A message from our Associate, the Rt. Rev. Mark Edington, Bishop of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe, from the American Cathedral in Paris, as the Russian invasion of the Ukraine continues:
God of timelessness,
From chaos and
disorder
you brought forth the
beauty of creation;
From the chaos of war
and violence
Bring forth the beauty
of peace.
God of compassion
You saw the humanity of
the outcast and the stranger;
Help us to see the evils
of our hatreds and suspicions
and to turn them into
the embrace of your Beloved Community.
It's a time of worldwide anxiety. Instead of overdosing on news, sometimes it's good to put oneself in another key. Just watched this thanks to Jay Arnold at https://twitter.com/JadedCreative/status/1238081405713821698 and thought I'd share - we're all in this together.
It occurs to me that sometimes we don't know who's around us any more than these bystanders are cognizant of the musicians' presence among them. Now is a good time to be aware of each other - both to help and to give thanks - and also to be alert for glimpses of God's beauty and goodness even in the midst of crisis.
In English:
1 Joyful, joyful, we adore thee, God of glory, Lord of love; hearts unfold like flowers before thee, praising thee, their sun above. Melt the clouds of sin and sadness; drive the dark of doubt away; giver of immortal gladness, fill us with the light of day.
2 All thy works with joy surround thee, earth and heaven reflect thy rays, stars and angels sing around thee, center of unbroken praise, field and forest, vale and mountain, blooming meadow, flashing sea, chanting bird and flowing fountain, call us to rejoice in thee.
3 Thou art giving and forgiving, ever blessing, ever blest, wellspring of the joy of living, ocean depth of happy rest! Thou our Father, Christ our Brother: all who live in love are thine; teach us how to love each other, lift us to the joy divine.
This is one of my favorite Advent hymns, much beloved at St. Margaret's. We just sang it this week, and once again this year I have a copy in my room for prayer. It speaks to so much in this season, particularly in times where we are in need of hope.
"Surely he cometh..."
"He shall suffice me, for he hath sufficed."
This is the promise of Advent.
Hark what a sound, and too divine for hearing,
stirs on the earth and trembles in the air!
Is it the thunder of the Lord's appearing?
Is it the music of his people's prayer?
Surely he cometh, and a thousand voices
shout to the saints, and to the deaf are dumb;
surely he cometh, and the earth rejoices,
glad in his coming who hath sworn: I come!
This hath he done, and shall we not adore him?
This shall he do, and can we still despair?
Come, let us quickly fling ourselves before him,
cast at his feet the burden of our care.
Through life and death, through sorrow and through sinning,
he shall suffice me, for he hath sufficed:
Christ is the end, for Christ was the beginning,
Christ the beginning, for the end is Christ.*
If you'd like to listen to an arrangement for brass of this hymn tune while meditating on the words, here you are:
Can it really have been eighteen years since 9/11?
I still remember waiting, sitting on the floor in front of the television with the other sisters, saying, "Show the flight number. Show the flight number. Show the flight number." The entire Haitian house - that is, our SSM Sisters in that convent - were on a 6AM American Airlines flight out of Boston that morning. And then there were our Sisters who work for Trinity Wall Street, right there at St. Paul's Chapel at Ground Zero.
All OK. None unaffected.
So many others didn't find such good news at the end of the day.
I still think of Deora Bodley, who was on the plane that went down in PA. She was in my mother's class in grade school - third or fourth grade, I'm not sure which. I prayed for her family tonight and remembered the story I heard about her mother in vigil waiting to hear...
And so tonight when we had Evensong alongside St. John's Duxbury, I looked at the face of a sister who had been there in NYC and thought how many more there must be out there tonight.
Eighteen years? Tonight there are many for whom it must seem yesterday. And we all go on. And we all hope. We live, we find joy, we remember... whatever it is.
I offer this hymn as a prayer for us all as we seek to heal our broken world, giving thanks for Carl Daw's gift in hymn writing that permits us to express that prayer more deeply.
I went to the Shabbat service I wrote about in the previous post, and I'm so glad I did. It was good to stand in solidarity even just in a small way. We need to stick together, speak up against evil, and work towards healing and unity.
As I mentioned in an earlier post, I never thought I'd need to preach about antisemitism. Oh, how naive... but I am not alone in my overoptimism. "Never again," we all say, but incidents are on the rise.
Last night was also the 80th anniversary of Kristallnacht. It wasn't mentioned in the service, but it came up in conversation earlier. There has been quite a bit on Twitter lately, so I was aware of it in a way I might not have otherwise been.
As a matter of fact, someone posted a story along with some old photographs from that hideous event, photos found after the death of a grandfather who had fought in WWII (The thread starts here: https://twitter.com/ElishevaAvital/status/1060914913328148480). Difficult to see, but more than worth the read. It's pretty amazing to scroll down and find the Holocaust Museum saying - nearly live - yes, we are very interested in these. I hesitate to call such a find a treasure, as it's of something so awful, but... lest we forget... and we are... or even deny its happening (how? but a few still do), such images need to be kept and displayed.
I found a good article here that includes history and pictures.
And in my beloved France, antisemitism continues as well:
Ugh.
HOWEVER, we can and will work together to move our world into a better place. We are, actually. And one of the hope-filled offerings in that service Friday was the opportunity to sing this song: Salaam (Od yavo shalom aleinu), which means "Peace will come to us."
Peace. We need it in so many ways, between so many different groups of people. And it needs to begin with us, to paraphrase the old song.
Rabbi Cohen sent the lyrics & translation along with a link to a site with four versions (music videos), including the original, from which comes the short description above. The words are easy to pick up, especially since the beginning of the song is slow, and then it gets faster and faster. Singing it can be good prayer, and indeed, having practiced it, I sang it all the way to the service and partway home. I commend it to you.
OD YAVO SHALOM ALEINU/ PEACE WILL COME TO US Od yavo' shalom aleinu / Peace will come upon us Od yavo' shalom aleinu / Peace will come upon us Od yavo' shalom aleinu / Peace will come upon us Ve al kulam (x2) /and on everyone. Salaam (Salaam) Aleinu ve al kol ha olam, Salaam, Salaam (x2)
Here's the original, with cool background music.
And here's one by an a capella group, The Maccabeats. Bonus points for the group name and for the a capella version. (I loved singing in my a capella group in college.)
And the last I'm posting because I love this soloist, Adam Stotland, who is just going to town with it. Also it's with a back-up Gospel choir from Montreal - what a combination of cultures all in one, there! Which is what we need.
So sing. Sing it again. Sing it with energy and hope. Sing this prayer for peace over and over, making it your own and joining it to mine and that of so many others. By the grace and mercy of God, may peace be upon us all and upon our world.
Salaam - Shalom - Peace - Lapè - La Paix - La Paz
I'd like to share with you this invitation to a service hosted by our local synagogue in Marshfield, among whose members are people from Duxbury. I'll be participating, as Rabbi Cohen has invited several local church leaders to join him. Please consider joining us in this service in support of the community at this time of grief. We need to stand together against antisemitism and all forces of hatred - now more than ever.
Please join us at Congregation Shirat Hayam for a Shabbat of Unity Friday, November 9th at 6:45 in the shared worship space at Sanctuary Church, 185 Plain St., Marshfield, MA.
In the wake of recent racially motivated and anti-semitic murders, Rabbi Cohen, along with other local religious leaders, will lead a Sabbath service of affirmation of our shared commitment to the belief that we are all created in the image of God.
Please join us in this service of songs, prayers, readings and reflections.
For more information contact Shirat Hayam at (781) 582-2700.
This time of year everything seems to be a liminal space, that sort of golden autumn in-between when there are still a few breaths of summer hanging on alongside reminders of winter to come.
Today was one of those days.
For supper we had little tomatoes from our garden, and Sister Claire Marie's frittata was made with our zucchini as well as the basil she grows in a pot on the windowsill. Summer tastes. I am amazed that the garden is still producing.
This morning I went down by the water to pray during my meditation time. It promised to be a lovely day, but in the pre-dawn chill I needed my down coat.
As the sun rose, the gulls woke up, discovering the jumping fish, the first I've seen in some time. They attracted the attention of nearby Double-crested Cormorants, and eventually even a couple of Great Blue Herons ventured into the zone of madly wheeling birds. No Great Egret today, though... I haven't seen one in the past week, so the one that hangs about the cove may have gone south.
On the way back to the convent for the Eucharist, near one of our guesthouses, I spotted my first snowbirds - juncos returned for the winter. Signs of things to come.
So we wait and watch.
But also we take time just to be present. Here. Now. In this space.
Tomorrow I go on my annual 8-day retreat - silence to spend time in prayer and resting in the Lord and his beauty. Someone played this song reflecting on Peter's stepping out of the boat. Now I'm bringing it with me: on this retreat, I seek to grow deeper in trust of God so as to say YES more fully, more promptly, and in Christ's peace. I am so grateful.
Early in the morning Jesus came walking toward them on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.” Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”
-- Matthew 14:25-31
You call me out upon the waters
The great unknown where feet may fail
And there I find You in the mystery
In oceans deep
My faith will stand
And I will call upon Your name
And keep my eyes above the waves
When oceans rise, my soul will rest in Your embrace
For I am Yours and You are mine
Songwriters: Joel Houston / Matt Crocker / Salomon Lighthelm
I'm working on my sermon for tonight's Eucharist and contemplating the words of this hymn alongside scripture and commentary. Thought I'd share it for your prayer as well.
From thee all skill and science flow,
all pity, care, and love,
all calm and courage, faith and hope:
O pour them from above!
Impart them, Lord, to each and all,
as each and all shall need,
to rise, like incense, each to thee,
in noble thought and deed.
And hasten, Lord, that perfect day
when pain and death shall cease,
and thy just rule shall fill the earth
with health and light and peace;
when ever-blue the sky shall gleam,
and ever green the sod,
and our rude work deface no more
the handiwork of God.
Readings for the Eucharist on the Feast of St. Luke:
Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 38:1-4,6-10,12-14
Psalm 147 or 147:1-7
2 Timothy 4:5-13
Luke 4:14-21
The Collect Almighty God, who inspired your servant Luke the physician to set forth in the Gospel the love and healing power of your Son: Graciously continue in your Church this love and power to heal, to the praise and glory of your Name; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
1 Abide with me; fast falls the eventide; the darkness deepens; Lord, with me abide! when other helpers fail, and comforts flee, help of the helpless, O abide with me.
2 Swift to its close ebbs out life's little day; earth's joys grow dim, its glories pass away; change and decay in all around I see; O thou who changest not, abide with me.
3 I need thy presence every passing hour; what but thy grace can foil the tempter's power? who like thyself my guide and stay can be? through cloud and sunshine, O abide with me.
4 I fear no foe with thee at hand to bless; ills have no weight, and tears no bitterness. Where is death's sting? Where, grave, thy victory? I triumph still, if thou abide with me.
5 Hold thou thy cross before my closing eyes; shine through the gloom, and point me to the skies: Heaven's morning breaks, and earth's vain shadows flee; in life, in death, O Lord, abide with me!
And then there are those who are afraid they will be next.
Please pray for them, for those who love them, for those trying to help them, and for those few who are full of hatred and gladness at this action, especially given its targets. Pray for those resisting changes that would be beneficial to society but bad for business or reelection. This is not the way God created us to be.
Let's live as though we really understood what it means to be made in the image of God.
I began this blog as I prepared to leave for a seminary field education placement in a parish in Haiti, creating it as a way of sharing my experiences and reflections over the summer with people at home and continuing it upon my return.
I finally returned to Haiti in 2011. So much in a short time. I returned to the US in 2013, but something tells me I'll be back. Meanwhile, there is still so much I intended to share while I was there. I hope some of it will make it onto this blog. A piece of my heart is always in Haiti, and I hope some of yours will be, too. Pray for Haiti, please. So much is needed; with God, so much is possible.
Meanwhile, there are ample opportunities for ministry here, and plenty of discoveries to make. There are beautiful things to consider, birds to watch, and concerns to share. And I am never short of curiosity to lead me into all sorts of odd corners. In all of it, God is present. Welcome to the adventure.
* * *
This is a personal blog. Nothing in it is an official statement from the Sisters of St. Margaret, the Episcopal Diocese of Haiti, or any other organization.
