maybe today you need this Ode to Joy flashmob

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.

Thanks to Hymnary.org (https://hymnary.org/hymn/EH1982/376) for these.

Strange Man at the Well

Did she know the man?
She said, "No, I never saw him before."
They asked her, "Did you get his name?"
"He didn't tell me and I don't know,
but when he spoke, my soul caught on fire
and I'll remember this day until the day I die."

carols by candlelight at the convent

Join us Sunday evening for music and dessert!

My Song Is Love Unknown - music for Holy Week

1 My song is love unknown,
my Savior’s love to me,
love to the loveless shown
that they might lovely be.
O who am I, 
that for my sake
my Lord should take 
frail flesh, and die?

2 He came from his blest throne
salvation to bestow,
but men made strange, and none
the longed-for Christ would know. 
But O my friend, 
my friend indeed,
who at my need 
his life did spend.

3 Sometimes they strew his way,
and his strong praises sing,
resounding all the day
hosannas to their King.
Then “Crucify!” 
is all their breath,
and for his death 
they thirst and cry.

4 Why, what hath my Lord done?
What makes this rage and splite?
He made the lame to run,
he gave the blind their sight.
Sweet injuries! 
Ye they at these
themselves displease, 
and 'gainst him rise.

5 They rise, and needs will have
my dear Lord made away;
a murderer they save,
the Prince of Life they slay.
Yet steadfast he 
to suffering goes,
that he his foes 
from thence might free.

6 In life no house, no home
my Lord on earth might have;
in death no friendly tomb
but what a stranger gave.
What may I say? 
Heaven was his home;
but mine the tomb 
wherein he lay.

7 Here might I stay and sing,
no story so divine;
never was love, dear King!
never was grief like thine.
This is my friend, 
in whose sweet praise
I all my days 
could gladly spend.


Hymn #458  Hymnal 1982

via http://www.hymnary.org/text/my_song_is_love_unknown/fulltexts 

Bono, Eugene Peterson, and the Psalms

I'm so grateful to my cousin Anne for sending me the link to this video in which Eugene Peterson and Bono talk about the psalms and the development of their friendship (though not in that order). Eugene Peterson is the one who did the Bible translation The Message, which is in everyday language. Bono, of course, is from U2, but not only do I love their music, I also have a deep appreciation for his work with social causes.  Just checked to see if Wikipedia had a good blurb to summarize, and sure enough they do:

Bono's work as an activist, which is due largely to his Christian beliefs,^[40] began in earnest when, inspired by Live Aid, he travelled to Ethiopia to work in a feeding camp with his wife Alison and the charityWorld Vision, an Evangelical Christian humanitarian aid, development, and advocacy organisation.^[40] With regard to Bono's 2013 declarations in interviews published and videotaped of his faith in Jesus Christ,^[41] he states that Christ was either who he said he was, or he is "a complete and utter nutcase".^[42][43] As early as 2005, Bono was invoking this argument,^[44][45] identified as the "Lewis trilemma". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bono 



U2's "40" is based on Psalm 40. Sing a new song!

40    Expectans, expectavi
1 I waited patiently upon the LORD; *     he stooped to me and heard my cry. 2 He lifted me out of the desolate pit, out of the mire and clay; *     he set my feet upon a high cliff and made my footing sure. 3 He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; *     many shall see, and stand in awe,     and put their trust in the LORD. 4 Happy are they who trust in the LORD! *     they do not resort to evil spirits or turn to false gods. 5 Great things are they that you have done, O LORD my God! how great your wonders and your plans for us! *     there is none who can be compared with you. 6 Oh, that I could make them known and tell them! *     but they are more than I can count. 7 In sacrifice and offering you take no pleasure *     (you have given me ears to hear you); 8 Burnt-offering and sin-offering you have not required, *     and so I said, "Behold, I come. 9 In the roll of the book it is written concerning me: *     'I love to do your will, O my God;     your law is deep in my heart.'" 10 I proclaimed righteousness in the great congregation; *     behold, I did not restrain my lips;     and that, O LORD, you know. 11 Your righteousness have I not hidden in my heart; I have spoken of your faithfulness and your deliverance; *     I have not concealed your love and faithfulness from the                              great congregation.

12	You are the LORD; do not withhold your compassion from me; *     let your love and your faithfulness keep me safe for ever,
13	For innumerable troubles have crowded upon me; my sins have overtaken me, and I cannot see; *     they are more in number than the hairs of my head,     and my heart fails me.
14	Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me; *     O LORD, make haste to help me.
15	Let them be ashamed and altogether dismayed who seek after my life to destroy it; *     let them draw back and be disgraced     who take pleasure in my misfortune.
16	Let those who say "Aha!" and gloat over me be confounded, *     because they are ashamed.
17	Let all who seek you rejoice in you and be glad; *     let those who love your salvation continually say,     Great is the LORD!"
18	Though I am poor and afflicted, *     the Lord will have regard for me.
19	You are my helper and my deliverer; *     do not tarry, O my God. (Book of Common Prayer translation via http://www.bcponline.org/)

three kings - music for the Epiphany

Holy Name

At the name of Jesus, every knee shall bow.

Every tongue confess him King of Glory now!

'Tis the Father's pleasure we should call him Lord

Who from the beginning was the mighty Word.

Eternal Father, you gave to your incarnate Son the holy name of Jesus to be the sign of our salvation: Plant in every heart, we pray, the love of him who is the Savior of the world, our Lord Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.

- Collect for The Holy Name - Book of Common Prayer 1979, p. 213.

rainbow 'round the sun

I was praying and got distracted by the crows chasing a red-tailed hawk out of our grove. Not very nunlike, I suppose... You've heard the joke about INFP's at prayer... "And, God, thank you for... oh, look, a bird!... all this beauty..." Anyway, I looked out the window, and this is what I saw! A round rainbow! Wow. 

Actually, I think it was God who "distracted" me... Seems to me that God loves to share the beauty of creation with us, and so many times when I see such a thing, I catch my breath and move into a place of greater thanks and praise. God is so good and so beautiful! 

It seems especially appropriate during Eastertide, when we're celebrating God's salvation and promises, of which the rainbow has been a sign. 

Genesis 9:12-16

God said, ‘This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: I have set my bow in the clouds, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.’

What makes a halo around the sun or moon? | Science Wire | EarthSky 

a wonderful way to close your weekend

Join us in Duxbury, MA, for a service of prayer, readings, silence, and above all singing inspired by the Community in Taize, France.

Join us at St. Margaret's in Duxbury this Sunday!

George Herbert - King of glory, King of peace

I'm giving thanks for priest and poet George Herbert tonight and praising God in his words.  We sang a hymn at Evening Prayer tonight the text of which is a poem of his (music video and text below).  I remember reading his poetry along with John Donne's in a seminary course, Classical Anglican Theologians.

Not that he intended to be a classical Anglican theologian or a metaphysical poet.  He wrote a book for priests on parish ministry, and his poetry was only published after his death because he sent them to a friend to look over in case it should encourage others.  Mostly he was a parish priest, and a caring, compassionate one.  I'd like to be like that - actually, we could all stand to be a bit more like him, I suspect.  Here's a good description (and the most recent source for the information above, since I didn't trust my memory for it):

He served faithfully as a parish priest, diligently visiting his parishioners and bringing them the sacraments when they were ill, and food and clothing when they were in want. He read Morning and Evening Prayer daily in the church, encouraging the congregation to join him when possible, and ringing the church bell before each service so that those who could not come might hear it and pause in their work to join their prayers with his. He used to go once a week to Salisbury to hear Evening Prayer sung there in the cathedral. On one occasion he was late because he had met a man whose horse had fallen with a heavy load, and he stopped, took off his coat, and helped the man to unload the cart, get the horse back on its feet, and then reload the cart. His spontaneous generosity and good will won him the affection of his parishioners.

http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bio/110.html

Here is more:

Herbert spent the rest of his life as rector in Bemerton near Salisbury. While there, he preached, wrote poetry, and helped rebuild the church out of his own funds.

Herbert's practical manual to country parsons, A Priest to the Temple (1652), exhibits the intelligent devotion he showed to his parishoners. On his deathbed, he sent the manuscript of The Temple to his close friend, Nicholas Ferrar, asking him to publish the poems only if he thought they might do good to "any dejected poor soul." He died of consumption in 1633 at the age of forty and the book was published in the same year. The Temple met with enormous popular acclaim—it had been reprinted twenty times by 1680.

Herbert's poems have been characterized by a deep religious devotion, linguistic precision, metrical agility, and ingenious use of conceit. Samuel Taylor Coleridge wrote of Herbert's diction that "Nothing can be more pure, manly, or unaffected," and he is ranked with Donne as one of the great Metaphysical poets.

- See more at: http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/628#sthash.3bn2dNXU.dpuf

Collect for George Herbert:

Our God and King, you called your servant George Herbert from the pursuit of worldly honors to be a pastor of souls, a poet, and a priest in your temple: Give us grace, we pray, joyfully to perform the tasks you give us to do knowing that nothing is menial or common that is done for your sake; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

King of glory, King of peace,
I will love thee;
and that love may never cease,
I will move thee.
Thou hast granted my request,
thou hast heard me;
thou didst note my working breast,
thou hast spared me.

Wherefore with my utmost art
I will sing thee;
and the cream of all my heart,
I will bring thee.
Though my sins against me cried,
thou didst clear me;
and alone, when they replied,
thou didst hear me.

Seven whole days, not one in seven,
I will praise thee;
in my heart, though not in heaven,
I can raise thee.
Small it is, in this poor sort
to enroll thee;
e'en eternity's too short
to extol thee.

George Herbert, 1593-1633

http://www.hymnary.org/hymn/EH1982/382

You can listen to more of his poetry here:
https://librivox.org/from-the-temple-by-george-herbert/

Here are links to the online texts of his work:
http://www.ccel.org/ccel/herbert/temple/HQ.html
http://anglicanhistory.org/herbert/
...and to the lessons and prayer to remember him today: 
http://www.lectionarypage.net/LesserFF/Feb/Herbert.html

Etc:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Herbert

waken the dawn

Exalt yourself above the heavens, O God, *

and your glory over all the earth.

 My heart is firmly fixed, O God, my heart is fixed; *

I will sing and make melody.

 Wake up, my spirit; awake, lute and harp; *

I myself will waken the dawn.

 I will confess you among the peoples, O Lord; *

I will sing praise to you among the nations.

 For your loving-kindness is greater than the heavens, *

and your faithfulness reaches to the clouds.

 Exalt yourself above the heavens, O God, *

and your glory over all the earth.

 - Psalm 57:6-11 (Book of Common Prayer 1979)

Praise To The Lord The Almighty

blue moon



blue moon over Duxbury Bay, low tide reflection
8.31.12

Looking at the moon over the water tonight is a multilayered experience.  

Although it appeared orange, it's a blue moon, the second full moon of the month.  So beautiful.

Today, appropriately, was also the day of Neil Armstrong's funeral, so I thought of him.  His family request: "Honor his example of service, accomplishment and modesty, and the next time you walk outside on a clear night and see the moon smiling down at you, think of Neil Armstrong and give him a wink."  (http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/blue-moon-full-moon-month-friday-coincides-neil/story?id=17117776)

Once in a blue moon, we say... What has happened today, only today? Today itself has happened, and all that is in it - all during a blue moon.   Blue moons don't happen often, but what happens today is unique to today.  How many little gifts were we given today?  That walk with Penny, our convent dog, will only happen once.  I hope there will be other walks with her before I leave for Haiti, of course, just as I hope there will be other conversations, other blue skies, other laughter.  There will be other really good things to taste (morning coffee, take-out Chinese, Greek yogurt!) and other finds (a book on cassette tape in 2012 and for only $1 - something to take to Haiti for battery-powered evenings in the dark!).  There will be sisters and friends and family to think of.  Each of these things is something unique, something to be treasured or at least recognized at the end of the day. 

What happened to you? What treasures were you given? What did you experience once in this blue moon?

Much for which to give thanks and praise.

Glorify the Lord, you angels and all powers of the Lord, *
O heavens and all waters above the heavens.
Sun and moon and stars of the sky, glorify the Lord, *
praise him and highly exalt him for ever.
      -- Canticle 12,  Benedicite, omnia opera Domini  
     -- Song of the Three Young Men, 35-65 ( BCP 88)

And then, with the gift of laughter, there is the background music for all these musings:

Glorify the Lord, O mountains and hills

This morning friends and I went hiking in the Appalachian mountains and found a lovely spot for Morning Prayer. 

 With such beauty around us, the Song of Creation seemed a most appropriate canticle.  God is so good.

12 A Song of Creation Benedicite, omnia opera Domini

Song of the Three Young Men, 35-65

Invocation

Glorify the Lord, all you works of the Lord, *

praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

In the firmament of his power, glorify the Lord, *

praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

II The Earth and its Creatures

Let the earth glorify the Lord, *

praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, O mountains and hills,

and all that grows upon the earth, *

praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, O springs of water, seas, and streams, *

O whales and all that move in the waters.

All birds of the air, glorify the Lord, *

praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Glorify the Lord, O beasts of the wild, *

and all you flocks and herds.

O men and women everywhere, glorify the Lord, *

praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

Doxology

Let us glorify the Lord: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; *

praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

In the firmament of his power, glorify the Lord, *

praise him and highly exalt him for ever.

1979 Book of Common Prayer pp. 88-90

(via http://www.bcponline.org/)

alleluia!

joy

One of my favorite prayer cards says, "Joy is an infallible sign of the presence of God."

And yet it gets little attention.

sunrise
St Margaret's Convent, Roxbury MA

I just read the most wonderful article about a Yale Divinity School professor, Mary Clark Moschella, who noticed that her students were just getting more and more depressed as she covered difficult situation after difficult situation in her pastoral care course.  "Isms" abound, of course, and must be faced; if we are to minister within reality, we can't avoid them, nor should we.  But this professor realized that joy is an integral part of pastoral ministry. If people focus only on the grim, on taking care of the griefs of their congregations, they will miss the moments of grace and joy in those lives, the ones that should be nurtured and celebrated. 

I daresay that is true for all of us, not just those in ministry: it's true as we walk alongside each other, and it's true in our own lives.  Joy and grace are things to which one must be attentive.  It's like a bird in a tree nearby - a flash of color, a song, a wing toward the sky - so easy to miss, and yet such a gift when we have the eyes to see.

It reminds me of an RS Thomas poem I love. 

The Bright Field

I have seen the sun break through
to illuminate a small field
for a while, and gone my way
and forgotten it. But that was the pearl
of great price, the one field that had
treasure in it. I realize now
that I must give all that I have
to possess it. Life is not hurrying
on to a receding future, nor hankering after
an imagined past. It is the turning
aside like Moses to the miracle
of the lit bush, to a brightness
that seemed as transitory as your youth
once, but is the eternity that awaits you.

(Collected Poems, 1945–1990 (London: Dent, 1993), 302.
source: http://cruciality.wordpress.com/2012/03/03/the-bright-field-by-rs-thomas/)

I wonder what joy lies right in front of me that I don't see because I am preoccupied with something else? 

Joy isn't happiness. It has nothing to do with life being easy.  It is not related to success or failure. God doesn't wait to show up until circumstances are good - or until we are good, for that matter. As this professor puts it, “God is revealed in joy and beauty and wonder that sometimes emerge right in the middle of suffering and struggle.”  That is grace.

Here is more from the article, including her definition of joy.

From the writings of theologian Jürgen Moltmann she concluded that laughter, joy and play should be regarded as key elements in human liberation, so that “we are opened to more creative and life-giving responses to the needs that call out to us.”

“Creating space for joy is not a secondary matter or a frill, but a central pastoral practice, right at the heart of faithful and committed ministries, and right at the tender heart of God,” she wrote in her Luce address on the subject.

“As I understand it, joy comes down to this: to being awake and deeply alive, aware of the love and grace of God, and of the gift of life, both in and around us. Joy in pastoral ministry is the same thing, but magnified by the blessing of a high and holy calling that challenges one to step outside of one’s self into relationships of care and communion. The themes and practices that I have found that characterize joy in the settings I have studied include presence, attentiveness, gratitude, release, hope, creativity, liberation, and love.”

Presence, attentiveness, gratitude, release, hope, creativity, liberation, and love.

Now there are some things to cultivate.  Perhaps we could make it an Eastertide practice to do so.

If you would like to read more, you may do so here: http://notesfromthequad.yale.edu/mary-clark-moschella-surprised-joy.

my rock and my refuge

looking across to the mountain range north of Port-au-Prince

 I love you, O Lord my strength,

O Lord my stronghold, my crag, and my haven.

My God, my rock in whom I put my trust,

my shield, the horn of my salvation, and my refuge;

you are worthy of praise.

~~~

Te amo, oh Señor, fortaleza mía,

oh Señor, castillo mío, mi risco y mi abrigo.

Dios mío, roca mía en quien confiaré,

mi escudo, el cuerno de mi salvación y mi alto refugio,

eres digno de ser alabado

~~~

Je t’aime, Seigneur, ma force:

Seigneur, mon roc, ma forteresse,

Dieu mon libérateur, le rocher qui m’abrite,

Mon bouclier, mon fort, mon arme de victoire!

Louange a Dieu!

~~~

 Ala renmen mwen renmen ou, Seyè! Se ou menm ki tout fòs mwen.

Se ou menm ki twou wòch kote m' kache a. Se ou menm ki sèvi m' ranpa.

Se ou menm ki delivre m'.
Ou se Bondye mwen, se ou menm ki pwoteje m'.

Se nan ou mwen mete tout konfyans mwen. Se ou ki tout defans mwen.

Se fòs ou k'ap sove m'. Se anba zèl ou mwen jwenn kote pou m' kache.

...Lwanj pou Seyè a!

Psalm 18:1-2

(or 3 or 4 depending on the translation)

English, Spanish and French translations from the Book of Common Prayer

Kreyol from Bib La: http://www.kreyol.com/creole-bible/bib-la.html

Shout it out now one last time!

one last alleluia before Lent begins!

Make it whole-hearted and joyful.

neighborhood morning song of praise

Through north and south and east and west
All roosters, let God’s name be blessed.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Cows mooing, I don’t know quite where,
Praise God and cast on him your care.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.

You dogs and goats I now can hear,
Join our song, for our God is near.
Alleluia, alleluia!
Sing well before the rising sun,
In sunlight, till the day is done.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia, alleluia.