Sneaky Saturday! But then again, it seems that with each passing year, the days seem to pass more quickly.
Before I know it … a week has gone by … it’s a month later … another year has passed and the hair has more grey/white, the wrinkles seem to have increased, the tummy padding more evident and the body a bit more achy.
Yes, *Sneaky Saturday* you do sneak up. But I’m not complaining. Far from it! I’m just wondering … what kind of Saturday will you be … Sneaky – Silly – Sacred – Salient – Salubrious – Serendipitous – Stimulating – Serene – Sassy – Sanative – Sparkling – Sensational – Stellar – Sublime – Something else?
There is something about this little place, close by where I live, that draws me several times a year, bringing a sense of peace and joy.
Is it the water? the sunstreaks? the sky? the newly mowed grass? the ducks on the water? the quiet? the fresh air? the building? the nearby flowers? the combination?
That sense of peace and joy = contentment and while it’s not always easy to define or explain, I know it when I experience it.
This night, I pray for contentment for those who are troubled, those who are in pain, those who are grieving, those who are frightened, those who worry. May gentle contentment be with them this night.
Maundy Thursday. It’s today. A day that shocks in its intensity.
Jesus, the beloved rabbi is about to be betrayed. Not by an enemy, but betrayed by a follower, a friend, a disciple, someone who said he loved Jesus.
Even though we recoil at the word ‘betrayal,’ if we were honest, betrayal didn’t end “back then.” Judas betrayed his friend, his mentor, his rabbi. What drove him to such a decision? Many of us have experienced betrayal by a friend, mentor, family member. What drove those people to betray us? What drives us to betray another?
To put it another way – when someone is betrayed, has God been betrayed?
When we allow fondness for wealth or fame to overwhelm our call to be persons of justice and mercy; if we name ourselves Christian, yet think unloving thoughts about another; when we are selfish and put our wants before the needs of others, have we betrayed the Holy One?
When we refuse to be uplifted, enabled, and transformed by the wisdom or experience of another; when we only see how right we are and ignore the learning that comes in acknowledging that we have made a mistake, have we betrayed the Creator?
When we will not accept God’s support and grace, strengthening us for the tasks we have been asked to undertake, or the new ministry roles we are challenged to experience, have we betrayed the Beloved Rabbi?
When say we love God, have answered ‘yes’ to any of the above, is our connection to Judas tangible?
Today, known as Maundy Thursday, is a day to feel the pain and shock of Judas’ betrayal.
Today is a day to consider moments in our own lives when we have betrayed the trust of others.
And, today can be a day to receive a redemptive blessing when we are willing to name our own betrayals.
As disciples of Jesus, this day offers an opportunity to honestly look at the betrayals that emerge from within us and confront the moments when we have betrayed God; when we have not forgiven another; those times we acknowledge we dislike another or when we speak or think unkindly of another betraying our common humanity by our words or thoughts or tweets or texts.
On this day, with less than twenty-four hours left on earth, the man Jesus gathered the disciples away from the crowds in a ritual of gathering for a meal, so familiar to them, yet this time, so very different.
As Jesus rises from his place, ties a towel around his waist, surely the disciples looked at each other and asked themselves “What is he doing?”
Then they see And understand.
He washes their feet. He gives them his final teaching: the commandment (mandatum – from which we get the name Maundy Thursday) … to love one another.
Jesus gave a way of remembering Him with a simple ritual: “Sit at table. Take bread. Break it. Share it. Pour out wine. Share it. Feed one another. Love one another. When you do that, you remember Me. When I’m gone and you feel lost, uncertain of my presence, do this and remember Me.”
Many around the world gather this day for a simple service of worship that might include foot washing, sharing of bread and wine and stripping of the Altar as a reminder that living the Life of Love which Jesus lived, led him to be stripped and taken away.
Loving one another as Jesus loved long ago, and as Jesus loves today, through us leads us to be ‘stripped’ of the unimportant things in life and bring us closer to the One who loves us unconditionally.
On this holy Maundy Thursday, may we receive the story of Jesus in a spirit of humility and draw closer to one another and to the One who loves … always loves … and loves unconditionally.
It is Tuesday in Holy Week. As the world continues to deal with the war in Ukraine, increasing costs and personal stresses, those who walk this Holy Path in this holiest of holy weeks, seek to make time to reflect, pray, consider Jesus’ activities on this day.
What was Jesus doing on Tuesday in Holy Week? Some say that this was the day that Jesus told the story of the fig tree (Luke 13:1-9) which goes like this: Once upon a time, there was a fig tree that did not bear fruit. For three years, the owner looked for figs, but there were none to be found. Finally, in frustration, the owner called the gardener and told him to cut the tree down. “Why should this tree go on using up good space and nutrients? It’s a waste of resources. Let’s get rid of it and plant another tree that will bear fruit.” The gardener was more patient. “Don’t cut it down just yet,” he said. “Give it just one more year. I will give it water, dig around it and fertilize it. Then we shall see if it will bear fruit. Give the tree another chance.”
On this Tuesday in Holy Week, perhaps we might reflect (in our thoughts, our Journal, our prayers, our conversations) how we’re like the fig tree owner – more willing to write people off than give them ‘another chance’ – more ready to swing at the base of any trunk/person we don’t find to our liking – more ready to bring another crashing down to the ground by our negative thoughts, unkind comments, gossip, rather than give them ‘another chance’?
And not just “how” but, “how often.”
Some might say that those actions/reactions are part of our human nature. Perhaps so – initially . But do they have to be part of us forever?
Do we have to be like the fig tree owner for the rest of our lives? Can we change? Do we want to change? Are we willing to change?
If the answer to any of those questions is “I am open to changing” then perhaps this prayer on Tuesday in Holy Week will encourage us so that we don’t have to be like the fig tree owner for the rest of our lives.
Creator, thank you for your constant presence in our lives.
May you encourage us to be gentle with ourselves, and one another, in our words, our actions, our thoughts.
May we choose to place the ax aside and nurture the tree so the production of the fruit of the Spirit (“for the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, thoughtfulness, gentleness, self control” – Galatians chapter 5) can be manifested in this world.
May we remember that you continually give us ‘another chance’.
And may we receive your encouragement to give others ‘another chance’. Amen.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A Soulistry reflection on each day in Holy Week will be posted on the Soulistry blog (https://soulistry.com/blog), the FB Soulistry group (www.facebook.com/groups/soulistry) and Medium (www.medium.com/@junemaffin)
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A little frivolity is needed in these oh-so-difficult times.
So how about …
… a whimsical tree … dancing lollipops … an enquiring bird … three sort-of-owls trying to discern what the blazes is going on in the world these days … and flowers, bright flowers of hope, popping out – from behind the tree – on top of the tree – on the side of the tree – inside the tree – emerging from the bottom of the trunk of the tree?
The flowers, the hope – always there – even though it might be difficult to see, experience, acknowledge some days.
the night is dark and brings fear as the coughing begins as breathing is difficult as the pain won’t subside as the nightmares won’t leave as negativity, political haranguing permeate social media disguising hope
the night is quiet eerily quiet as people wait for the next explosion as medications take effect as the darkness enfolds
we must breathe breathe for ourselves breathe for those who cannot breathe we must remember remember the quietness of God’s peace for ourselves remember the quietness of the Holy One’s love for others remember that when the night is dark in one place in the world the night is light in another place in the world remember that when the night seems hopeless in one place hope is somewhere prayeris always being offered somewhere communion is always being offered somewhere
may we hold the light for those who cannot breathe this night may we say a prayer for those who cannot sleep this night may we hold hope for those who cannot hope this night
there are signs of light for us we might be signs of light for others even though the night is dark
The prayer on this photo (taken at Yellow Point Lodge on Vancouver Island) is from the New Zealand Book of Prayer: “The night is dark. Let our fears and darkness of the world and of our lives, res.t this night in God. The night is quiet. Let the quietness of God’s peace enfold us all.”
Friends have been diagnosed with cancer and they are dealing with the “c” news in a variety of ways.
Some are angry and are raging. Some are asking the “why me” question. Some are trying to understand the diagnosis because there is no genetic history in their family, because they have been active all their life and eaten healthy food and do what they can to keep stress as minimal as possible. Some are confused and bewildered. They don’t know what to do next. They feel helpless and some even feel hopeless.
The “c” diagnosis is a terror to hear, but when it meets people who face the terror and don’t bury their feelings, it discovers it is meeting a very strong Force – a unified force of good, positivity, hope and of love.
They are not alone.
That unified Force has many supporters, prayer warriors, hope-believers, energy-surrounders, love-givers around the world. You may know some of those people. There are others you may not. Some of those people may know you. Some of them may not. None of that matters because the energy and love of that Force is not dependent on “knowing” one another. Compassion is from the heart and we don’t need to “know” someone personally to feel compassion, express love, believe in hope.
If the “c” word has become part of your life, you know that there are days that are miserable and unless someone has walked in your exact path (which isn’t possible because every cancer is different as is every treatment), they can’t relate from an intellectual perspective. But they can relate from a heart-perspective.
Lean on the love and energy of that unified Force and feel the encouragement, love and hope coming your way.
Because, whether or not you can feel or sense it, it is there
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ As usual, you are welcome to share.
It was a Wednesday morning. Nothing unusual was happening in the classroom where I was teaching a class of high school students. Nothing unusual, except they were more attentive than usual. But, something was different. I couldn’t put my finger on it. Then a bell rang. Not the usual “time for the class to end” bell, but a different bell. Somehow the students knew what it meant. They slowly got out of their seats and headed in single file to the door, quietly. “Miss,” one of the students said, “We’ll be back once we’ve been to the chapel and had the ashes put on our foreheads.”
Just then the Principal came into the classroom and ushered the students out – apologizing that she’d not advised me about the interruption ahead of time. “The students will be back in the classroom in about half an hour” she said. And with that, she and the students left the classroom.
Three months earlier, I had turned twenty. This was my first teaching position. I was in a private school – a Roman Catholic school. At that time, my knowledge of Christianity, let alone Roman Catholicism, was limited. Very limited. Though I had been raised in a loving home, I had not been baptized nor exposed to a church that included rituals anywhere close to “Ashes on foreheads.” All of it was so new to me.
The school was quiet. No one was in the corridors. The only sound I heard came from the Chapel – quiet music, muted voices. When the students returned to the classroom, their foreheads had a black substance smudged on it. They were sombre, quiet. Something about them was different. But again, I couldn’t quite figure it out.
When I asked them to tell me what had happened in the Chapel, the students seemed to take delight in being my teacher! “Today is the day when we tell God we are very sorry for the times we’ve moved away and that we want to be better people.” But, I wondered, why the public display of the cross on their foreheads? “Ah, Miss, that reminds us that we’re all human and that we began as dust and will end as dust.”
Sounded to me like an ugly threat – “You’re going to die!” Well, I knew that one day I would die, but why would anyone want to go to church to be reminded, every year, that “from dust you have come; to dust you will go”? It seemed incredibly maudlin to me.
After school that day, I encountered Harry, one of the high school students I tutored. He was one of the few non-Christians at the private Roman Catholic school he attended and so was exempt from Chapel. But there he was, with a smudged sign of the cross on his forehead. He told me that his friends said they were going to receive the imposition of ashes and invited him along. He went, not because he wanted to, but because his friends had invited him and besides, he was curious about it all.
When he received the ashes on his forehead, he said that he felt that something had changed. He shared these words which he wrote in his journal … “As I received the ashes, all at once I realized in a whole new way, that it’s really true – “we are dust and we will return to dust when we diet.” He realized at that moment that life is transitory … and that he wouldn’t live forever.
In Christian churches around the world, people gather to receive the ashes on their forehead and hear the words “Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return” on what is known as Ash Wednesday – the first day of the Season of Lent.Those words are certainly no one’s favourite words, but they represent a truth of which is important to remember from time to time – our own mortality. Sadly, September 11th did that. Tragically, January 6th, did that. People realized their own mortality.
Ash Wednesday is a sober reminder that we are mortal – not immortal. Acknowledging our humanity, our vulnerability, our mortality, helps us to live more fully. One way to do that, is to receive the imposition of ashes on our foreheads. That ritual is simply an outward symbol of what is hoped would happen internally and a commitment to be the best we can be.
Do we need to be a Christian to do that? No. Do we need to have experienced an Ash Wednesday service before? No. Do we need to be connected to a church to do that? No. All we need to do is accept our mortality, allow the ashes to be a sign that we recognize that our mortal life is a gift, and commit ourselves with the help of the Holy One, to use the rest of our mortal life to the very best of our ability.
Interestingly, the imposition of ashes, is not just a Christian tradition. It was an ancient Jewish tradition and was a public sign of an individual’s repentance. By the seventh century, the Christian church adopted it as part of the Church’s Lenten preparation before the Season of Easter.
Even during COVID, when churches were not open or people were reluctant to be among others during a pandemic, people found ways to receive the imposition of ashes. Churches became wonderfully creative!
Some supplied ashes for individuals/families so that they could sprinkle the ashes into the palm of their own or a family member’s hand and apply it themselves. Some encouraged the use of a cotton Qtip which could be dipped into the ashes and placed on the forehead that way. Other congregations gave members dirt, seed and water instead of ashes, acknowledging that from the dust of the world, new hope springs.
Other churches encouraged people to mark their hearts with the sign of a heart or the Cross as an outward and visible sign of their intention to turn their heart over to God and experience God’s unconditional love and forgiveness in a new way, saying the words “Dust I am and to dust I shall return.”
Many foreheads around the world are marking the beginning of the Season of Lent as people hear the words with those words.
I cannot stop thinking of the people in Ukraine, a year later, still living in terror as explosions deafen; food shortages become critical; the cold and snow gnaw at bodies; visible exhaustion on the faces of young and old alike; fear is a reality. Ukrainians are continuing to live the reality of Ash Wednesday’s reminder of human mortality, every day.
Children who survive this assault by Russia on their country, will have bitter memories of childhood as their reality in their adult years – just as it was for those children who survived the Holodomor of 1932-22 and are now seniors in this present struggle.
The Holodmor – did you learn about the Holodomor (translation: ‘death by hunger’ – a famine engineered by the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin) in school? I didn’t. According to the 2010 findings of the Court of Appeal of Kyiv, there were losses due to famine around ten million people – and not just famine, but cannibalism for which, according to the Harriman Review, over 2500 people were convicted. As explosions hit, life is being lived in underground shelters, food and medication shortages escalate, and remembrances of the Ukrainian revolution, and terror grows that the Holodomor will once again be forced upon them by Russia.
The Holodomor made the desire for independence from Russia, a “need” … much more than a “want” … a life-long “need.” So it is not surprising that Ukrainians are fighting – again. Defending their country – standing firm for one another. Resilient in the face of terror and threat of reprisal, they are led by a courageous man, President Zelinskyy, his wife and his Cabinet members and the brave women and men who valiantly fight for and stand up for democracy.
In this country, Canada, there is a very large Ukrainian population as many Ukrainians arrived as refugees after the Holodomor so it is not surprising that Canada has stood with Ukraine for decades. On September 21, 2014, a statue entitled “Bitter Memories of Childhood” was unveiled outside the Manitoba Legislative Building in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, to memorialize the Holodomor was erected and there are similar statues in other parts of Canada.
“Dust thou art and to dust thou shalt return” is a reverberating reality in Ukraine and in the hearts of many around the world who ache for Ukrainians.
May no one ever take the precious gift of life for granted. May we uphold all who work and fight for freedom and democracy. If you observe the Season of Lent with the imposition of ashes, may gratitude be yours for the life you experience.
This prayer which I’ve adapted from the Alternate Lord’s Prayer found in A New Zealand Prayer Book might be of help as you think of Ukrainians today and in the coming days and of ourselves.
“Eternal Spirit, Earth-maker, Pain-bearer, Life-giver, Source of all that is and that shall be … in times of temptation and test, strengthen them and us; from trials too great to endure, spare them and us; from the grip of all that is evil, free them and us.” Amen. So be it. Amen.
Whatever way each of us chooses to observe Ash Wednesday, may we enter with reverence, humility and gratitude.
“I’m scared – afraid – terrified. J’ai peur.” These are words the world is hearing every day – on the news, around the office, on social media, in our own heads.
For centuries throughout the world, there have been hurricanes, landslides, earthquakes, tornadoes, floods, fires, etc. that have struck fear in the hearts of people. Cancer, COVID and its various strains and other medical diagnoses have shaken and continue to shake people to the core. The January 6th attack on the Capitol of the United States terrified people who thought that civil unrest would be followed by civil war. The unimaginable earthquakes in Syria and Turkey killing over 25,000 people are soul-wrenching and foreboding for those living on earthquake faults. The Chinese balloon and unknown object that were shot down over the U.S. and the object that was shot down over Canada by the Canadian government today, have begun to spark frightening images of espionage and evoke the fear that nothing is private anymore. Russia’s ongoing assault on the people of Ukraine, (not only fearful for the people of Ukraine, but for the rest of the free world) is a daily reminder that if Ukraine falls, other countries will not be safe and neither will democracy.
Anxiety seems unrelating and fear is rising. Feelings of helplessness, abandonment, and lack of control overwhelm. Our breathing becomes shallow. Our heart races. Our mind won’t stop thinking. The images seem everpresent: images of the children; the elderly; the disabled; the farewells; the frigid weather; the explosions; the baby buggies at the train station; the line-ups for food and water; the babies born in bomb shelters; the demolished hospitals / schools / churches; the bodies; the families running to escape the fires … The images don’t stop. Neither does the fear.
What to do in the midst of experiencing fear that is a “gut-wrenching … can’t explain … keep-me-awake” type of fear that is being felt as we see the horror of it all? Is there something we can do to allay the fear, or at least not have such fear so present all the time? Perhaps there is … sometimes.
Sometimes, admitting our fear to ourself, to another, helps.
Sometimes, something as simple as saying, praying, thinking, whispering the word ‘peace’ as we gently, and slowly, literally inhale a second of peace into our body, mind and spirit, helps.
Sometimes, saying, praying, thinking, whispering the word ‘fear,’ as we literally exhale the consequences of that fear from our body, helps.
Sometimes, creating something in the kitchen, garden, shop, studio, on the computer, in our Journal, helps.
Sometimes, repeating Dame Julian of Norwich’s words (“All shall be well. All shall be well. And all manner of thing shall be well”) can help and using our breath to say them: … as we inhale, say / think / whisper / pray / sing “all shall be well” … as we exhale, say / think / whisper / pray / sing “all shall be well”; inhale “and all manner of thing”; exhale “shall be well.”
Sometimes,it’s helpful to remember that somewhere in the world, every minute of every day, someone is … meditating … inviting peace for others … sitting cross-legged and chanting … saying the Rosary … receiving Communion … reciting the Shema … praying the Daily Office … thinking / sending / praying / whispering good thoughts for the world … holding those experiencing fear in their heart, mind and spirit … thinking a comforting thought.
All of these contribute to an energy force that is more powerful than negativity and because of our common humanity (regardless of our religious or spiritual belief), we can begin to know that we are not alone.
May we never be too afraid to begin a journey of healing and say “J’ai peur … I’m afraid” because there is power in naming the evil. The man known as Jesus did that – often. Such an admission can be healing because for admitting our fear can help move the dark fear out.
To all in the path of war; in the path of the fury of Mother Nature; in the path of anger of human nature; in the path of COVID and other nasty viruses; in the path of politicians out of control; in the path of terrifying medical diagnoses; in the path of grief; in the path of air attacks, earthquakes and aftershocks; in the reality of frigid cold, no food, no electricity, no safety, may you be comforted and know that you are not alone.
It may feel like you are alone. But you are not, because in some way, we are all connected by the intangible essence of compassion, empathy, prayer, love. We are connected by our humanity.
Why do we let others fill our lives with negativity which only serves to cause stress?
Why do we continue turn on the tv and see, over and over and over, eruptions of anger and hatred?
Why do we allow fear to reign and not make choices that would place us in the company of people whose energy is loving and gentle and kind?
I wish I had the answers. I do not. I don’t know ‘why’ we do those things, but this I do know: we are responsible for making choices … choices about our friends – our tv and movie viewing – and yes, there are times when we even make choices about our families.
The British poet William Wordsworth once wrote (which may have been a mantra to himself as he faced a blank piece of paper and was about to construct a poem) these words: “Fill your page with the breathings of your heart.”
Not everyone is a poet and so not all of us sit before a blank piece of paper waiting for words to tumble forth. But each of us is an artist – an architect – a writer … of our own life.
What do we need as an artist of our life to draw a life of harmony? What do we need as an architect of our life to design a life that would lower stresses caused by things out of our control? What do we need as a writer of our life to consider words to live by which would be encouraging of positive action, nurturing of our soul, energizing to our body?
Each of us gets to determine those answers.
Perhaps we might begin by considering this adaptation of Wordsworth’s words and substitute his word “page” with this word – “life” and consider each day, which things, which people, which ways we can “fill our life with the breathings of our heart.”
Perhaps each of us can consider our answers to these questions: * What are the “breathings of your heart”? * What can you do to bring one of those ‘breathings’ into reality in your life in the next seven days? * Who can help/encourage/support you as you bring one of the ‘breathings’ into reality in your life? * What is stopping you from starting a reflection of these questions into action today? * How will your life change for the better when you begin to “fill your life with the breathings of the heart”?
If – when – we fill our lives in such a way, how can our world not be better? safer? kinder?
