January 31, 2009

Moseying Along

Today I met a new human being face-to-face for the first time, and of course he did not look like what I thought he would look like.  He is quite large and I am quite small.  He also does not walk at the rapid pace I and most of my companions walk.  And in asking me to slow down as we took a longer walk than he has taken in a long time, he told me that when he was living in Buloxi, on 107 degree days, you could always spot the northerners because they would be working up a sweat and getting exhausted because they rushed from place to place. Continue Reading

January 17, 2009

The Rule on Closure

What do you think the Rule says about finding closure when a relationship (of any significant sort) changes or ends?  What do you think the rules of closure are in general–its dynamics?

I recall that the Rule speaks of the gradual steps to take towards excommunication–each time offering a chance to be restored to community.  But even an excommunication is not permanent the first or second time around (how many times?). Continue Reading

January 11, 2009

Praying against a Psalm

Yesterday I came home from a local peace and justice meeting in which we decided to issue a press release urging an immediate ceasefire in Gaza (following the UN’s own urging–with the US abstaining).  Present at our meeting for the first time were two Palestinians.  One spoke at length about his sense that the only true Jews in Israel were the ones present before all the immigrations of Jews from Europe and Russia and Africa and the Middle East; these folks were often simply secular, he said, and most were Zionists.  The Jews he defined as authentic were orthodox Jews who believed the Messiah must come before the state of Israel ought to be created–1200 such Jews in his West Bank community stood by the Palestinians and against Israel.  No one directly challenged his definition of a proper Jew, though it’s clear that most everyone else present at the meeting supports the existence of both the state of Israel and a Palestinian state. Continue Reading

January 3, 2009

God on the Throne

This week I’ve been writing a review of Flora Keshgegian’s God Reflected: Metaphors for Life.  It’s an accessible survey of seven metaphors or images for God, from king to parent to divine energy.  Each image is grounded in biblical examples, and its strengths and limitations are described (along with the kinds of prayer each image invites).  Keshgegian is especially interested in what depiction of divine power is implied by each image–how each image depicts God as acting in the world. Continue Reading

December 30, 2008

Is Christmas ever really over?

My Aunt Thelma, “Auntie,” was a second mother to me, from my birth until her death in May of 2000. She never married and I sometimes wonder if maybe I was part of the reason for her remaining single. Did she somehow see other relationships as disloyal? (I do remember a telephone call when I was three or four when I asked to spend a Friday night with her, as I normally did. She told me that she had a date that night and I seem to remember pouting about it for a time. Did she secretly vow never to let another man interfere with our standing Friday night sleep-over? She never mentioned another conflict and I spent almost every Friday night of my life with her until my teens when I found my own Friday night conflicts. I’m afraid I was not nearly as loyal as she was.) Continue Reading

December 23, 2008

The Frail-to-Strong Continuum

I wonder if any of you have reached a place in your lives in which you feel little at all could toss you out of perspective?  At least barring the deterioration of your mind?

It is a silly question, perhaps.  Who among us doesn’t feel as frail in perspective, some days, as we feel strong in spirit on others?

I am thinking of what Nicky wrote about relying on her spiritual toolbox, and how the practice of prayer can coat our lives with resources beyond ourselves–sort of like the ice is right now coating up to an inch thick all the branches and utility lines outside.  Sometimes I too have felt carried by prayer. Continue Reading

December 21, 2008

Spiritual Toolbox is Helping Me through a Tough Time

By Nicky Gant

I am one of the newest members of this Oblate community and am probably one of the youngest. I joined because I was looking for a community to support my spiritual growth and to surround myself with people who are further on the road then I am. I need guidance and a supportive place to express the part of myself that is seeking closer connection to God, trying to listen for His will in my life. For the same reason, I told Sue I’d contribute to the Oblate blog every few weeks.

In between the time I told her that and now, I received the news that my son Dylan, who is due to be born on 1/11/09 has a condition called duodenal atresia, which is a blockage in his stomach that will require surgery shortly after birth, along with 6-8 weeks recovery in the NICU. His ultrasounds also show ecogenic kidneys, which have a 50% chance of being nothing or could be some kind of kidney disease. He also has increased risks of other birth defects and Downs Syndrome. Continue Reading