Tag: Creation
In the clouds atop Grizedale Forest ridge,
among the russet chestnut bracken
and old gold grasses,
a bright scarlet bramble runner.
Startling in the soft misty mizzle.
Sometimes murky weather shows up astonishing beauty.
Sometimes, in sad times, in times of uncertainty,
the power of beauty in God’s creation calls out:
I Am Who I Am.
Be still
and know
that
I am
God
[Gill Henwood. ( + Psalm 46:10)]
My friend Gill Henwood has sent me the photo posted above. It is a view of Langdale Pikes from Grizedale Forest, in the Lake District.
There is a certain broodiness about it with its different shades of light and dark which is rather in keeping with the extremities of weather at present in the UK.
The Lake District is a microcosm of our weather patterns and it is always wise, when walking in the Lakeland hills, to have a healthy respect for what Nature offers us. At one level we may call it fickle in that the conditions often change quickly. In another sense, it is a reminder that Planet Earth, and therefore its weather, is not something we can control. Sadly, we are messing things up with our human attempts at superiority over everything on earth.
The current preoccupation with the Northern Lights and with rare sightings of spectacular comets, along with other special things such as solar flares, remind us that these amazing displays from the cosmos are not of our making. They tell us, in fact, how small we are in the Universal scheme of things.
Unfortunately, the human race isn’t very good at learning lessons and applying them with humility to our borrowed and temporary life on earth. It was the poet T.S.Eliot who coined the phrase, humankind cannot bear very much reality so perhaps we shall continue to destroy the earth – and, of course, each other!
It would be good, therefore, if the human race might wake up to itself and accept that, as tenants with a life-span lower than many trees, a bit of humility might not go amiss.
As T. S. Eliot puts it in in his poem East Coker, “The only wisdom we can hope to acquire is the wisdom of humility: humility is endless.”
A large part of the lesson of humility can be found in contemplating the gifts God gives us through Creation. How can we not look at the scene depicted in the Gill’s photo above and be unmoved by what nature is trying to tell us about the Planet which is our home for the time being.
The light shimmering on the hills and the blue sky quietly folding itself around the clouds offers us a message of hope. It is just as true of a tuft of grass or a tiny flower pushing aside the tar of an urban footpath.
When the warmongers of the Middle East and the Russian invasion of Ukraine come to an end, they will leave desolation but it won’t be long before a blade of grass or a microscopic flower spring to life.
Gill’s photo gives me hope. I have added a few words from a lovely hymn by Folliott Sandford Pierpont. He sat on a hill near Bath and was exhilarated by the beauty of creation which was laid out before him. Inspired by what he saw, he was filled with gratitude to God and he wrote his hymn in thanksgiving.
That too is another clue coming from Gill’s photograph ~ thanksgiving.
When we give thanks for Creation and for God who created it, we find ourself in a different place from lordship, conceit and self-centredness. In fact, thanksgiving, turns our attention towards others, towards providence and therefore towards God as Creator.
The photo is filled with the promise. of light and that is a source of joy and hope. If none of this means anything, then perhaps another thought might help – remember the Dinosaurs!
[Mr G] 14th October 2024
The Beauty of Nature
O God, we thank you for this earth, our home;
For the wide sky and the blessed sun,
For the salt sea and the running water,
For the everlasting hills
And the never-resting winds,
For trees and the common grass underfoot.
We thank you for our senses
By which we hear the songs of birds,
And see the splendour of the summer fields,
And taste of the autumn fruits,
And rejoice in the feel of the snow,
And smell the breath of the spring.
Grant us a heart wide open to all this beauty;
And save our souls from being so blind
That we pass unseeing
When even the common thorn bush
Is aflame with your glory,
O God our creator,
Who lives and reigns forever and ever.
– Walter Rauschenbusch
LAMMAS, the blessing of the First Loaf
Rural Britain has a number of festivals which in earlier times were celebrated much more fully than is the case today. Lammas which falls on the 1st August is one of these.
Lammas is derived from an Anglo-Saxon word, hlafmæsse, which means loaf-mass and from the 9th century a church festival was celebrated in which a newly baked loaf was presented in church for use at the Mass or Eucharist.
Rural Festivals take us back to our roots and help us to remember the close affinity we have with nature and the earth, on which we depend for our sustenance. In these days of supermarkets and fast-food shops it is easy to forget this dependence though nature has ways of reminding us.
Many are bemoaning the apparent absence of summer or rather of warm sunshine, this year. Our weather is much more erratic and less seasonal. Some, including myself would cite ‘global warming’ for this. We might easily blame humanity for the way we have exploited creation and taken for granted those with whom we share this volatile earth – the animals, birds, sea creatures and Nature generally. We certainly bear a lot of responsibility for that. Add to that the devastating wars and violence at present which suggests we are not at ease with ourselves let alone with the natural world, or with God.
So we need to get back in touch with the delicate balance of our planet which God has ordered so magnificently. We play with this balance at our peril. The planet is a volatile ball floating in a vast universe. Humanity occupies such a small part of this and if we stand in a clear spot on a dark night and look at the stars we realise our smallness in the midst of such vastness.
Our forebears understood this and lived in healthy respect of nature’s force. They also remembered that the author of creation, God, is to be thanked and praised. That is why the Agricultural Year was punctuated with festivals such as Lammas. It would do us no harm to follow their example.
In the modern Lammas Church Service, there is a bidding which is made as a new loaf is presented to God.
Brothers and sisters in Christ, the people of God in ancient times presented to the Lord an offering of first-fruits as a sign of their dependence upon God for their daily bread…
and this is followed by a Prayer which roots our lives back into both God and His Creation.
Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation;
you bring forth bread from the fields
and give us the fruits of the earth in their seasons.
Accept this loaf, which we bring before you,
made from the harvest of your goodness.
Let it be for us a sign of your Godly care.
Blessed are you, Lord our God, worthy of our thanksgiving and praise.
Saying this prayer as we are about to eat bread would remind us of God’s goodness to and help us to respect and celebrate Creation.
A little while ago, I wrote this poem which has become my homage to Real Bread!
Mr Deakin’s Bread
The oven door opens in Mr Deakin’s bakery.
Wafts of delicious, tantalizing
aromas fill the air, tempting the nostrils
with the unmistakable freshly baked bread.
Sacks of flour wait quietly for their turn.
Mr Deakin knows the Miller
who lives near the farmer,
who gathers the crop dancing
in the breeze of his own fields.
We take home the bread still warm.
Crusty yet yielding if pressed,
giving off a rich enticing smell,
whetting the appetite.
Held in trembling hands of expectation,
we break off a little, raise a morsel to our lips.
And another.
Real bread!
[Mr G]
One Sunday afternoon in heaven, a wing of Guardian Angels met God and he noticed their glum faces.
“Why are you looking so miserable”, God asked.
“We’re bored” they replied.
“How can you be bored! You have so many humans to look after, and animals too.”
“That’s the trouble,” Angel Anthropos said. “Many of the humans aren’t much fun and right now so many of them are anxious and sad.”
“Some are downright wicked” said Angel Pax.
Angel Vocalis, ever one to put in its opinion, added that, “many are just dull.
“and,” said Angel Gloriana, “so many of them keeping asking for things for themselves. Some of them think they are so important that they want bigger and better homes, cars, boats, holidays. They are possessed by their possessions. They don’t care about anybody else. Angel Anthropos concluded, “There is no joy or colour in their lives.”
God smiled at his little group of angels whom he loved so dearly. Then he shook his head and sighed, “I know just what you mean. So many dark things are going on at the moment, causing many of the little ones to suffer. The vulnerable ones have so many things to deal with. That’s why they need their Guardian Angels now more than ever.
The Angels twitched their wings and began to feel guilty, though God reminded them that there in no room for guilt in heaven. You must brush away your guilt with love. Go and love those in your care more than ever.
They knew God was right, of course, but it was hard to do that right now.
Then God smiled. “I know a way to cheer you up, and maybe some of the humans too.”
He beckoned them into his studio where he kept his art material. It was the Creative heart of heaven where God made things.
The Angels noticed the design of a tiny flower. Angel Vocalis said that, though it was pretty, the flower didn’t look that much. It was hardly worth making. Then he flung a wing over his mouth, “Sorry, Father God, I shouldn’t have said that.” “Don’t worry,” God replied, “who gave you your mind to think, to have opinions, to speak. But let me tell you about this flower.
As you say, it’s tiny and most people won’t notice it. It could so easily be ignored. That’s why I’ve painted it pinky-purple with dark foliage – and there’s something I want to show you but I need all your help.”
The angels looked at God expectantly.
“I’ve made lots of copies and I need you to colour them in for me. Now get on with that whilst I go to Evensong and listen to all the voices singing throughout the world, and listen to their prayers.
After God had gone, the Angels got busy and carefully and quietly painted the flowers and the foliage. A hush descended as it often did when they were doing creative things.
It also helped that they were absorbed doing part of God’s work. As they worked skillfully, they remembered how much of Himself God poured into the things he made – including themselves. The secret was that everything was made by Love as love.
When God returned he brought the Holy Spirit with Him and together they examined what the angels had done. “Tove!, Tove!” said the Spirit, which was a Hebrew word meaning Good, Beautiful.
The angels were pleased because God was pleased.
They all looked at their paintings and loved them. The tiny flowers were bursting with life.
God agreed that they were little and would be dwarfed by bigger, brighter, more showy flowers. Some would be hidden by the grass and would be mown when the grass was cut but God had a plan, as always!
First, he explained something very important. He told the angels, “It’s not always the big flowers, or the big things or big people who show people what I am like, nor is it always by big gestures that people serve me. My dear daughter, St Teresa of Calcutta , once reminded people that we don’t necessarily do big things in our life but rather little things with a big love. These little flowers are signs that we can bring beauty and peace and love to others by the little things we do – smiles, thoughtfulness, acts of kindness, just ordinary things which make others feel better and wanted and loved.”
“Now put your paintings next to each other”.
When they did, there was a carpet of colour and the table, the floor, everywhere was covered in beauty. Then God, the Holy Spirit blew on them and the little flowers came alive and danced, and danced. And as they swirled to the music the Holy Spirit made, tiny seeds flew from the flowers. “Catch them!” said God, and they did.
“Go now” said God as he smiled on them and they were filled with joy. “Be off with you to the earth especially to dark and sad and lonely people who need brightening up, but go everywhere – cast the seeds all over the place. It’s the tiny seeds of love which bring joy to life, even in the difficult and broken places. Place some of your seeds gently in the cracks and reclaim people’s hearts with beauty and love. May these little flowers bring hope and joy and remind people that little things make a big difference, especially when those little things are joined to each other in a big carpet of love and care.
“Tove! Tove!” said the Holy Spirit, blowing God’s love over them… and they went gladly and willingly.
It is in little things that we show people what God is like. Simple things like caring, smiling, showing people that they matter and are valued, holding a hand, giving a hug, acts of practical kindness, praying for people, breathing God’s love over them. It is such things that really change the world and make it a better place.
Every time you see a little flower, give thanks to God for making it and breathing the same love into it as He does into us …. And remember the words from the Book of Genesis: “and God saw all that He had made, and it was very good”.
[Mr G]
Mr G's Ponderings 