All Shall Be Well

Julian of Norwich, an anchorite and mystic who lived in the fourteenth century, is famous for having said, “all shall be well, all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well,”.  That saying came to mind when I read a comment on Richard Rohr’s Daily Meditation drawing on a quote from another English writer of a later time, G. K. Chesterton:

G. K. Chesterton’s comment, in his wonderful economic critique, The Outline of Sanity, which takes aim at industrial capitalism’s takeover of small shops and farms: “Do anything, however small, that will prevent the completion of the work of capitalist combination. Do anything that will even delay that completion. Save one shop out of a hundred shops…. Keep open one door out of a hundred doors; for so long as one door is open, we are not in prison. Ahab has not his kingdom so long as Naboth has his vineyard [1 Kings 21]. Haman will not be happy in the palace while Mordecai is sitting in the gate.” [Esther 5:9–13]

 

Chesterton was prescient on the inexorable march today of capitalism overwhelming the small, independent business.  All that is small and individual is being consumed by the industrial complex.  This is happening when even large companies are taken over by gigantic ones.  I heard recently that independent veterinary services are being bought out by chains.  Fortunately, this hasn’t happened to our wonderful vet, but it doesn’t bode well for the future.   

I sound rather more left-wing ideological here than usual, however, anyone who has had to deal with a mega conglomerate e.g. Bell or Visa will know that bigger is often not better.  Amazon is devouring its share of the world as the conglomerates divide up the world into bit sized chunks until they are in turn taken over by its neighbour conglomerate.  I think of the revelation about Ticket Master which had a near monopoly on tickets for live performances.  There was a recent court case in the United States with the judgement that Live Nation, the entertainment giant which owns Ticketmaster, has been illegally operating as a monopoly and overcharging fans.  Live Nation was previously allowed by the U.S. government to merge with Ticketmaster to consolidate the control of concert venues (Live Nation) and the ticketing platform (Ticketmaster).  This gives us some hope that it is still possible to provide limits on the trend towards commercial megalomania.   

To draw on another inspired source, W.B. Yates, who knows “what rough beast, its hour come round at last, slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?”  It is very easy to believe that the march of rough beasts is inevitable and all we can do is keep our heads down and try to survive.  However, to live in hope, inspired by St. Julian, can and does give us a way forward. 

May we be blessed to believe that all manner of things will truly be well.  

Are We Like Sheep

Yesterday was Good Shepherd Sunday in our church calendar.  The readings, including the 23^rd psalm – you know the one the begins, the Lord is my shepherd, were all about Jesus as the good shepherd.  That left us – the people who follow him - to be the sheep.  Not that complementary when you think about it.  However, there are lots about that analogy that is true. 

What comes to mind in this vein, is the quote from Isaiah 53:6, “We all, like sheep, have gone astray.”  Actually, it comes into my head – or my ear – as the line from Handel’s Messiah which states emphatically and in great music, “All we like sheep.”   Here’s a link to a version on You tube if you would like to sing along, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bOaSa78_NM0.

In our weekly bible study last week, in preparation for Sunday worship, one of the participants asked a very good question.  He noted that since Jesus used, as he often did in his parables, the  common things in his society – sheep being something that was very important to people in his day, rather than sheep, what would he use if he was speaking and teaching today?  The thought came to me that he would probably use algorithms which will often lead us down rabbit holes to dark places if we follow them.  Most everyone who spends time on social media, has the experience of being fed suggestions which would lead us down – shall we say to interesting, if not dangerous places.

In the Gospel reading from John 10, Jesus tells us that the sheep – that’s us – “will not follow a stranger, but they run away from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.”  That may be true of sheep, but it is not true of us today.  We have, I think, forgotten what the Good Shepherd’s voice sounds like. With all the noise and distractions on social media today, it is very easy to mistake the voices out there as the voice of the Good Shepherd. 

So how do we know that a voice we hear is the voice we should be listening to?  Well, the simple way is to pay attention to what it is saying.  Is it giving us a message of love or is it giving us a message of something else such as envy, or lust, or hate.  As Bob Dylan sang, “Well, it may be the devil or it may be the Lord, But you’re going to have to serve somebody.”

So, I guess it is up to us to decide who’s voice we are going to listen to.  Remember that the next time we are tempted to listen to the myriads of voices on social media or elsewhere.  May we be blessed to hear the voice of the Good Shepherd beneath the tumult.

The Toad Prince

Last week, I noticed a toad in the window well of one of the basement windows.  This happens occasionally and it often gives our cat Trixie endless entertainment watching it until Lorna rescues it – the toad that is.  Well, Lorna rescued this one and set it free from the bottom of the (window) well and all was well for it.  Trixie missed all the excitement this time.

This incident brought to mind the Fairy Tale of the Frog Prince.  As a reminder, the original tale involved a beautiful, spoiled princess who loses her favourite possession, a golden ball, in a well.  She is devastated by the loss, and a frog inquires why she is crying.  Upon hearing of her plight, the frog agrees to retrieve it from the bottom of the well if the princess will agree to inviting the frog into the castle and treat her as one of the family. 

She does this at the insistence of her father, the king, who impresses on her the importance of princesses keeping their word.  Although unstated, this would appear to be out of character for the way the princess was raised, as she was a rather spoiled princess and used to getting everything she wanted.

In any case, at the king’s insistence the frog is treated as one of the family and eats at the table with the family and even shares the princess’s bedroom.  However, the frog, not to be denied, demands that he share the princess’s bed (symbolism running wide here).  This is too much for the princess and in a rage, she throws the frog against the wall.  This breaks the curse the frog has been under, and he turns back to his true form – a handsome prince.  Well, as readers of fairy tales know, this fairy tale ends with the princess marrying the prince and they live happily ever after.  In the better-known version, thanks to the Disnified version, the frog is transformed by the princess’s kiss.  However, I like the original version in which the frog is thrown against the wall by the spoiled princess. 

Now I know that our little tale of an amphibian at the bottom of a (window) well involved a toad and not a frog.  It also didn’t involve the toad rescuing a princess.  Rather it was rescued by the beautiful maiden.  However, it could have been the making of a good fairy tale.  After all, a toad has many similarities to frogs so why not having a toad turning into a handsome prince of Wall Street i.e. the tale of the Toad Prince and granting Lorna (and me) our hearts’ desires.  O well, at least Lorna’s good deed was unpunished – so far.

By the way, both frogs and toads are symbols of transformation, spiritual growth and creativity.  They undergo almost magical metamorphosis in their life cycles even without being cursed.

Ponder that the next time you encounter a frog or a toad.  It may be a blessing for you.

 

Give Peace a Chance

The recent “little incursion” by the United States and Israel into Iran has brought into focus the sharp contrast between the might-makes-right approach to international relations and the hope that peace will reign in the world.  This is a war by any definition.  However, President Trump and his minions are reluctant to use that word as only the United States Congress has the right to declare war – which it has not done in this case.

In his approach to the “little incursion”, Trump has waffled on what his objective or objectives are in launching the American attack on Iran.  It seems to me that the bottom line for Trump developed into a “kill them all and let God sort it out” approach to the Iranian people.  This developed as Trump became more and more frustrated with the stubbornness of the Iranian regime to admit defeat and continue to resist despite the defeat of the Iranian military.   Surprizingly, Trump was not prepared for Iran to take control of the Strait of Hormuz and block the shipment of oil which has led to sharp increases in the world price of oil and the price of gas at the pumps.  In his frustration, Trump declared that if the Strait was not opened within one of his many deadlines, “the whole (Iranian) civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again.”  This statement amounts to an intention to commit genocide and has been condemned generally as such, even though, thank God, he did not carry through with his threat.

This should be condemned by every civilized person.  However, what brings this into a Christian focus is that Trump and his band of not so merry minions have put this “little conflict” into a Christian perspective as shown in Trump’s social media post:

“Remember when I gave Iran ten days to MAKE A DEAL or OPEN UP THE HORMUZ STRAIT. Time is running out - 48 hours before all Hell will reign down on them. Glory be to GOD!” - President DONALD J. TRUMP pic.twitter.com/cVb7leFmAv

Similarly, Pete Hegseth, the Secretary of Defense who accurately renamed himself the Secretary of War, at a Pentagon church service held weeks after the Iran war began, prayed a prayer that called for violence against military enemies:

Let every round find its mark against the enemies of righteousness and our great nation. Give them wisdom in every decision, endurance for the trial ahead, unbreakable unity, and overwhelming violence of action against those who deserve no mercy.”

Apparently, both Trump and Hegseth, who call themselves Christians, have missed the principle commandment of the founder of Christianity, to love your neighbour even if your neighbour is your enemy. 

In opposition to this approach to Christianity, Pope Leo XIV clarifies where Trump, Hegseth et al have gone astray:

God does not bless any conflict.  Anyone who is a disciple of Christ, the Prince of Peace, is never on the side of those who once wielded the sword and today drop bombs.”

In considering the conflict, it is problematic as the Iranian government does not deserve any consideration.  It is a regime that should be replaced as it is a supporter and instigator of terrorism and is responsible for much of the conflict in that region of the world.  However, the Iranian people deserve to be treated with Christian compassion and concern.  In this time of increasing international conflict and threats, how are we Christians to approach the increasing militarization of international relations?  Can we support and approve of recent move by the Carney Government to meet the elusive target of 2% GPD spending on our military?  I must confess that I support this move and am not ready to turn the other cheek if Russian or Chinese forces were to land on our northern shores or anywhere else in the true north strong and free.   

In clarifying a Christian position in all this, it might be helpful to turn to the Just War Doctrine.  Here is a summary of this from Wikipedia:

The just war doctrine of the Catholic Church found in the 1992 Catechism of the Catholic Church, in paragraph 2309, lists four strict conditions for "legitimate defense by military force:"^[65][66]

·         The damage inflicted by the aggressor on the nation or community of nations must be lasting, grave and certain.

·         All other means of putting an end to it must have been shown to be impractical or ineffective.

·         There must be serious prospects of success.

·         The use of arms must not produce evils and disorders graver than the evil to be eliminated.

Above all, we can pray for peace in the world and do whatever we can to work for peace in our time and in the time to come. 

 

 

At Home in the Tower of Song

My musical thoughts have turned back to Leonard Cohen in recent days.  I was recently lent an anthology of Leonard’s songs by a friend, Carolyn Hull-Johnston.  I have been perusing it and have been reminded of some of his wonderful songs that are not in my repertoire, as well as, surprizingly, a few of his songs that I was not familiar with – I thought I knew all his published songs.  I must say that these few are not memorable – but I guess even Leonard couldn’t be brilliant all the time or perhaps I haven’t given them a proper chance to grow on me.

As it said in his song, ‘I’m Your Man’, Leonard Cohen was my man when it came to songs that I love to play and sing. Now that the season of Easter has arrived and Lent is passed, I can report that Hallelujah is my all-time favourite song of Leonard’s – for you non-Christians, we are not to say the H word during Lent as it is a time of reflection and repentance and not celebration.  Before that it was ‘Suzanne’ that for many years was in the top spot in my Leonard Cohen hit list. 

During my personal Leonard Cohen song revival as I perused the Anthology of his songs, I woke up one morning with his song ‘Tower of Song’ in my head.  This is one of his really good ones, but I had to wonder why would my unconscious be bringing that to my awareness?  Then I remembered the great opening line of the song, “Well, my friends are gone and my hair is grey.  I ache in the places where I used to play.”  As I had just marked my 77^th birthday, perhaps this was an appropriate theme for my time of life.  However, on reflection, it’s likely the unconscious didn’t want me to stop there in my exploration of the meaning of the song for me at this time.

Looking at the rest of the first verse, “and I'm crazy for love, but I'm not comin' on.  I'm just payin' my rent every day, in the tower of song.”  Perhaps the message for me right now is that my love of music and particularly his music has been on hiatus and I need to fall in love with it again to pay my rent in the Tower of Song.  Something for me to consider.

That first line of the song, “Well, my friends are gone and my hair is grey.  I ache in the places where I used to play.”  It is one of Leonard’s many great lines from his songs which resonate with me and with many of his fans.  I think of the line, “Forget your perfect offering. There is a crack, a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in.”  His opening verse from ‘Passing Through’ sums up the message of Jesus Christ for me:

I saw Jesus on the cross on a hill called Calvary

"Do you hate mankind for what they done to you?"

He said, "Talk of love not hate, things to do, it's getting late

I've so little time and I'm only passin' through."

 

There is that hope in life that you will be able to say for the bottom of your heart that someone or something will, “dance me to the end of love.”  Or you will know what it means to go to your depth, “a thousand kisses deep.” You may have had the experience of someone bringing you, “tea and oranges all the way from China.”  But we all know that in the end, “there ain’t no cure, there ain’t no cure for love.” 

In the end, “I have tried in my way to be free.”  However, I have found it is really not something that is easy.  Perhaps I do, “want it darker” as Leonard says.

In any case, I’m sure you Leonard Cohen fans have your own experience of listening to and singing his songs.  I will keep searching for that, “secret chord that David played and it pleased the Lord.”  If you aren’t a fan, I invite you to listen to a few of his songs and see if they resonate with you.  I know his voice is an acquired taste, but he really had the gift, “of a golden voice.”  Yes, I do really care for music.  Leonard did get me singing and I hope I have more songs to sing in the years left to me.  May you be blessed to visit the Tower of Song many times in your life.

Love Your Enemies? – Get Real!

As Lent has ended and we are approaching Easter, the commandment of Jesus that we should love our neighbours and, yes, our enemies, seems to loom very large on my horizon.  The apparent defeat of the Good Friday Passion and the triumph of the Resurrection put this commandment into focus.  Jesus was able to ask his heavenly Father to forgive those who were executing him so violently.  He didn't say that he loved them, but I must conclude that he did love them.  This begs the question, is it possible for us to actually do the same and love our enemies?  I don’t know about you, but it seems almost  impossible for me.

So, I want to delve into this commandment which is seemingly impossible to keep.  Fortunately, I have had access to a few reflections which I have found helpful in exploring this conundrum.  First, there is the perspective of Rabbi Shai Held; author of Judaism is About Love.  He makes the helpful clarification that love is not a feeling - rather it is a disposition:

I can have a disposition to love, but if you actually ask me what I’m feeling right now, what I’m feeling is grumpy and heartbroken. Right. When people talk about, you know, the spiritual life being built on a feeling, that’s by definition a dead end because feelings are fleeting. You can’t have any feeling … no one feels love all the time. 

The understanding or belief that love is a feeling is, I believe, generally a widely accepted one.  However, to realize that you can love someone and not feel warm and fuzzy to them all, or even most of the time, is very helpful. 

The next perspective on love that is a helpful clarification is that love is not in opposition to justice. Zoe Matties notes:

Dr. Cornel West speaking at the University of Winnipeg on the power of love in the face of great evil. One line from his impassioned lecture sticks with me to this day: “justice is what love looks like in public.”   

It is a common misconception that forgiveness – which is intricately bound up in loving someone – means that the person being forgiven an offence avoids the consequences of their actions.  Matties expounds on this concept quoting Saint Augustine, “Hope has two lovely daughters, Anger and Courage. Anger so that what cannot be, may not be, and courage, so that what must be, will be.” Following on this she quotes theologian Dorothee Soelle, “Loving our enemies is impossible if we do not first name our enemies and tell the truth about the injustices we see.”

Finally, I will close with one of the Daily Words from the Society of St. John the Evangelist (SSJE):

Abide: Jesus tells his disciples, “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love.” Jesus’ love is such that he willingly lays down his life for us. As we turn our hearts and minds to Holy Week, let us choose to abide in that love, a love that lays itself down, not to conquer empires, but to conquer death. Br. Jamie Nelson, SSJE

Abiding in, or having a disposition of love, seems to me to be a way of living that I can make an effort to attempt.  May you be blessed this week and always.  

 

 

The Truth in Miracles

 

The Gospel readings for the last two weeks recount two of the signs in the Gospel of John.  John’s Gospel has seven signs or miracles performed by Jesus.  The first is the great one for any wine lover, when Jesus changes the water into wine at a wedding when the host had done the unforgiveable and run out of wine.  The last sign, and last week’s Gospel, was the raising Lazarus from the dead.

The miracles recorded in the bible, can be a test of faith for Christian believers and a reason that many people have in not being able to believe the word of God presented in the bible.  It is, I believe, a key to understanding the relationship between God and humans – between the Divine and the human. 

Catholic biblical scholar Murray Watson gives a continuum of possibilities in how to understand the inspired nature of the relationship between the Divine and the Human.    

 

 

  

 It struck me that this is a good illustration of the challenge that miracles bring to people in our culture today.  The belief in the part which God plays in the world relates directly to how miracles are understood and accepted or not accepted by people.  On the one end of the continuum, the stories of miracles in the Old and New Testaments in the bible are actual, literal accounts of the events.  On the other end they are made up stories which have no validity as factual accounts of actual events.

To illustrate, how do you understand the account of the flood in Genesis in which God told Noah to build an arc to hold a pair of every kind of animal to enable them to survive the flood which God sent upon the face of the earth?  Whether you believe that this actually happened as recorded in the Book of Genesis or was just a “myth” i.e., it didn’t happen, can create an inseparable barrier to people exploring with each other how God is working in their lives today. 

In my view, there is little to be gained by arguing over the details of this account or other accounts of miracles in the bible.  If we can put aside the issue of the historical nature of the event, and whether the details are historical facts, we are much more likely to have a meaningful discussion of how God in working in our lives today.  Rather than argue over the truth of the facts of the case, we can explore the capital ‘T’ Truth of how God was operating in the lives of the people who wrote down the account and explore that Truth in our lives today.

For me, the story of the flood shows that God’s creation is redeemable regardless of how fallen the world seems to be.  God can and does work through individuals who can work to redeem the world against impossible odds.  That is certainly applicable to the world today as we see the challenges that are facing the world from pandemics, to an outbreak of conflict between the Israeli and Palestine, and now the war between United States and Iran - not to mention the chasm that exists between political parties in our neighbour to the south.  To me, it doesn’t matter whether or not a person named Noah existed and whether or not he built an arc that held all those animals.  The Truth is that God has and does work through people to bring about the salvation of the world.  We can have hope in that and not give into despair when we read today’s news.

Blessings on your journey and may you know the Truth of God in your life.