"I will give you peace in your coasts: you shall sleep, and there shall be none to make you afraid. I will take away evil beasts and the sword shall not pass through your quarters. You shall pursue your enemies, and they shall fall before you. Five of yours shall pursue a hundred others, and a hundred of you ten thousand: your enemies shall fall before you by the sword." Leviticus 25:6-25:8
Yet another reassurance in the face of this endless religious liberty battle. I've also learned my lesson: seize the earliest chance to do my reading! If I had read these words this morning (instead of now, while Teddy gets ready for bed), I might not have felt so despairing at the vehemence of a woman who's opinion I otherwise resect, as she spouted the propaganda that has been specifically designed to further the attack on the First Amendment. As it was, placing it in the hands of Mary gave me words of charity and calm, instead of my usual knee-jerk snarky condescension. So, score one for the Blessed Mother!
Remembering tonight that no matter how legion the forces against us seem, no matter from how many sides the attacks come, "(my) enemies will fall before (me) by the sword [of Truth spoken in Love]".
Saturday, February 25, 2012
Friday, February 24, 2012
Back on the Horse AGAIN
I had been having difficulty finding inspiration in the previous readings, delineating foods for fast, rituals for the Temple, etc. On Fat Tuesday, though, I had a bit of a revelation: all those rules and rituals were probably outdated and irrelevant to me (I am not required to sacrifice a goat for my sins...) but I was, at that very moment, in deep preparation for the fastings and rituals that ARE relevant to me! And that this preparation is itself a meditation and its own form of sacrifice (after all, I was preparing our carnivorous household's pantry for the vegan rigors of the Ruthenian Ash Wednesday Fast...!). Devoting my time and energy to ensuring not the slightest acquiescence to hidden dairy ingredients or the chicken broth sneaking into the chili, was my form of making devotion and worship, in my vocation as wife and mother (and keeper of the pantry!). I never thought I'd feel such a basic kinship to the (rarely mentioned) women of Leviticus. :)
SO. Now that I've grappled with that deep theological quandary, let's move on to today:
Leviticus 23:1-25-23
Chapter 24, verse 15 "And thou shalt speak to the children of Israel: the man that curseth his God, shall bear his sin:" The next verse talks about how the punishment is death by stoning, of course, but applying this to our times and culture is something I can't help doing. As our world turns from God and towards "idols" (money, success, fame, possessions), the decline in community, compassion, support for those in need, in everything that gives us our humanity, that parallels these strengthening attractions is not easy to dismiss as coincidence. Lord, have mercy.
SO. Now that I've grappled with that deep theological quandary, let's move on to today:
Leviticus 23:1-25-23
Chapter 24, verse 15 "And thou shalt speak to the children of Israel: the man that curseth his God, shall bear his sin:" The next verse talks about how the punishment is death by stoning, of course, but applying this to our times and culture is something I can't help doing. As our world turns from God and towards "idols" (money, success, fame, possessions), the decline in community, compassion, support for those in need, in everything that gives us our humanity, that parallels these strengthening attractions is not easy to dismiss as coincidence. Lord, have mercy.
Saturday, February 11, 2012
Exodus 32:1-34:35
"He answered: I will shew thee all good, and I will proclaim in the name of the Lord before thee: and I will have mercy on whom I will, and I will be merciful to whom it shall please me." - Exodus 33:19
"He" in the above is God, for the record. As assurances go, this seems to be a mixed bag. Being shown all good and having the name of the Lord proclaimed in me? Yes, please. The part about "mercy on whom I will" makes one sit up, take notice and be on one's best behavior, I shouldn't wonder. It certainly makes me mindful of times when maybe I wouldn't have been so deserving of mercy...times when, as I wrote in an earlier post, I took the easier way of "non-confrontation" (more like "non-defensive of good and truth when it would be unpopular"...), or when I may have not been a good witness to His love and compassion. Or, worst of all, when I have "lukewarm"...Revelation 3:16
This has much self-reflection for me today.
"He" in the above is God, for the record. As assurances go, this seems to be a mixed bag. Being shown all good and having the name of the Lord proclaimed in me? Yes, please. The part about "mercy on whom I will" makes one sit up, take notice and be on one's best behavior, I shouldn't wonder. It certainly makes me mindful of times when maybe I wouldn't have been so deserving of mercy...times when, as I wrote in an earlier post, I took the easier way of "non-confrontation" (more like "non-defensive of good and truth when it would be unpopular"...), or when I may have not been a good witness to His love and compassion. Or, worst of all, when I have "lukewarm"...Revelation 3:16
This has much self-reflection for me today.
Yesterday's Post. Again
I'm trying to streamline this process...the blogger app on the iPad doesn't let me hyperlink, and I can't comfortably type at the family computer, so this is a hodge-podge of iPad typing, computer editing, emailing various documents back and forth from me to me in order to transfer them to Google Docs (and various computers)...I'll catch up! (It probably doesn't help that I write these out in a moleskine journal first of ALL...!)
Here we go!
Here we go!
"Speak to the children of Israel and thou shalt say to them: 'see that thou keep my Sabbath: because it is a sign between me and thee in thy generations: that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctify you.'" Exodus 30:13
I was very young when I read the Little House on the Prairie series, and, being something of a tomboy, the activity and outdoor play depicted in Farmer Boy appealed to me a bit more than the sewing and baking (and churning!) described in the books featuring Laura and Mary. One aspect of the life of a Farmer Boy that did NOT at ALL appeal to me, though, was the description of the family observance of the Sabbath. Looooong church sessions, wherein the children had to keep absolutely still (child psychologists the world over cringe in horror), loooong silent meals eating cold food, as cooking, being considered "work", is not allowed. Loooooong hours sitting listening to Father read from the Bible (and I'm guessing not even the exciting parts with battles and Almighty smiting...), or a book of sermons, also staying silent and still...if not for the entertaining incident involving a sneaky sled run and a stray pig, I would probably have skipped that chapter altogether on my re-readings! Reflecting on the above passage in conjunction with the Farmer Boy Sabbath, I started to feel a bit guilty, that maybe we aren't being God-centric enough in our Sabbath. So I took myself to Google to review a few different takes on Sabbath observance. There is a certain blog I read regularly, written by a stay at home Orthodox Jewish wife, living in Israel. Her Sabbath also does not allow cooking or baking, but she spends her entire week preparing delicious treats and dishes for her family to enjoy while they take the Sabbath day to pray, worship, rest, disconnect from the world (literally: no phones or internet) and reconnect with each other. We ourselves don't really have a set "routine" for our Sunday. There is always Mass in the mornings, and the afternoons are spent playing with Teddy, either at home, the park or the beach, reading the (weeks worth of!) newspapers that have piled up, watching the occasional TV show or movie via the internet (we are always taking suggestions!) while Teddy naps, and often taking the time to cook a rather elaborate meal together.
What I read here heartened me. We are on the right track, it seems, although there is always more room for Jesus, no matter what.
"Our first priority is to worship God publicly by participating at holy Mass. Since the days of the Apostles, the Church community has gathered together on Sunday to attend Mass. The <Code of Canon Law> logically mandates, "On Sundays and other holy days of obligation the faithful are bound to participate in the Mass" (No. 1247). This obligation makes perfect sense. Following St. Thomas Aquinas' thought, we have a moral obligation to give visible, public and regular worship to the God who created all things, including ourselves; who has blessed us in many ways; and who saved us from sin. Just as we attend to our material and physical concerns—such as getting proper sleep, food, exercise and hygiene—we must attend to the well-being of our souls through prayer and public worship...
...The second priority of the Sabbath is to take time for personal rest and for those that we love. In our fast-paced world, sometimes Sunday becomes "catch-up" day—of running to the store, doing laundry and the like. Granted, sometimes we have no choice in the matter. However, we should restructure our lives and strive to accomplish those tasks during the rest of the week. Then we can take good leisurely time for ourselves. All of us need time to read, think, meditate and talk with God in the quiet of our hearts."
I was very young when I read the Little House on the Prairie series, and, being something of a tomboy, the activity and outdoor play depicted in Farmer Boy appealed to me a bit more than the sewing and baking (and churning!) described in the books featuring Laura and Mary. One aspect of the life of a Farmer Boy that did NOT at ALL appeal to me, though, was the description of the family observance of the Sabbath. Looooong church sessions, wherein the children had to keep absolutely still (child psychologists the world over cringe in horror), loooong silent meals eating cold food, as cooking, being considered "work", is not allowed. Loooooong hours sitting listening to Father read from the Bible (and I'm guessing not even the exciting parts with battles and Almighty smiting...), or a book of sermons, also staying silent and still...if not for the entertaining incident involving a sneaky sled run and a stray pig, I would probably have skipped that chapter altogether on my re-readings! Reflecting on the above passage in conjunction with the Farmer Boy Sabbath, I started to feel a bit guilty, that maybe we aren't being God-centric enough in our Sabbath. So I took myself to Google to review a few different takes on Sabbath observance. There is a certain blog I read regularly, written by a stay at home Orthodox Jewish wife, living in Israel. Her Sabbath also does not allow cooking or baking, but she spends her entire week preparing delicious treats and dishes for her family to enjoy while they take the Sabbath day to pray, worship, rest, disconnect from the world (literally: no phones or internet) and reconnect with each other. We ourselves don't really have a set "routine" for our Sunday. There is always Mass in the mornings, and the afternoons are spent playing with Teddy, either at home, the park or the beach, reading the (weeks worth of!) newspapers that have piled up, watching the occasional TV show or movie via the internet (we are always taking suggestions!) while Teddy naps, and often taking the time to cook a rather elaborate meal together.
What I read here heartened me. We are on the right track, it seems, although there is always more room for Jesus, no matter what.
"Our first priority is to worship God publicly by participating at holy Mass. Since the days of the Apostles, the Church community has gathered together on Sunday to attend Mass. The <Code of Canon Law> logically mandates, "On Sundays and other holy days of obligation the faithful are bound to participate in the Mass" (No. 1247). This obligation makes perfect sense. Following St. Thomas Aquinas' thought, we have a moral obligation to give visible, public and regular worship to the God who created all things, including ourselves; who has blessed us in many ways; and who saved us from sin. Just as we attend to our material and physical concerns—such as getting proper sleep, food, exercise and hygiene—we must attend to the well-being of our souls through prayer and public worship...
...The second priority of the Sabbath is to take time for personal rest and for those that we love. In our fast-paced world, sometimes Sunday becomes "catch-up" day—of running to the store, doing laundry and the like. Granted, sometimes we have no choice in the matter. However, we should restructure our lives and strive to accomplish those tasks during the rest of the week. Then we can take good leisurely time for ourselves. All of us need time to read, think, meditate and talk with God in the quiet of our hearts."
Friday, February 10, 2012
Three days Late.
In an effort to get back here (and maybe back away from Facebook a little), I've started doing some scripture reading with a friend. The idea was to read every day, and post thoughts and reflections...every day. This is day three. Yeah. I've read every reading so far (well, not today's yet, but I will...and even update this post when I do!), but obviously this is my first post about it. To make up for my laxness, I will briefly review my thoughts on the last two readings.
The first day's reading was from Exodus, 22:16-24:18. Lots of rules and guidelines for living in there, but it was about halfway through that I was drawn to this: "Thou shalt not follow the multitude to do evil: neither shalt thou yield in judgement, to the opinion of the most part, to stray from the Truth." Exodus 23:2
This is so especially relevant in these times, at this moment. The attack on Christian conscience by the President and by the HHS Department, the recent bullying of the Susan G Komen Foundation by Planned Parenthood (over a paltry few hundreds of thousands of dollars), the cultural war that is being waged on the family...it can be so easy to just sit back and ignore what is happening...it is certainly easier than sticking ones neck out and speaking up in defense of religious freedom, against the travesty of abortion, for the integrity of the family. I spent the rest of Wednesday thinking about and praying for fortitude.
Day two: Exodus 25:1-28:43 Matt left on business yesterday, and I was despairing of ever getting our home in some semblance of order. Teddy's room was still a disaster from where we just dumped all the Christmas loot "to sort later", but instead of "later" happening, it just turned into a dumping ground for any and everything we didn't feel like doing "now", like folding laundry, unpacking suitcases from weekend trips, bringing the donation boxes to Goodwill...poor Teddy. He didn't use his room much anyway, but one evening he went in there and declared, "Dis woom is a MESS. Tan yew hep me, Maw-mee?!" So it was with some renewal of vigor and inspiration that I stumbled over the following verse, tucked amongst cubit measures and acacia wood for the Ark of the Covenant, the tabernacle, and cloth dye for the temple veils and garments: "And they will make a sanctuary, and I will dwell in the midst of them." Exodus 25:8
WELL. Talk about a come to Jesus moment. This home sure wasn't no sanctuary. How could I expect anything other than chaos and disorder if I'm not making a sanctuary for God? I spent the entire morning organizing and sorting. Teddy's room is now a delightful space for play and rest. Our kitchen flows with functionality. The family computer space is cleared of papers and junk mail, all ready for bill paying, record keeping and watching movies. My desk is organized and all set up for daily reading and posting. Everything is in its place, including Jesus in our lives. When Matt comes home, we will agree on where to put our "sanctuary" for prayer time. I am so hopeful for our future in this transition home, now that I've been led to see it as a space to welcome to Jesus.
The first day's reading was from Exodus, 22:16-24:18. Lots of rules and guidelines for living in there, but it was about halfway through that I was drawn to this: "Thou shalt not follow the multitude to do evil: neither shalt thou yield in judgement, to the opinion of the most part, to stray from the Truth." Exodus 23:2
This is so especially relevant in these times, at this moment. The attack on Christian conscience by the President and by the HHS Department, the recent bullying of the Susan G Komen Foundation by Planned Parenthood (over a paltry few hundreds of thousands of dollars), the cultural war that is being waged on the family...it can be so easy to just sit back and ignore what is happening...it is certainly easier than sticking ones neck out and speaking up in defense of religious freedom, against the travesty of abortion, for the integrity of the family. I spent the rest of Wednesday thinking about and praying for fortitude.
Day two: Exodus 25:1-28:43 Matt left on business yesterday, and I was despairing of ever getting our home in some semblance of order. Teddy's room was still a disaster from where we just dumped all the Christmas loot "to sort later", but instead of "later" happening, it just turned into a dumping ground for any and everything we didn't feel like doing "now", like folding laundry, unpacking suitcases from weekend trips, bringing the donation boxes to Goodwill...poor Teddy. He didn't use his room much anyway, but one evening he went in there and declared, "Dis woom is a MESS. Tan yew hep me, Maw-mee?!" So it was with some renewal of vigor and inspiration that I stumbled over the following verse, tucked amongst cubit measures and acacia wood for the Ark of the Covenant, the tabernacle, and cloth dye for the temple veils and garments: "And they will make a sanctuary, and I will dwell in the midst of them." Exodus 25:8
WELL. Talk about a come to Jesus moment. This home sure wasn't no sanctuary. How could I expect anything other than chaos and disorder if I'm not making a sanctuary for God? I spent the entire morning organizing and sorting. Teddy's room is now a delightful space for play and rest. Our kitchen flows with functionality. The family computer space is cleared of papers and junk mail, all ready for bill paying, record keeping and watching movies. My desk is organized and all set up for daily reading and posting. Everything is in its place, including Jesus in our lives. When Matt comes home, we will agree on where to put our "sanctuary" for prayer time. I am so hopeful for our future in this transition home, now that I've been led to see it as a space to welcome to Jesus.
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