Luther's writings on baptism leave us with much in regard to guidance and encouragement.
...the first thing to be considered about baptism is the divine promise, which says: "(One who believes and is baptized will be saved" [Mark 16:16]. This promise must be set far above all the glitter of works, vows, religious orders, and whatever else (humanity) has introduced, for on it all our salvation depends. But we must so consider it as to exercise our faith in it, and have no doubt whatever that, once we have been baptized, we are saved. For unless faith is present or is conferred in baptism, baptism will profit us nothing; indeed, it will become a hindrance to us, not only at the moment of when it is received, but throughout the rest of our lives.
"One who believes and is baptized will be saved" means that any works of any kind have no place, nor do they have any power for new life. The promise in baptism is the beginning of a whole new world. The promise saves us from the futile task of trying to make something of ourselves. To not trust that divine promise is to step forward into the days of our lives as though the promise was worthless and, in essence it certainly is because we do not trust that it is real. If we do not trust the promise, what good is it to us as we move through the events of our lives? Therefore, we are called to "exercise" our faith. That is, step out into what has been promised as though it is the word of truth for the living of this day. In faith, we begin to contemplate the way our baptism shapes how we go about the day. By faith, we walk along the path of the one who calls us into the life of the cross and the promise of the resurrection. There is no waiting for something to come down the road. Yes, there is something down the road, but the road is already before us and we have the blessed opportunity to walk wherever it will take us. Baptism initiates us into the way of salvation. We are God's saving people...who take the risk, right now, to be a part of the promised new life that has been given to us...for life.
Connection: When we daily exercise our baptism, we can do it anywhere and at anytime. It is as simply as bringing it to mind...remembering what God has done. Sounds simple. As part of that exercising, we are given many ways of staying toned...keep the life fresh and the promise as real as the world around us. That is not always so easy...and yet it is vital for us as we walk together as followers of Jesus. Together we encourage one another to begin our baptismal journey within God's promises again...and again.
Come, Holy Spirit, and touch our hearts that in the mix of the day's activities we will remember who we are through the waters of our baptism. As that becomes the way we prayerfully engage this day, prepare us to be willing to enter into the mystery of your promises for life. Amen.
Thursday, September 29, 2005
Wednesday, September 28, 2005
29 September 2005
This month at Redeemer we will be looking at our call to be stewards of life. We will begin with a look at our baptism through the eyes of Martin Luther.
From "The Babylonian Captivity of the Church, 1520, in volume 36 of Luther's Works.
Blessed be the God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to the riches of his mercy (Ephesians 1:3, 7) has preserved in (his) church this sacrament at least, untouched and untainted by the ordinances of (men), and has made it free to all nations and classes of (mankind), and has not permitted it to be oppressed by the filthy and godless monsters of greed and superstition. For (he) has desired that by it little children, who were incapable of greed and superstition, might be initiated and sanctified in the simple faith of (his) Word: even today baptism has its chief blessing for them. (p.57)
We cannot do damage baptism. It is a gift that flows from the “riches of God’s mercy” and if we ever think that any power can subdue that mercy, we better think again. But we are called to remember that this gift is one set out for all people. There is to be no dividing line that will tell us who is to take part and who is not. The whole world and the world of every age and place are to find a resting place that is not ruled by the powers of our world. Therefore, there is that wonderful action of infant baptism that shows to the community and to the child – through story telling – that the ways of this world that seem to rule and get along just fine…are not a part of the story of God’s people who have been plunged into death and pull out in order to be a part of the new age in Christ, Jesus. Even today we live within a religious milieu in which pagan and superstitious notions of God attempt to be labeled as followers of Jesus and yet, the simple gift of baptism is something that is controlled. When that takes place, even those who are baptized are held in questions until they can somehow prove that they are indeed one of the “saved” ones. In today’s religious climate and mind set, we must all the more cling to the promise that is our baptism and turn our backs to those who would try to make it a part of a system in which we must pay to play in the Reign of God…which is therefore not really the Reign of God.
Connection: At the beginning of this day it is good to begin with such words as: “Blessed be God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to God’s mercy has preserved in God’s church this sacrament…untouched by th4e ordinances of humans.” For to begin in such a way is to clarify who rules among us and such clarity may interrupt our day that sometimes seems to know no reason for existence within the wonder of God’s creation.
By you love and grace, O God, you reach in again and again and guide us into the fullness of your blessed Reign. For you work and your faithfulness we can only respond in words of praise and with lives ready to be moved by your Holy Spirit. Amen.
From "The Babylonian Captivity of the Church, 1520, in volume 36 of Luther's Works.
Blessed be the God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to the riches of his mercy (Ephesians 1:3, 7) has preserved in (his) church this sacrament at least, untouched and untainted by the ordinances of (men), and has made it free to all nations and classes of (mankind), and has not permitted it to be oppressed by the filthy and godless monsters of greed and superstition. For (he) has desired that by it little children, who were incapable of greed and superstition, might be initiated and sanctified in the simple faith of (his) Word: even today baptism has its chief blessing for them. (p.57)
We cannot do damage baptism. It is a gift that flows from the “riches of God’s mercy” and if we ever think that any power can subdue that mercy, we better think again. But we are called to remember that this gift is one set out for all people. There is to be no dividing line that will tell us who is to take part and who is not. The whole world and the world of every age and place are to find a resting place that is not ruled by the powers of our world. Therefore, there is that wonderful action of infant baptism that shows to the community and to the child – through story telling – that the ways of this world that seem to rule and get along just fine…are not a part of the story of God’s people who have been plunged into death and pull out in order to be a part of the new age in Christ, Jesus. Even today we live within a religious milieu in which pagan and superstitious notions of God attempt to be labeled as followers of Jesus and yet, the simple gift of baptism is something that is controlled. When that takes place, even those who are baptized are held in questions until they can somehow prove that they are indeed one of the “saved” ones. In today’s religious climate and mind set, we must all the more cling to the promise that is our baptism and turn our backs to those who would try to make it a part of a system in which we must pay to play in the Reign of God…which is therefore not really the Reign of God.
Connection: At the beginning of this day it is good to begin with such words as: “Blessed be God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to God’s mercy has preserved in God’s church this sacrament…untouched by th4e ordinances of humans.” For to begin in such a way is to clarify who rules among us and such clarity may interrupt our day that sometimes seems to know no reason for existence within the wonder of God’s creation.
By you love and grace, O God, you reach in again and again and guide us into the fullness of your blessed Reign. For you work and your faithfulness we can only respond in words of praise and with lives ready to be moved by your Holy Spirit. Amen.
Monday, September 26, 2005
28 September 2005
Today the reflection is focused on the last of the marks in the rite "Welcome of Inquirers."
The body is marked with the cross of Christ from the top all the way down to the bottom. The last mark is placed on the feet. Receive the cross on your feet, that you may walk in the way of Christ.
The traditional way of following does carry the image of getting up onto our feet and going after the one we follow. It is here at the last mark of the cross that we are invited into the "way." This is like walking along the "way" to Emmaus as in the post resurrection story in Luke's gospel. Or it could be like the song "walk this way" that seems to carry a bit of a comment about a whole manner of living. When we are marked to walk in the way of Christ, we walk upon a foundation of the gracious love of God that gives purpose and worth and direction to the "way" we move along through this day. To get a hold of that "way" we go back to the stories of Jesus...we re-view the story of the followers of Jesus throughout the generations...we take a look at those faithful ones who walked through the stories of the Hebrew scriptures. There is something in the "way" they went through their lives. The way a person lives can be described in many ways. When our "walk" begins to look like the walk of another person, we are walking in their way. We are marked so that all the ways we move through the day will carry a touch of that faithful walk of Jesus who, like us, faced the day at hand as the beloved of God - a statement of fact and a call to walk in the way of our God.
Connection: In the routines of our lives, there are many opportunities to recall the way of Jesus so that as we walk into them, we will bring a bit of the life of the Christ with us. Rather than make a list of the many ways that could take place. Simply go for a walk today.
As we enter the many ways of our lives, O God, remind us that this is the life you have given us and you call us to walk through this life in the way of your beloved, Jesus. To walk in such a way means that we are forever in need of the power of your Holy Spirit to lift us up to see the way and then encourage us to go along that way knowing you are with us in our walking. Amen.
Sunday, September 25, 2005
27 September 2005
Again we march on through the rite of "Welcome for Inquirers."
The next to the last mark: Receive the cross on your hands, that God's mercy may be known in your work.
As we drove out of the parking lot in the short north today I told my wife that I have had a real problem with the homeless lately. The problem isn't with them being so visible, it is with the fact that we have so many homeless people and we simply cannot seem to do anything of substance to make sure that they are cared for as much as we would care for those who are able to "get care." So, having walked by the guy who usually is at this parking lot acting like he owns it and will guard your car - even though he has no authority to do so - we drove by him and I handed Karen two dollars to give to him. After saying no to him just minutes before, I think he was a bit surprised...but so was I. I don't usually do that. Then again, isn't that what we are insisting upon as we mark one another with this cross? Aren't we asking our God to make our hands go ahead and beat our heads into action. Go for it...give it up...don't make excuses. I make enough excuses and I know that sometimes I simply have to say "No, I can't help." And yet, sometimes my hands are quicker than my mind...like a good card shark...a good magician...a....follower of Jesus...Giving up what is even the last or the least of what we have.
Connection: So...how will your hands be instruments of mercy today. Remember, you may only be able to see this after the fact. Sometimes our hands act before we are able to stop them. Then later, we may seemed annoyed by what we have done...but...down deep, we have lost nothing at all. In fact, in the giving without question we...we...can simply rejoice in what God plants in our hearts so that our hands are moved to act.
Take our lives, O God, and be the one who touches us so that we go not in the way we want but in the way you call us to go. We know that that can be so hard but we also know that you are the God who does not go back on your Word to be with us and to make us new. Amen.
The next to the last mark: Receive the cross on your hands, that God's mercy may be known in your work.
As we drove out of the parking lot in the short north today I told my wife that I have had a real problem with the homeless lately. The problem isn't with them being so visible, it is with the fact that we have so many homeless people and we simply cannot seem to do anything of substance to make sure that they are cared for as much as we would care for those who are able to "get care." So, having walked by the guy who usually is at this parking lot acting like he owns it and will guard your car - even though he has no authority to do so - we drove by him and I handed Karen two dollars to give to him. After saying no to him just minutes before, I think he was a bit surprised...but so was I. I don't usually do that. Then again, isn't that what we are insisting upon as we mark one another with this cross? Aren't we asking our God to make our hands go ahead and beat our heads into action. Go for it...give it up...don't make excuses. I make enough excuses and I know that sometimes I simply have to say "No, I can't help." And yet, sometimes my hands are quicker than my mind...like a good card shark...a good magician...a....follower of Jesus...Giving up what is even the last or the least of what we have.
Connection: So...how will your hands be instruments of mercy today. Remember, you may only be able to see this after the fact. Sometimes our hands act before we are able to stop them. Then later, we may seemed annoyed by what we have done...but...down deep, we have lost nothing at all. In fact, in the giving without question we...we...can simply rejoice in what God plants in our hearts so that our hands are moved to act.
Take our lives, O God, and be the one who touches us so that we go not in the way we want but in the way you call us to go. We know that that can be so hard but we also know that you are the God who does not go back on your Word to be with us and to make us new. Amen.
26 September 2005
This week begins with the place we were at the end of last week - the rite of "Welcome of Inquirers."
In this rite the next part of the body that is marked is the shoulders as we say: Receive the cross on your shoulders, that you may bear the gentle yoke of Christ.
I'll admit it. I did not expect this action. And yet, I will also admit that as I read it the first time and as I read it this time, I am so moved it surprises me. That we would take the time to mark one another on the shoulders because we do have a load to carry is simply a visual out of my box. I don't have the strongest shoulders. I remember when I tried to carry my daughter on my shoulders - it hurt and I didn't last long. Well the gospel...the good news so radically foreign to our world that people have been hung up on a cross and other place because of it...is a load. But within the promise of our God is the promise of strength that will make that load of love an easy burden. Possibly that has to do with the fact that it is quite simple - trust the Lord, God, for what the Lord, God, promises and you will be relieved and your thirst will be quenched and you shoulders will be able to withstand more than we could ever imagine. I really thing this will be one of the most difficult marks for me to make on those who come forward to be marked. In this mark I see the journey we will take. Yes, our God will be with us...and yet, there will be costs to that journey and I surely know that I am not always up to shouldering those costs when I attempt to see them through my own eyes. This is precisely why it is good to have someone else mark us...remind us...assure us. Hearing the promises of God from others is so much more powerful than trying to say it to myself or...make the mark on my old shoulders.
Connection: This is the kind of thing I pray for...to mark the ones I love with a simple cross that will give them strength and assurance when they may have to face days that try to place too much of a burden on them. The yoke of the Christ is easy...remember that...or else...life will be made so hard by no one else but ourselves.
God of Mercy and Lord of Life, you remain with us and by your presence we are made strong so that in all the days of our lives we can be assured that nothing is to powerful to subdue us. Even death and all its threats will not be too much for us as long as you are with us to uphold us and give us your peace. Amen.
In this rite the next part of the body that is marked is the shoulders as we say: Receive the cross on your shoulders, that you may bear the gentle yoke of Christ.
I'll admit it. I did not expect this action. And yet, I will also admit that as I read it the first time and as I read it this time, I am so moved it surprises me. That we would take the time to mark one another on the shoulders because we do have a load to carry is simply a visual out of my box. I don't have the strongest shoulders. I remember when I tried to carry my daughter on my shoulders - it hurt and I didn't last long. Well the gospel...the good news so radically foreign to our world that people have been hung up on a cross and other place because of it...is a load. But within the promise of our God is the promise of strength that will make that load of love an easy burden. Possibly that has to do with the fact that it is quite simple - trust the Lord, God, for what the Lord, God, promises and you will be relieved and your thirst will be quenched and you shoulders will be able to withstand more than we could ever imagine. I really thing this will be one of the most difficult marks for me to make on those who come forward to be marked. In this mark I see the journey we will take. Yes, our God will be with us...and yet, there will be costs to that journey and I surely know that I am not always up to shouldering those costs when I attempt to see them through my own eyes. This is precisely why it is good to have someone else mark us...remind us...assure us. Hearing the promises of God from others is so much more powerful than trying to say it to myself or...make the mark on my old shoulders.
Connection: This is the kind of thing I pray for...to mark the ones I love with a simple cross that will give them strength and assurance when they may have to face days that try to place too much of a burden on them. The yoke of the Christ is easy...remember that...or else...life will be made so hard by no one else but ourselves.
God of Mercy and Lord of Life, you remain with us and by your presence we are made strong so that in all the days of our lives we can be assured that nothing is to powerful to subdue us. Even death and all its threats will not be too much for us as long as you are with us to uphold us and give us your peace. Amen.
Thursday, September 22, 2005
23 September 2005
As we move along through the rite of Welcome of Inquirers and continue to trace crosses and speak words of vision and hope over our bodies, we end the week with a focus on our hearts.
The simple verse spoken to people participating in this rite is: Receive the cross on your heart, that God may dwell there by faith.
At the very center of who we are is the one who would not have the world be what it is without us. The heart is not the center of emotion. It is the center of our will. It is the driving life force that is meant to convey meaning and purpose. When we say that the word of God that comes to us in many ways "cuts us to the heart," it touches us at the very core of who we are and is therefore a word that can cause us to change direction because our vital center becomes under the rule of the God who is wholly for us. Trust that this is so. Trust that as you remember the cross that was traced on our foreheads at our baptism. We are a people whose only hope is the God who claims us as God's own...and what a hope that is! In all times and places and in all decisions about the path of life we will take, the God who loves us without end - abides with us. As we trust that reality and that life presence, our lives become open to the expansiveness of the life God hands over to us. We are invited to will one thing - to hold in our hearts the one who longs to abide there and be for us the beginning and ending of all things.
Connection: There are so many ways when we "feel" distant from God or that God is not anywhere to be see. Well, the truth is that God has already made a home with us and will not leave. That is not based on our feelings, it is based on a promise. From deep within the very depths of our lives, we are invited today to trust that we are not alone nor will we be left without a way to live through this day.
Come, O God of Creation, and assure us of your presence and your power for new life even when we cannot feel that presence or even when life seems old and overwhelming. Be for us the spring of fresh water that is able to satisfy us when we are faced with days that have nothing to sooth our souls. Amen.
The simple verse spoken to people participating in this rite is: Receive the cross on your heart, that God may dwell there by faith.
At the very center of who we are is the one who would not have the world be what it is without us. The heart is not the center of emotion. It is the center of our will. It is the driving life force that is meant to convey meaning and purpose. When we say that the word of God that comes to us in many ways "cuts us to the heart," it touches us at the very core of who we are and is therefore a word that can cause us to change direction because our vital center becomes under the rule of the God who is wholly for us. Trust that this is so. Trust that as you remember the cross that was traced on our foreheads at our baptism. We are a people whose only hope is the God who claims us as God's own...and what a hope that is! In all times and places and in all decisions about the path of life we will take, the God who loves us without end - abides with us. As we trust that reality and that life presence, our lives become open to the expansiveness of the life God hands over to us. We are invited to will one thing - to hold in our hearts the one who longs to abide there and be for us the beginning and ending of all things.
Connection: There are so many ways when we "feel" distant from God or that God is not anywhere to be see. Well, the truth is that God has already made a home with us and will not leave. That is not based on our feelings, it is based on a promise. From deep within the very depths of our lives, we are invited today to trust that we are not alone nor will we be left without a way to live through this day.
Come, O God of Creation, and assure us of your presence and your power for new life even when we cannot feel that presence or even when life seems old and overwhelming. Be for us the spring of fresh water that is able to satisfy us when we are faced with days that have nothing to sooth our souls. Amen.
Wednesday, September 21, 2005
22 September 2005
From the rite of "Welcome of Inquirers"
The fourth way a person in this rite is marked is on the lips and these words are used: Receive the cross on your lips, that you may sing the praise of Christ, the joy of the church.
It is a mark that sends us out into life make all that we say into something that brings praise to our Lord. Rather than speak falsely of others, we speak well. Rather than being consumed by the gossip that contaminates relationships and makes life into a living hell for everyone, we are marked with a truth-telling and a straight forward presence that brings the Christ into the shaping of our day. Such a life as this - a life that sings the praises of Christ - demonstrates to the those around us - both in and out of the Church - the contrary way in which our Lord, Jesus, leads us in and through life. When such voices pass our lips, they bring joy to the world! Like the angels in the sky at the birth of the Christ child...joy that is ready to make something incredibly new burst alive within our world. Having said all this, I must always remind myself of the fact that I need this mark to help me keep my mouth shut until what I speak is able to go through the prayerful filter of the Holy Spirit who demands truth from us that is not mired in the hate and bitterness that can so often color what we say, when we say it, and how we say it.
Connection: When will this "joy" be heard within our speaking this day? When will this mark of the cross remake our day and in that remaking, open up to us a life we may not have entered previously? One of the most difficult parts of having our lips blessed is that we are pulled into a ministry in which we help others when their lips are too willing to spout off things that are less than filled with the joy of the Church.
We life up our voices to you, O God of Great Mercy, and we pray that our lives will become instruments of your love and mercy in all that we do and say. Turn us into parts of that grand choir whose lives praise you from now until the end of all things. Amen.
The fourth way a person in this rite is marked is on the lips and these words are used: Receive the cross on your lips, that you may sing the praise of Christ, the joy of the church.
It is a mark that sends us out into life make all that we say into something that brings praise to our Lord. Rather than speak falsely of others, we speak well. Rather than being consumed by the gossip that contaminates relationships and makes life into a living hell for everyone, we are marked with a truth-telling and a straight forward presence that brings the Christ into the shaping of our day. Such a life as this - a life that sings the praises of Christ - demonstrates to the those around us - both in and out of the Church - the contrary way in which our Lord, Jesus, leads us in and through life. When such voices pass our lips, they bring joy to the world! Like the angels in the sky at the birth of the Christ child...joy that is ready to make something incredibly new burst alive within our world. Having said all this, I must always remind myself of the fact that I need this mark to help me keep my mouth shut until what I speak is able to go through the prayerful filter of the Holy Spirit who demands truth from us that is not mired in the hate and bitterness that can so often color what we say, when we say it, and how we say it.
Connection: When will this "joy" be heard within our speaking this day? When will this mark of the cross remake our day and in that remaking, open up to us a life we may not have entered previously? One of the most difficult parts of having our lips blessed is that we are pulled into a ministry in which we help others when their lips are too willing to spout off things that are less than filled with the joy of the Church.
We life up our voices to you, O God of Great Mercy, and we pray that our lives will become instruments of your love and mercy in all that we do and say. Turn us into parts of that grand choir whose lives praise you from now until the end of all things. Amen.
Tuesday, September 20, 2005
21 September 2005
From the rite of "Welcome of Inquirers"
The third mark in this rite continues as our eyes are marked. We hear these words as the cross is traced over the eyes: Receive the cross on your eyes, that you may see the light of Christ, illumination for your ways.
We see light because we have experienced darkness. The smallest light can change the entire world of darkness. Yesterday I was up and out of the house a bit after 5a.m. It was extremely dark as I walked down the stairs and yet a light was shining indirectly through one of our windows and it was enough to help me see the outlines of things in the house and the pathway to the rooms I needed to enter. When it is dark within our lives....dark for any number of reasons...so dark that we are not quite sure if we will be able to see enough to make it through the day...so dark our hearts are heavy and we cannot find a reason to continue or press beyond the place in life we find ourselves, the light of the Christ - the light of God with us - the light that will not be put out - the light that will break into and through any darkness, will give us a way through the darkness. I don't think the darkness ever goes away. In fact, I think the darkness loves to press itself over us so that we will not move or go beyond the place in which we now stand. But we have this promise that our God will be a light that will not go out in just those kind of places. It may not seem light the biggest light in the world - but so little can be so powerful when it is let loose within the darkness of our lives. You may not know it, but some of you have been that light for me. Just enough to remind me of a promise. Just enough to remind me that darkness is not the final word and the light of God's promises that are announced to me in many shapes and forms will always find a way to lead me and guide me.
Connection: Who will serve you today as a light in the middle of the darkness of the day at hand? Then again, how much light do you need to see you through your dark times. If you need more light, there are people all around who can be that for you. Sometimes we need to let it be known that we are not able to see - things are too dark to move ahead...even just a bit.
Lord of Light, you continue to pierce the darkness of these days through many ways and at times we may not even realize that we are wandering in sheer darkness. Bless us with the brilliant illumination of your promises for life eternal - life to its fullest. Amen.
The third mark in this rite continues as our eyes are marked. We hear these words as the cross is traced over the eyes: Receive the cross on your eyes, that you may see the light of Christ, illumination for your ways.
We see light because we have experienced darkness. The smallest light can change the entire world of darkness. Yesterday I was up and out of the house a bit after 5a.m. It was extremely dark as I walked down the stairs and yet a light was shining indirectly through one of our windows and it was enough to help me see the outlines of things in the house and the pathway to the rooms I needed to enter. When it is dark within our lives....dark for any number of reasons...so dark that we are not quite sure if we will be able to see enough to make it through the day...so dark our hearts are heavy and we cannot find a reason to continue or press beyond the place in life we find ourselves, the light of the Christ - the light of God with us - the light that will not be put out - the light that will break into and through any darkness, will give us a way through the darkness. I don't think the darkness ever goes away. In fact, I think the darkness loves to press itself over us so that we will not move or go beyond the place in which we now stand. But we have this promise that our God will be a light that will not go out in just those kind of places. It may not seem light the biggest light in the world - but so little can be so powerful when it is let loose within the darkness of our lives. You may not know it, but some of you have been that light for me. Just enough to remind me of a promise. Just enough to remind me that darkness is not the final word and the light of God's promises that are announced to me in many shapes and forms will always find a way to lead me and guide me.
Connection: Who will serve you today as a light in the middle of the darkness of the day at hand? Then again, how much light do you need to see you through your dark times. If you need more light, there are people all around who can be that for you. Sometimes we need to let it be known that we are not able to see - things are too dark to move ahead...even just a bit.
Lord of Light, you continue to pierce the darkness of these days through many ways and at times we may not even realize that we are wandering in sheer darkness. Bless us with the brilliant illumination of your promises for life eternal - life to its fullest. Amen.
Monday, September 19, 2005
20 September 2005
From the rite of "Welcome of Inquirers"
Eight times during this brief rite the sign of the cross is traced on a different body part. Following the mark on the forehead, the rite continues with a mark over the ears at which time this is said: Receive the cross on your ears, that you may hear the gospel of Christ, the word of life.
We are gifted to hear how the Christ enters this day and to see how that living presence sounds a contrary note alongside the many sounds around us. It would be way off the mark if we saw this hearing taking place only in the traditional places associated with the gospel of Christ - worship, bible study, and fellowship at church. The Good News -the gospel- comes to us through the lives of others. Sometimes, the words spoken by a friend or an enemy may be that sound of God's love that is pierced on the cross, dead and gone in the grave, and lifted up to life eternal. Blessed are those who hear the symphony of such an announcement even as we move through the common sounds and language of the day. We pray that this good news will be for the life of us. We pray that this life will be the life of the Christ, Jesus. Remember that it is quite easy to try to silence that word in all sorts of ways throughout the day. But like Jonah, who tried to run away from the voice of God, that voice will break in and we pray that our ears will be open to the way of life that is presented to us - even when it is not within the plans of our lives.
Connection: You may be surprised at how God's word of Love passes within hearing distance in this and other days. Then again, we are taught not to be surprised - but to be ready for each and every word and the life it has to offer. Listen up!
With you Word of Life, O Word Before Any Word is Sounded, we find that our day and its many voices are interrupted so that we are able to listen to all things through the resounding event of the good news of our Lord, Jesus. Pump up the word so that we might hear it in both the silent and noise filled parts of this day. Amen.
Eight times during this brief rite the sign of the cross is traced on a different body part. Following the mark on the forehead, the rite continues with a mark over the ears at which time this is said: Receive the cross on your ears, that you may hear the gospel of Christ, the word of life.
We are gifted to hear how the Christ enters this day and to see how that living presence sounds a contrary note alongside the many sounds around us. It would be way off the mark if we saw this hearing taking place only in the traditional places associated with the gospel of Christ - worship, bible study, and fellowship at church. The Good News -the gospel- comes to us through the lives of others. Sometimes, the words spoken by a friend or an enemy may be that sound of God's love that is pierced on the cross, dead and gone in the grave, and lifted up to life eternal. Blessed are those who hear the symphony of such an announcement even as we move through the common sounds and language of the day. We pray that this good news will be for the life of us. We pray that this life will be the life of the Christ, Jesus. Remember that it is quite easy to try to silence that word in all sorts of ways throughout the day. But like Jonah, who tried to run away from the voice of God, that voice will break in and we pray that our ears will be open to the way of life that is presented to us - even when it is not within the plans of our lives.
Connection: You may be surprised at how God's word of Love passes within hearing distance in this and other days. Then again, we are taught not to be surprised - but to be ready for each and every word and the life it has to offer. Listen up!
With you Word of Life, O Word Before Any Word is Sounded, we find that our day and its many voices are interrupted so that we are able to listen to all things through the resounding event of the good news of our Lord, Jesus. Pump up the word so that we might hear it in both the silent and noise filled parts of this day. Amen.
19 September 2005
From the rite of "Welcome of Inquirers"
Eight times during this brief rite the sign of the cross is traced on a different body part. It begins with an image from baptism and the tracing of the cross on the forehead. These words accompany the action: Receive the cross on your forehead, a sign of God's endless love and mercy for you. Learn to know and to follow Christ.
When we were baptized in Christ Jesus, the pastor traced the sign of the cross on our foreheads. Though most time that cross is made with oil, sometimes pastors simply use the water from the font. At that time our name is announced again and we are call "child of God. Then we are told that "you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever." Forever is beyond our imagination and beyond the touch of any power in the world. Forever is the love and mercy of our God that is available within our lives - without a doubt. It is a promise. When I see that cross being traced on a forehead and hear those words "Learn to know and to follow Christ," I think of how a young child begins to walk. The child tends to have a goal to which s/he is moving. As you have probably seen, the child's head goes first. The whole body follows the head that leans out toward the goal until the body is enough off balance and on its way that the legs begin to move. At first, those legs cannot keep up with the pull of the head and there is a dynamic crash to the floor unless it is prevented by a fast moving adult. But the head keeps leading the way again and again. This image is made more powerful when we remember that fact that as each of us goes forward in this day, the cross of Christ leads us, call us forward, and gives us the knowledge of the life that has been given to us forever.
Connection: It is a good reminder to begin the day with something as simple and private as retracing that cross on our foreheads. We can never have too many reminders of whose we are and who it is that pulls us into the future that is already at hand.
Lord of New Life, by the power of the Holy Spirit we face the opportunities of this day with the stories of our Lord, Jesus, helping to shape how we enter them. With that endless love and mercy in mind, we begin to follow you alone. Amen
Eight times during this brief rite the sign of the cross is traced on a different body part. It begins with an image from baptism and the tracing of the cross on the forehead. These words accompany the action: Receive the cross on your forehead, a sign of God's endless love and mercy for you. Learn to know and to follow Christ.
When we were baptized in Christ Jesus, the pastor traced the sign of the cross on our foreheads. Though most time that cross is made with oil, sometimes pastors simply use the water from the font. At that time our name is announced again and we are call "child of God. Then we are told that "you have been sealed by the Holy Spirit and marked with the cross of Christ forever." Forever is beyond our imagination and beyond the touch of any power in the world. Forever is the love and mercy of our God that is available within our lives - without a doubt. It is a promise. When I see that cross being traced on a forehead and hear those words "Learn to know and to follow Christ," I think of how a young child begins to walk. The child tends to have a goal to which s/he is moving. As you have probably seen, the child's head goes first. The whole body follows the head that leans out toward the goal until the body is enough off balance and on its way that the legs begin to move. At first, those legs cannot keep up with the pull of the head and there is a dynamic crash to the floor unless it is prevented by a fast moving adult. But the head keeps leading the way again and again. This image is made more powerful when we remember that fact that as each of us goes forward in this day, the cross of Christ leads us, call us forward, and gives us the knowledge of the life that has been given to us forever.
Connection: It is a good reminder to begin the day with something as simple and private as retracing that cross on our foreheads. We can never have too many reminders of whose we are and who it is that pulls us into the future that is already at hand.
Lord of New Life, by the power of the Holy Spirit we face the opportunities of this day with the stories of our Lord, Jesus, helping to shape how we enter them. With that endless love and mercy in mind, we begin to follow you alone. Amen
Friday, September 16, 2005
16 September 2005
Today begins a look at the Rite for the Welcome of Inquirers. Kitamori's "Theology of the Pain of God" flows well into these actions and words.
This rite is used "whenever there are baptized people who desire to begin a more public relationship with a Christian congregation, or who are entering a particular period of formation leading to the affirmation of their baptism. The people are to gather at the door of the sanctuary before the entrance hymn where they are greeted. In this rite, the sign of the cross is made on them eight times over eight different parts of their body. It begins with these words: You have heard the holy and saving gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. No receive the sign of the gospel, the sign given you in baptism, on your body and in your heart, that you may know the Lord and the power of his resurrection.
This saving gospel is filled with love and pain and we are reminded of the fullness of God's participation in our story by being reminded of the cross. This cross that was traced on our forehead at our baptism is the shape of that love that we feel and see being traced on our body. As part of our ongoing prayerful contemplation of the meaning of our life within the Reign of God, it is the cross that brings us into the story of the pain of God and the eternal liberation that comes with a love that will endure all things for the life of others. The power of the resurrection is already seen and felt through the simple sign of the cross. For in that sign, we are reminded of the days that followed and the promise made to all of us - a promise of life that is already available - a life in which we are enfolded by the love of God even as we tremble at the voices of wrath that attempt to be the only voice within our lives. This gospel is called a saving gospel because in the midst of every other power that attempts to rule us, this down-to-earth story of God's love active in our lives cannot be destroyed by any power we will face.
Connection: Once within this day - or as many times as you need to do it - it would be good to remind ourselves of this simple and powerful story meant to see us into a new life even as we are in the middle of the everyday activities and powers that can - at times - get the best of us.
Merciful God, we give you thanks for the power of your word of love that is made available in our Lord, Jesus. Through his death, we are marked by the cross, and invited into a new way to walk within this day. We praise you, O God, and we bless you. Amen
This rite is used "whenever there are baptized people who desire to begin a more public relationship with a Christian congregation, or who are entering a particular period of formation leading to the affirmation of their baptism. The people are to gather at the door of the sanctuary before the entrance hymn where they are greeted. In this rite, the sign of the cross is made on them eight times over eight different parts of their body. It begins with these words: You have heard the holy and saving gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. No receive the sign of the gospel, the sign given you in baptism, on your body and in your heart, that you may know the Lord and the power of his resurrection.
This saving gospel is filled with love and pain and we are reminded of the fullness of God's participation in our story by being reminded of the cross. This cross that was traced on our forehead at our baptism is the shape of that love that we feel and see being traced on our body. As part of our ongoing prayerful contemplation of the meaning of our life within the Reign of God, it is the cross that brings us into the story of the pain of God and the eternal liberation that comes with a love that will endure all things for the life of others. The power of the resurrection is already seen and felt through the simple sign of the cross. For in that sign, we are reminded of the days that followed and the promise made to all of us - a promise of life that is already available - a life in which we are enfolded by the love of God even as we tremble at the voices of wrath that attempt to be the only voice within our lives. This gospel is called a saving gospel because in the midst of every other power that attempts to rule us, this down-to-earth story of God's love active in our lives cannot be destroyed by any power we will face.
Connection: Once within this day - or as many times as you need to do it - it would be good to remind ourselves of this simple and powerful story meant to see us into a new life even as we are in the middle of the everyday activities and powers that can - at times - get the best of us.
Merciful God, we give you thanks for the power of your word of love that is made available in our Lord, Jesus. Through his death, we are marked by the cross, and invited into a new way to walk within this day. We praise you, O God, and we bless you. Amen
Wednesday, September 14, 2005
15 September 2005
More from Kazoh Kitamori in the "Theology of the Pain of God."
The death of Christ is "death of death". The Lord was unable to resolve our death without putting himself to death. God himself was broken, was wounded, and suffered, because he embraced those who should not be embraced. By embracing our reality, God grants us absolute peace. But the peace has been completely taken away from the Lord who grants us absolute peace. "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
Are we going to be saying here that as we follow Jesus to the cross we too will lose our peace for the well being of others? I didn't expect that I would ask this question because we are hearing about what God has done - how in Christ, God embraces a reality that is not God's but ours. In that action by God - where death loses it power over us - God loses the distance that God could have maintained as God. And yet, God steps through the distance and faces the loss of that disconnection that, I suppose, some people would call peace. But "absolute peace" is peace in which we do not have anything to lose because nothing can be taken from us. God grants us that place in the death of Christ. We then, as followers of Jesus, are invited to step across the peace that comes from keeping distance from one another and begin to walk within the peace that is ours even as death theatens us when we become vulnerable and seek the welfare of others so that they to might have this peace. There is no pain that our God does not know - even death - and there is no peace that is not ours for the living even when death shuffles in and tries to destroy what has been handed to us.
Connection: It is tempting to move away from others and claim to have entered into a place of peace. But in our storytelling, peace comes in the midst of the experience of the fullness of life that is engaging others and risking the peace we claim to make for ourselves and taking hold of the peace that is handed to us as we follow the way of the Christ who takes on the power of death. Today will you find yourselves moving away or moving toward others?
There is no place we can hide from your love, O God. No pain will send you out of the room as though we are abandoned by you. When we hide, you are there in our hiding and you bid us to be free to live in the openness of your gracious Reign. We will deny the power of your presence because we have found other ways to live through our days, but you still remain...you still go through the cross to come to us through all we might have to endure in life. Praise to you, O God. In your availability we are surprised by the life that come to us. Amen.
The death of Christ is "death of death". The Lord was unable to resolve our death without putting himself to death. God himself was broken, was wounded, and suffered, because he embraced those who should not be embraced. By embracing our reality, God grants us absolute peace. But the peace has been completely taken away from the Lord who grants us absolute peace. "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me?"
Are we going to be saying here that as we follow Jesus to the cross we too will lose our peace for the well being of others? I didn't expect that I would ask this question because we are hearing about what God has done - how in Christ, God embraces a reality that is not God's but ours. In that action by God - where death loses it power over us - God loses the distance that God could have maintained as God. And yet, God steps through the distance and faces the loss of that disconnection that, I suppose, some people would call peace. But "absolute peace" is peace in which we do not have anything to lose because nothing can be taken from us. God grants us that place in the death of Christ. We then, as followers of Jesus, are invited to step across the peace that comes from keeping distance from one another and begin to walk within the peace that is ours even as death theatens us when we become vulnerable and seek the welfare of others so that they to might have this peace. There is no pain that our God does not know - even death - and there is no peace that is not ours for the living even when death shuffles in and tries to destroy what has been handed to us.
Connection: It is tempting to move away from others and claim to have entered into a place of peace. But in our storytelling, peace comes in the midst of the experience of the fullness of life that is engaging others and risking the peace we claim to make for ourselves and taking hold of the peace that is handed to us as we follow the way of the Christ who takes on the power of death. Today will you find yourselves moving away or moving toward others?
There is no place we can hide from your love, O God. No pain will send you out of the room as though we are abandoned by you. When we hide, you are there in our hiding and you bid us to be free to live in the openness of your gracious Reign. We will deny the power of your presence because we have found other ways to live through our days, but you still remain...you still go through the cross to come to us through all we might have to endure in life. Praise to you, O God. In your availability we are surprised by the life that come to us. Amen.
Tuesday, September 13, 2005
Tuesday 14 September 2005
Due to a glitch last week and Monday this piece did not get out - a word again from Kazoh Kitamori.
Our Lord's wounds, which heal our wounds, are "Rich wounds, yet visible above,/ In beauty glorified," and the Lord of the cross is at once the Lord of the resurrection. Just as Paul implies "the word of the cross and the resurrection" by his phrase "the word of the cross" (1 Cor.1:18), so I imply "theology of love rooted in God's pain" by the phrase "theology of the pain of God." Luther calls the death of Christ "death against death"; I call the pain of God "pain against pain." Just as "death against death" is the resurrection, so "pain against pain" is God's love which resolves our pain. For this reason, the message of the pain of God is called glad tidings.
We do not speak of the cross without knowing of the resurrection. In fact, in the cross - the one people wear around their necks or the one we carry in procession at the beginning and ending of the liturgy - we see the future...we see resurrection...we see "death against death" - new life! When Kitamori speaks of God's love through the images of pain - as though they are one in the same and pain is absolutely necessary for us to know God love - it does not take away my pain...it makes this God of ours a bit more connected to what it is to be human. Our God does not try to get us to fly somewhere away from pain - to rise above it as though it is not real. Rather, pain is so real and so ordinary and so natural to what it is to be human, we say that in Christ, Jesus, God is right here in the midst of us and getting hit with everything that hits us...no matter how hard we are hit. The "glad tidings" is that the pain...in all of its forms...does not have the last word. Therefore, we can live within the reality of the last words even though we are now living through much less. When that is real for us, we then become the presence of that last word for others. Forgiveness...for example...is the last word even when we want retribution. And we....we are invited to forgive even in times that seem unforgivable....glad tidings we bring to you and yours.
Connection: Sometimes all we can do is listen to the stories of God's love for us and then...listen again and again. Then in the middle of the listening we are told that God's Spirit will empower us to trust that love and what it is able to do within lives like ours. Today we may need to spend more time listening and learning what it is we can trust for life.
You walk with us, O Living God, and along the way we wonder what it means to have you alongside and with us when our world is being broken again and sorry seems to cascade down around us. In our tears and confusion enfold us into your loving presence so that the day at hand will not overpower us and we will be able to see new life right in the middle of the pain that is trying to cut us off from life. Amen.
Our Lord's wounds, which heal our wounds, are "Rich wounds, yet visible above,/ In beauty glorified," and the Lord of the cross is at once the Lord of the resurrection. Just as Paul implies "the word of the cross and the resurrection" by his phrase "the word of the cross" (1 Cor.1:18), so I imply "theology of love rooted in God's pain" by the phrase "theology of the pain of God." Luther calls the death of Christ "death against death"; I call the pain of God "pain against pain." Just as "death against death" is the resurrection, so "pain against pain" is God's love which resolves our pain. For this reason, the message of the pain of God is called glad tidings.
We do not speak of the cross without knowing of the resurrection. In fact, in the cross - the one people wear around their necks or the one we carry in procession at the beginning and ending of the liturgy - we see the future...we see resurrection...we see "death against death" - new life! When Kitamori speaks of God's love through the images of pain - as though they are one in the same and pain is absolutely necessary for us to know God love - it does not take away my pain...it makes this God of ours a bit more connected to what it is to be human. Our God does not try to get us to fly somewhere away from pain - to rise above it as though it is not real. Rather, pain is so real and so ordinary and so natural to what it is to be human, we say that in Christ, Jesus, God is right here in the midst of us and getting hit with everything that hits us...no matter how hard we are hit. The "glad tidings" is that the pain...in all of its forms...does not have the last word. Therefore, we can live within the reality of the last words even though we are now living through much less. When that is real for us, we then become the presence of that last word for others. Forgiveness...for example...is the last word even when we want retribution. And we....we are invited to forgive even in times that seem unforgivable....glad tidings we bring to you and yours.
Connection: Sometimes all we can do is listen to the stories of God's love for us and then...listen again and again. Then in the middle of the listening we are told that God's Spirit will empower us to trust that love and what it is able to do within lives like ours. Today we may need to spend more time listening and learning what it is we can trust for life.
You walk with us, O Living God, and along the way we wonder what it means to have you alongside and with us when our world is being broken again and sorry seems to cascade down around us. In our tears and confusion enfold us into your loving presence so that the day at hand will not overpower us and we will be able to see new life right in the middle of the pain that is trying to cut us off from life. Amen.
Monday, September 12, 2005
15 September 2005
Once again from the "Theology of the Pain of God" by Kazoh Kitamori.
The "pain" of God reflects his will to love the object of his wrath. ...the wrath of God and the love of God - produces the "tertiary." This "tertiary" is the pain of God. Luther sees "God fighting with God" at Golgotha. God who must sentence sinners to death fought with God who wishes to love them. The fact that this fighting God is not two different gods but the same God causes pain. Here heart is opposed to heart within God. "God opened the way for (humanity's) atonement by experiencing unspeakable suffering, going through agonies, and offering himself as sacrifice."
First we need to address the comment about us being the "object of God's wrath." Earlier Kitamori simply states that we - as a broken people/people who turn from God/sin...must be sentenced to death- this is the manifestation of God's wrath. But...that is not what our God does. God is caught between this notion of wrath and the love of God that is beyond any power. Therefore, when this one God goes against this "wrath" by insisting on a love that will not let us go, there will be the utter experience of pain. Our God will not and does not let the power of death win the day. Wrath will not have the say over the love of God. I suppose you could say that when we actually experience the brokenness of another person - suffer what they suffer - face death like they face death - and we do that out of love for them (even if we think they deserve their situation), we not only begin to be aware of their sufferings we begin to have to face the two sided nature of our selves. When I do that, it is not an easy pathway. To love through what I would expect is a situation that deserves some kind of "death," means that I will suffer there also. What comes to mind immediately, is every time any of us change our positions and begin to live contrary to what we said is necessary and yet we, in time & by being utterly vulnerable, come away with a new sense of who we are and who the other one is. Pain crashes into us as we become vulnerable for the sake of others - even others we think deserve punishment for what they have done or who they are.
Connection: In a society that likes to be pain free, how do we love when we know that such love will conflict with some of our own values and those of others. I would suggest that we again need more prayerful conversation with others. Pain is something that needs to be faced together so that love will indeed be the way of the day.
Yes, Lord, we expect you to be here with us to save us and not condemn us. We expect that you will be in the midst of the horrors of our life because your love cannot be separated from us for any reason or at any time. In that closeness that is your promise, the life we call eternal emerges to carry us through this day within that eternal embrace. Amen.
The "pain" of God reflects his will to love the object of his wrath. ...the wrath of God and the love of God - produces the "tertiary." This "tertiary" is the pain of God. Luther sees "God fighting with God" at Golgotha. God who must sentence sinners to death fought with God who wishes to love them. The fact that this fighting God is not two different gods but the same God causes pain. Here heart is opposed to heart within God. "God opened the way for (humanity's) atonement by experiencing unspeakable suffering, going through agonies, and offering himself as sacrifice."
First we need to address the comment about us being the "object of God's wrath." Earlier Kitamori simply states that we - as a broken people/people who turn from God/sin...must be sentenced to death- this is the manifestation of God's wrath. But...that is not what our God does. God is caught between this notion of wrath and the love of God that is beyond any power. Therefore, when this one God goes against this "wrath" by insisting on a love that will not let us go, there will be the utter experience of pain. Our God will not and does not let the power of death win the day. Wrath will not have the say over the love of God. I suppose you could say that when we actually experience the brokenness of another person - suffer what they suffer - face death like they face death - and we do that out of love for them (even if we think they deserve their situation), we not only begin to be aware of their sufferings we begin to have to face the two sided nature of our selves. When I do that, it is not an easy pathway. To love through what I would expect is a situation that deserves some kind of "death," means that I will suffer there also. What comes to mind immediately, is every time any of us change our positions and begin to live contrary to what we said is necessary and yet we, in time & by being utterly vulnerable, come away with a new sense of who we are and who the other one is. Pain crashes into us as we become vulnerable for the sake of others - even others we think deserve punishment for what they have done or who they are.
Connection: In a society that likes to be pain free, how do we love when we know that such love will conflict with some of our own values and those of others. I would suggest that we again need more prayerful conversation with others. Pain is something that needs to be faced together so that love will indeed be the way of the day.
Yes, Lord, we expect you to be here with us to save us and not condemn us. We expect that you will be in the midst of the horrors of our life because your love cannot be separated from us for any reason or at any time. In that closeness that is your promise, the life we call eternal emerges to carry us through this day within that eternal embrace. Amen.
Wednesday, September 7, 2005
14 September 2005
Due to a glitch last week and Monday this piece did not get out - a word again from Kazoh Kitamori.
Our Lord's wounds, which heal our wounds, are "Rich wounds, yet visible above,/ In beauty glorified," and the Lord of the cross is at once the Lord of the resurrection. Just as Paul implies "the word of the cross and the resurrection" by his phrase "the word of the cross" (1 Cor.1:18), so I imply "theology of love rooted in God's pain" by the phrase "theology of the pain of God." Luther calls the death of Christ "death against death"; I call the pain of God "pain against pain." Just as "death against death" is the resurrection, so "pain against pain" is God's love which resolves our pain. For this reason, the message of the pain of God is called glad tidings.
Our Lord's wounds, which heal our wounds, are "Rich wounds, yet visible above,/ In beauty glorified," and the Lord of the cross is at once the Lord of the resurrection. Just as Paul implies "the word of the cross and the resurrection" by his phrase "the word of the cross" (1 Cor.1:18), so I imply "theology of love rooted in God's pain" by the phrase "theology of the pain of God." Luther calls the death of Christ "death against death"; I call the pain of God "pain against pain." Just as "death against death" is the resurrection, so "pain against pain" is God's love which resolves our pain. For this reason, the message of the pain of God is called glad tidings.
We do not speak of the cross without knowing of the resurrection. In fact, in the cross - the one people wear around their necks or the one we carry in procession at the beginning and ending of the liturgy - we see the future...we see resurrection...we see "death against death" - new life! When Kitamori speaks of God's love through the images of pain - as though they are one in the same and pain is absolutely necessary for us to know God love - it does not take away my pain...it makes this God of ours a bit more connected to what it is to be human. Our God does not try to get us to fly somewhere away from pain - to rise above it as though it is not real. Rather, pain is so real and so ordinary and so natural to what it is to be human, we say that in Christ, Jesus, God is right here in the midst of us and getting hit with everything that hits us...no matter how hard we are hit. The "glad tidings" is that the pain...in all of its forms...does not have the last word. Therefore, we can live within the reality of the last words even though we are now living through much less. When that is real for us, we then become the presence of that last word for others. Forgiveness...for example...is the last word even when we want retribution. And we....we are invited to forgive even in times that seem unforgivable....glad tidings we bring to you and yours.
Connection: Sometimes all we can do is listen to the stories of God's love for us and then...listen again and again. Then in the middle of the listening we are told that God's Spirit will empower us to trust that love and what it is able to do within lives like ours. Today we may need to spend more time listening and learning what it is we can trust for life.
You walk with us, O Living God, and along the way we wonder what it means to have you alongside and with us when our world is being broken again and sorry seems to cascade down around us. In our tears and confusion enfold us into your loving presence so that the day at hand will not overpower us and we will be able to see new life right in the middle of the pain that is trying to cut us off from life. Amen.
8 September 2005
Today is again a selection from Kazoh Kitamori.
This all-embracing God resolves our pain and heals our wounds. Accordingly the pain of God which resolves our pain is "love" rooted in his pain. There is reason to believe that the same Hebrew words used in Jeremiah 31:20 and Isaiah 63:15 is translated as "my heart yearns" and "compassion" respectively.
To stand in and to stand with another person in their pain demands something so ordinary it is extraordinary - love. Don't try going into the depths of pain with another person and staying throughout the ride if your "going with that person" is not founded in love. Our God hanging from the cross or walking along the way that led to the cross was and is the shape of love that is the power to defeat the intention of cruelty and brutality and humiliation. The love of our God brings our God to our doorstep and along the pathways of our life so that there will be no place and time in which we will not have a companion who will hold us and bring us all the life that is necessary to be fully present no matter what may be taking place around us. This love is not sentimental. If it was, there would be no Jesus gasping for breath on the cross. The love that heals the pain of the world is bold and deliberate and resisting all notions of life that enable brokenness to prevail among us. Love like this will be here...right here...through all things.
Connection: The Spirit of God continues to pull us into a wider circle of love so that we will find more and more opportunities to be an available presence of God's love active in the world. We all have our close knit rings of love and sacrifice...what might be the next ring that longs for our love to help transform this day?
By your mercy, O Compassionate Lord, you bring us into the domain of your love that enables us to live with others through any pain that will try to turn us away from trusting in your power for life. Praise to you, O Lord. Amen.
This all-embracing God resolves our pain and heals our wounds. Accordingly the pain of God which resolves our pain is "love" rooted in his pain. There is reason to believe that the same Hebrew words used in Jeremiah 31:20 and Isaiah 63:15 is translated as "my heart yearns" and "compassion" respectively.
To stand in and to stand with another person in their pain demands something so ordinary it is extraordinary - love. Don't try going into the depths of pain with another person and staying throughout the ride if your "going with that person" is not founded in love. Our God hanging from the cross or walking along the way that led to the cross was and is the shape of love that is the power to defeat the intention of cruelty and brutality and humiliation. The love of our God brings our God to our doorstep and along the pathways of our life so that there will be no place and time in which we will not have a companion who will hold us and bring us all the life that is necessary to be fully present no matter what may be taking place around us. This love is not sentimental. If it was, there would be no Jesus gasping for breath on the cross. The love that heals the pain of the world is bold and deliberate and resisting all notions of life that enable brokenness to prevail among us. Love like this will be here...right here...through all things.
Connection: The Spirit of God continues to pull us into a wider circle of love so that we will find more and more opportunities to be an available presence of God's love active in the world. We all have our close knit rings of love and sacrifice...what might be the next ring that longs for our love to help transform this day?
By your mercy, O Compassionate Lord, you bring us into the domain of your love that enables us to live with others through any pain that will try to turn us away from trusting in your power for life. Praise to you, O Lord. Amen.
Tuesday, September 6, 2005
7 September 2005
From "Theology of the Pain of God" by Kazoh Kitamori.
First of all, we must proclaim that the gospel is indeed "glad tidings." God in the gospel is the One who resolves our pain and the Lord who heals our wounds. This means that he is our "Savior." What is salvation? Salvation is the message that our God enfolds our broken reality. A God who embraces us completely - this is God our Savior. Is there a more astonishing miracle in the world than that God embraces our broken reality? Our reality is utterly and hopelessly broken. Yet the gospel brings us the message of "hope even for the hopeless" - yea, rather, "hope only for the hopeless." Those who believe in this gospel believe against their own hope. (Rom. 4:18).
Glad tidings like a person handing a thirsty sister or brother a bottle of water. Glad tidings not just because it is water for the thirst, but also because it is brought by another person - someone who also must be thirsty or know of such a thirst...someone who is bold enough to be there and hand it directly to the other. I never use the word "enfolds," but I like it. It is not like the word "embrace" as I would usually use. "Enfolds" carries the image of God taking it in...all the brokenness...all the pain. God takes it in and holds it as though it is a part of God - and it is. The gospel is news that transcends what we can possibly manufacture for ourselves. There is no "fix it" to the gospel sound. There is...an eternal foundation upon which we can find a place that will be there forever and ever - no matter how bad things may look or feel. Even when we don't see a way or know of a way or can imagine a way into new life...the gospel is there already making a way.
Connection: Today is a day to get in touch with what it is to be all about bring "glad tidings" and also, receiving "glad tidings" as the gift that they will be when they are sent our way. Sometimes, it can be difficult to acknowledge the presence of such news...so let's practice.
Giver of New Life and Lord of All Gladness, shake up our lives with you bountiful love and inspire us to see your life giving Spirit bringing the news of your Reign within this day. Amen
First of all, we must proclaim that the gospel is indeed "glad tidings." God in the gospel is the One who resolves our pain and the Lord who heals our wounds. This means that he is our "Savior." What is salvation? Salvation is the message that our God enfolds our broken reality. A God who embraces us completely - this is God our Savior. Is there a more astonishing miracle in the world than that God embraces our broken reality? Our reality is utterly and hopelessly broken. Yet the gospel brings us the message of "hope even for the hopeless" - yea, rather, "hope only for the hopeless." Those who believe in this gospel believe against their own hope. (Rom. 4:18).
Glad tidings like a person handing a thirsty sister or brother a bottle of water. Glad tidings not just because it is water for the thirst, but also because it is brought by another person - someone who also must be thirsty or know of such a thirst...someone who is bold enough to be there and hand it directly to the other. I never use the word "enfolds," but I like it. It is not like the word "embrace" as I would usually use. "Enfolds" carries the image of God taking it in...all the brokenness...all the pain. God takes it in and holds it as though it is a part of God - and it is. The gospel is news that transcends what we can possibly manufacture for ourselves. There is no "fix it" to the gospel sound. There is...an eternal foundation upon which we can find a place that will be there forever and ever - no matter how bad things may look or feel. Even when we don't see a way or know of a way or can imagine a way into new life...the gospel is there already making a way.
Connection: Today is a day to get in touch with what it is to be all about bring "glad tidings" and also, receiving "glad tidings" as the gift that they will be when they are sent our way. Sometimes, it can be difficult to acknowledge the presence of such news...so let's practice.
Giver of New Life and Lord of All Gladness, shake up our lives with you bountiful love and inspire us to see your life giving Spirit bringing the news of your Reign within this day. Amen
6 September 2005
A series of devotions based on "Theology of the Pain of God" by Kazoh Kitamori.
God in pain is the God who resolves our human pain by his own. Jesus Christ is Lord who heals our human wounds by his own (1 Peter 2:24).
This them contains two important points: (1) Our God is the One who resolves our pain and the Lord who heals. (2) Yet this God is the wounded Lord, having pain in himself.
It is most important that we do not make this less than what it is. Our God is the wounded Lord not be suffering pain as a "god" would. Our God suffers pain as we would. Nothing is cut short and therefore we are never cut short of the presence of our God in all our pain no matter what might be the extent of our pain. When I was growing up my two brothers and I shared one bedroom (now that would be considered the unbearable pain). To fit the beds into the room, my bed and my older brother's bed would be pushed together. Sometimes, during really loud thunderstorms, my brother would ask "Do you want to hold hands?" And of course...I did! There we were, frightened together and yet this was my "older" brother - frightened like me...with me. Our God takes us into and through the wounds of our lives as one who goes through it all with us. This is no "fix-it" god who is too big to feel my pain - in fact, our God shows that this pain is a real part of life that is never a place and time that anyone is abandoned or forsaken. Just this week I was alarmed by how many politicians said "I know their frustration," as they tried to speak for the victims of Katrina. Well, to be quite frank, no they didn't. We cannot know that without having been in the depths of that kind of pain...and few if any of the politicians have been. This does not mean that you must suffer the same pain as mine...but you must know the presence of such real pain to simply say "I will do what I can to help them through their pain and all that it brings.
Connection: Listen. Before all else, listen so that we can become aware of the pain others are attempting to live in and through. And then, along the way with them, life will begin to unfold and there will be no one left alone in their pain.
At the very center of the story of your love, we hear of death and pain and humiliation and yet we see that it is you, O God, who endures it just as we do each day. We also are encouraged to hear of how life is transformed through such pain and yet how the pain itself is transformed as we see you move through the power of death itself. Keep us steadfast in this journey of life that is not afraid to abide in all things for you are with us without end. Amen.
God in pain is the God who resolves our human pain by his own. Jesus Christ is Lord who heals our human wounds by his own (1 Peter 2:24).
This them contains two important points: (1) Our God is the One who resolves our pain and the Lord who heals. (2) Yet this God is the wounded Lord, having pain in himself.
It is most important that we do not make this less than what it is. Our God is the wounded Lord not be suffering pain as a "god" would. Our God suffers pain as we would. Nothing is cut short and therefore we are never cut short of the presence of our God in all our pain no matter what might be the extent of our pain. When I was growing up my two brothers and I shared one bedroom (now that would be considered the unbearable pain). To fit the beds into the room, my bed and my older brother's bed would be pushed together. Sometimes, during really loud thunderstorms, my brother would ask "Do you want to hold hands?" And of course...I did! There we were, frightened together and yet this was my "older" brother - frightened like me...with me. Our God takes us into and through the wounds of our lives as one who goes through it all with us. This is no "fix-it" god who is too big to feel my pain - in fact, our God shows that this pain is a real part of life that is never a place and time that anyone is abandoned or forsaken. Just this week I was alarmed by how many politicians said "I know their frustration," as they tried to speak for the victims of Katrina. Well, to be quite frank, no they didn't. We cannot know that without having been in the depths of that kind of pain...and few if any of the politicians have been. This does not mean that you must suffer the same pain as mine...but you must know the presence of such real pain to simply say "I will do what I can to help them through their pain and all that it brings.
Connection: Listen. Before all else, listen so that we can become aware of the pain others are attempting to live in and through. And then, along the way with them, life will begin to unfold and there will be no one left alone in their pain.
At the very center of the story of your love, we hear of death and pain and humiliation and yet we see that it is you, O God, who endures it just as we do each day. We also are encouraged to hear of how life is transformed through such pain and yet how the pain itself is transformed as we see you move through the power of death itself. Keep us steadfast in this journey of life that is not afraid to abide in all things for you are with us without end. Amen.
Thursday, September 1, 2005
2 September 2005
This week ends with a last piece from "On Being Christian in America" in A Better Hope by Stanley Hauerwas.
I believe...Christians can do nothing more significant in America than to be a people capable of worshiping a God who is to be found in the cross and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. The worship of such a God will not be good for any society that desires a god made in the image of the bureaucrat. A people formed by the worship of a crucified God, however, might just be complex enough to engage in the hard work of working out agreements and disagreements with others one small step at a time.
Christians in our country are slowly selling ourselves out to superficial answers to life's many questions. Look at the agenda of the church as it is seen on television and in the newspapers. We look like cultural extremist - not because we have brought great thought and deliberation into world that is divided in many ways. Rather it is because we are not capable of dialogue that engages the world and one another with something more than what I would call religious "hocus pocus" or wave of the wand answers and make everything turn out like we want it. The cross takes us into the very depths of human life...it does not try to remove us from it. We are to face the difficult issues and situation of the day with a determination to listen and possibly move from where we are to a new place. We don't need a religious climate in this country in which we simply go along with what one side of the aisle or the other wants. As said earlier in the week, that makes for a good whore or gigolo but not for the church that follows Jesus. To worship the crucified God we face the day not knowing how the day will end but we will be there in the middle of the work that is needed to move us along the way of healing and wholeness and another day in which we will seriously do the same always with a sense of hopefulness.
Connection: Banner type gods work wonders on television. I heard some of the people who spoke on Justice Sunday II - it was cheap and it lacked the vision of life through the cross. We must consider so much more when we enter into who we will be as followers of Jesus through the mire that can be this day.
In a world filled with the traumas of hurricanes and poverty, we need your Spirit, O God, to lift us up so that we will walk out into today contemplating and acting on the welfare of all people even as we are taken out of the way we would rather go. Amen.
I believe...Christians can do nothing more significant in America than to be a people capable of worshiping a God who is to be found in the cross and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. The worship of such a God will not be good for any society that desires a god made in the image of the bureaucrat. A people formed by the worship of a crucified God, however, might just be complex enough to engage in the hard work of working out agreements and disagreements with others one small step at a time.
Christians in our country are slowly selling ourselves out to superficial answers to life's many questions. Look at the agenda of the church as it is seen on television and in the newspapers. We look like cultural extremist - not because we have brought great thought and deliberation into world that is divided in many ways. Rather it is because we are not capable of dialogue that engages the world and one another with something more than what I would call religious "hocus pocus" or wave of the wand answers and make everything turn out like we want it. The cross takes us into the very depths of human life...it does not try to remove us from it. We are to face the difficult issues and situation of the day with a determination to listen and possibly move from where we are to a new place. We don't need a religious climate in this country in which we simply go along with what one side of the aisle or the other wants. As said earlier in the week, that makes for a good whore or gigolo but not for the church that follows Jesus. To worship the crucified God we face the day not knowing how the day will end but we will be there in the middle of the work that is needed to move us along the way of healing and wholeness and another day in which we will seriously do the same always with a sense of hopefulness.
Connection: Banner type gods work wonders on television. I heard some of the people who spoke on Justice Sunday II - it was cheap and it lacked the vision of life through the cross. We must consider so much more when we enter into who we will be as followers of Jesus through the mire that can be this day.
In a world filled with the traumas of hurricanes and poverty, we need your Spirit, O God, to lift us up so that we will walk out into today contemplating and acting on the welfare of all people even as we are taken out of the way we would rather go. Amen.
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