I spent Advent this year making space for God. I threw out things I don't need. I set aside a few minutes each day for prayer and gratitude. I didn't buy as many gifts as usual, and spent more time writing cards to loved ones.
Instead of being full of myself, I'm trying to be full of God.
I was inspired by this Lao Tzu poem, called "The Uses of Not."
Thirty spokes meet in the hub.
Where the wheel isn't is where it's useful.
Hollowed out, clay makes a pot.
Where the pot's not is where it's useful.
Cut doors and windows to make a room.
Where the room isn't, there's room for you.
When we empty ourselves, we make space for God. We leave room to listen to the better angels of our nature.
May the angels sing to you, bringing good news of great joy to all people! Christmas blessings.
Friday, December 23, 2011
Friday, December 16, 2011
Not So Little Town of Bethlehem
This is the first Christmas when I will sing "O Little Town of Bethlehem" and actually know what Bethlehem looks like, who lives there, and what life is like for them.
Bethlehem is not a little town. It is not still. And very few Christians live there today. It is in the West Bank of Palestine, and the guide who led us through the city last June described it as an "open air prison." The sign on the Bethlehem tourism bureau asks visitors to "Pray for Palestine." Arabs who live there are under constant control by Israeli troops, who have built separation walls that inhibit travel by the majority Muslim population.
I just received an email from Nazareth, the site of the angel's annunciation to Mary two thousand years ago. The mayor of Nazareth Illit, which is an Israeli twon with a 7 percent Arab Christian minority, has decided to ban the public display of Christmas trees. He said that Nazareth is a "Jewish city" and wants to maintain the ban as long as he is in office.
There is work to do, friends. The work of love and justice.
This is a prayer written by a man named Raj Patta from Bangalore. He recently visited Bethlehem in a group that included our own member Pauline Coffman.
I thought young Joseph would be there welcoming
but it was young men with guns at checkpoints incoming.
I thought young Mary would be there welcoming
But it was young women with guns at checkpoints incoming.
I thought then it would be the manger that's welcoming
but shockingly, it was the huge concrete wall of separation.
A wall of division
A wall of segregation
A wall of occupation
A wall of humiliation
A wall of discrimination
Making the birht of Jesus' place invisible.
O Jesus, come now to be born again here
to break these walls of domination
to tear down thse walls of demonization
to break open the cruel hearts of oppressions
to restore liberation and peace on this earth
and to bring glad tidings of joy to all these people.
Come Jesus, and come now!
Bethlehem is not a little town. It is not still. And very few Christians live there today. It is in the West Bank of Palestine, and the guide who led us through the city last June described it as an "open air prison." The sign on the Bethlehem tourism bureau asks visitors to "Pray for Palestine." Arabs who live there are under constant control by Israeli troops, who have built separation walls that inhibit travel by the majority Muslim population.
I just received an email from Nazareth, the site of the angel's annunciation to Mary two thousand years ago. The mayor of Nazareth Illit, which is an Israeli twon with a 7 percent Arab Christian minority, has decided to ban the public display of Christmas trees. He said that Nazareth is a "Jewish city" and wants to maintain the ban as long as he is in office.
There is work to do, friends. The work of love and justice.
This is a prayer written by a man named Raj Patta from Bangalore. He recently visited Bethlehem in a group that included our own member Pauline Coffman.
I thought young Joseph would be there welcoming
but it was young men with guns at checkpoints incoming.
I thought young Mary would be there welcoming
But it was young women with guns at checkpoints incoming.
I thought then it would be the manger that's welcoming
but shockingly, it was the huge concrete wall of separation.
A wall of division
A wall of segregation
A wall of occupation
A wall of humiliation
A wall of discrimination
Making the birht of Jesus' place invisible.
O Jesus, come now to be born again here
to break these walls of domination
to tear down thse walls of demonization
to break open the cruel hearts of oppressions
to restore liberation and peace on this earth
and to bring glad tidings of joy to all these people.
Come Jesus, and come now!
Friday, December 9, 2011
Gelassenheit
No, that's not Gesundheit (God bless you). The word for Advent is Gelassenheit -- which means "shedding" or "letting go."
Meister Eckhart was a theologian and mystic in 14th century Germany, who developed the term Gelassenheit. In this season of the year, when many people are focused on acquiring more -- gifts, cookies, egg nog and ugly holiday sweaters -- Christians are instead invited to shed.
Shedding in the spiritual sense refers to more than just giving up stuff. It also means letting go of anxieties, ceasing to cling to what we want, and ceasing to insist on our own way. Gelassenheit means letting go of our focus on results. It means relaxing into what is already true. We work, but it is actually God who makes things happen.
Holly Whitcomb is a spiritual director in Wisconsin. When one of her directees is doubting God's involvement in their life, Holly asks them to go home and find a container. It could be a Mason jar or a bowl or a box. That container then becomes God's In-Box. When a person feels concerned or worried, she asks them to write down their concern and drop it in God's In Box.
This becomes a visual symbol of God's care and keeping. We remember that we are not alone, that God is in control. God is at work and will be at work in our lives, and God takes our worries seriously.
You can read more about Holly Whitcomb in her book "The Seven Spiritual Gifts of Waiting." There is a copy in the church library.
In the meantime, I'll close with another quotation from Meister Eckhart: "If the only prayer you ever say is THANK YOU, that will be enough."
Gelassenheit!
Meister Eckhart was a theologian and mystic in 14th century Germany, who developed the term Gelassenheit. In this season of the year, when many people are focused on acquiring more -- gifts, cookies, egg nog and ugly holiday sweaters -- Christians are instead invited to shed.
Shedding in the spiritual sense refers to more than just giving up stuff. It also means letting go of anxieties, ceasing to cling to what we want, and ceasing to insist on our own way. Gelassenheit means letting go of our focus on results. It means relaxing into what is already true. We work, but it is actually God who makes things happen.
Holly Whitcomb is a spiritual director in Wisconsin. When one of her directees is doubting God's involvement in their life, Holly asks them to go home and find a container. It could be a Mason jar or a bowl or a box. That container then becomes God's In-Box. When a person feels concerned or worried, she asks them to write down their concern and drop it in God's In Box.
This becomes a visual symbol of God's care and keeping. We remember that we are not alone, that God is in control. God is at work and will be at work in our lives, and God takes our worries seriously.
You can read more about Holly Whitcomb in her book "The Seven Spiritual Gifts of Waiting." There is a copy in the church library.
In the meantime, I'll close with another quotation from Meister Eckhart: "If the only prayer you ever say is THANK YOU, that will be enough."
Gelassenheit!
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