God's Free Gifts

I set myself the goal at the beginning of the lockdown of blogging every day. Why do I do this to myself? Like that was ever going to happen! Anyway, here I am six weeks in, on my third post, trying to shape the experience for posterity. 

I admit, at the start, I didn't expect to survive it. You may be surprised to hear this didn't worry me too much for myself:the thought of death fills me with curiosity, a touch of excitement, even. What's the point of faith if it doesn't kick in now? I grieve for the suffering my demise will bring to everyone who loves me, and that's it. 

I stopped worrying about a lot of stupid things, which in the face of  catastrophe, didn't seem worth the energy: I stopped weighing myself. I don't wear a watch, I go to bed and get up when I want to, and I no  longer feel guilty when eating chocolate. The human-inflicted crises to come - Brexit and climate change - receded as the imminent threat of this global pandemic took centre-stage.

There are no compensations, though for the separation from my family, I miss my children and grandchildren continually, and their absence is the most powerful motivator to keep the curfew: to play with the kids again.

When I worked in Lower Kroza, my African friends would say goodbye with,"Go well!" I leave you with the response;

"Stay Well." 

I intend to.

The clamour  to re-engage with society is growing. A few hours ago, a friend sent round a petition to reopen the churches. I replied with latest data on infection rates. at R=0.7 in the South West, the bishops won't countenance it, and I guess are content to take the blame for their insistence on caution. God doesn't follow the science:he invented it.

I would say some of the favourite readings in the bible amongst Christians, are the letters of St Paul referencing the gifts and fruits of the Spirit. Love, Peace and Joy have their place, but in these troubled times, Hope Patience and Perseverance top my list.

 

God Awakening

God Awakening

I will celebrate the victory of my God in silence, and in song. 

I will gaze upon the likeness

Of the one-who-was pierced.

I will touch the mystery

Of the dead-one-living.

I will trace his signature over my heart: North to South

East to West:

King of Kings Lord of Lords.

I will open my mouth to sing the serenade of the stars, 

The song of the angels before the throne of God.

I will shout into the sunrise, a canticle for my King: 

‘Rejoice! Rejoice!

The Lord is Risen -

Alleluia!’

I will bury myself in his joy, And, with laughter,

I will rise again.

The King Sleeps

The King Sleep

I will mine the agony of my God with a pick and a lamp. I will hew the stones and teach them to cry ‘Hosanna!’

I will fashion a tomb to bloom in a garden

I will fracture the face of Israel with a blow

That will become an earthquake 

To awaken the dead.

I will set my lamp beneath a splintered tree

I will close my ears against the forsaken cries of the Holy One 

I will seal my mouth against the acrid taste of blood

I will shut my eyes to hide the corpse that hangs above me. 

His eyes, not -closed. His body, not-clothed.

‘IT IS FINISHED!’

It’s over. 

God -

Adored, outpoured - passes over.

Numbed, beyond fear, I whisper a lullaby into the dark: 

‘Be still. Be still.

Night dawns.

Death dies -

The King sleeps.’

Holy Week

“ Let nothing disturb you...”

Today’s invitation to stillness is particularly challenging these days. How is it possible to be ‘undisturbed”  when death, quite literally, stalks the land, and I am locked away

inside my home to keep out of his way?

With my Catholic brothers and sisters all over the world,,  I enter the  sacred  Easter Triduum.

For three days, I will be in two places at once.

As the sun goes down, a candle will be set in my window, as a prayer for the people who are suffering right here and now - and for the many amazing people who are literally laying their lives on the line for me: health workers, public service workers, everyone who must carry on despite the danger.

First place, then,: United in prayer with the saints, living and dead, for the suffering world, suffering which Jesus takes physically into his body on the Cross. The Cross has always spoken to me in this way: as far as I cause suffering to others in this world, I bear responsibility for the Crucifixion. Christ hangs there dying. His message: “This is what sin does. Be free of it!” 

Second place: Here, now. Living my ordinary day in an extraordinary way. Quietly joyful, Quietly sorrowful - both are present, both are true.

Letting nothing disturb me is a devotion, learned surprisingly  perhaps, from Buddhists, who practice “equanimity’ as a step on the path to  enlightenment. Yes, it has to be practised. 

Be here now, for sure, but be too, in that extraordinary place between worlds:  join the eternal dance where suffering and death is overcome by resurrection and renewal. Always.

“Save us Saviour  of the world, for by your cross  and resurrection, you have set us free.’

https://youtu.be/fYrl60N0Qb8