Some Words from Haiti

I'm posting now from Ranquitte, Haiti, where--with Pastors Ron Luckey and Barry Nesse and Dr. Greg McMorrow--I'm to work on a variety of projects at the Calhoun-Spady Missionary School. Ranquitte is a mountain village accessible by forty-minute flight out of Port au Prince in a small-single-engine plane, followed by a ninety-minute drive in a pickup truck on an eleven-mile dirt/rock road. The school, large by Haitian standards, is filled with 1,300 students and a staff of 100 teachers (many of the part-time). While here our team will be working on the water-purification system, repairing equipment, and doing some public-relations photography as I'll be attempting to locate and a promote a sister-to-sister city relationship with a state-side town, comparable in population to that of Ranquitte, some 6,000.

This morning we visited Per Andre P. Augustin, the vibrant catholic priest at the local St. Francis of Assisi parish where we attended the baptisms of six Haitian children. All of this is simply prologue to my request to ask for your prayers and intercessions for Haiti and its people. In special, remember eighty-nine-year-old Ivy Solomon, the "Mother Teresa of Haiti," who began work in Ranquitte thirty years ago and now in her elder years has been blessed with dedicated group of Christian workers, teachers, agronomists, and village leaders who work day-by-day, and pray every morning and evening, singing hymns in French and encouraging one another in Creole, the native Haitian language. If the Holy Spirit every teases you into thinking about coming to Haiti with me sometime, be sure to let the Holy Breath of God fill us with conversation about the possibility.

We'll be attending the 6:00 a.m. Mass tomorrow morning and will certainly turn our thoughts to you and ask God to bless you, even as you ask God to bless us.

I'll post more in a day or two.

Getting reading for Sunday, July 17

Once again I'm sharing Daniel B. Clendenin's Monday announcement that previews and comments on the lectionary readings for this coming Sunday, July 27, at Journey with Jesus, a weekly webzine for the global church. Dan writes:

1. My essay this week is called "Accepting God's Acceptance."
2. I review the Bob Dylan movie "I'm Not There," and pastor Tom Ford reviews Rick Bragg's memoir "The Prince of Frogtown" (2008).
3. Our series featuring the poetry of John Donne continues with "A Hymn to God the Father."

Be sure to visit Journey with Jesus each week.

Good News about Jason

Less than a week ago, many of us began including Jason in our daily prayers, asking God to grant healing to his body, spirit, and mind. This afternoon I received this note from Leslie Ferris, whose note on July 15 asked that we pray for Jason:

Thank you so much for your prayers for Jason. He is much improved and is now home from the hospital. He had been in for over 2 weeks, most of it in ICU. He still has some ground to recover, but he is doing very well at this time. Prayers do make a difference, God bless you all.

Leslie D Farris

136 Stevie's Way
Berea KY 40403

Image source: The Church of the Intercession, Episcopal

550 West 155th Street (@Broadway), New York, New York 10032

The Lambeth Conference: July 16-August 3, 2008

Once every ten years Anglicans and Episcopalian leaders from around the world meet by invitation of the Archbishop of Canterbury at Canterbury, England. This year the meeting takes place from July 16 to August 3; and, as many of you know, the proceedings of this 2008 Lambeth Conference ARE frequently featured in the news media. If you wish to take in what happening, I recommend the following coverage and conversations:

• For background and context, Lambeth Conferences


• The Lambeth Conference Official Website


• The unofficial website for Lambeth 2008: from the producers of CaNNet


• Archbishop Rowan Williams' Pree-Conference Message (text and video)


• Lambeth Conference Daily Account: New Jersey Bishop George Councell


• The Anglican Communion Official Website


• Pope Benedict XVI's message to the Archbishop of Canterbury

Realizing that I'm a tad late in the posting, for those who wish to pray for God's blessings upon the Conference, here's s a prayer cycle, provided by St. James Episcopal Church, Cambrdige, MA, day-by-day offerings of which that might well be included in one's daily prayers:

7/13 Bless the bishops and their spouses as they travel to England to attend the Lambeth conference at Canterbury. Be present with the priests and lay people of the Church of England as they extend their welcome through the Hospitality Initiative, and help us all to entertain the angels in our midst.

7/14 Be present with the bishops and their spouses in their fellowship as they visit with the people of the Scottish Episcopal Church. Guide their shared worship and conversation, and grant that the spirit of welcome will strengthen the bishops for the work of the conference.

7/15 We pray for friendship between bishops and the people of the Church in Wales as they spend time with each other in hospitality and sharing. Bless this encounter between cultures and gather your diverse people to serve together in Christ.

7/16 Guide and protect all who are traveling to the Lambeth Conference in Canterbury, that they may be safe in all things from harm or accident, and give a spirit of wisdom and warmth to those who welcome them.

7/17 Bless and inspire Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams as he leads the opening retreat, that he may illuminate, and the bishops present may more fully understand, the meaning of an episcopal calling in service to God's mission.

7/18 Watch over all those bishops who for reasons of health, finance, conscience or domestic concerns cannot attend the Lambeth Conference, that they may join their fellow bishops in shared love.

7/19 Give a spirit of forbearance and understanding to the bishops and colleagues assembled at the opening retreat, that they may open their hearts and minds to each other and to God's mission as they look forward to the deliberations that lie ahead.

7/20 Raise up a joyous Spirit-led fellowship as hosts, bishops and spouses hear the Word of God and share the Body and Blood of Christ in the opening Eucharist of the 2008 Lambeth Conference.

7/21 We give thanks for our common history and your faithfulness to us in our shared history as members of the Anglican Communion. Help the bishops and spouses gathered in Canterbury to acknowledge that which unites us and to discover how they can glorify and serve you as they respond together to God's call to mission.

7/22 Awaken the hearts and minds of participants in this Lambeth Conference to proclaim the good news of Christ's resurrection and of eternal life in you, that all people may hear God's invitation to faith and fellowship.

7/23 Arouse a passion among the assembled bishops for justice, well-being, and healing for all your people. Keep them always mindful that our use of resources can make a difference in the lives of others.

7/24 Be with the bishops and others meeting in London, as they witness to the possibility of reconciliation and human fulfillment in implementing the Millennium Development Goals.

7/25 Help us all, and especially our bishops assembled at Canterbury, to weave our Anglican particularities along with those of all other Christian brothers and sisters ecumenically into the multicolored rainbow tapestry that is the whole Body of Christ.

7/26 Forgive us our abuse of the God-given creation, and help our bishops chart a way forward to heal its wounds, so that we may restore the environment to wholeness, health and a sustainable future.

7/27 Bless and guide our bishops as they seek rest and restoration in Sabbath, so that they may begin again tomorrow with refreshed minds, souls and bodies. Give them new strength and vigor for the final week of the Conference.

7/28 Help the bishops gathered at Canterbury to see the possibilities of dialogue with other religions, and to share the Gospel in loving and generous humility with those who do not yet know Christ.

7/29 Be with the bishops and their spouses, as they engage together the realities of power and authority. Help them find ways to heal the wounds of gender abuse and to restore right relations between men and women.

7/30 Enlighten the bishops to receive the gifts of Holy Scripture with faithful hearts, rational minds and devout spirits, and to discern how these truths can be set forth in their communities.

7/31 Illuminate for us the deep and incomprehensible power of Love manifested in our human sexuality. Help the bishops understand how they may be faithful to that Love in a shared understanding of God's mission.

8/1 Enable the bishops in Canterbury to approach with humility and mutual respect the complex issues inherent in their diverse visions of the Communion. Direct their work so that all may share in an ongoing development of an Anglican Covenant.

8/2 Guide the bishops of the Anglican Communion as they consider processes arising from the Windsor Report that can lead to the renewal of mutual responsibility and interdependence in the Body of Christ.

8/3 Bless all those who shared in and have been shaped by the meetings at Canterbury. Let their participation in the Body and Blood of Christ at the final Eucharist represent a fulfillment of the many conversations and a tangible sign of our unity in faith.

8/4 Keep safe the bishops, their spouses, their advisors, and all those who have made the 2008 Lambeth Conference a reality, as they return home to strive to be leaders in God's mission and thus strengthen the Anglican Communion.

Pray for Jason and Visit Journey with Jesus

Although I'm still without my laptop computer, June is loaning me her computer so that today at the Red Rooster, a local coffee cafe in Barnesville, GA, I'm able to check my email (thanks, Grace, for your longish note!) and let you know that I'm looking into the purchase a new laptop so that perhaps by next week sometime I'll be able to stay more in touch with everyone.

On Saturday Leslie Farris sent the following:

My daughter Jennifer is a caregiver for a young man with cerebral palsy. He is currently in ICU and greatly in need of prayers. He had an adverse reaction to morphin, and is surrently on a ventaltor. His name is Jason. Please pray for Jason, his family - and my daughter. Thanks so much.

Please place Jason among those for whom you intercede.

As he does every Monday mornng, Daniel B. Clendien sends the following announcement:

• David Werther reviews the Wilders' new CD called "Someone's Got to Pay."
• I review the book "The Last Lecture" by cancer survivor Randy Pausch of Carnegie
• Mellon, and a fantastic film from Uganda called "War Dance" (it's not what you think!).
• We continue our John Donne series with Holy Sonnet I.
• My essay [on this coming Sunday's lectionary readings] considers the scale and scope of God's love. I call it "In Heaven and On Earth: Each Person, Every Nation, All Creation, The Entire Cosmos."

If you're getting ready for Sunday's worship, be sure to visit Journey with Jesus, listed in the links of good places to visit.

Finally this: my friend Harry Smiley has reminded me that his Sunday morning group is almost finished discussing Philip Yancey's Prayer. Harry asks if I might be able to recommend another book worth reading and being discussed by a small group. Do any of you have a recommendation?

Lightening has knocked out my computer

This afternoon a horrendous thunderstorm came over the lake, and I--stupid I--was at my computer when a bolt of lightening hit the house while I was at the keyboard; I got a good solid shock of electricity, not enough to hurt me in any way, but good enough to knock the daylights out of my computer. Right now I'm on a backup at June's daughter's home, and able to spend a few minutes letting you know that I may not be online regularly for a few days. I will take the computer to a shop in Covington to see if anything can be done to save it; if not, then I'll need to get another one as soon as conveniently possible. In the meantime, I can work out of the Covington public library to stay in touch.

While things work themselves out, here's a wonderful saying from St. Jerome I think you might like to muse over as the days go by:

Be like the grasshopper and make night musical . . . . Sing with your spirit, but sing with the understanding, too. And let your song be that of the psalmist.

Qtd. Mike Aquilina, The Way of the Fathers: Praying with Early Christians, 75.

July 13: 9th Sunday after Pentecost: Getting Ready

This morning I received the following message from Daniel B. Clendenin.

Journey with Jesus readers, The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is one of the best films I've everwatched. It tells the story of Elle magazine editor Jean-Dominique Bauby and how he dictated a book letter by letter after a massivestroke at the age of 43. Check out my review.

We continue our summer series of poems by John Donne with "For Whom the Bell
Tolls."

For books I review In the Eye of the Storm by Gene Robinson, the openly gay priest who became the ninth Anglican bishop of the Diocese of New Hampshire in 2003.

My essay this week is called "Family Values, Biblical Style."

Summer Blessings!
---dan

As I hope you know, Journey with Jesus is a weekly webzine for the global church, serving 220 countries. I encourage you to take a look as Clendenin's weekly postings; his commentaries on the upcoming lectionary readings for each Sunday's worship are excellent. And, by the way, you can download his weekly commentary for iPod listening; subscribe by going to Podcasts, MP3 Downloads, and Streaming Audio from the Journey with Jesus.

Some Thoughts on Philip Yancy's Prayer, Chapter 20

During Sunday School in one of Richmond's parishes, six of us have been meeting since early February to read and discuss a chapter each week from Philip Yancy's Prayer. On Sunday, July 6, five of the group (I will be in Georgia) will spend the better of an hour working in Part Five: The Practice of Prayer, especially Chapter 20, Prayer and Me.

In this chapter, after admitting that "by nature” he tends to resist “techniques, especially those relating to spiritual disciplines," Yancey tells us that "if prayer is [his] response to God's presence," it’s quite apparent that he must first somehow “tune in to that presence"(286). Yancey’s “tuning-in” metaphor at first suggested to me what some of us do when we fiddle with a radio dial to catch perhaps NPR’s All Things Considered in the afternoon. But as I mused on the “tuning-in” metaphor a bit more, I find myself more inclined to understand Yancey’s tuning-in metaphor as something more akin to what a musician (perhaps a violinist) does when she or he gets ready to play in an orchestra. In what sounds to some like a pre-symphony bit of cacophony, the musician "fiddles" with her instrument's pegs, tightening and loosening strings, making sure that each string is in tune, ready to be played, ready to go into the actual presentation of whatever is to be played.

Several years ago a friend, Jon Kessler, one of my mentors in prayer (who has since died and is fully with Christ), suggested one evening that I might try to do something quite similar to a musician’s tuning-in before I enter Morning or Evening Prayer. He told me that I might find it helpful before prayer to get things tuned up quite like a violinist. My instrument, he said, is not of course a violin but a prayer book most likely containing a Psalter, readings from Scripture, perhaps even songs and hymns set to musical melodies.

Tuning in, he said, might help if I “warm up” my instruments by quietly giving myself a chance to look ahead to what I and others will be reading, singing, and doing. He suggested that I might like to make sure my prayer book has its pages “book-marked” and ready to be read. That perhaps I might quietly hum the psalm tone or the hymn’s melody so that I have it well in mind when the times come to do those psalms and/or a song. Perhaps, he recommended, I might find it good to know exactly what Scriptures or readings I’ll be reading quietly. Getting ready for the Gospel of St. John, he said, requires a different preparation than moving into St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans. Jon, who liked to prayer out-of-doors suggested that I might also want to just sit and listen, doing almost nothing but paying attention to the way of the wind, bird sounds, the movement of the clouds. But, most of all, Jon said that I would do well to be “pre-prayerfully” quiet and give myself some time to pre- and review the day, think about whom it is that I want to include in intercessions, what I want to give God thanks for, what I need to confess, and, in short, know somewhat in advance how I am to present myself before God. Then, Jon said, “Enter your prayers.”

Yancey, describing how Anthony Bloom learned to pray, tells us that in Beginning to Pray, this Russian Orthodox Christian describes how he came to begin "each day in quiet and stillness, acknowledging that the day itself was a gift from God, something that had never existed before, a chance for a new start. It stretched before him like a vast expanse of unspoiled snowin his native Russia. “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” He prayed to enter that day as God’s own messenger, carrying God’s presence to everyone he met. Then at night he would review all that had happened, committing both the progress and the failures to a gracious god. The day is now spent; it rests in God’s hands” (299).

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