Praying for Others, for One's Self

As I think I mentioned in my earlier post, providentially on the way down to Florida we managed to stop at a bookseller, and I had the good fortune to buy the first two volumes of The Collected Letter of C.S. Lewis. They stood me in good stand nearly the whole week. I’ve underlined quite a few good quotables. Take this, for example, from a letter dated Jan 8th 1936 to Dom Bede Griffiths (whom, by the bye, my friend Jon Kessler, knew personally):

Have you found, or is it peculiar to me, that it is much easier to pray for others than for oneself? Doubtless because every return to ones own situation involves action: or to speak more plainly, obedience. That appears to me more and more the whole business of life, the only road to love and peace—the cross and the crown in one.

That's often true, and is one of the reasons why I drift to the Litany or some version of it in the evening. Praying for ones self (in reading the letters, I notice that Lewis often left out a good bit of punctuation; you shan't mind either, I hope) is difficult. I find it requires silence, considerable interior focus, and not a little careful examination as to motives, intensions, desires, and the like. After ten or minutes of such reflection, I find myself agreeing with Arsenius:

My God, do not abandon me. I have done nothing good before Thee, but grant me, in Thy compassion, the power to make a start.

Back in Georgia on the Seventh Sunday after Pentecost

June, Chelsea, and I are back in Georgia, having driven all day yesterday from Port Canaveral, Florida. Now good to be home. Sometimes I think we go on holidays simply to come back to our tables, chairs, and beds with new appreciations, many gratitudes. While away, I spent most of my "deck days" reading the collected letters of C. S. Lewis, concentrating on Volume II (1931-1949), underlining as I went. In the next few days, I hope to share with you some of my thoughts and reactions. Unhappily, I've also returned with a nasty head cold and of necessity will not be able to participate in the Eucharist this morning. I had so much hoped so because the readings for this morning's worship are some of the best in the year, and I encourage you to slip over to Daniel Clendenin's commentary. Having read Kierkegaard's Fear and Trembling many years ago, I am delighted to remember how exciting the Dane's four-fold response to the inscrutable story of Abraham and Isaac. Surely few have entered the story so well, so bravely and committed to making some sense of it all. As I will need to be satsified with Morning Prayer this morning, I'll be thinking about the sorts of sacrifices God is asking of me, surely a "son of Abraham" who needs to wonder about his spiritual "great-great-great" grandfather in the Faith.

Pray for Tichaona Musindo and Zimbabwe

This morning I received the following email letter from Plan USA and wish to share it with you because it indicates how much we need to include the people of Zimbabwe in our prayers. For several years I have been providing a small monthly support for a young Zimbabwean boy, Tichaona Musindo, via Plan USA. As you know, the election process in Zimbabwe has turned violent and cantankerous in the past months. This letter clearly indicates the depths of misery Zimbabweans are experiencing and how much they need our intercessory prayers.

Dear Mr. Harnack,

Thank you for your continued sponsorship of Tichaona Musindo from Zimbabwe. Our colleagues have confirmed the decision made by the Zimbabwean government on June 5th to suspend the operations of all humanitarian organizations in the country until further notice.

Since the March 2008 general elections, which resulted in the opposition winning the majority of seats in parliament and the scheduling of a run-off presidential election, the security situation in the country has steadily eteriorated. Dozens of people have been killed and hundreds more wounded. Unfortunately, efforts by humanitarian agencies and their partners to provide relief have been hampered because of restricted access to communities, heightened tension and localized outbreaks of violence. Most recently, the government has accused aid agencies of using food aid and humanitarian assistance to sway votes in favor of the opposition in the run-up to the June 27th presidential election run-off.

We know you are concerned for the safety and well-being of your sponsored child, Tichaona, and his family. To date, there are no reports of any sponsored children being attacked. Plan USA will contact any sponsor whose sponsored child or family is directly affected by this volatile situation.

Plan Zimbabwe, like many other agencies in the country, continues to take a cautious and measured approach that puts the security and safety of the staff, children and their communities first. Under the present circumstances, all program activities in Zimbabwe have been temporarily suspended. Our offices will remain open, however, and non-essential staff will be requested to take leave while we continue to monitor the situation over the next two months. Given the recent history of elections in Zimbabwe, there will likely be a period of uncertainty after the June 27th voting date as the nation awaits the results. Our best estimate is that full program operations should resume by August 1, 2008.

Due to the situation in Zimbabwe, we will be unable to forward communications to sponsored children until further notice. If you have sent a letter or gift within the last month, it will be held at the Plan office in Zimbabwe and delivered as soon as the situation is safe. We will provide you with an update on the situation in August, or as soon as we are able to resume program activities.

We appreciate your support of Tichaona Musindo. Please know that your sponsorship contributions are still needed, as we have every intention of resuming programs as soon as possible.

If you have any questions, please contact our Donor Relations Executives at 1-800-556-7918. Our office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 am to 6:00 pm Eastern Time. Regular updates will also be posted on our website at www.planusa.org.

Thank you for your continued support and understanding.

Sincerely, W. Ahuma Adodoadji
President/CEO

Please include Tichaona, his family, and his nation in your prayers.

Getting Ready for the Fifth Sunday after Pentecost: June 15

To prepare for this coming Sunday's listening to the lectionary readings, visit Journey with Jesus where Daniel B. Clendinen has published "God Has Brought Me Laughter:" Sarah, "The Mother of Nations."

Each week Clendinen sends me a preview of his Journey with Jesus commentaries: Here's what he sent on Monday:

I rarely read fiction, but this week I review the Pulitzer Prize-winner "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy. What a book! For film I review "Barrio Cuba." For poetry we've posted "A Timbered Choir" by Wendell Berry. My essay honors Sarah as "The Mother of Nations" (Genesis 17:16).

June 30 ends the fiscal year for JwJ. Every day over a thousand readers from 45 countries enjoy our "weekly webzine for the global church." More than a million readers from 220 countries have visited us since we launched in 2004. Generous donors make JwJ avaliable free of all advertisements and free to all readers all the time. I hope you'll consider supporting us. To make a donation using PayPal, go to our website and click on "Make a Donation." Or make your check payable to "JwJ" and mail it to the address below. As a 501c3 non-profit organization, your gift is tax deductible. Thanks!

dan

Daniel B. Clendenin, PhD
265 Cambridge Avenue,
PO Box 60781
Palo Alto, California

http://www.journeywithjesus.net/---a weekly webzine for the global church; 220 countries served---

If you too appreciate JwJ, consider sending a donation.

June 11: St. Barnabus, Apostle

In my Lutheran church calendar, June 11 is high-lighted in red, indicating that it's an exceptionally important day in the church's prayer and worship life. Among many Christians, June 11 will be celebrated as the commemoration of Saint Barnabas, one of the more remarkable Apostles of Our Lord. If your prayerbook alerts you to this feast day and you wish to give thanks to God for the life and witness of Saint Barnabas, you will appreciate reading the following from Lesser Feasts and Fasts as you prepare for your daily prayers:

"Joseph, a Levite born in Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabus (which means son of encouragement) sold a field he owned, brought the money, and turned it over to the apostles" (Acts 4:36-37). This first reference in the New Testament to Barnabas introduces one whose missionary efforts would cause him to be called, like the Twelve, an apostle. As a Jew of the Dispersion, he had much in common with Paul. When Paul came to Jerusalem after his conversion, the disciples were afraid to receive him. It was Barnabas who brought Paul to the apostles, and declared to them how, on the road to Damascus, Paul had seen the Lord, and had preached boldly in the name of Jesus (Acts 9:27). Later, Barnabas, having settled in Antioch, sent for Paul to join him in leading the Christian Church in that city.

Barnabas and Paul were sent by the disciples in Antioch to carry famine relief to the Church in Jerusalem. Upon their return, the Church in Antioch sent them on their first missionary journey beginning at Cyprus. At Lytra in Asia Minor, the superstitious people took them to be gods, and Barnabas to be Jupiter, the chief of the gods, a testimony to the commanding presence of Barnabas. The association of Barnabas and Paul was broken, after their journey, by a disagreement about Mark, who had left the mission to return to Jerusalem. After attending the Council of Jerusalem with Barnabas, Paul made a return to the Churches he and Barnas had founded in Asia Minor. Barnabas and Mark went to Cyprus, where Barnabus is traditionally honored as the founder of the Church.

It seems that Barnabas continued his journeys for the Gospel, because Paul mentions him several times in his letter to the Galatians, the Corinthians, and the Colossians. Tradition has it that he was martyred at Salamis in Cyprus.

Homily Grits provides you with a very good homily that concludes with a final paragraph about Saints Barbabas and Paul by the Rev. Grant M. Gallop. It was originally preached on May 20, 2007, and may be not quite like the sermons you're used to hearing. But read it anyway. It'll help you image some things, some very good things.

The Prayer for the Day

Grant, O God, that we may follow the example of your faithful Servant Barnabas, who, seeking not his own renown but the well-being of your Church, gave generously of his life and substance for the relief of the poor and the spread of the Gospel; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Image source

Some thoughts on praying "alone"

Now and then--sometimes for many, all the time--one is obliged to pray the daily office without the physical company of others. That's what happening to me this week because I'm in Kentucky, and my wife June is in Florida. Usually we pray the daily offices together. For nearly three weeks now, I'll be praying by myself.

In saying that I'll be praying "by myself," I realize two realities. First, none of us really prays alone; we are always in deep communion with the whole Church on earth and with the heavenly hosts. Each evening I am reminded of that reality because near the beginning of Evening Prayer in my prayerbook, after singing a portion of Psalm 141, I am asked to reflect of the day's events and observe some "silence for meditation," and then I say these words to God:

Let the incense of our repentant prayer ascend before you, O Lord, and let your loving kindness descend upon us, that with purified minds we may sing your praises with the Church on earth and the [with] the whole heavenly host, and may glorify you for ever and ever.

While making this short request, I can't help but notice that all the pronouns are plural: our, us, and we. Deliberately the prayer reminds me that I'm in prayerful union with "the Church on earth" and with "the whole heavenly host." I am not alone.

Then too, during this prayer I am also aware that you, my friends, are praying with me, as are many others whom I know in my parish and family, including my Benedictine friends, my pastor and several priests whom I have the privilege of knowing. Quite clearly, I am not alone.

And yet is some real sense, I am indeed alone. In the morning, I go outside to sit in the emerging dawn, and I sense that I'm the only one stirring in the neighborhood. It's just me and the birds chirping away. In the evening I sit in my chair, and no one else is in the house. When I'm quiet I can hear the clock tick. All of this means that in a very real sense it's up to me to pray; no one will notice if I don't; no one will notice if I do. Somewhere Dietrich Bonhoeffer said, I think, that it's what you do when you're alone that signifies what sort of a person you are. Alone, I can decide not to pray. Or I can pray. Noticeably, my wife June is not with me for encouragement. I am alone.

It's at such times that I think of many of you who are, more so than I, alone. Some of you live alone most of the time; some of you do not have the support of a spouse to help you pray. As a consequence, entering your daily prayers is a matter of considerable personal discipline and habit. At times you may not say the office. At times you have to force yourself to open the prayerbook, psalter, and Bible. At times you can't wait to pray. You actually look forward to entering the prayer-life of God.

Perhaps, like me, you settle in for the prayers that way I do. Often I take a preliminary look at what the day's readings will be, sometimes with the last sips of a cup of coffee. If your prayers include the singing of a office hymn, as mine do, perhaps you'll pick one that's familiar, one that you can sing quietly with some confidence if knowing the melody. Perhaps you light a candle. And then you begin.

What happens for me is this. When I'm praying the office alone, I find that I do things much more slowly. The rhythmic rush of group or corporate prayer tends to disappear. If I want to stop in the middle of a psalm to enjoy its grace, I do so. If I want to look around and enter the Presence, I let myself go. If I need to pause to examine my life while reading something from a Pauline letter, I do so. If I want to cover a large landscape in intercessory prayer, I can do so. If I want to sit and do nothing but enter centering prayer, I have the opportunity. All of this means that often praying alone, all by one's self, has its openings, its times and spaces for honesty, it's clouds for unknowingly resting in God, its searching movements of the heart and mind.

So praying by oneself (not really) has its blessings, as does corporate prayer. Jesus leads us to both kinds of communion with God. He gives us the communal "Our Father" and prays with us during the assembling of believers; he also recommends that we enter a closet to be alone with God.

Image: Marc Chagall, Solitude

This month at Journey with Jesus

At Journey with Jesus, Daniel B. Clendenin publishes "The Journey Without, The Journey Within: Ignorance, Inclusion, and Impotence," a commentary on the lectionary readings for Sunday June 8, 2008. Take a look at the essay; it explores one of the most salient texts in the Bible, Genesis 12 and the call of Abraham.

At Journey with Jesus this week Dave Werther considers "The Swell Season," featuring Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova from the Irish film Once. And Clendenin reviews "For the Bible Tells Me So," a documentary about five Christian families whose children came out as gay. See what you think. He also takes a look at The Elephant and the Dragon (2007), a book about the rise of India and China. His series of poems by Wendell Berry continues with "Sabbath Poem VII."

For the Sundays in June, Clendenin announces the following essay titles:

June 15: Sarah: God Gave Me Laughter

June 22: The Crisis in Burma, by physicist Brad Keister

June 29: A Father Sacrifices His Son; A God Tests His Disciple (Genesis 22)

Image: Paradise with Christ in the lap of Abraham,13th century Germany.

Back from Iona

Although the six of us--Carol and Bob Rogow, Claudia and Harry Smiley, and June and I--got back to the States on Thursday, it's only now that I've really had the open time to let you know that God blessed our trip to Iona so that it's memory now lies deep within us with thanksgiving. As we get to see most of you personally sometime this summer, we'll share our stories, especially about the people of Ireland and Scotland, and notably about Iona itself. I will be taking a bus back to Richmond, Kentucky, on Wednesday while June stays in Georgia. When I'm back in my study and can work comfortably with a better computer, I'll post a few of my favorite photos and tell you more about the trip. While Ireland and Scotland are beautiful in many places, it's truly good to be back home again.

See you in two weeks!

As soon as we return from Ireland and Scotland, I'll post a few pictures, especially those I hope to take while on the Isle of Iona. In the meantime, for your lectio, some words for Henri Nouwen:

Are you in love with Jesus? Do you know the incarnate God? In our world of loneliness and despair, there is an enormous need for men and women who know the heart of God, a heart that forgives, that cares, that reaches out and wants to heal.

On Pilgrimage in Ireland and Scotland

June and I will be in pilgrimage in Ireland and Scotland from May 11 until May 23. We're going with two other couples: Claudia and Harry Smiley, Carol and Robert Rogow. After flying to Dublin, we're driving up the east coast, bed and breakfasting along the way, for a few days so that eventually we can cross the Irish Sea by ferry and head up to and through Glasgow, Scotland. The high and outer-most point of our journey will be the Isle of Iona, the ancient "thin place" of Celtic Christianity, where we'll stay for two nights. A good bit of our time will be spent in and around the Abbey where we'll have opportunities to pray and participate in the Sunday liturgy. Please remember us in your prayers, asking that we have a safe and Spirit-filled pilgrimage. When we return, I'll do my best to share all that the Lord will have given to us during our journey.

Image: Inside the Abbey Church by Roger Wilco

May 8: Dame Julian of Norwich, Contemplative

This morning June and I attended the Eucharist at The Church of the Good Shepherd in Covington, Georgia. As we entered the sanctuary, Fr. Tim Graham handed us this information about Dame Julian of Norwich, whose commemoration is May 8 (and was transferred to our mid-Week Holy Communion, as is often the practice among many parishes). For more information about this remarkable woman, visit The Order of Julian of Norwich.

Lord God, who in your compassion granted to the Lady Julian many revelations of your nurturing and sustaining love: Move our hearts, like hers, to seek you above all things, for in giving us yourself you give us all; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Image Source

May 19 June 16: Lectio Divina: An Online Retreat and Practice Group

Yesterday I received the following announcement from Jan Carter, who provides leadership for a weekly Centering Prayer meeting in Lexington:

The ancient practice of praying the Scriptures is being rediscovered and renewed in our time. Known as Lectio Divina (Divine Reading), it is one of the great treasures of the Christian tradition of prayer. Contemplative Outreach is
pleased to partner with Spirituality & Practice to make this teaching more accessible through an online retreat format.

Lectio Divina flows out of the Hebrew method of studying the Scriptures which is called haggadah, learning by the heart. Haggadah was an interactive interpretation of the Scriptures by means of the free use of the text to explore its inner meaning. This online retreat will present the Christian version of this spiritual practice working with passages from the Bible. However, the method of divine reading can be used with any sacred text, so people of all traditions are invited to join us.

Lectio Divina online retreat and Practice Group will run from May 19 - June 16, 2008. This course is based on the Contemplative Outreach Lectio Divina introductory workshop. P articipants will receive a weekly email with step-by-step instructions in the Lectio Divina method. Two other weekly emails will provide answers to your questions and links to audio programs with commentary on this classic practice.

Replicating what you might experience during a face-to-face retreat, you will have access to a private Practice Circle at SpiritualityandPractice.com where mentors from Contemplative Outreach will provide further guidance and support. Here you'll have an opportunity to report on your experiences with this practice and learn from others working with it. The Practice Circle will be available for an additional month for further sharing as you incorporate Lectio Divina into your daily life.

The fee for participation in this online retreat and Practice Group is $39.95. To sign up, go to Spirituality and Practice: E-courses.

If you have any questions, please email Spirituality and Practice: E-courses.

If you in the least bit interested, I urge you to participate in this e-course.

Photograph: courtesy of W.T. Bryant

Bringing to Your Attention a New Blog

In our daily prayers we all pause, perhaps spending considerable time, to remember the needs of others and making intercessory prayer on behalf of those who have asked us to pray for them and/or who need our prayers. For the past several weeks some friends and I have been talking about the possibility of creating a small ecumenical group of Christians who might wish to learn more about non-violent Christianity, how we might both pray for and promote justice (so prominent a prayer in the Psalms), and how we might concretely help to feed the hungry and poor (again, so prominent in the Psalms). Right now we are in the early stages of thinking how we might gather together interested Christians. We're reading and studying; we're praying for the Holy Spirit's guidance and for discernment. As a "background" resource, I've created a blog which may interest you: Peaceful Christians, Promoting Justice, Providing Food, Protecting Environments. Might you take a look at it. Perhaps it may be something of a series of prayer concerns that you and I will want to incorporate into our daily prayers on a regular basis. And perhaps we may find some linkages that might connect the two groups. Think about; pray about it. I'll put a link on our blog here to the new blog: Peaceful Christians, Promoting Justice, Providing Food.

Making Intercessions for Sandy and Toby

This afternoon I receive an email from a friend who has written to a number of Christian friends in Richmond, asking for prayers on behalf of her friends. Here is a lightly edited copy of the email I received:

My husband is at the UK hospital right now, sitting with a friend whose wife was flown in last night, suffering from a brain aneurysm. She is in surgery right now, they give her a 50/50 chance of survival, with lots of terrible possibilities in the event she does survive (paralysis, brain damage, etc.) We all know people like Toby and Sandy . . . and they are very dear to us and especially to my husband. Any
prayers you wish to raise for Sandy, Toby, their family and the doctors, and
in particular for patience, understanding and acceptance would, I know, be most appreciated. Thanks.

In your daily prayers please offer intercessions for Sandy, Toby, their family, and the doctors. I will circumspectly keep you informed about those for whom we are praying.

Preparing for the Feast of Pentecost (May 11)

This evening I received this message from Daniel B. Clendinen:

May 11 is Pentecost, the perfect week to announce that we've just added translation of our webzine into four new languages---Dutch, Greek, Hindi, and simplified Chinese. We now offer Journey with Jesus in 14 languages; check out the country flags on our navigation bar.

For Pentecost we've posted the poem "O Comforting Fire of Spirit" by Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179). David Werther has a new music review. Richie Furay's "The Heartbeat of Love" (2007) will take you straight back to Buffalo Springfield and Poco.

I review Ron Sider's new book The Scandal of Evangelical Politics (2008), and the powerful film There Will Bloood. My essay for May 11 is called "From the inspiration of the Spirit to the Institution of the Church." Pentecost grace, peace, and joy to each and every reader.

Take a look at Clendinen's thoughtful essay as you prepare yourself for this coming Sunday's worship. And enjoy the beautiful icons he includes as the sacred images accompanying the essay.

Image Source

This Week and Clendinen's Journey with Jesus

I was unaware, as perhaps you are, that at the beginning of May the world is commemorating the genocide of six million Jews in the Holocaust by observing Yom Hashoah — Holocaust Remembrance Day. For this reason, in his commemtary for this coming Sunday's worship and prayer Daniel B. Clendenin writes not so much on the lectionary readings as on how we might remember the Holocaust and with Amartya Sen commit ourselves to three ways by which we oppose violence "caused by the illusion of identity."

May 2: Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria, Theologian, Doctor

On May 2 we remember one of the giants in the Faith: St. Athanasius. According to Lesser Feasts and Fasts, "rarely in the history of the Church has the course of its development been more significantly determined by one person than it was by Athanasius in the fourth century" (248). Whenever we say the Nicene Creed and confess that "we believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God of God, Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten, not made, of one Being with the Father," we owe, in large measure, that orthodox articulation of our Faith to St. Athanasius.

In the fourth century, Athanasius, often as a minority spokesman, spoke out vigorously against the heretical views of Arius. Yes, it's true, as Sam Portaro notes, "Arius was partially right; most heretics are. Jesus was a man, a mere mortal" (Brightest and Best: A Companion to the Lesser Feasts and Fasts, 83). Indeed, our Lord was fully human; he spent nine months in the womb of Mary, he went to school to learn how to read, he ate passover meals and drank passover wine, he wept, slept, worked in a carpenter shop, took boat rides, read Scriptures, spoke out against hypocrisy and misdirected piety, upset temple tables, lived a life of celibacy and poverty, announced the arrival of the Reign of God, and eventually died as a common criminal. But at the same time, without denying any of his manliness and humanity, Jesus was fully divine. As the eternal Word of God, Jesus created and still creates the world, loved Abraham, journeyed with the people of Israel, stilled a wild sea storm, turned water into wine, miraculously multiplied food, brought the dead back to life, healed lepers, and absolutely forgave and forgives sin. As Robert Capon in The Fingerprints of God rightly tells us, "His Godhead was 100 percent God, without a scrap of humanity in it; and his humanity was 100 percent human, without a scrap of Deity in it. Each was utterly true to its own nature, completely itself and none other; and yet each was perfectly one with the other in the Person of the Word of God" (106). We owe a great debt of theological gratitude to Athanasius for helping the Church preserve and live by that Mystery, the Incarnation. Like C. S. Lewis, you may enjoy (as several of us have during the past month) one of Athanasius most popular writings, On the Incarnation.

Uphold your Church, O God of truth, as you upheld your servant Athanasius, to maintain and proclaim boldly the catholic faith against all opposition, trusting solely in the grace of your eternal Word, who took upon himself our humanity that we might share his divinity; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.

May 1: The Feast of the Ascension

Since my May parish newsletter did not arrive in the mail this week, this afternoon I stopped by my church in Lexington to ask if there might be an service tomorrow evening on Ascension Day, May 1. The parish secretary told me (with some sadness in her voice), "No, we used to have one, but not many people showed up, and we no longer have a service of worship on Ascension Day." Although I was disappointed to hear that not-so-good news, I was not surprised. The Feast of the Ascension is a celebration which, always falling on a Thursday, is slowly disappearing from the worship life of many congregations. We keep saying in the Creed that "He ascended into heaven," but we no longer regard that great event as important as the Incarnation, the Passion of Our Lord, and His Resurrection.

That doesn't mean, however, that in our daily prayers we too may forget that forty days after His Resurrection, Our Lord Jesus returned to His Father eternally so that he might live fully everywhere in His Church. To celebrate His return, this evening and tomorrow many Christians turn their thoughts to our Lord’s ascension and what it means to the Church, to the world, and to one personally. In his Letters and Papers from Prison, Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “Today is Ascension Day, and that means that it is a day of great joy for all who can believe that Christ rules the world and our lives.”


Several years ago M. Basil Pennington, a Cistercian monk and one-time abbot visited me in Massachusetts and gave me, after a nearly day-long talk on the porch, a strong five-minute blessing with his big hands solidly on my head. His journals from trips to the Holy Land have just been published. After visiting the spot on Mount Olivet where Jesus is said to have ascended, Basil wrote:

It is good that Jesus ascended. His mission was complete. He gave us all. He deserves to sit on the right hand of the Father in glory. The reality of his Ascension gives us the courage to transcend ourselves and open us to divine contemplation. In Christ’s going ahead, we are assured that there is heaven for all of us humans, there is intimacy and at-homeness with the divine.

Basil’s right. Any desire for Jesus to live in a certain place with a single address is much like that desire of Peter, James, and John to domesticate the Transfiguration. But Jesus would have none of that so that "we can transcend ourselves."

The Ascension tells us that Jesus presents himself to us all at once in a multitude of ways: when we read and hear the Gospel, when we table with Him in our homes and churches, when we meet children, when we visit prisoners, when we put diapers on babies, dresses on women, and coats on men, when we stand for justice, when we work for peace, when we serve the poor, when we reach out to our enemies, when two or three of us come together and name Him. In other words: when we love one another.

And then there's this which Mark Harris announces: "The ascension proposes that Jesus Christ has taken a place above all the principalities and powers in the world. He has become that to which we turn in order to find meaning and fulfillment in living." In this sense the ascension is a key doctrine in these latter days. It is not one that super-patriots of any stripe, those who place their loyalties to nation about that of Christ, will like very much. If we turn to Paul, we see that he speaks of the "spirit of wisdom" by which to discern these things. If we use that spirit, we'll be led to proclaim Christ's absolute rule--not as king, but as one who feeds and sustains. Giving all other powers their due and their respect, in the final analysis we Christians cannot totally and without reservations embrace the flag, support the government, or pledge allegiance to the country for which they stand. Rather we end up having to say with Paul that Christ Jesus is "far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come." Perhaps the visual notion of the ascension is the movement of the Christ to the place at the head of the table as our great high priest, the head of the true state that is the Church, the Body of Christ of which Christians are all parts.

Image source: Ascension

April 29: Catherine of Siena, Teacher, 1380

On Tuesday, we remember and give thanks to God for the life and witness of St. Catherine of Siena, a remarkable woman. Pope Pius II canonized Catherine in 1461. Her feast day is April 29 in the new Roman calendar and April 30 in the traditional Roman calendar. This date is observed by various Christians including Anglicans and Lutherans. Pope Paul VI bestowed on her in 1970 the title of Doctor of the Church - making her the first woman, along with Saint Teresa of Ávila, ever to receive this honor. In 1999 Pope John Paul II made her one of Europe's patron saints. Saint Catherine is also the patroness of the historically Catholic American sorority, Theta Phi Alpha.

Everlasting God, who so kindled the flame of holy love in the Heart of blessed Catherine of Siena, as she meditated on the passion of your Son our Savior, that she devoted her life to the poor and the sick, and to the peace and unity of the Church: Grant that we also may share in the mystery of Christ's death, and rejoice in the revelation of His Glory, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Rogation Days

The calendar in my prayerbook tells me that April 28, 29, and 30 (that is, today, tomorrow, and Wednesday) are Rogation Days. And here's what the note on the backside of the calendar's April page tells me about Rogation Days:

Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday before thie festival of the Ascension of Our Lord have long been observed as days of prayer for the fruits of the earth and have been more recently expanded to include prayer for human labor and for peace. Congregations may observe the Rogation Days on these days or, preferably, on days days closer to seed time in their areas. The traditional observance consists of Holy Communion preceded by an outdoor procession. This procession may take place at the fields and other locations where labor is perfomed or out of doors on teh church grounds. At various stoppoing point or "stations,"
appropriate Scripture lessons and prayers may be read. Hymns may be sung during the procession. The Litany is begun as the procession enters the church. Petitions concerning the care and fruitfulness of the earth may be inserted into the Litany following the final set of petitions with the response "We implore you to hear us, good Lord." After the Kyries which conclude the Litany, a prayer for the Stewardship of Creation is said as the Prayer/Collect of the Day.

Now, to be quite honest, I have never participated in a Rogation Day Eucharist with Litany, but I'd surely like to, especially with a bunch of farmers, field laborers, gardeners, nursery workers, and anyone who likes to get his or hands soiled up from planting seeds and flowers. From what I know, it's still done in and around country parishes, especially in the mid-West. If anyone knows of a parish observing a Rogation Day in the area, let me know. For now, however, June and I will most likely go out by the garden one evening early this week and say evening prayers with special thanksgiving for God's gift of plants and trees around the house.

Here's a particularly fitting prayer for your Rogation Day; I found it at the conclusion of an exceptionally fine homily, "An Earth Day Sermon," by Steven Whitney, an Anglican professional environmentalist:

Lord, we thank you for this opportunity to reflect on your creation, your covenant with all living things, and our obligation to be good stewards of the gifts you have provided. Help us to understand that each of us has an important role in Caring for Creation, by the choices we make and by the actions we take. Give us the wisdom to choose thoughtfully, and to act with care, in accordance with your will, and your love of this good Earth, our island home.