Conduit for the Miraculous, Sunday Morning Podcast for September 20, 2020
In many Christian denominations we are in the liturgical season of creation, a time to reflect on the beauty of nature and our responsibility to be kindly caregivers of our precious ecosystem, which is currently in so much peril. We may begin by simply taking in the beauty that surrounds us at this time of year and contemplate the gifts that are given us daily for which we have not contributed, only received: the sunrise, the sunset, the frost tipping the trees and enlivening their rich colours, the roadsides alive with the yellow and purple of fall wild flowers, the fresh air that seems to bring the promise of new beginnings. And speaking of new beginnings, we offer a blessing for all those returning to school – to teachers and administrators, to children, to parents, who care for the students.. And we hope and pray that as the pandemic continues, there will nevertheless be ways for education to continue.
The opening call to worship at our Easter service was a reflection from Rabbi Lau-Lavie who offers his interpretation of Passover prayers, the Passover, of course, being intricately connected with our Easter story as Jesus and his disciples were celebrating the Passover feast before his crucifixion. And in this modern interpretation of a standard Passover Prayer, he sees ‘She Who Persists’, that is the Hebrew phrase, as Mother Earth, so a lovely tie in there with our creation season.
And also, this weekend, September 18th and 19th, marks the Jewish celebration of Rosh Hashanah, the ‘Birthday Party of the Whole World’, it has been called, the New Year celebration in the Jewish faith as their yearlong cycle of scriptural readings begins again. Unlike the kind of New Year celebrations with much drinking and carousing that is often associated with the new year in the secular world, Rash Hashanah is marked by two days off from work to reflect and consider the previous year, and any misgivings one has about one’s behavior. And, quite naturally, following such consideration, there is desire to reconnect with God and be more inclined to follow in the divine way in the year coming.
As we consider again the faithful devoted presence of Mary Magdalene in the garden on the morning after the burial of Jesus, may we also, reflect on the past months in solidarity, and the current state of our own personal faith.
“Vehi Sheamada is part of the Passover Seder, sung by Jews for generations praising our survival, with so many foes and hardships along the way, saved by God.
What’s missing in most English translations is that the original Hebrew prayer alludes to She Who Persists – who always stood up for our ancestors. This unique and mysterious allusion to the Feminine Divine has intrigued generations of scholars who try to come up with ways to name Her as the Torah, the promise of redemption, the Shechine – Divine Presence.
This year is it is clear. She is Mother Earth. Mother Nature. Each and every one of us.
And this prayer is not just for Jews anymore. Not this year. It’s about all of us people.
We, humans, have persisted for generations through so many trials, wars, plagues and famines. We evolve, we’re still here, and it’s time we honor Mother Earth, our collective being that holds us now with severity and with love.
Can we rise above our fear and divisions, greed and gender, history and arrogance to listen to Her? To band together so we can save ourselves and our planet?
We who survived so many troubles, let us rise together now.
May this Passover - and I will add in here may this Easter - help us heal, bond, build new bridges together, and join hands in the sacred task of healing our planet, our mother, our soul.”
Invocation Avinu Malkeinu, performed by the Shira Choir featuring Shulem Lemmer. Avinu Malkeinu is a Jewish prayer recited during Jewish services on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, as well as on the Ten Days of Repentance from Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur.
Spiritual Practice of Gratitude
Our spiritual practice today, and for this week, is the practice of gratitude. And our teacher is Brother Steindl-Rast, who has made of gratitude an art form from which he offers his wisdom. I am grateful to The Pause, and On Being this particular week for collecting the essence of Brother Steindle-Rast’s work on gratitude so I may share it with you. You will find more of Brother Stenidl-Rast’s work in video on our website. (From The Pause, see links below.)
The teaching begins by recognizing that gratitude is a practice, a discipline, “rather than a reaction to what’s outside our control. “You can’t be grateful for war in a given situation, or violence or domestic violence or sickness. There are many things for which you cannot be grateful,” he acknowledges. “But in every moment, you can be grateful.”
Brother Steindl-Rast breaks down gratefulness into three steps — what he calls the “stop, look, go” methodology:
· Stop is about stepping away from the movement of the world and of your mind. “Most of us [are] caught up in schedules and deadlines and rushing around, and so the first thing is that we have to stop, because otherwise we are not really coming into this present moment at all, and we can’t even appreciate the opportunity that is given to us, because we rush by, and it rushes by,” he says.
· Look means to assess and behold the situation in front of you. We ask, “What is the opportunity of this given moment, only this moment, and the unique opportunity this moment gives?”
· Go is the practice of gratefulness that comes from stopping and looking around. “If we really see what the opportunity is, we must, of course, not stop there, but we must do something with it: Go. Avail yourself of that opportunity.
A practice of gratitude is not about dismissing sadness, anger, fear, or confusion. Rather, it offers us the opportunity to see that we often experience multiple feelings at once; to welcome joy into the same places where we hold grief; to turn our attention to what is quietly growing and breathing day by day, which, to our possible surprise, includes ourselves.
The season of Easter, and the Season of Creation this September, mirror the theme of beginning again, drawing us back to life giving practices.
“It’s drawing us back to the wisdom of Br. David Steindl-Rast, who makes useful distinctions around experiences that are life-giving and resilience-making yet can feel absurd to speak of in a moment like this. A Benedictine monk for over 60 years, Steindl-Rast was formed by 20th-century catastrophes. He calls joy “the happiness that doesn’t depend on what happens.” And his gratefulness is not an easy gratitude or thanksgiving — but a full-blooded, reality-based practice and choice.” (Krista Tippet)