The sun has set and the Vesper Lights flicker and glow
It has been another long day
A day of ministry, planning, and coordinating
Yet there was also some time to read and reflect
We had life-giving opportunities to virtually be with friends
We had a wonderful virtual fellowship with parishioners
In the midst of all the going’s on in the world
In the midst of the concerns about the spreading virus
We had little moments of light, love, and hope
Now as my eyelids grow heavy
I lift this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee prayer from the heart of your Padre…
Today has been another day of preparation and planning. We also had a virtual Social Hour with some members of our congregation over Zoom. What a wonderful time it was.
Yesterday we walked from the church to Lake Estes and back. It was a break and a breather between planning and our Virtual Evening Prayer service in the Presbyterian Community Church of the Rockies chapel.
Today we awoke to a different scene as the view from my office at Church shows:
It was overnight that this transformation occurred. Transformation… isn’t this what we are in the midst of these days? The transformation as we seek to worship and fellowship in new ways is moving quickly to say the least!
Isn’t life a matter of transformation? Whether it is our Spiritual or Physical being, we are transforming or evolving as God has called us to be. While some choose to see change and transformation as something scary, I choose to see it differently. Change and transformation are positive as our relationship with God and one another transforms and deepens. For me this is a promise of hope, grace, and love from our Creator to each one of us.
In the book, Collected Poems of Thomas Merton, I discovered his poem “A Whitsun Canticle.” This poem speaks to the beauty of transformation.
Beloved Spirit, You are all the prudence and the power
That changes our dust and nothing into fields and fruits;
Enfold our lives forever in the compass of Your peaceful hills. (p. 121)
During the challenges of this time in the life of the world, we can, in fact we must, seek the Spirit’s guidance as She leads us in the dance of life and transformation.
The sun has set and the Vesper Lights flicker and glow
Another day of ministry and worship preparation
A day to help folks be able to participate virtually in worship
We took a walk in the mid afternoon
Such a time of silence, beauty, and renewal
Worship tonight was truly a blessing
This evening being able to enjoy a meal at home
To watch my sweetheart absolutely come alive as she was cooking
What a blessing indeed, Lord
Now as my eyelids grow heavy
I lift this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee prayer from the heart of your Padre…
This has been yet another surreal day. As I watch the news around the world there is so much negativity and hatred. Fortunately, positive stories of people supporting and encouraging one another are beginning to surface. Isn’t it sad how good news gets lost in the shuffle as sensationalized bad news grabs all the headlines.
This afternoon Denise and I broke away from planning and preparation for virtual worship and fellowship to take a walk. During that walk we enjoyed the open and fresh air. We enjoyed time with the Canada Geese and dogs in the Dog Park. When we got back to the church we felt a weight lifted from us. Then we began preparing for our Midweek Virtual Service on Zoom. Our dear friends gathered to prepare the music. We worked out some last minute kinks. Then we offered to our faith community a time of fellowship and peace in the midst of it all.
I think one of the more challenging aspects of this new temporary (we pray) reality is how to be community in this time of isolation.
As a pastor the more I continue this journey I realize how little I know and how much is out there to learn and to absorb. God and God’s love and grace are so much greater than I can imagine. For such a wonderful gift and blessing I am continually thankful. As we walk this road together, I am truly humbled by God’s love and grace and the ones I am privileged to walk with. Thomas Merton’s words from his book No Man is an Island speak to me of the journey. It also humbled me as a preacher to hear his words and at the same time to find freedom in them.
“Whether you understand it or not, God loves you, is present in you, lives in you, dwells in you, calls you, saves you and offers you an understanding and compassion which are like nothing you have ever found in a book or heard in a sermon.” — Thomas Merton in No Man is an Island
As we continue this journey, dear reader, may we feel God’s love and presence in our midst. Thank
“We all have times in our lives when our own inner holy well needs tending and replenishment. . . . Too often we look to the outside world as the source of our renewal, awaiting its permission and encouragement, which never comes. When we recognize ourselves as branches of a much deeper source, we can return to the place where nourishment comes.”
— Christine Valters Paintner, PhD,The Soul’s Slow Ripening: 12 Celtic Practices for Seeking the Sacred
How do you tend to your own inner holy well? What practices bring you nourishment?
With today being St Patrick’s Day, I spent a little bit of time thinking about my time in England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales during my two tours of duty with the Air Force in the UK. Did you know that there are legends that dispute St Patrick’s being buried in Downpatrick in Ireland? The monks of Glastonbury Abbey claimed that Patrick retired from his episcopate in Ireland to Glastonbury Abbey where he became the first Abbot. Supposedly he was buried next to the high altar in the “Old Church” while King Arthur and his Queen Guinevere were buried in the old cemetery.
There are so many legends built around Saint Patrick and yet there are some beautiful writings attributed to him. The most famous one is Saint Patrick’s Breastplate which is a blessing for the journey:
I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
of the Creator of creation.
I arise today
Through the strength of Christ’s birth with His baptism,
Through the strength of His crucifixion with His burial,
Through the strength of His resurrection with His ascension,
Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom.
I arise today
Through the strength of the love of cherubim,
In the obedience of angels,
In the service of archangels,
In the hope of resurrection to meet with reward,
In the prayers of patriarchs,
In the predictions of prophets,
In the preaching of apostles,
In the faith of confessors,
In the innocence of holy virgins,
In the deeds of righteous men.
I arise today, through
The strength of heaven,
The light of the sun,
The radiance of the moon,
The splendor of fire,
The speed of lightning,
The swiftness of wind,
The depth of the sea,
The stability of the earth,
The firmness of rock.
I arise today, through
God’s strength to pilot me,
God’s might to uphold me,
God’s wisdom to guide me,
God’s eye to look before me,
God’s ear to hear me,
God’s word to speak for me,
God’s hand to guard me,
God’s shield to protect me,
God’s host to save me
From snares of devils,
From temptation of vices,
From everyone who shall wish me ill,
afar and near.
I summon today
All these powers between me and those evils,
Against every cruel and merciless power
that may oppose my body and soul,
Against incantations of false prophets,
Against black laws of pagandom,
Against false laws of heretics,
Against craft of idolatry,
Against spells of witches and smiths and wizards,
Against every knowledge that corrupts man’s body and soul;
Christ to shield me today
Against poison, against burning,
Against drowning, against wounding,
So that there may come to me an abundance of reward.
Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
of the Creator of creation.
The most famous portion of this blessing is similar to what Denise and I pray as a part of our Morning Prayer using the Northumbria Community’s Celtic Daily Prayer.
Christ with me,
Christ before me,
Christ behind me,
Christ in me,
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ on my right,
Christ on my left,
Christ when I lie down,
Christ when I sit down,
Christ when I arise,
Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,
Christ in the mouth of everyone who speaks of me,
Christ in every eye that sees me,
Christ in every ear that hears me.
Christ be in the heart of each to whom I speak and in the mouth of each to whom I speak. Isn’t this the sort of Community we are called to? As we continue this journey with COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus and self-isolation, I believe we are called in a special way to be Community. In the song, “We are Community” (from the CD Alone Together) we sing the following phrase:
Scattered through the land, we come from far and wide
Together, yet alone, yet oneness deep inside
Who is it that we seek?
We seek the Lord our God
With heart, soul, mind and strength,
we are community,
we are community.
This brings me around to a quote about love and community from Thomas Merton’s book, No Man is an Island.
We are obliged to love one another. We are not strictly bound to ‘like’ one another. Love governs the will: ‘liking’ is a matter of sense and sensibility. Nevertheless, if we really love others it will not be too hard to like them also.
If we wait for some people to become agreeable or attractive before we begin to love them, we will never begin. If we are content to give them a cold impersonal ‘charity’ that is merely a matter of obligation, we will not trouble to understand them or to sympathize with them at all. And in that case we will not really love them, because love implies an efficacious will not only to do good to others exteriorly but also to find some good in them to which we can respond.
We are incredibly vulnerable and often will be isolated and alone during this time in the world. Even though we are vulnerable and alone, I believe we are obliged, as Merton states, to love one another. May we focus on that as a community, nation, and world as we walk together through this difficult time.
The sun has set and the Vesper Lights flicker and glow
Another long day of work and preparation
So many things to prepare for as we adjust to this new reality
In the midst of the work
Time for laughter and virtual fellowship
Time for mutual support and encouragement
As we continue to guide our flocks through it all
Now as my eyelids grow heavy
I lift this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee prayer from the heart of your Padre…
As we continued to build plans for virtual worship, fellowship, and outreach there was much to ponder. News continues to reveal the vulnerability of our town, state, nation, and world. In the midst of it all, stories of Good Neighbors reaching out to help one another also appear.
We truly are living in the time between darkness and the dawn. I also hear the music of our friends bringing light into these challenging times. Music is indeed the language of the heart.
Interesting that we would be in the middle of our Lenten journey as current events overwhelm us. In the midst of the darkness the light still shines. Last night in worship I reminded our worshippers (and myself) of this promise from Jesus in John’s Gospel. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it. (John 1:5)
As I continue this Lenten journey with my sweetheart, I found these words from Thomas Merton’s poem, “The Vine” speaking to my soul.
When the wind and winter turn our vineyard
To a bitter Calvary,
What bands come out and crucify us
Like the innocent vine?
How long will starlight weep as sharp as thorns
In the night of our desolate life?
How long will moonlight fear to free the naked prisoner?
Or is there no deliverer?…
As if we had forgotten how the wind whips of winter
And the cross of April
Would all be lost in one bright miracle.
For look! The vine on Calvary is bright with branches!
See how the whole hill smiles with flowers:
And know how all our numbered veins must run
With life, like the sweet vine, when it is full of sun. (1944)
In the Darkness Before the Dawn: New Selected Poems of Thomas Merton (p.53)
The vine of Calvary is bright with branches and flowers. To this hope and promise I will cling despite the darkness which seeks to cover this land. To this hope I will cling…
The sun has set and the Vesper Lights flicker and glow
What an incredible day today
Worshipping virtually this morning with Sisters and Brothers in Boulder
A day of intensive preparation for our own virtual worship
A very rewarding first experience
I am so thankful for my dear wife and Partner in Ministry, Denise
Now as we relax and unwind in front of the fireplace
With a sweet puppy dog between us
Now as my eyelids grow heavy
I lift this humble prayer to you
Dona Nobis Pacem
Grant Us Peace
A wee prayer from the heart of your Padre…
“Art, when engaged as a form of meditation, becomes this arena for inner awareness. We become conscious of the places where we struggle, where we feel brokenness, where we have held ourselves back.”
— Christine Valters Paintner, PhD,Creative Flourishing in the Heart of the Desert: A Self-Study Online Retreat with Hildegard of Bingen
Where are the places you hold back and struggle?
