Category: Lament

When Peter’s Threefold Denial Mirrors Our Own

The denial of Peter - Gospelimages

 “I tell you the truth,” Jesus answered, “This very night, before the rooster crows, you will disown me three times.” But Peter declared, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” And all the other disciples said the same.
Matthew 26:34-35

Holy Week, culminating in Good Friday and Jesus’ death on the cross, follows a series of key events. Perhaps the most human occurs when Jesus’ closest disciple, Peter, openly denies knowing him—three times.
At this point, it is important to consider Peter’s circumstances. Had Peter admitted not only to knowing Jesus but also to being his follower, the same fate as his master likely awaited him. The horror of crucifixion, reserved for criminals, slaves, and prisoners of war, was perfected by the Romans to deter and inflict maximum suffering. So, despite Peter’s bold claim that he would never disown Jesus, in all candor, how many of us would have acknowledged being his disciple under such circumstances?
But denial is deadly because it is often insidious. It is rarely as dramatic as on that night after Jesus’ arrest. Instead, it quietly rejects in the background, often unnoticed.  Even as we profess faith, attend services, and strive to follow Jesus, denial lingers beneath the surface, eroding the connectedness God instilled in us. Its shadow reaches beyond our close circles, affecting those different from us—in appearance, culture, language, religion, and even the natural world itself.
Perhaps we are in our current mess because, like Peter, we unwittingly reject the very connectedness that God instilled in us from the beginning. The French Jesuit priest, Teilhard de Chardin, observed, “…every particle in the cosmos contains Christ. Since we are made up of trillions of them, we are truly immersed in Christ at all times.  In other words, we are saturated with God.”
Prayer: Immersive God, whose divine presence saturates the entirety of the cosmos and all of creation, forgive us for forgetting who and whose we are. Having rejected the connectedness that anchors us to everyone and everything, we have severed the union that lovingly binds us to life itself. We implore You: liberate us from the shadow that keeps us from our truest and best selves. We ask this in the many names of God. Amen.

 

 

 

 

 

[1] Google Images

The Cloud of Witnesses

The Cloud of Witnesses

The Creator will take away the cloud of darkness that hangs over people, nations, and all creation.  In mercy, God will bring to an end the humiliation of people and the earth, wiping away anquish and destroying the power of death forever.
From Isaiah 25:7-8 [1]

Allhallowtide spans three significant days: Hallowed Eve (also known as Halloween), followed by All Saints’ Day (Saturday), and then All Souls’ Day on Sunday.   Apart from the festivities of Halloween, All Saints’ Day is an observance that does not deny the pervasive power of darkness.   It acknowledges the aching vulnerability each of us faces, including the inevitability of death that comes to each of us and every living thing on this planet.

Yet All Saints Sunday also resoundingly affirms that a cloud of witnesses surrounds each of us.    Though their earthly lives have come to an end, the presence of this cloud of witnesses remains fueled by grace and the power of love.   Such that they cannot nor will not be silenced.

And this is Good News

Prayer: Holy One, in this time of perilous darkness, as diabolical forces appear to devour whatever is and peacable and good, let us take heart that your cloud of witnesses declares we are not alone.   Though feeling buffeted from all sides, let us hold fast to the scripture that reassures us, saying, “…since a great cloud of witnesses surrounds us…let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on our Redeemer, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.” [2]

And let all of God’s people say, Amen!

 

[1] From this Sunday’s lectionary, the Book of Isaiah 25:6-9, adapted

[2] From the Letter to the Hebrews, 12:1-2, adapted

 

 

 

 

The Transformative Power of Kindness (whose origin is sorrow)

“He was despised and rejected— a man of sorrows,
acquainted with deepest grief…”   Isaiah 53:3 

Earlier this week, the Christian tradition began its forty-day period of repentance and mourning, starting with the imposition of ashes this past Wednesday. This Sunday, March 9th, begins the first of six Sundays, during which both liturgy and sacred text attest to the gravity of the condition confronting humankind and all of creation—one steeped in finitude, vulnerability, and inexplicable loss.

Writes poet Naomi Shibah Nye,
“Before you know kindness as the deepest thing inside,
you must know sorrow as the other deepest thing
…then it is only kindness that makes sense anymore.” [1]

When cruelty appears to have the final word, be it ostracizing transgender people, othering immigrants, cutting off aid to third-world nations, or doubling down on plundering the planet, the transformative power of kindness offers a radically different lens.   A way of being that refuses to remain quiet or on the sidelines, but through speech and action,  “…raises its head from the crowd of the world to say, It is I you have been looking for and then goes with you everywhere like a shadow or a friend.”[2]

Prayer: Beloved One, did you know how much would be demanded of you when the Spirit drove you into the bleak and barren wilderness?  Yet, having faced the magnitude of want and the depth of sorrow’s bleakness, You became the tenderest of shoots, triumphantly emerging from the hard rock of despair.  So let us not lose heart in sorrow’s wake but bravely practice the transformative power of kindness.  For you are the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation, and in You all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell.  We offer this prayer in all the holy names of God. Amen. 

[1] Kindness, a poem by Naomi Shihab Nye, copyright 1995.

[2] ibid. 

[3] Scriptural references and text in today’s prayer come from the Gospel of Luke 4:1-13 and Colossians 1:15 & 1:19

[4] This reflection is offered in gratitude to Janice Mason Steeves, Mary Ann Holtz and others who take part in the online contemplative prayer community:https://meditationchapel.org/

 

 

 

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An Icon of American Defiance

These are dark, if not dangerous, times. Aside from questions concerning our current president’s ability to win this year’s election and yet another disastrous Supreme Court ruling, last Saturday’s violence at a campaign rally compounded the assault on our senses and sensibilities. There is this sense of foreboding and displacement with a mere hundred-plus days remaining before November’s election. What will become of us?

Then, just last evening,  I discovered a historical icon recalling another dark and dangerous time. Situated on the side of a brick building in Cambridge, Maryland, near where she was born, the mural depicts Harriet Tubman reaching out her hand, offering a pathway to freedom despite the treacherous journey ahead.  In contrast to the image of Trump’s bloodied fist raised in defiance following last Saturday’s attack, Tubman’s hand is outstretched in a gesture of solidarity for the road forward.  Writes author and commentator Diana Butler Bass when gazing upon this image:

“This is an icon of American defiance. Harriet’s hand is reaching toward me, breaking through the wall of division and pulling me into freedom — as if offering herself as a guide through the woods and waters of despair: Brutality, enslavement, violence, imprisonment, and death. She defied them all. To lead others — to lead us all — to freedom. This is an invitation: Follow me.

To be honest, hers was a fight, too. And Harriet knew it, ‘I prayed to God to make me strong and able to fight, and that’s what I’ve always prayed for ever since,’ Harriet is to have said.   Yet Follow me is defiant. If you follow the right way, it can lead to conflict. I think Jesus knew that. I’m pretty sure Harriet Tubman knew that Jesus knew that.” [1] & [2]

Prayer:  Divine One and Source of All Compassion, when recoiling from the assault of all that we hold dear, still, You ask us to Follow You, despite our fear and trepidation.   For Your Liberty is NOT grounded in justifying capitalism’s violence over ecological, social, and racial justice.  Nor does Your Expansive Freedom grant license to ignore the cries of the poor, the hungry, and the dispossessed.  So in your mercy, Gracious and Benevolent Maker, instill Your Holy Defiance within us.   So that as Your Followers, we will seek Your Liberty and Wholeness for all of God’s children and this planet we call home. We ask this in all the Holy Names of God. Amen.

[1] Artist, Michael Risoato, Harriet Tubman Mural

[2]  An Icon of Defiance, Diana Butler Bass, from The Cottage, July 14, 2024

 

 

Love Your Neighbor – Vote

“Voting is one of the most powerful tools we have as people of faith.” 

It is no accident that the Gospel’s directive to ‘Love Your Neighbor’ is frequently written off as mixing politics with religion.    But what if the teachings of Jesus, by addressing the necessity of compassion and care for the least of these, are not just political but profoundly so?  Indeed, if the definition of politics (from the Greek word, polis) asks, ‘How do we take care of each other,’ imagine if our sacred text is the most political of documents?

 Yes, we are overwhelmed by the number of consequential, if not existential, issues facing us. Be it climate change, poverty, hunger, healthcare, immigration, housing, or violence waged against the most vulnerable, we are in a state of polycrisis, as when multiple challenges are affecting our world simultaneously.  Yet what if politicians bankrolled by fossil fuel corporations and other big-money interests lost an election?  What if they were voted out of office by the very people adversely affected by their greed and complicity?  

Imagine if, all along, democracy has been the engine that has the means to change the levers of power. What if the unassuming, humble voting booth where ordinary citizens go to cast their vote is the basis for sacred ground? 

Prayer: Holy One, when tempted to relegate politics beyond the scope of what our faith requires of us, teach us to remember that the love of one’s neighbor requires otherwise.   Remind us that our actions, especially towards the least of these, were never intended to be separated from the faith we profess to hold.   In your mercy, restore us to your likeness, we pray.  Pour out your life-giving Spirit upon us so that we, as your people, will do whatever is necessary to protect and preserve your creation and all of humankind.   Let your grace dwell richly within us so that, as citizens and people of faith, our actions will testify to your all-encompassing love.   We ask this in all the holy names of God.  Amen.  

[1]  I am indebted to the Third Act’s panel discussion on the Sacred Right to Vote, held earlier this May.    In particular, those serving on the panel, Rev. Dr. Jim Antal, Rev. Carol Devine, Activist Mubarak Elamin, and Rabbi Stephanie Kolin, illuminated this urgent topic through a well-informed discussion on the intersection of voting and faith.   

An Icon for the Ages

 

“An icon isn’t just a religious work of art…”

If the timelessness of icons is as much about their applicability and relevance, what do these two parallel images have to say to us? While the ancient image on the left portrays the Madonna and Child, this icon also compels us to remember how God chose to enter our world, not as a mighty warrior but as a helpless infant wholly dependent on the protection of others.

What, then, of the image on the right? In a current photograph, here, a Palestinian infant clings to her mother against the backdrop of shelled buildings in Gaza. No, it isn’t Mary, the Mother of God, and the infant Jesus. Yet what if the nature of icons also challenges the limits we impose on God? What if God is all the more present in those we deem insignificant and of no account?

A priest once said, “Do not go out and buy icons. Instead, go to those who are hungry and thirsty, the war-fatigued and grieving, and look for Christ there.” If we are indifferent to the image of God in other people, we will never find God’s image within icons or ourselves, for that matter.

Prayer: Divine Maker, who fashioned all humankind, non-sentient life, and creation, heal us of our blindness, we pray. Teach us that it is not enough to merely hope that the violence and suffering will somehow come to an end on its own. Instead, be in our thoughts, words, and actions so that we may exemplify the radical expansiveness of your love for all of God’s children and creation. We ask this in all the holy names of God. Amen.

[1] Attribute these images to friend and colleague Mary Ann Holtz, who continues to labor for a cease-fire and non-violence in this region and other parts of the world.

What every one of us shares….

“We are separated by continents
but share the same vast, beautiful, and sunlit sky.”

Some years ago, our daughter-in-law’s family shared images of a funeral outside Tehran. Held to commemorate the life of a grandmother on her father’s side, and as customary in the Middle East, the funeral procession took place outdoors. Surrounded by family and friends, several men, including our daughter-in-law’s father, carried the deceased. Wrapped in linen cloth, the body lay on a narrow platform hoisted on the shoulders of men who brought her to her final resting place.  

The palpable grief of those during the procession and subsequent burial all took place against the backdrop of a vast, blue, sunlit sky. As the funeral came to a close, our daughter-in-law’s father took the body of his mother into his arms and gently placed her in a freshly dug grave. 

Death comes to all of us. Yet the images of these past weeks from the land of Israel and Palestine are saturated with atrocity. There is death that comes after a long life, and then there is the kind of death that is senseless, depraved, and malevolent. No matter what side we may find ourselves on, can any of us justify the annihilation of children and youth? Can any one of us excuse unleashing weapons of mass destruction aimed not at military targets but at whole neighborhoods and cities?   

I ponder these questions in the face of the mayhem that continues in what is also known as the Holy Land. Located between the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Bank of the Jordan River, a land of significance for Jews, Christians, and Muslims for decades, it is also a land saturated by war and grief. But lest we forget, every single one of us shares the same vast, beautiful, and sunlit sky.  

Prayer: Divine Maker, when we find ourselves consumed with anger and grief but at a loss for words, compel us to lift our eyes to the hills from whence your help comes. [2] Through your grace, may we have the courage to refrain from violence, instead asking the difficult questions that persist. For just as grief comes to every single one of us, You hold us in the embrace of the same vast, beautiful, and sunlit sky. Amen

[1]  Sunset off the coast of Rhode Island, January 2021

[2] Psalm 121

Turning the Tables on Big Oil

Who would have thought that a handful of Montana youth could successfully win their day in court and against Big Oil at that? But then, every once in a while, the young Davids of this world triumph over behemoths like Goliath. Now, other states are looking to these youth and their strategy as a blueprint.  

Does this mean fossil fuel is on its way out? Hardly. The clash between conservative ideologues seeking to shield fossil fuel industries from climate action and those advocating for renewable energy to limit the amount of carbon pumped into the atmosphere continues unabated. As with Texas, oil is considered the “lifeblood” of Montana’s economy…even though the state has warmed faster than the national average, heating up to 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit since 1950. [1] Nevertheless:

Montana has never denied a fossil fuel permit, whether for extraction, transportation, or burning fossil fuels. In a 2022 debate, then-candidate Ryan Zinke, now a Republican member of the U.S. House of Representatives, proudly said he wanted no part of the clean energy transition… During this winter’s legislative session, state lawmakers tried to ban teaching scientific theories in K-12 education. They passed new laws that blocked cities from making policies that would encourage non-fossil energy sources. [2]

What these youths did and continue to lobby for is profound, which makes it all the more imperative that the rest of us support their efforts by continuing to press onward for a healthier and greener world. It isn’t just up to the young. They can’t do it on their own, nor should they. The peril of ecological devastation falls more heavily on them while inflicting future generations.  We all have work to do. We must join hands and do all we can to save our planet and God’s beloved Creation. As it is often said, “This is the only home we’ve got.”

Prayer: In your providence, Divine Creator, instill within us the conviction that the best way to cope with climate grief is to do what we can when we can, despite the obstacles and inevitable setbacks. Teach us to stand in solidarity with our children and youth, those of this generation and the next. Grant us your vision of hope; we pray so as to be faithful till the end. We ask this in all the holy names of God. Amen.

[1] Even a 1.8% increase in temperature spells trouble for our climate: imhttps://www.climate.gov/news-features/climate-qa/global-warming-18%C2%B0-f-1%C2%B0-c-seems-small-so-why-change-global-temperature

[2] https://yaleclimateconnections.org/2023/06/inside-the-unexpectedly-wild-landmark-montana-youth-climate-trial/

[3] On this 9/11 anniversary,  we hold dear the memory of all those who lost their lives while carrying the hope for a saner and more compassionate world.   

When We No Longer Know What to Do

“It may be when we no longer know what to do,
we have come to our real work…”   Wendell Berry

What if the sense of powerlessness that comes with not knowing what to do, isn’t evidence of despair? What if it doesn’t even signify hopelessness, for that matter. What if it instead is a demarcation, a boundary heralding what you’ve crossed over to is liminal space?

Coming from the Latin word “limen,” liminal space is a threshold, signifying you are in an in-between time. Yet liminal space can be offputting; after all, who wants to be in that uncertain transition between where you’ve been and where you may be headed? Nor is there certainty when you’ll cross over to the other side.

Attesting to the potentiality of liminal space, poet, farmer, and environment activist Wendell Berry writes, “It may be when we no longer know what to do, we have come to our real work. And when we no longer know which way to go, we have begun our real journey. The mind that is not baffled is not employed. The impeded stream is the one that sings.”

Prayer: Holy One, in the wake of so much upheaval, remind us of your faithfulness. Teach us to discover that the work we’ve been given to do emerges not when everything is clear – but arrives amid the uncertain and disheartening.  May even the impediments on the journey summon us to sing your praises. We ask this in all the holy names of God. Amen.

[1] Wendell Berry from Standing by Words

 

 

 

 

“The Slaughter Right in Front of Us”

  A phrase attributed to Jesus states, “Those who live by the sword, die by the sword.”  While the never-ending violence comes from guns, not swords, I’ve long struggled with Jesus’ words.  Consider that those demanding or legislating the use of these weapons aren’t the ones slaughtered but the innocent: children in classrooms, young children and families in their homes, and shoppers at grocery stores and shopping malls. They are the ones sacrificed, not those responsible for their proliferation.

  Yet imagine if Jesus’ words weren’t directed solely at perpetrators but at those determined to keep it a way of life.   Those who blindly believe that the slaughter of innocents is a necessary price for freedom.   Those who vigorously dismantle any attempt to limit access to high-capacity rifles because they insist it violates personal rights.   Those whose goal is assuaging their base politically no matter the cost.

  Writes author Clint Smith, “I want to walk past the school where my son will attend kindergarten next year and see a place that will keep him safe. But this is impossible. We live in a country …where legislation is written — and erased — by the gun lobby. Where manipulations and distortions of Second Amendment rights prevent politicians from enacting any semblance of sensible laws that would at least attempt to prevent this. Where claims about what our Founders wanted supersede the slaughter we see right in front of us. Where the cocktail of easily accessible guns and the normalizing of extremist views makes nowhere feel safe.”

  Will there ever come a time when enough is enough?   When truly good citizens will triumph over this madness and make our schools, playgrounds, and markets safe again?   When those for whom the common good is not an alien concept but the ethical framework by which society flourishes?

  Thoughts and prayers are not enough.   Nor will those who continue to prolong this carnage ever change.  We need not “live by the sword,” but as responsible citizens and people of goodwill, we can choose to do all we can to rid our nation of this carnage.

   If your representative is beholden to the gun lobby rather than your child’s safety, the power of the vote is in your hands.  If your news station turns a blind eye or even promotes the use of assault weapons, you don’t have to follow them.   And for those who speak of “constitutional rights” as justification for this slaughter, you can rest assured they lost their moral compass ages ago.

   “Hope is a human virtue,” writes Rabbi Jonathan Sacks,  “…at its ultimate is the belief that God is mindful of our aspirations; [and thus] God has given us the means to save us from ourselves; so we are not wrong to dream, wish and work for a better world.”

  May it be so.  

[1] Credit…Léon Cogniet/Musée des Beaux-Arts, via Alamy

[2] The Gospel of Matthew 26:52

[3] Clint Smith, The Atlantic, No Parent Should Have to Live Like This, May 25, 2022

[4] Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, The Dignity of Difference: How to Avoid the Clash of Civilizations (London: Continuum, 2003), 207.