing the use of doughnuts and coffee or pretzels and beer as the elements in the Eucharist. When I started to audibly protest, the president raised his hand, smiled, and quietly said, “Remember, Craig, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, and it can lead us to the wrong conclusions.” The student only knew a little. In retrospect, so did I.
A little knowledge is a dangerous thing, and it can lead us to the wrong conclusions. When it comes to God, and even to the Church, we know only a little. Like all living things, the Church — and our understanding of God — continues to grow and to change. And so to know only a little, and to think the little that we know is all that there is to know, can be fatal. These Judeans had some head knowledge about God; perhaps they did not know God by heart or by trust.”[ix]
“the Jews” had God all figured out. Had the rules and regulations of how things had always been. Funny, maybe they did know God by heart…as in by rote…they knew what to expect of God and Jesus wasn’t it. They had God in a God Box. A nice neat little package. They could not and or would not allow themselves to imagine something bigger, something greater, something beyond their knowledge or perception. They were unable to hear and know what God was trying to show them. They had made up their minds and did not want to be confronted with what Jesus tried to teach them. Now that rings true for us!
“So, when are we like those Judeans? What issues reveal that we know too much about the Jesus of our traditions and not enough about the living Word God speaks to us now? When do we allow our knowledge of the history of the past to close our eyes to the working of God in the present? When are we looking and listening with open hearts? When are we willing to be drawn to the Bread of life, rather than put our trust in what we know?”[x]
Think about it. We once knew slavery was ok and justified by the Bible…We once knew that women should not speak from the pulpit, we once knew That women were property. We once knew that the races should be separated. We once knew that children should work in our factories or dig coal. Heck we once knew that coal and cigarettes were healthy for us.
Yet history shows that we have been called past what we once knew…again and again God calls us to something more. Something wiser, something more loving, something that can only make us better. Further up and further in!
God has called us to be an ONA church and that goes beyond simply letting gay people in.
God is calling us to think about how we have yet to heal our race relations. God is calling us to rethink just what our borders are and what it means to love and care for those who are seeking us out as a refuge and a safe place. God is always calling us, drawing us out, pulling us further sometimes kicking and screaming all the way.
What do we do when leaving everything up to God seems naive, if not ridiculous? What do we do when we know what God is calling us to and yet our culture, our context says no? What do we do when we have had enough of silly church talk because we just know too much for it to be true? What do we do when the greatest gift we have to share is compassion and Love and it is too scary for us to do?
“Jesus is not calling us to abandon our knowledge and tradition as if they still cannot teach, help and guide us. Jesus cautions us that our knowledge will not give us absolute answers or a foolproof plan to make things right. God’s answer is rarely to reassure us that our knowledge and understanding are correct. If anything, God uses our knowledge to give a purpose, a journey, and a direction — namely, to trust and follow Jesus. Whatever the details of this journey are for us, its purpose is to draw us into life as part of God’s coming reign, which human-constructed circumstances and conditions cannot undermine or negate. The risk of setting out on the journey, which is trusting and following Jesus, is that, even when we think we have a map or a plan, we do not really know where we are going or where we will end up.
The good news is that Jesus, rather than our knowledge and understanding, is the source of our calling and the source of our strength. What makes it good news is that, in those moments when we understandably have enough of this life that we cannot trust Jesus, Jesus has not had enough of us. So, rather than turning to our knowledge, perhaps we can turn to Jesus, recognizing that we certainly cannot have enough of him. When put that way, it is a wonder that we aren’t so drawn to the Bread of Life that we double back into the line for communion in order to get seconds.”[xi]
[i] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1922
[ii] ditto
[iii] http://graceandknowledge.faithweb.com/judeans.html
[iv] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=3742
[v] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1406
[vi] ditto
[vii] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=2551
[viii] ditto
[ix] ditto
[x] ditto
[xi] ditto
Oh my Lord … “I am the bread of Life” how much Bickering has this little phrase caused. What does it mean? How far does it go? What do I need to believe to be right with God? I have a book on the History of the Eucharist, and I started looking for it in my bookshelves and before I Got down on my hands and knees to start rifling through that book to find you heady quotes, I thought I don’t need that. Because THAT is not what THIS is about.
The bread and juice at the table that we share every first Sunday, have nothing to do with today’s reading. Well not directly. I know the meal, the simple act we do each month means different things for different people and I truly believe that the bread and juice is transformed (or not), through your faith, into whatever you need it to be to be, in order for your faith to remain strong, in order for your soul to be nourished, so that you may continue on your path, on your walk with God.
Today’s reading is John; John the Mystical, John, for whom Jesus never speaks plainly. John has a poetic / spiritual way of having Christ reveal himself to his followers. Then once Jesus does speak people get confused and do not get it. They take Christ literally and get upset.
Father David Smith an Episcopal priest writes about this
“Remember Nicodemus comes to Jesus by night, and Jesus says to him, ‘You must be born from above’, but Nicodemus misunderstands him, and thinks he is talking about being reborn to his mother all over again!
Or recall when Jesus encounters a woman at the well, and He tells her that ‘she who drinks of your water will thirst again’, and offers her ‘living water’ instead, but she thinks he‘s talking about some underground spring that he‘s found.
And so likewise in John 6, where Jesus is dealing with a whole crowd of people, He says to them, ‘work not for the bread that perishes, but for the heavenly bread that endures for eternal life’, but the crowd thinks that he’s talking about some special health food, similar to that which Moses sourced for them back in the days of old, except that it doesn’t go off – a super-organic-health-bread-concoction perhaps, that has all the wonderful benefits that those health drinks you’ve read about on the Internet are supposed to have for you. ‘He who eats of this bread will live forever!’
Jesus says, ‘NO, NO and NO. I am the bread! My flesh is the food. What you need is not some new form of organic pastry. What you need is ME!’
You see, it’s His presence that we need – not His wisdom, not his teachings, not the memories of all the good times we spent together (nice though they were) but His presence!”[1]
For Christ there is an urgency for his followers and listeners to understand yet they just don’t hear it. This so reminds me of the urgency that the Character of Christ sings in Jesus Christ superstar by Andrew Lloyd Weber “Think while you still have me Move while you still see me!”[2] Jesus was saying I am right here in front of you. My very essence is here with you today. Yet they did not get it.
Luckily, for us, these metaphors and parables and words were written down so we can continue to explore and learn and grow through them.
Father David goes on to explain; “The crowd came looking for bread, but Jesus tells them, ‘It’s not ordinary bread that you need. You need the living bread. You need the presence of the living God in your life. You need to move beyond ‘me’ to ’we’! …You need me within you’
There’s something strikingly contemporary about this religious ‘seeking behavior’ that we read about in these early chapters of John’s Gospel.”[3]
People come to Church seeking Christ and Christ, I pray, is often revealed. Through the Sunday service, through teaching, through the community that is Church, through one another and through prayer.
I love the fact that Christ reminds us in this reading that “You’re not in charge here. The creator who sent me is in Charge” (John 6:44) We all here are still human trying to make sense of Godly words and actions that happened thousands of years ago and yet remain as active and relevant in our daily lives as the air we breathe.
The Christ who was, who is and who will be surrounding and blessings us with Living Spirit, Living Essence, just waiting for us to relax and take it in. If we just allow ourselves to open our eyes, ears and soul we would be able to experience that essence in our daily lives. How often God is reaching out to us inviting us to come in and yet we just don’t see it. We are still seeking that physical presence, the actual miracle bread that will give us eternal life.
As long as we continue to look for it, it will continue to be as elusive as the fountain of youth. I hope I am not getting too metaphorical or perhaps I need to be. You see often, as in today’s reading Christ is as clear as mud. Why? Because as I am trying to convey in words what cannot be, so was Christ. This is the spiritual, this is the soul, this is about a deeper connection that even the mystics have a hard time conveying.
Teresa of Avila put it this way; “May today there be peace within.
May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.
May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith.
May you use those gifts that you have received and pass on the love that has been given to you.
May you be content knowing that you are a child of God.
Let this presence settle into our bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, danse, praise and love.
It is there for each and every one of you.”[4]
“Let this Presence settle into our bones” another physical reference to what is not physical at all. This is about connecting with the other, that which is beyond all comprehension and understanding. This is about building practices which help us find our way to the other. God is calling each and every one of us and as we choose to respond the call becomes greater.
For St. Francis of Assisi the presence of Christ was revealed through our deeds and actions. He said “The deeds you do may be the only sermon some persons will hear today”. That you in your simple human form could be the actual message of God that one would receive. That you are the body of Christ. Isn’t that what being church is really about?
I remember singing at communion the John Foley song “One bread, one body, one Lord of all
One cup of blessing which we bless, And we though many, throughout the earth, We are one body in this one Lord.”[5] What I am saying is that the message today of Christ, I am the Bread of Heaven means nothing more that Christ is food for our soul. To meditate upon his life, words and deeds is the first step in our continuous walk with Christ.
But there is more to this as Professor Brian Peterson points out.
“There is theological irony at play here. The crowd’s professed knowledge of Jesus’ “father and mother” only reveals their complete ignorance of the Father who sent Jesus (verse 44). The truth is not found in knowing the human parents who have nurtured Jesus’ childhood. Rather, the truth is found in knowing that Jesus has come from the Father in Heaven. The crowd’s self-assured “knowledge” stands in their way of seeing the truth. We suffer from the same difficulty of seeing beyond what we “know” to be true (about the poor, about ourselves, about the line separating “the saved” from everyone else, etc.), so that we might see the divine Truth among us.
The only way out of such deadly unbelief is to be drawn into faith by the Father, and this activity of the Father is a major focus of today’s text. Once again, the profound and holy mystery of faith is embraced by this text, and we ought to be careful not to unravel it into bland or moralistic pieties. Faith is not simply a human choice to be made but is the activity of the Father drawing people to Jesus. The word used in verse 44 is the same word used to describe fishing nets being hauled into the boat (21:6). We must be dragged into faith by God; there is no other way to come. But what does that say about the grumblers in this text? What does it say about those around and among us who, to all appearances, have not been drawn to Jesus? What does it say about ourselves, when we recognize our own resistance to faith to be so deep and persistent?”[6].
First let me say please excuse the patristic language but it is a direct quote and the question he poses is a difficult one, what does this say about us when we recognize our own resistance to go deeper, to reach out further, to do something maybe we believe we cannot do? On our own we can’t! Yet in this passage Christ makes it clear that God is drawing us into relationship. Professor Peterson even points out that this is the same word for drawing in the fishing nets. This is an Active God drawing us into relationship through Christ, blessed and energized by the Holy Spirit.
Remember I spoke of Jesus’ urgency for his followers to understand him but not understand him through a literal sense he spoke in metaphor and parable for that is the only way to get past the physical and to reach and experience Christs Presence.
What Jesus is saying is that God is fully present to us, available to us in the everyday. This is radical. This is beyond understanding of most people then and I would say most now. I preach it and I believe it, but I must say I do not fully understand it, even when I have those moments that I feel the connection so deeply that it makes me tremble. It is a mystery. It is the mystery!
God so loved the world that God became human fully human and fully alive so that people could have a relationship with God. God is continuously drawing us closer into relationship and it is us who resist who put up road blocks. Yet through our understanding of our relation to Christ, through our knowing that Christ Lived, Loved, celebrated life to the fullest (there was a lot of wine to be had and plenty a meal to share), Knowing that Jesus became frustrated, hurt, angry, and scared, even when he knew there was a happy ending ( the resurrection), this is our bread.
These Gospel stories that have been told over and over again, feed us. This is bread. The prayer that Jesus teaches us and again is repeated in many different languages all over the world, feeds us. This is bread. When we take these lessons of how to be in the world and we share of us with others, sharing with others, this feeds us. Then when we are fed, when we take that moment to realize we are experience the Bread of Life, Christ’s very presence that is when we get it.
This isn’t something that happens every day. This isn’t something we can actually work at we just have to go about our day and hope we are doing well and carrying that bread of life in our soul and just allow it to happen.
Julian of Norwich prays; “That which is impossible for you is not impossible to me (say’s our Lord): I will preserve my word in all things and I will make all things well.
This is the Great Deed that our Lord will do.
Our faith is grounded in God’s word and we must let this faith be. How it will be done, we will not know until it is done because God wants us to be at ease and at peace, not troubled or kept from enjoying God. The more we busy ourselves to know God’s secrets, the further away from knowledge we shall be. Let all your love be, my child. Turn to me. I am everything you need. Enjoy me and your liberation. Be at peace, my child.
And so our good Lord answered to all the questions and doubt which I could raise, saying most comfortingly: I may make all things well, and I can make all things well, and I shall make all things well, and I will make all things well; and you will see yourself that every kind of thing will be well…And in these…words God wishes us to be enclosed in rest and in peace.”[7]
You see as we are drawn to God through Christ, the Bread of Life, we are nourished. Just like a meal we are nourished and now capable to carry out our day. Yet it is different for with this nourishment it is a day lived out in the Body of Christ. I hope I did not make this to ethereal, too out there yet it is. So allow me to make it even more so by offering a prayer of Thomas Merton.
“My Lord God, I have no idea where I am going. I do not see the road ahead of me. I cannot know for certain where it will end. Nor do I really know myself, and the fact that I think that I am following your will does not mean that I am actually doing so. But I believe that the desire to please you does in fact please you. And I hope I have that desire in all that I am doing. I hope that I will never do anything apart from that desire. And I know that if I do this, you will lead me by the right road though I may know nothing about it. Therefore I will trust you always though I may seem to be lost and in the shadow of death. I will not fear for you are ever with me, and you will never leave me to face my perils alone. In Christ, Amen.”[8]
[1] David Smith, Jesus, the Bread of Life: John 6:35, 41-51, accessed 8/3/2015august 2006, http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/jesus-the-bread-of-life-john-635-41-51-david-smith-sermon-on-miracles-of-jesus-99669.asp?Page=2.
[2] Tim Rice, music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, and arranged by Paul Murtha, Jesus Christ Superstar, Hal Leonard performance series marching band (Originally published as Chichester, U.K. United States: Universal Pictures, 1973 ;. Mèunster. Mèunster. Disney Channel :, Milwaukee, WI: Hal Leonard Corp., 2006), Digital eBook.
[3] David Smith, Jesus, the Bread of Life: John 6:35, 41-51, accessed 8/3/2015august 2006, http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/jesus-the-bread-of-life-john-635-41-51-david-smith-sermon-on-miracles-of-jesus-99669.asp?Page=2.
[4] Goodreads inc, Teresa of Avila Qoutes, accessed */3/2015, https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/74226.Teresa_of_vila.
[5] John Foley, One Bread One Body, October 14, 2013, accessed August 3, 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XN6UNVwlRbk.
[6] Professor Brian Peterson, Commentary on John 6:35, 41-51, accessed August 3, 2015, https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=368.
[7] Fr. Ray, Food For Thought And Nourishment For The Soul, 2009, accessed August 3, 2015, http://www.christchurchpointpleasant.net/id13.html.
[8] Ibid.
Fred Craddock shares a story of manna…as a story of feeding … a story of unexpected glory…you see he had gone to Winnipeg to give two lectures. The first lecture went off without a hitch but the second lecture well…
Friday Night as he left the lecture hall it was beginning to spit a little snow. He was surprised, and his host was surprised as well because he had written, “It’s too early for the cold weather, but you might want to bring a little wind breaker, a little light jacket.” The next morning when he got up there was two or three feet of snow piled against the door. The phone rang, and his host informed him that everyone was surprised by this, the lecture had been canceled and no one could get to him to breakfast, and the airport is closed. He gave him directions to the bus depot around the corner that has a café.
Fred explains.
“I said, ‘I’ll get around’ I put on that little light jacket; it was nothing. I got my little cap and put it on; It didn’t even help me in the room. I went into the bathroom and unrolled long sheets of toilet paper and made a nest in my cap so that it would protect my head against that icy wind.
I went outside, shivering. The wind was cold, the snow was deep. I slid and bumped and finally made it around the corner into the bus station. Every stranded traveler in western Canada was in there, strangers to each other and to me, pressing and pushing and loud. I finally found a place to sit, and after a lengthy time a man in a greasy apron came over and said, ‘What’ll you have?’ I said, ‘May I see a menu?’ He said, ‘What do you want a menu for? We have soup.’ I said, ‘What kinds of soup do you have?’ and he said soup. You want some soup?’ I said, ‘That was what I was going to order – soup.’ He brought the soup, and I put the spoon to it –Yuck! It was the awfullest. It was kind of gray looking; it was so bad I couldn’t eat it, but I sat there and put my hands about it. It was warm, and so I sat there with my head down, my head wrapped in toilet paper, bemoaning and beweeping my outcast state with the horrible soup. But it was warm, so I clutched it and stayed bent over my soup stove.
The door opened again. The wind was icy, and somebody yelled, ‘Close the door!’ in came this woman clutching her little coat. She found a place, not far from me. The greasy apron came, ‘What do you want?’ She said, ‘A glass of water.’ He brought a glass of water, took out his tablet, and said, ‘Now what’ll you have’ She said, ‘Just the water.” He said, ‘You have to order lady.’ ‘Well, I just want a glass of water.’ ‘Look, I have customers that pay- what do you think this is, a church or something? Now what do you want?’ She said, ‘Just a glass of water and some time to get warm.’ ‘Look there are people paying here. I f you’re not going to order you have to leave!’ And he got real loud about it. So, she got up to leave and, almost as if rehearsed, everybody in that little café stood up and started to walk towards the door. I got up and said, ‘I’m voting for something here; I don’t know what it is.’ And the man in the greasy apron said, ‘All right, all right, she can stay.’ Everybody sat down, and he brought her a bowl of soup.
I said to the person sitting there by me, I said, ‘who is she?’ He said, ‘I never saw her before.’ The place grew quiet, nut I heard the sipping of the awful soup. I said,’ I’m going to try that again.’ I put my spoon to the soup – you know, it was not bad soup. Everybody was eating this soup. I started eating the soup, and it was pretty good soup. I have no idea what kind of soup it was. I don’t know what was in it, but I do recall when I was eating it, it tasted a little bit like bread and wine. Just a little like bread and wine.”[1]
Fred Cradock in this story shows how a greasy apron moves form scarcity to abundance and in so doing a noisy café on a very cold morning moves form a place of earnest refuge to a church. An Awful cup of soup is transformed into bread and wine.
Walter Bruggeman reflects on Psalm 145 which is the psalm for today.
Though this reflection was written in 2012 it still rings true today. This is a concept of scarcity verses abundance. This is the concept and the heart of today’s Gospel. His reflection on the voice of fear is heard loud and clear in our society today by conservative and Liberal alike. The fear of not enough is kind of the basic mantra here in the USA but the mantra of humanity in most places is not yet enough, we have never seen enough! It is a mantra of anxiety and fear it is a mantra of scarcity.
And right in the middle of this fear and anxiety comes today’s gospel. He comes upon a hungry crowd. Walter Brueggemann argues that when he asks Phillip how we shall feed them Phillip represents the Church. “Where are we to buy bread for these people to eat?”
“But John tells us this is a trick question that Jesus puts to Phillip.”[3] He wanted to see whether Philip understood. He hopes that Phillip by now would understand that Jesus is to enact God’s gift of abundance in the world. Where Jesus comes, life overflows with wellbeing. But Phillip – the church- does not get it. Philip is thinking in old-world categories of there is not enough. He tells Jesus I would have to work for 6 months to pay for the food. We just can’t afford it. We can’t feed all these hungry people but “Jesus already knows his own capacity for abundance; he knows the source of bread for the world. He knows there will be more than enough! But his church still is trapped in scarcity”[4]
Of course, we humans love to rationalize this miracle by saying what really happened was an act of generosity that the crowd pulls out food they had tucked away, and they share it. I think this minimizes the Gospel and its message John is pointing out “God’s amazing power to completely “transform human expectations”; instead, we modern, self-sufficient types think it’s up to us humans to handle things, to help ourselves.”[5]
One commentator “observes the power not of God but of shame in this interpretation, that is, getting people to share out of a sense of guilt: “God is no longer a miracle-worker unbounded by human laws, but a social manipulator who reminds people to share. Behavioral modification replaces amazing grace as the core of the story.”[6] This is a response that grows out of an attitude of scarcity in which our response becomes that we must be in control all the time.
Jesus is not held down by this interpretation, the Gospel of Christ cannot exist in the disciple’s response. Jesus moves us beyond a simple understanding of the way the world works. He tells the crowd to be seated. Jesus says come to the table he blesses bread. “Jesus gives thanks (the word is eucharisto, Eucharist! Imagine a meal called ‘Thanks!’)”[7]
Then all were satisfied, and he tells the disciples to get the leftovers …he didn’t ask if there were any, he knew. Jesus knew in his abundance there would be plenty left over. 12 baskets full, a basket for each of the tribes of Judah! “John tells us this is a new reality right before our eyes. Jesus enacts a new world.”[8] A world of abundance! In that old world of scarcity there is not enough, and we must cringe and save and protect and not share and not let anyone get a free lunch (or a free cup of soup) because we might run out.”
But we can see the abundance! We are witnesses to what cast out as our old fears and shows us a new way to live in this world! The old ways can no longer hold us captive by fears for we know of an abundant grace that overflows. At the end of the Gospel reading, we see Jesus showing up in an unexpected place and he says to them “be not afraid” because the world is now working in a new way!
I know our society has taught us to get more and keep more and do not share for it could be gone tomorrow. The old refrain of fear and scarcity will return to our heads and hearts daily but remember Jesus has changed the narrative “We are the people who have witnessed and know about the abundance of bread among us, for the world. The church is a pump station for abundance that overflows.”[9] We do not need to check the economics of it. We do not need to explain it. We need to stand in witness to the truth of Christ that all our fears which lead to scarcity have been conquered by the God of abundance. Be not afraid step out boldly in faith and live abundantly in the grace of God!
[1] Craddock, Fred B., and Mike Graves. Craddock Stories. St. Louis, MO: Chalice Press, 2001.
[2] Brueggemann, Walter, Samuel Wells, and Thomas G. Long. The Collected Sermons of Walter Brueggemann. Vol. 2. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2015. Pg 188
[3] Ditto, 189
[4] ditto
[5] http://www.ucc.org/worship_samuel_sermon_seeds_july_29_2018
[6] Ditto
[7] Bruggeman, 190
[8]Ditto
[9] Ditto, 191
The disciples had come to Jesus and told Him all that they had taught and done, and Jesus says…Come away to a deserted place all by your selves and rest for a while. I need this…you need this. This is sabbath. This is a different than Sunday sabbath, but this is sabbath.
Jesus prays some 30 odd times throughout the scriptures, but this is different there are 4 direct instances where he went off alone to pray. “Continually Jesus withdrew from people, daily life activities, and the demands of his ministry to be alone with the Father and pray. Jesus’ solitude and silence are a major theme in the Gospels…The priority of Jesus’ solitude and silence is everywhere in the Gospels. It’s how he began his ministry. It’s how he made important decisions. It’s how he dealt with troubling emotions like grief. It’s how he dealt with the constant demands of his ministry and cared for his soul. It’s how he taught his disciples. It’s how he prepared for important ministry events. It’s how he prepared for his death on the cross.”[1]
Jesus is teaching his disciples his practice. His practice of retreat. These moments of going away to a deserted place and prayer are mini retreats. In this instance though the retreat occurs on the water, for the crowd follows them around the bank to where they are headed and are ready for them when they arrive.
But this concept of getting away to rest and pray had me thinking about how do we pray? What do we pray for? Sometimes I am cautious in my words even up here.
As a clergy I am asked for prayers. I often see people on Facebook who are asking for prayers. I may run into someone somewhere and suddenly they will mention a family member or friend who is not doing well or is on a job hunt or who has lost themselves and needs prayer.
I make a promise of prayer and I often keep it there on the spot so that I do not forget it. But a part of me always wonders just what people are hoping for, what are they expecting, when they ask for prayer?
A UCC Minister shared this experience
“In July I had dinner with a long-time friend, also a UCC minister, who retired not long ago. It was wonderful to see him; it was sad to see him. Since his retirement he has had significant health issues, some of which seem to be resisting any and all medications. His immediate future, health wise, is very uncertain. As we parted, not sure when or if we would see each other again, I told him I would hold him in my prayers. But again, what did I mean by that? What exactly will I be praying for? What do I want my prayer for him to accomplish? In fact, is accomplish even the proper word to use?”
Every week in our worship service we lift up joys and concerns during our prayer time. But when we ask for prayer for a friend suffering from illness, for a family member stricken with grief, for ourselves as we face a surgery or a situation we fear might overwhelm us, what are we asking for… what do we hope will happen?
“Ask and it will be given you; search and you will find; knock and the door will be opened for you.”
Wonderful words, comforting words, but do we believe them? What do you suppose they mean?
Do you recall Huckleberry Finn’s experience with prayer?
“Miss Watson, she took me in the closet and prayed, but nothing come of it. She told me to pray everyday and whatever I asked for, I would get it. But it warn’t so. I tried it. Once I got a fish line but no hooks. It warn’t any good to me without hooks. I tried for the hooks three or four times, but somehow I couldn’t make it work.”
I think of all the times I have prayed to catch that one big fish!”
He goes on to share another story a church member had shared with him
“A bar called Drummonds in Mt. Vernon, Texas, began construction on an expansion of their building, hoping to grow their business. In response, the local Baptist church started a campaign to block the bar from expanding, using everything from petitions to constant prayer. About a week before the bar’s grand re-opening, a bolt of lightning struck the bar and burned it to the ground.
Afterward, the church folk were rather smug, bragging about the “power of prayer.” And so the
angry bar owner proceeded to sue the church on grounds that the church was ultimately responsible for the destruction of his building, “through direct actions or indirect means.” Needless to say, the church quickly abandoned the “power of prayer” argument and instead insisted it had absolutely no responsibility for or connection to the destruction of the bar.
The judge read carefully through the plaintiff’s complaint and the defendant’s reply. He then
opened the hearing by saying, “I don’t know how I’m going to decide this, but it appears from the paperwork that what we have here is a bar owner who now believes in the power of prayer, and an entire congregation that does not.”
What do we believe about the power of prayer? How do we let prayer into our lives? What do we expect when we pray?
Former UCC executive minister Steve sterner once wrote.
“I think our problem with prayer is not that it works sometimes, but that sometimes it doesn’t. We truly struggle with the efficacy of prayer when it doesn’t seem to work. It is easier to believe totally that prayer does not work than it is to reconcile in our own hearts and minds why it doesn’t seem to work sometimes.”
“Ask and it will be given to you…sometimes; seek and maybe you will find?” That doesn’t
sound particularly comforting…does it?
Samuel wells speaks of three different kinds of prayer[2], the first kind is the resurrection prayer when you are just praying so hard for that miracle. Jesus alive from the dead, Lazarus walks out of the tomb. No matter what all the doctors have said… the lame walk, the blind see, the deaf hear…can I have just a little of that?
This is the prayer that comes from the deepest of despair, from the very wells of faith, that mustard seed that we have been told can move a mountain…well lord we do not have a mountain to move but if oyu could give us this one miraculous cure…
This prayer is the prayer that says God you have the power to fix it… so fix it, make changes, take action, restore health! I want to pray it, but there are so many times when it is even hard
to pray for healing, for the miracle, because healing just isn’t going to happen, at least not physical healing.
I am not saying miracles aren’t possible nor that a miracle won’t happen. Miracles all the time even now the simple fact that this bunch of cells can breathe and walk talk and think is a miracle. But when the resurrection prayer is lifted this is not what is expected nor understood.
More often than not I find myself praying what Wells calls the prayer of incarnation. “It’s a call for God to be with your friend or loved one. It’s a recognition that Jesus was broken, desolate, on the brink of death, and that this is all part of being human, part of the deal you sign onto the day you are born. Our bodies and minds are fragile, frail and sometimes feeble.
There is no guarantee that life will be easy, comfortable, fun or happy. The prayer of incarnation says, ‘God, in Jesus you shared our pain, our foolishness and our sheer bad luck. You took on our flesh with all its needs and clumsiness and weakness. Visit my friend, my loved one, and give them patience to endure what lies ahead, hope for every trying day and companions to show them your love.’”[3]
This is the prayer that reminds us we are not alone. God is walking beside us and sometimes carrying us for through Christ, God knows deeply what it means to be human and companions with us in our journey.
Beyond this sacred companionship there is a third type of prayer that Wells describes, this is a prayer of transfiguration, of transformation. This is a prayer that asks God to give us, our friend, our loved one a vision of the reality within, beneath and beyond what we understand. Wells says that this is a prayer that, in our times of bewilderment and confusion, asks that God might reveal to us a deeper truth to life than we have ever known, reasons for living beyond what we have ever imagined and an awareness of grace and love that we have never known before.
Wells says this prayer is asking for just a glimpse into the great mystery. Help us to see, help our minds through this problem, this pain, this trial to see perhaps just a glimpse of God’s glory.
Wells says; “Maybe this is our real prayer for our friends, our loved ones, ourselves, a prayer for God to make this trial and tragedy, this problem and pain, a glimpse of God’s glory, a window into God’s world, even into God’s heart: ‘God, let me see your face, sense the mystery in all things, and walk with angels and saints. Bring me closer to you in this crisis than I ever been. Make this a moment of truth. Touch me, raise me, and make me alive like never before.”[4]
Fred Craddock, shares an experience with prayer of transformation:
“When my sister Frieda, my only sister, was dying of cancer, I had gone back to visit and knew that the time there would be the last time I would see her. She asked me to help her prepare her funeral service, which I found extremely, extremely difficult to do. When we finished preparing the service, she asked me to pray, and this is what I did. I located myself straight in front of the throne. Before I closed my eyes, I wanted to make sure I was in front of the throne, because what I wanted was God on the throne, God the power, God the Almighty. All things are possible with God.
When I had positioned myself straight in front of the throne, I bowed my head and
prayed for her relief and for her healing as intensely and sincerely as I could, and I closed with Amen. I lifted my head, opened my eyes, and there in front of me was Jesus, the bleeding lamb. Now who wants that? And she died.
There it is. God the power, God the one who identifies with us and suffers with us. You won’t find a better picture in all the bible than here.”[5]
For Fred the prayer for a miracle became the prayer of transformation a glimpse into a deeper truth, a new reality, indeed into the very face of God. His sister died, but for Craddock, there was healing and new hope.
When Jesus says, “Ask and it will be given you,” he does not exactly say what will be given. And when he says, “Seek and you will find,” he does not exactly say what we will find.”
We live in a mystery, and we seek to touch that which we cannot comprehend. Perhaps the hardest part of prayer is just resting in this mystery. Allowing our attempt at control to slip away, learning to allow and rest and be still in the spirit of God but not only in times of need and despair but also just for ourselves.
You see in the everyday life of loving community we need to pause, be alone with God so we have the spirit the energy and the wisdom to walk when called, to pray when called, to seek the mystery and allow God to be in control.
As Steve Sterner says, “Perhaps one of the most difficult aspects of prayer is surrendering to the mystery of that to which we pray.” No, our prayers may not be answered in the way we wish, may not achieve the results we hoped for. And yes, there will be times when we simply are not okay with that. I’m quite sure that God is okay with those time when we are not okay with God. But, as Craddock discovered, as we are persistent in prayer, it is often we who are transformed, we who are changed, we who begin to see life and reality and God in a whole new light. And, disarmed of our demands and expectations, we just might find ourselves able to welcome the acceptance, love and other blessings that we didn’t even pray for.” No, I have no final answers for you concerning prayer and the power of prayer. But I do want to urge you to trust the process, regardless of what comes of it, because the process itself, the prayer itself, gives us life.
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[1] https://www.soulshepherding.org/jesus-solitude-and-silence/
[2] https://www.christiancentury.org/article/2014-04/different-way-pray
[3] Ditto
[4] Ditto
[5] Craddock, Fred B., and Mike Graves. Craddock Stories. St. Louis, MO: Chalice Press, 2001. Pg 125
Stephen Sondheim wrote the great lyrical finale of into the woods with these words…
How do you say to your child in the night?
Nothing’s all black, but then nothing’s all white
How do you say it will all be all right
When you know that it might not be true?
What do you do?
Careful the things you say
Children will listen
Careful the things you do
Children will see and learn
Children may not obey, but children will listen
Children will look to you for which way to turn
To learn what to be
Careful before you say “Listen to me”
For some odd reason those are the words that first came to me as I walked with this gospel today. I cannot help but wonder what this strange request did to this young girl. I wonder if she even had a concept of what she asked for. We do not know because she is not mentioned again. Now Herod on the other hand.
“Mark chose this opportunity, after Jesus sent out his disciples on their first formal mission, to report the death of John the Baptist. Mark hinted at this political death earlier in the story when John was arrested (1:14) but saved the full report until chapter 6. Interpreters who choose to think that Jesus’ life and mission were disconnected from the socio-political affairs of his first century context must view this account (John’s death by Herod) as an aside. Using intercalation, there is a big fancy word it means sandwich, once again, Mark placed this account between the commission and the return of the disciples to intimate its significance for the expansion of Jesus’ mission.”[1]
Mark is intentional of putting this message in between the moment Jesus sends out his disciples two by two and before they return. Now this translation is a little weak on just how much Herod enjoyed the company of John.
In Nicholas Kings direct translation it says this about Herod.
“and Herodias had it in for him and wanted to kill him. And she couldn’t, for Herod was afraid of John, knowing him a just man and a saint. And he protected him, and when he was listening to him he was greatly puzzled. And he used to listen to him gladly.”[2]
It is a bit more of a gentler kinder image of Herod. He actually enjoyed being puzzled by John’s teachings and he truly did want to protect him as best he could.
Now Herodias Philips ex-wife and now wife to Herod seems to be the point of contention she is the one who doesn’t like John’s objections to the marriage and plots to be rid of him and sees an opportunity with Herod’s Birthday party. So she gets her daughter to dance for Herod.
Her daughter has become famous for her dance. What was her name?… What was the dance??
Well actually we do not know her name is not mentioned except for in some writings where it is the same as her mother’s name. What kind of dance did she do that so pleased the king? We do not know? It might have been a simple little girl trying to impress her daddy. Over the centuries there is more legend than anything substantial around this dance.
So “What was Herod’s fear all about? He could not have been happy with John’s judgment against his adultery. There is no evidence that Herod repented. Yet we are told that Herod knew John to be righteous and a holy man, and Herod liked to listen to him. Was he like we are sometimes, sensing a hard truth about our lives, uneasy but not ready to accept it? Why risk offending God by harming John; he could be a true prophet after all. Was that it? Or was it also fear, as the ancient historian, Josephus, claimed, that the power of John’s message might stir a rebellion….
Herod was not loved by all. His more zealous enemies considered him a collaborator with Rome. Herod, a small-time ruler, not actually a king, was beholden to Rome and vulnerable at home. As the drama played out, he was vulnerable to his wife as well. Beguiled by his daughter’s …dancing and its effect on his guests, Herod makes a rash promise. Herodias leverages his need to appear resolute in front of his politically important guests to get her wish; John is beheaded. Conflicted within himself about John’s message but surrounded by manifold political and family pressures, Herod does what he knows is terribly wrong. He is deeply grieved.”[3]
Herod is deeply grieved as are Johns followers and, I would imagine, John’s family which is Jesus’ family. John “a voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Prepare the way for the Lord, make straight paths for him.'” (Mark 1:1-3) It is John we celebrate as this wild uncontrollable spirit that comes out of the dangerous wild places proclaiming one baptism of repentance and a forgiveness of sins.
John is the one who points past himself, a lesson for all of us preachers and teachers, John proclaims; “The stronger one than me is coming after me, of whom I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. (Mark 1:8) Jesus is baptized the heavens open, the holy spirit as a dove descends upon him, and a voice is heard saying this is my son in whom I am well pleased. Then Jesus is hurled out into the desert. It is after John has been handed over to Herod that Jesus returns and starts his ministry.
John starts the Jesus story whether it be at the baptism or by a simple stirring in his mother’s womb we have no Jesus without John…I mean we could have; Jesus might have still had a great ministry and message without John and yet John is essential to our story…this is our sacred story…this is our sacred text.
So yes, we grieve the loss of John, but we do not celebrate how he died or even why for that is a bit confusing, but we celebrate the life he lived. The wild man in the desert telling us to make ready the way for our lord.
Just as much as Herod is part of our sacred text. In the best of storytelling anytime we see or hear Herod’s name we want to boo or hiss. Herod is a villain and yet in the circumstances that play out is he a villain or is he trapped by his own circumstances? Remember “Herod makes a rash promise. Herodias leverages his need to appear resolute in front of his politically important guests to get her wish”[4] so is he a patsy or is he some political parable in the midst of all of this?
One commentator points out that.
“It is tempting to see in Herod a parable that speaks to leadership in government, economic and institutional life in our own time. Persons in positions of power are subjected to powerful pressures that pose a threat to their own security. Personal pride, greed for gain and prestige, and the influence of ambitious intimates can also play a role. Under the sway of these encroaching forces, the courage to serve truth and the common good can flag. The results may not be as gruesome as John’s execution, but the damage can be even more extensive. Even exemplary leaders who are devoted to the welfare of those dependent upon them frequently find themselves mired in a morass of conflicting forces that stymie their best efforts.
Certainly, there are prophetic voices like John’s today. Yet, the impact often seems minimal. When wealthy interests can now influence the presidential election by giving anonymously to non-profit “social welfare” organizations, citizens without such economic power might wonder if their needs are being served. Indeed, one could feel a bit like the Baptist’s disciples: nothing left to do but bury the body.”[5]
But we are called to be more resolved and invested in life. We are called as disciples of Christ to stand in the face of such opposition and call it out as what it is. We are called to be the faces of hope beyond hope.
“So why does Mark tell this story: the longest of the Gospel’s anecdotes and its only flashback?
Aside from the Golgotha plot and discovery of the empty tomb, this is the only tale in which Jesus never appears. Its villains never reappear. It’s a strange story about John in which the baptizer himself never appears. Even stranger: beneath this story of John is the story of Jesus. The flashback is flashforward. Mark tips us off in “King Herod heard; for his name had become known. And he said. ‘John the baptizer has risen from the dead, and that’s the reason these miracles are at work in him…. That fellow I decapitated, John-he has risen’”(Mark 6:13-15)[6]
In this turn of events Herod foreshadows Pilate in the same way that John foretells of Jesus. Just like Herod, Pilate is amazed by circumstances surrounding an innocent prisoner, swept up in events that fast spin out of his control and unable to back down after being publicly outmaneuvered. Like John, Jesus is passive in his final hours and is executed by hideous capital punishment seemingly dying in order to placate those he offends.
As I was wondering how I might tie this into today what we see here is a governor who knows better but is trapped by the politics and expectations around him.
I found one commentator that brought me to tears. I am going to share just a part of commentary as he reflects on this gospel and today…
“Connecting to present times
One such story from today’s headlines goes like this:
When he landed in Michigan in late May, all the weary little boy carried was a trash bag stuffed with dirty clothes from his days long trek across Mexico, and two small pieces of paper — one a stick-figure drawing of his family from Honduras, the other a sketch of his father, who had been arrested and led away after they arrived at the United States border in El Paso…
An American government escort handed over the 5-year-old child, identified on his travel documents as José, to the American woman whose family was entrusted with caring for him. He refused to take her hand. He did not cry. He was silent on the ride “home.” The first few nights, he cried himself to sleep. Then it turned into “just moaning and moaning,” said Janice, his foster mother…
He recently slept through the night for the first time, though he still insists on tucking the family pictures under his pillow …
Since his arrival in Michigan, family members said, a day has not gone by when the boy has failed to ask in Spanish, “When will I see my papa?” They tell him the truth. They do not know. No one knows … José’s father is in detention, and parent and child until this week had not spoken since they were taken into the custody of United States authorities. He refused to shed the clothes he had arrived in, an oversize yellow T-shirt, navy blue sweatpants and a gray fleece pullover likely given to him by the authorities who processed him in Texas.1
I, Cláudio, have a 6-year-old boy and I am an immigrant citizen, foreign and citizen at the same time. I could not read this biblical story of John the Baptist without thinking of stories like José and the loss of his father. To have José separated from his father is like having one’s head cut off. The story told in Mark 6 has no redemption. John the Baptist had his head cut off. That is how hundreds of families are now living, with their heads cut off, parents without children and children without parents.
If John announced the coming of Jesus Christ, these kids and parents announce the horrendous cruelty of the immigration policies of this country. On behalf of these families, we must stand up like John the Baptist, who told the governor of his day: “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife” (Mark 6:18). Just as Jesus came in the footsteps of John the Baptist, we must show up as Jesus Christ to these families.”[7]
We must show up like Christ…Just as John started a ministry and Jesus came in fulfillment and yet not completion for you see the ministry goes on. The apostles stepped up, the disciples stepped up and we are called to step up as Christ to keep the ministry going. We are called to be Christ to our immigrant brothers and sisters. We are called to be Christ to our homeless brothers and sisters. We are called to be Christ to those suffering from illness. We are called to be Christ to each other any time and all the time. If not us than who?
We are the United Church of Christ a united and uniting church living to make this place heaven on earth for all. So I will leave this sermon as I began…
How do you say to your child in the night?
Nothing’s all black, but then nothing’s all white
How do you say it will all be all right
When you know that it might not be true?
What do you do?
Careful the things you say
Children will listen
Careful the things you do
Children will see and learn
Amen!
[1] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1325
[2] King, Nicholas. The Bible: A Study Bible. Buxhall, Stowmarket, Suffolk: Kevin Mayhew, 2013.
[3] https://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-james-m-childs-phd/mark-6-14-29-the-downfall-of-giving-into-fear_b_1663356.html
[4] https://www.huffingtonpost.com/rev-james-m-childs-phd/mark-6-14-29-the-downfall-of-giving-into-fear_b_1663356.html
[5] Ditto
[6] King, Nicholas. The Bible: A Study Bible. Buxhall, Stowmarket, Suffolk: Kevin Mayhew, 2013.
[7] https://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=3736
Today’s Gospel speaks of a great disturbance…so great that the disciples who are fisher men fear for their own lives.
One commentator points out that
“This is a remarkable story; Mark is not particularly interested in geographical details, but gets Jesus and his disciples to cross the sea.”
I have mentioned before that mark has a lot of coming and going Jesus is constantly on the move. Jesus just decides out of nowhere to just up and leave. They could have walked elsewhere but instead they got into their boats and went across the sea of Galilee.
“The Sea of Galilee, also Kinneret or Kinnereth, Lake of Gennesaret, or Lake Tiberias, is a freshwater lake in Israel. It is approximately 33 mi in circumference, about 13 mi long, and 8.1 mi wide. Its area is 64.4 sq mi at its fullest, and its maximum depth is approximately 141 feet. At levels between 705 ft and 686 ft below sea level, it is the lowest freshwater lake on Earth and the second-lowest lake in the world (after the Dead Sea, a saltwater lake). The lake is fed partly by underground springs although its main source is the Jordan River which flows through it from north to south.”
Crossing the sea of Galilee is no big deal, most of the time, and well Jesus is with a bunch of fisherman. So, what can go wrong? Well we hear a “storm of great wind” arises which is fairly common, yet the disciples panic the waves are coming into the boat and the boat is starting to fill yet Jesus sleeps.
This got me to wondering what the boat looked like. Luckily there was one recently discovered that dates back to about that time.
“The Ancient Galilee Boat, also known as the Jesus Boat, is an ancient fishing boat from the 1st century AD, discovered in 1986 on the north-west shore of the Sea of Galilee in Israel. The remains of the boat, 27 feet (8.27 meters) long, 7.5 feet (2.3 meters) wide and with a maximum preserved height of 4.3 feet (1.3 meters), first appeared during a drought, when the waters of the Sea (actually a great fresh-water lake) receded.”
So Jesus could have been sleeping along some sort of seat since the boat is 7.5 feet wide but how did he not roll off in rough waters? How did he not get wet?
Now frankly either the Disciples are panicking for no reason or Jesus can sleep well balanced while rocking violently and wet!
I suspect, knowing the disciples, they were panicked for no good reason. Well maybe one Good reason, so that we might learn to trust the lord.
“As often happens in these parts, a storm comes up unexpectedly, and the disciples panic, accusing Jesus of indifference to their fate. Like someone calming a boisterous dog, Jesus orders the sea to behave (and it does), then rebukes the disciples, for the first time indicating the importance of faith to them.”
The importance of faith. The importance of trusting. The importance of looking to see God. Paying attention to see God active in your life, if you want to see Jesus show up, you must look for them.
How many times are we caught up in our own storms, our own mishaps, our own illnesses, weaknesses, needs, fears, our own got to have it because I want it moments? How many times do we, in our most significant hours of need lift prayers in dire earnest? How often in our least important moment of the day do we nonchalantly turn to the lord and just say please God. Yet in the end they all have the same measure, and, in the end, we rarely look to see the answer.
We rarely pause to say thank you lord. We rarely stop to acknowledge Gods presence. Now I am not saying we do not do it. We at least do it or think about it on a Sunday, but what about the other 6 days of the week? I am just asking because this little passage got me thinking.
Now this calming of the sea happened neither here nor there they are in route from one place to another where this miracle occurs. One commentator points out that.
“Jesus likes to show up in liminal spaces in Mark — sites of transition or risk. He chooses to go to marginal spaces, away from life’s regular patterns: near a graveyard (Mark 5:2-3), at a deathbed (Mark 5:40), or hoisted atop Golgotha. He situates himself at geographical boundary-lands, like the wilderness (Mark 1:4-9, 35), mountaintops (Mark 3:13; 6:46; 9:2), Tyre (Mark 7:24), and Caesarea Philippi (Mark 8:27). He also goes to sociopolitical borderlands, politically charged locations like a tax collector’s home (Mark 2:14-15) and the land outside of Jerusalem during Passover (Mark 11:11, 19).
The Sea of Galilee was both kinds of places: geographically, it separated the peoples of one shore from those on the other side; socio-politically, it provided sustenance to Galileans and generated resources that Rome could extract from those who depended on it to make a living. It kept populations distanced from each other, and it fed imperial appetites”
This is important on two aspects symbolically calming the waters that are so agitated by imperial power could symbolize the effect Jesus’ life has on all powers that be. Eventually they will calm by Christs command.
The first part of this comment that “Jesus likes to show up in the liminal spaces. I just love. Jesus in the in between space. That spot where you are neither in nor out that place where we are neither here nor there. The scariest of all places for it is in the liminal space where we tend to be the most insecure, the most frightened, and sometimes the most lost. It is in these places that we often go in prayer to seek out answers. It is in these the most difficult of times in life that Jesus shows up.
But we would never see or hear Jesus, the sprit, God if we do not stop and listen. I am not sure if Jesus’ command to be still is strictly for the sea but for the disciples as well.
Stillness is one of the most sacred traditions of how we find God in our home, in our offices, out and about. Being still is about well as the old song says putting our hand in the hand of the man who stilled the waters. Tehra Cox, author. Lyricist and word artist, shares her new found experience of stillness while on a walk.
Meditation Tehra Cox
“When I moved from the noisy concrete and steel canyons of New York City to a small Hudson Valley village with its serenely forested highlands, I was stunned by the radical change of scenery. As late summer turned into fall, my favorite season, nature’s magic began its work on me. From one of my first autumn walks along the wooded mountain path behind the old Victorian house that was my new home, I was introduced to the uncanny voices of the natural world.
My first encounter with what I call “Earth-Speak” was nothing less than phenomenal for its impact on my life and sensibility. As I came around a bend at the top of the mountain, the lush goldenness of maples along the trail nearly took my breath away. They colored the very air around them. As I stood transfixed, it seemed that all the flora of the woods began to sway toward me. The dramatic red-orange-gold hues in all shapes and sizes were pulsating with light, sounds and scents so intoxicating that I wasn’t sure if I was breathing or drinking. Suddenly, I “heard” a whispering of words that I will never forget: “Ah yes, the very things you humans love about us – our different colors and shapes and smells and languages – are the things you often hate about each other. Alas, you have lost touch with your beauties because you have lost touch with us.”
Having just moved out of a city teeming with the tensions that densely-populated diversities of culture, creed, economy – and yes, race – too often provoke, this message was stunning and timely for me. During that first year of “life in the country,” I became unusually acquainted with this sentient world. In my daily walks with pen and paper, the presences of nature enfolded me in their lushness while I chronicled their wisdom-teachings. As these “inner tuitions” invited me to consider some of life’s most paradoxical mysteries, they required only one thing of me – to be utterly present and receptive. I didn’t know to call it that at the time – I was only aware that I felt light and free, as if all the space around the trees and the flowers and blades of grass was also around, and even inside, me.”
To be “utterly present and receptive” requires one to be still. To create our own in between space. Between the thing you have just finished and the next thing on your to do list. Many people begin their day with morning meditation, or quiet time. I have my quite time in the morning in my office. But I also strive for a midday. Even I it is but 10 minutes just to still the mind and find God. Time to Be still…Slow down…listen for God and the spirit’s still small voice.
This is not easy to do and it does take dedication and practice. Did you know it takes three months of doing the same thing every day at the same time before it becomes a habit.
And we are not built the same for some absolute stillness is maddening. There are many ways to be still even while being active.
Thich Nhat Hanh was a mystic, scholar, activist, and Vietnamese monk author of over 25 books including Living Buddha Living Christ which I highly recommend for reading also has a books on walking mediatation.
“Many of us walk for the sole purpose of getting from one place to another. Now suppose we are walking to a sacred place. We would walk quietly and take each gentle step with reverence. I propose that we walk this way every time we walk on the earth. The earth is sacred and we touch her with each step. We should be very respectful, because we are walking on our mother. If we walk like that, then every step will be grounding, every step will be nourishing….
Walking meditation unites our body and our mind. We combine our breathing with our steps. When we breathe in, we may take two or three steps. When we breathe out, we may take three, four, or five steps. We pay attention to what is comfortable for our body.
Our breathing has the function of helping our body and mind to calm down. As we walk, we can say, Breathing in, I calm my body. Breathing out, I bring peace into my body. Calming the breath calms the body and reduces any pain and tension.”
We can also combine our breathing with a simple prayer or intention you whish to lift up as you walk. This calms and centers the mind, creates an inner stillness that makes room for God.
Many people engage this stillness by praying the Labyrinth. Labyrinths have been used as a sacred path and spiritual resource by pilgrims for centuries, and some say they originated as scaled-down pilgrimages for people who couldn’t travel to a holy place. Labyrinths can be made of stone, turf, or ink on paper, and they are different from mazes because they don’t have dead-ends, puzzles, or tricks. Instead, they form a winding path that leads to the center and back out again.
The meandering labyrinth pathway can be seen as a metaphor for life’s journey. Walking the labyrinth with the intention of revisiting one’s life can invite memories to appear and reform with new connections.
I have seen people walk the labyrinth in silence. I have seen people dance their way through the labyrinth. There is no right or wrong way to pray.
Finally I will mention art as a form of prayer. And yes we are all artists! For any type of creativity is an art form. That means cooking, writing, gardening, singing, knitting, photography and the list goes on and on. Sometimes though we need to be intentional about time for art and creativity. Personally I love the artist way as a spiritual growth tool and a practice.
“Since its first publication, The Artist’s Way phenomena has inspired …millions of readers to embark on a creative journey and find a deeper connection to process and purpose. Julia Cameron’s novel approach guides readers in uncovering problems areas and pressure points that may be restricting their creative flow and offers techniques to free up any areas where they might be stuck, opening up opportunities for self-growth and self-discovery.
The program begins with Cameron’s most vital tools for creative recovery – The Morning Pages, a daily writing ritual of three pages of stream-of-conscious, and The Artist Date, a dedicated block of time to nurture your inner artist. From there, she shares hundreds of exercises, activities, and prompts to help readers thoroughly explore each chapter. She also offers guidance on starting a “Creative Cluster” of fellow artists who will support you in your creative endeavors.”
The morning pages easily become a still focused prayer. The artist date becomes intentional time of creativity and connecting to the spirit as one explores artistic venues.
But all these things encourage us to find stillness, find prayer, engage and walk with God so that we may still our own troubled waters. amen
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[1] King, Nicholas. The Bible: A Study Bible. Buxhall, Stowmarket, Suffolk: Kevin Mayhew, 2013
[1] “Sea of Galilee.” Wikipedia. June 19, 2018. Accessed June 20, 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_of_Galilee
[1] Ditto
[1] King, Nicholas. The Bible: A Study Bible. Buxhall, Stowmarket, Suffolk: Kevin Mayhew, 2013.
[1] “Commentary on Mark 4:35-41 by Matt Skinner.” Ephesians 2:11-22 Commentary by Kyle Fever – Working Preacher – Preaching This Week (RCL). Accessed June 20, 2018. http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=3677
[1] https://www.terahcox.com/blog/the-secret-language-of-earth-speak-by-terah-cox
[1] https://www.lionsroar.com/walking-meditation-thich-nhat-hanh/
[1] https://www.amazon.com/Artists-Way-25th-Anniversary
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