Sunday, 24 July: “He prayed.”

Reading – James 5:17-20

Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

He prayed; so should we. Art: To Be With God, Simon Dewey.

Amazing things can happen through prayer.

Trite line, right? Yes, when it comes to simply talking at God and demanding what we think is best for ourselves or others. That type of prayer, if we can call it by that name, is not particularly conducive to miracles in the world or growth in the spirit. Standing opposite this practice is the prayer that people like Elijah and Jesus engaged in and invite us to, a conversation with God that seeks to connect with, listen to, and learn from the Divine. This is the type of prayer that leads to inner conversion and a corresponding and positive change in outward behavior, to outward events like the drought and rain called by Elijah and the healings effected by Jesus. Such dramatic instances as these may not occur from our own prayer lives, but that doesn’t mean we have no reason to pray.

Prophets like Elijah are remembered and honored because they prayed, because they talked with, not at, God and spread His word to those around them. Jesus, whom we as Christians see as the Word of God in the world, did not shrink from prayer, either, even though he was fully divine, fully God. Jesus, we must remember, was also fully human, and he recognized his need as a human for God’s strength and guidance, his dependence as a human on God for all the good he did and experienced. Time and again in the Gospels we see Jesus retreating to quiet places to pray as well as instances where he prays to God in front of and with others.

Jesus’ life was a prayer, a conversation, dedicated to God; our lives should be the same, as best as we can make them.

We should definitely take time to be in silence with God, to meditate, reflect, speak, and listen, but we must also realize that prayer need not – should not – end there. We should extend our prayer to all areas of our lives, reaching out to God and asking for His help in each moment and trusting that he hears and answers us. Jesus tells us in today’s reading from Luke (11:1-13) that God extends salvation to us always; we have but to ask for it, and ask persistently.

Balancing contemplation and action in our lives and complementing each with the lessons of the other, we ask God to love, free, and save us and all of creation. God, through the very lives of prayer that we offer to Him, will respond to us, continuing His dialogue with and care for us to the end of time and beyond it – if we let Him.

Our challenge is this: Find God in every moment, big or small (how about this one? or this one? or – you get the idea). Venture out beyond our fears and journey inward to the core of our being to meet Him, our transcendent and immanent God. Speak. Listen.

God waits for you and for all of us. He speaks to us, just as He did to Jesus. He, the Son of God, prayed; let us pray like he did, O God, please. Thank you. ~

Monday, 09 November: “No longer strangers”

Reading – Ephesians 2:19-22

Feast of the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica in Rome

*I will use feminine pronouns for God in this reflection and in some future writings. I’ll use masculine pronouns in other reflections. God is beyond gender, but using “he” and “she” helps us understand and relate to God as a person (the Person) more than using “it.” Now for the actual reflection; sorry for all the delays!*

When you believe in God, you know that you, nor anyone else, nor even God Herself are ever truly alone. Whether we trust in God’s existence or the presence of any higher power, God is there with us, ready to help and guide us if we but ask. This can feel somewhat constraining, though – claustrophobic, even. All of us at one point or another – and extreme introverts like me, especially – enjoy being alone, at least for a little while, and perhaps even crave it.

Some of us want to be sojourners, to revel in being apart from the group, strangers to all others that need not rely on anyone nor have anyone rely on us. We desire to be the trailblazers, the great guides toward the Truth as we venture far beyond others on our lonely but noble path into Mystery.

As I’ve realized often, though, that’s a rather selfish and, honestly, crappy dream. The Mystery isn’t just for us; it’s for everyone. In fact, the Mystery already surrounds and abides within us. God accompanies us as we explore God’s self, drawing us deeper into that unfathomable ocean of love and truth.

God also guides us to each other; made in the image of the Trinitarian God, we are meant to be with and love others, even if we need to withdraw by ourselves after doing so and in order to do so again. Even the Desert Fathers and hermits through the ages sought a closer communion with the Other and a better understanding of and care toward others. No lone person is an island or, to use the feast and images of this day, a building unto themselves. Yes, we are temples of the Holy Spirit, but without connections to other temples and the Master Architect, we fall into disrepair and ruin.

We each are compelled by the Spirit to open the riches of our temples – our talents, virtues, possessions, and histories – to each other so that the Architect may build up and complete Her intricate, magnificent, transcendent blueprint for the universe. Our attempts at contributing to this project, finding the best means of joining our temples together, and discovering parts of the blueprint make us sojourners and strangers, in a sense. We each have unique compositions and cuts, our own quests in letting the Architect work and love through us, but we all have a common foundation (God), a common creator (God), and a common goal (you guessed it: God).

Thus we journey, alone yet together, marveling at the stars in whirling thoughts inside our minds, silent praises to God in our souls, and hushed but ecstatic whispers with each other in our conversations. We let God build us up, build each other up, and build Her holy temple with Her son himself as the capstone. May we let you guide us to our true selves, to each other, and to you, O God. Thank you. ~