Tag: Faith

Emerging Love

*Hawkshead Church in early morning mist. Photo by Gill Henwood.*

This photo was taken by my friend, Gill Henwood and is of Hawkshead Church emerging from the morning mist.
This mist speaks to me of ‘revealing’, of something that will become clearer as the mist rises; of a beauty present but not yet fully defined.

Today is the time the Christian Church remembers the Conversion of St. Paul, the moment when all that clouded his mind and darkened his thoughts, were lifted by an encounter with the Risen Christ.
We are told of it in the Book of Acts, chapter 9 verses 1 to 19.

Paul or as he was then known, Saul, a zealous Jewish Rabbi, had made it his mission to persecute Christians, those Jews who had chosen to follow the teaching of the Apostles about Jesus. He was responsible for the death and imprisonment of many and was thus thwarting the work of proclaiming the Good News of Jesus.

Something had to be done to stop him and it was the Risen Christ who did so. As Paul travelled along the road to Damascus, the Risen Christ appeared and light flashed around him. Paul was blinded by the light and fell to the ground. It was as if a dark mist enveloped him and in the darkness Jesus challenged him, Why are you persecuting me?’ Paul asked who he was and the revelation came to him that it was Jesus.
Paul’s heart was converted but though his eyes were opened, he could still not see. First, his spiritual blindness had to be lifted; something Jesus arranged and then Paul became the great champion of Christianity he was destined by God to be.

For me there is something autobiographical in Paul’s famous passage in his first letter to the Corinthians, chapter 13.
Having written his classic definition of ‘love’, He made the point that only love will carry us through to the heart of God and that is both our faith and hope.
He referred back to his own lack of understanding of the power of God’s love (verse 8 following) and reminds us that on our spiritual journey we move, often haltingly, to a deeper knowledge of love, as God shares His divine love with us. At first our perception of God’s love is as if we are looking through a mirror dimly’ or as the King James Version puts it, through a glass darkly, but then, as God continues to reveal his Love to us, we shall one day meet Him as Love face to face.

Gill’s photograph of Hawkshead Church suggests to me another illustration of this. Our experience of God’s love for us, may seem at times to be as if we are looking through the mist of understanding. It contains all that will be revealed but we must let God work in our souls as he did in Paul’s. Then, slowly but surely, the mist will lift and the glorious vision will open our eyes and our hearts to a deep and abiding love.
In the photo we already see the promise coming clearer. The scene contains all that needs to be revealed. So that is for us. If we open ourselves to the possibility of God lifting from us all that prevents His love to flourish, then it will become a reality.

The Conversion of Saint Paul

Brooding mist
blurs edges of perception.
Colours muted.
A whisper of wind kisses the air
rippling through the soul.
Visibility impaired,
a cloak of quietness drawn across the mind.
Stilling all movement.
Intentions passionately held,
melt into deep darkness.
Yet this is not the cause of fearfulness
nor of despair.
Out of the shadows,
of seeing “through a glass darkly”
there is a pinprick of growing light
which slowly, perceptively,
burns away the haze
as new vision takes shape.

A Voice,
crisp, gently directive,
unfettered by illusion,
beckons,
touching eyes to see a wonder,
“face to face.”
The waypath is irrevocably changed.

[Mr. G. Conversion of Paul. 25th January ]

A voice from the Desert

*Lakeland hills appearing like a desert. photo by Gill Henwood.*

A Voice from the Desert ~ St. Antony of Egypt. (f.d. 17th January)

There are significant dates in our lives, which can lead to a change of direction and a new way of living.This was very true of St. Antony of Egypt, also known as ‘the great’.
Antony was born in Egypt in 250AD, the son of a prosperous farmer. His family were Christian and he grew up hearing the Gospel read each Sunday in his local church. His parents died and Antony gained a rich inheritance which he shared with his sister.

The significant day in his life was when he was 20. He went to church one Sunday morning and he heard the Gospel including the words: Go, sell all you have, and give to the poor; and come, follow me.
Antony heard God calling to him through those words and he left the church, made provision for his sister and then sold all his goods and gave the money to the poor. He then left home and, after a time of spiritual preparation, he eventually set up a simple hut in the Desert of Egypt where, for the rest of his long life, he lived in solitude and prayer. He became one of the founders of the monastic life.

We might think that Antony was rather extreme in his interpretation of the Gospel. After all, how many times have we heard those words and not acted upon them in that way. Yet Antony knew that he had heard God’s voice. For him this was a clear sign of his vocation and he had the courage to respond. He lived a life dedicated to prayer, fasting, daily recitation of the psalms and to combating those forces in the world that are against God, including personal temptations and the battle for true holiness.
Others were attracted to his way of life and communities began to be formed of people who sought a pure prayerful life. Antony became a spiritual guide to many, including streams of Christians living in towns and cities and who came to him for guidance. Some of that guidance was collected as ‘words’ which remain available to us today in collections of sayings’ of the Desert Fathers and Mothers.

Antony died in 356, over 100 years old. By the time he died he had learned the most important thing that every Christian must learn—he learned how to love God and to respond through this love to the immense and unconditional love that God had for him, as God has for all of us.

Few of us today are likely to be called to live in a deserted place, though those who have found time to do so, even for a short while, know just how valuable and precious that time is for communing with God without distraction. Some, of course, are called, like Antony, to live as members of Religious Communities as monks and nuns.
But all of us are called to dedicate our lives to God and to serve him in whatever way is right for us. We can’t get away with saying something like, “it’s all right for Antony and the other desert dwellers.. They had a spiritual greatness that few of us can even get near.”
Actually they wouldn’t claim to be specially great. But they did recognize the greatness of God and they wanted to respond to this in some way.
Saints are important for us simply because they are ordinary Christians like us but who knew the Gospel to be extraordinary. It changes lives. If it doesn’t then we wouldn’t be Christians at all. Because it changed Antony’s life, the Church became more Godly and the world more lovely. That can be just as true for us today.
Listen and let God tell you how.

Tau Cross. Symbol of St. Antony of Egypt.

St Antony,
You had everything.
Then one day you heard the voice of God.
“Antony, go sell all you possess
and have nothing.”
So you did,
and then you had everything.

[Mr. G. January 2024]

By star and candlelight

*Candles decorated by children at St Mary-at-Latton.(and below) Photos: Mr G*

Every so often, astronomers astound us with yet another discovery in space.
On December 11^th we received news that NASA’s James Webb space telescope has captured an image of what our galaxy was like as it was forming. The telescope, the most powerful ever built, is orbiting in space free from hindrance by the Earth’s atmosphere. This makes its images more pure and more accurate.
The particular image that has excited astronomers shows 10 balls of stars of different colours which has led space scientists to liken it to baubles on a Christmas tree.
The real significance of the image is that it’s the first time it has been possible to witness the stars assembling to form a galaxy which holds clues of how our own galaxy, the Milky Way came into being.
It’s rather good that we have news of our Universe which is positive just when various sections of humanity are trying their hardest to destroy our bit!
Much more will be gleaned from this discovery which continues to add to the knowledge we have of our own universe. In many ways the Universe is a mystery but each new discovery adds to our enlightenment.
Perhaps in that respect it is mirroring God who created the Universe and even found time to create us! God is a mystery who constantly reveals himself to us especially, Christians believe, through Jesus Christ but also through our gifts, knowledge, skills and talents.

Sometimes God’s revelation is accompanied by some celestial event like a bright star.
Writers in the Bible tell us of many constellations. Individual stars are mentioned. In the Book of Job there is a beautiful conversation between God and Job (in chapter 38) where God asks Job where he was when the Lord laid the foundations of the earth. The writer shows the depth of ancient knowledge when he asks whether Job can bind the chains of Pleiades or loose the cords of Orion.
The star of Bethlehem referred to in Matthew’s Gospel as the one leading the Magi to the Christ child has also led many scientists into the realms of speculation. As far as the Bible is concerned this is the star which heralds Christ’s birth.
The theme of light which is signified by such stars is central to Advent because it speaks to us of the expectation of God coming to light up the world with his new presence in Jesus Christ. This is the Love of God beginning the process of transforming the world with light.

Not surprisingly, when the Church leaders chose December 25^th *** for our celebration of Christmas it was the time in the West at least, when the world is at its darkest. It was also the time of the pagan Winter festival and early Christians preferred to overlay pagan religion with new Christian meaning. Sweeping pagan practices away would merely drive them underground. Changing their meaning and adding new depth made for a more permanent and ready acceptance of the, then, new faith. Good missioners always start where people are before helping them into new understanding.
It may well be that the pagan solstice was subjected to a pincer movement because December 13th is the feast of St Lucy whose very name means Light (and from which we get the word lucid – to make clear)
Lucy was a 4th century Christian who fell foul of an attempt by the Roman Emperor to re-establish worship of the old gods. She was betrothed to a man who expected a decent dowry. Instead of which she gave her possessions to the poor. The angry suitor denounced her to the authorities and she was put to death for her faith in 304AD. Because her martyrdom was in December her festival quickly became associated with Christmas.

Probably, the main reason why Lucy became associated with Light overcoming darkness is because the final act of torture was that her eyes were gouged out, plunging her into complete darkness physically. Yet the physical darkness was itself overcome by the brightness of her faith. She had within her the love and light of Christ and her enemies couldn’t quench that. That encouraged other Christians facing persecution. The light of her faith pointed believers to Jesus, the one true light who was coming into a darkened world with hope and new life. Christ Jesus, who in the final book of the Bible is called the Bright Morning Star, fills all our lives with light. That is both the hope and the witness we must bear in a deeply darkened world.

Maybe we can look to the people of Scandinavia who understand more than most about darkness at the heart of Winter. St Lucie’s day is an important feast not only because of her own overcoming of darkness but because of the physical darkness in Scandinavia at the time of the Winter Solstice ~ the darkest day of the year. In the old Calendar, December 13^th, her feast day, was at that time. She became a symbolic example of light conquering darkness. This is why, in Scandinavia, the feast incorporates a celebration of light involving processions in which girls chosen in communities to represent the saint in wearing a crown of candles (possibly battery operated these days!) and accompanied by others including boys known as star boys.
This deserves an article of its own but the underlying reason is that St Lucy was light in a dark place and her faithfulness to God was an example from which others could draw strength and inspiration.
Never is this more needed than today!

The night treads heavily
in places unreached by sun,
the shadows brood
in the dark places of our world,
where human deeds are black.
St Lucy comes,
bearing lighted candles,
heralding the light of God,
the Christ-child who comes anew
at Christmas.
Let us be ready to greet Him
with the joyful light of goodness
and of peace.

[adapted by Mr G from a traditional song from Sweden)

*** The Orthodox Church follows a different Calendar and keeps Christmas on January 6th

[Mr G]

Singing the song in our heart

I post this on St Cecilia’s Day, November 22^nd. Since the 15^th century she has been known as the Patron Saint of Music. A document known as the Golden Legend’ described her as a “bride of Christ whose love of music elevated her soul to God. This document also encouraged us to consider the link between earth and heaven. It is a link between the song of heaven, led by the angels and the echo of that song on earth, particularly in religion, poetry and music.

The poet, John Dryden, wrote a Song for St Cecilia’s Day which strengthened that link and serenaded the power of music with the line:

“What Passion cannot music raise and quell?”

For many of us, this is expressed in song and hymns and psalms whilst others use the gifts they have to make music in other ways. (Not a mutually exclusive experience!)
Song and music as an expression of faith has been the subject of a short piece of writing by the Taizé Community which is worth pondering over:

Singing is one of the most essential elements of worship. Short songs, repeated again and again, give it a meditative character. Using just a few words they express a basic reality of faith, quickly grasped by the mind. As the words are sung over many times, this reality gradually penetrates the whole being. Meditative singing thus becomes a way of listening to God. It allows everyone to take part in a time of prayer together and to remain together in attentive waiting on God, without having to fix the length of time too exactly.
To open the gates of trust in God, nothing can replace the beauty of human voices united in song. This beauty can give us a glimpse of “heaven’s joy on earth,” as Eastern Christians put it. And an inner life begins to blossom within us.
These songs also sustain personal prayer. Through them, little by little, our being finds an inner unity in God. They can continue in the silence of our hearts when we are at work, speaking with others or resting. In this way prayer and daily life are united. They allow us to keep on praying even when we are unaware of it, in the silence of our hearts. (Taizé Community)

I love the quotation from Maya Angelou which accompanies the photo above.
In the interplay of the Godly song of heaven and our earthly melody of the heart it is good for Maya to remind us that the main reason we can sing and make music is because there is a song in our heart to be sung. A Song put there by God. It raises spirits and lifts our lives beyond ourselves to God. That’s a good enough reason for me to sing.

[Mr G + Taizé Community]