· Saturday, 13 Mar 2010, noon · Saint Euphrasia, pray for us
I watched a rosebud very long
Brought on by dew and sun and shower,
Waiting to see the perfect flower:
Then, when I thought it should be strong,
It opened at the matin hour
And fell at evensong.
I watched a nest from day to day
A green nest full of pleasant shade,
Wherein three speckled eggs were laid:
But when they should have hatched in May,
The two old birds had grown afraid
Or tired, and flew away.
Then in my wrath I broke the bough
That I had tended so with care,
Hoping that its scent should fill the air;
I crushed the eggs, not heeding how
Their ancient promise had been fair :
I would have vengeance now.
But the dead branch spoke from the sod,
And the eggs answered me again :
Because we failed dost thou complain?
Is thy wrath just? And what if God,
Who waiteth for thy fruits in vain,
Should also take the rod?
· Thursday, 11 Mar 2010, 11 am · Saint Sophronius, pray for us
There’s an old saying that goes like this: “To a man with a hammer, every problem begins to look like a nail.” That’s where we are today as developed societies. Science is reshaping our morality and social thought, when a genuinely sane culture would have it the other way around.
· Tuesday, 23 Feb 2010, 11 pm · Saint Polycarp, pray for us
Various lines from Don Henley’s song, “The Heart of the Matter”:
What are these voices outside love’s open door
Make us throw off our contentment
And beg for something more?
— — —
These times are so uncertain
There’s a yearning undefined
And people filled with rage
We all need a little tenderness
How can love survive in such a graceless age
And the trust and self-assurance that lead to happiness
They’re the very things we kill, I guess
Pride and competition cannot fill these empty arms
And the work they put between us,
You know it doesn’t keep us warm
— — —
There are people in your life who’ve come and gone
They let you down, you know they hurt your pride
You better put it all behind you, cause life goes on
You keep carrin’ that anger, it’ll eat you up inside
— — —
The more I know, the less I understand
All the things I thought I knew, I’m learning again
I’ve been tryin’ to get down to the heart of the matter
But my will gets weak
And my thoughts seem to scatter
But I think it’s about
Forgiveness, forgiveness
Tags:
- anger,
- awareness,
- distraction,
- forgiveness,
- grace,
- knowing,
- loss,
- love,
- pride,
- song lyrics,
- understanding
· Thursday, 18 Feb 2010, 8 pm · Saint Simeon, pray for us
This moment, mortal as you or I,
was full of boundless, senseless,
silly joy, as if it knew
something we didn’t.
· Wednesday, 17 Feb 2010, 9 pm · Saint Alexis Falconieri, pray for us
True love in every moment praises God.
Longing love brings a sorrow sweet to the pure.
Seeking love belongs to itself.
Understanding love gives itself equally to all.
Enlightened love is mingled with the sadness of the world.
But selfless love bears an effortless fruit,
working so quietly even the body cannot say
how it comes and goes.
· Tuesday, 16 Feb 2010, 9 pm · Saint Juliana, pray for us
A potential paradox/friction/confusion/fertile ground for mediation. (Or, I’m just missing a piece of the puzzle.)
Justice = rendering what is owed to another
1) Question: What is the “what” that is owed to another?
I have an internal sense of what is owed to others. Some words or labels: respect, love, kindness, compassion, help, service. For God: worship, adoration, praise. The word sacrifice should be in there too. The best answer is the greatest commandment: to love God and to love my neighbor.
2) But when I turn the question around, and maybe this is my problem, I am not sure what is owed to me.
I know my answer to part 1 applies to me too.
This sense of what is owed to me conflicts with my sense of the First Beatitude.
The First Beatitude, poor in spirit, ultimately points to the fact that all is gift.
I have no rights or claims to make on God.
In reality, I do not own anything, except my choices. (Even the opportunity to make a choice is gift.) I am a steward of what is under my control, or rather, under my direct influence on things and people around me.
If all is gift, then I am radically (at the root) poor. Anything that happens to me is gift.
God’s love for me is gift. His grace is gift.
And all of the words and labels I used in part 1 are gift. Even to give those to others has been a gift for me to give.
Therefore, it seems to me, I do not have a claim to be owed anything.
Even by God’s greatest commandment, I do not have a claim to be owed anything because all of that too is gift.
And if I do not have a claim to be owed anything, then where does justice fit in for me? It seems justice only applies for God.
But yet, I see injustice in the world.
Nota Bene: God has a claim on me. As His creature, I have failed many times to give what is properly owed to Him. I pray for His mercy. I have also failed many times to give what is owed to my neighbor. I pray for God’s mercy.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
· Tuesday, 16 Feb 2010, 9 pm · Saint Juliana, pray for us
A potential paradox/friction/confusion/fertile ground for mediation. (Or, I’m just missing a piece of the puzzle.)
Justice = rendering what is owed to another
1) Question: What is the “what” that is owed to another?
I have an internal sense of what is owed to others. Some words or labels: respect, love, kindness, compassion, help, service. For God: worship, adoration, praise. The word sacrifice should be in there too. The best answer is the greatest commandment: to love God and to love my neighbor.
2) But when I turn the question around, and maybe this is my problem, I am not sure what is owed to me.
I know my answer to part 1 applies to me too.
This sense of what is owed to me conflicts with my sense of the First Beatitude.
The First Beatitude, poor in spirit, ultimately points to the fact that all is gift.
I have no rights or claims to make on God.
In reality, I do not own anything except my choices. (Even the opportunity to make a choice is gift.) I am a steward of what is under my control, or rather, under my direct influence on things and people around me.
If all is gift, then I am radically (at the root) poor. Anything that happens to me is gift.
God’s love for me is gift. His grace is gift.
And all of the words and labels I used in part 1 are gift. Even to give those to others has been a gift for me to give.
Therefore, it seems to me, I do not have a claim to be owed anything.
Even by God’s greatest commandment, I do not have a claim to be owed anything because all of that too is gift.
And if I do not have a claim to be owed anything, then where does justice fit in for me? It seems justice only applies for God.
But yet, I see injustice in the world.
Nota Bene: God has a claim on me. As His creature, I have failed many times to give what is properly owed to Him. I pray for His mercy. I have also failed many times to give what is owed to my neighbor. I pray for God’s mercy.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
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