ON GROWING OLD

When the signs of age begin to mark my, body (and still more

when they touch my mind); when the ill that is to diminish me

or carry me off strikes from without or, is born within me; when

the painful moment comes in which I suddenly awaken to the

fact that I am ill or growing old; and above all at that last moment

when I feel I am losing hold of myself and am absolutely passive

within the hands of the great unknown forces that have formed

me; in all those dark moments, 0 God, grant that I may understand

that it is you (provided only my faith is strong enough) who

are painfully parting the fibers of my being in order to penetrate

to the very marrow of my substance and bear me away within

youself. Amen




Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

yourself. Amen.

A MEDITATION BY MARTIN LUTHER

This life, therefore, is not godliness but the process of becoming godly, not health but getting well, not being but becoming, not rest but exercise. We are not now what we shall be, but we are on the way. The process is not yet finished, but it is actively going on. This is not the goal but it is the right road. At present, everything does not gleam and sparkle, but everything is being cleansed.




- Martin Luther

The Devil’s Reparations for Haiti’s Debt?

by Elizabeth Palmberg 01-15-2010

So Pat Robertson, to whom the media are still inexplicably willing to pay attention, is saying that Haiti is being punished for an alleged pact with the devil?



This might be a reasonable time to point out that, when Haiti threw out the French, it was the latter who were on the side of evil — first, as slave-owners (Haiti was the only modern nation created by a slave revolt). And then, when Haitians had finally attained freedom from plantation chattel slavery, France forced Haiti to pay reparations to the former slave-owners, to compensate them for their loss of “property.”



You read that sentence right — the ex-slaves were forced to pay their former masters, the equivalent of $21 billion (billion-with-a-b) in today’s dollars. It took the tiny nation from 1825 to 1947 — that’s right, over a century — to finish paying off this “debt,” a crushing burden which bled away resources for education and economic development.



I’ll leave it up to you to decide where the devil is in that history. But if you want to be on the side of the angels — and God’s Jubilee economics, as laid out in the Old Testament — then surf over to Jubilee USA and see their advocacy points for Haiti today.

Isaiah 58:6–9 (NIV)

Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:

to loose the chains of injustice

and untie the cords of the yoke,

to set the oppressed free

and break every yoke?

Is it not to share your food with the hungry

and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—

when you see the naked, to clothe him,

and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

Then your light will break forth like the dawn,

and your healing will quickly appear;

then your righteousness will go before you,

and the glory of the Lord will be your rear guard.

Then you will call, and the Lord will answer;

you will cry for help, and he will say: Here I am.

Prayer of Mother Teresa and Brother Roger

Oh God, the father of all,

you ask every one of us to spread

Love where the poor are humiliated,

Joy where the Church is brought low,

And reconciliation where people are divided. . .

Father against son, mother against daughter,

Husband against wife,

Believers against those who cannot believe,

Christians against their unloved fellow Christians

GOOD NEWS TO THE POOR IS MORE THAN MONEY

Oscar Romero (1917 - 1980)


It would be worthless to have an economic liberation

in which all the poor had their own house,

Their own money,

but were all sinners,

their hearts estranged from God.

What good would it be?

There are, nations at present

that are economically and socially quite advanced,

for example those of northern Europe,

and yet how much vice and excess!

The church will always have its word to say:

conversion.

Progress will not be completed

even if we organize ideally the economy

and the political and social orders of our people.

It won't be entire with that.

That will be the basis, so that it can be completed

by what the church pursues and proclaims:

God adored by all,

Christ acknowledged as only Savior,

deep joy of spirit

in being at peace with God

and with our brothers and sisters

EASTER SERMON

If any person is devout and loves God, let him come

to this radiant triumphant feast

If any person is a wise follower, let him enter

into the joy of his Lord, rejoicing.

If any have fasted long, let him now receive refreshment.

If any have labored from the first hour, let him today

receive his just reward.

If any came at the third hour, let him keep the feast

with thankfulness.

If any arrived at the sixth hour, let him have no

misgivings for he shall not be deprived.

If any delayed to the ninth hour, let him draw near,

fearing nothing.

If any have waited even until the eleventh hour,

let him not be alarmed at this tardiness.

For the Lord will accept the last even as the first.

Therefore, all of you, enter into the joy of your Lord.

Rich and poor together, hold high festival.

Diligent and heedless, honor this day.

Both you who have fasted, and you who did not fast,

, rejoice together today.

The table is full; all of you, feast sumptuously.

The calf is fatted; let no one go away hungry.

Enjoy the feast of faith; receive the riches of God's mercy.

Let no one bewail his poverty, for the fullness

of the kingdom is revealed.

Let no one weep for his iniquities, for forgiveness

shines forth from the grave.

Let no one fear death, for the savior's death has set us free.

He who was held prisoner by death has annihilated it.

By descending into death, he made death captive.

He angered it when it tasted of his flesh.

Isaiah saw this, and he cried:

Death was angered when it encountered you

in the lower regions.

It was angered, for it was defeated.

It was angered, for it was mocked.

It was angered, for it was abolished.

It was angered, for it was overthrown.

It was angered, for it was bound in chains.

It received a body and it met God face to face.

It took earth and encountered heaven.

It took that which is seen and fell upon the unseen.

o Death, where is your sting?

o Grave, where is your victory?

Christ is risen and you are overthrown.

Christ is risen and the devils have fallen.

Christ is risen and the angels rejoice.

Christ is risen and life reigns.

Christ is risen and not one dead remains in the grave.

For Christ, being risen from the dead, is become the first fruits

of those who have fallen asleep, and to him be glory and honor,

even to eternity. Amen.



JOHN CHRYSOSTOM (344 - 407)

THOUGHTS ON SOUTH AFRICA

I live in a country where most of the white citizens would claim

to be Christians, would feel it to be their supreme duty to preserve

their Christian civilization, and sometimes, in moments of stress,

would call it "White civilization." Many of them believe that

God placed them in southern Africa to carry out a "civilizing

Mission. Most of them hold firmly the belief that this civilizing

Mission can only be carried out by the separation from one

another of all racial groups-residentially, educationally, culturally,

politically, even religiously.

I write these words not with the trivial aim of bringing my

government into dispute, but with the aim of showing that if a

Christian takes seriously the commandment to love his neighbor

as himself, he may incur the active hostility of State and Church.

And we should remember that Jesus did exactly that, and that he told his disciples that this might happen to them also. These sayings of Jesus should be taken seriously. Our Christian cause

could well bring us into conflict with authority, and the only way

in which we can overcome the fear of such a prospect is to believe

that we are the instruments of God's peace, which means of

course that we are instruments of God's love, and because we.

are used by it, because it dwells in us, We have no cause for fear.





ALAN PATON (1903 – 1988)

ANCIENT GREEK PRAYER

WHAT AN ANCIENT GREEK PRAYER


HAS HIM SAY



I AM YOUR GOD

WHO FOR YOUR SAKE

HAVE BECOME YOUR SON

OUT OF LOVE FOR YOU

AND FOR YOUR DESCENDANTS



I NOW

BY MY OWN AUTHORITY

SAY TO ALL

WHO ARE HELD IN THE BONDAGE OF SIN

TO THROW OFF YOUR CHAINS

I HAVE FREED YOU



TO ALL WHO ARE IN DARKNESS

BE ENLIGHTENED

FOR I AM THE LIGHT



TO ALL WHO ARE SLEEPING

AWAKE

IT IS TIME TO AWAKE



AND TO ALL IN DANGER OF HELL

COME BACK TO ME



I DID NOT MAKE YOU

TO BE A PRISONER OF HELL

BUT TO SIT AT MY TABLE

AND DRINK OF MY WINE

Day by day

Thanks be to thee,
Lord Jesus Christ,
for all the benefits
which thou hast won for us,
for all the pains and insults
which thou hast borne for us.
O most merciful redeemer,
Friend and Brother,
may we know thee more clearly,
love thee more dearly,
and follow thee more nearly,
day by day. Amen.

Richard of Chichester (1198 -1253)

I cannot see the Christ-Child

I cannot see the Christ-Child for the soldiers

marching past:

I cannot hear the angels for the bugle's angry blast.

But I know the Bells are ringing

And that Faith and Hope are clinging.

To the Day when Love shall crown the world at last.



I cannot see the Christ-Child, for the smoke is in my eyes,

I cannot hear the Shepherds for the little children's cries:

But I know the Bells are ringing

And I think I hear the singing

Of the Day when Peace like Morning Dawn shall rise.



I cannot see the Christ-Child, for the clouds hang

dark and low

I cannot hear the Wise Men, for the conflict rages so:

But I know the Bells are ringing,

And that Christmas Mom is bringing

In the Golden Day, Foretold so long ago.





Hugh T Kerr

Lord, We are your people,

Lord, We are your people,

the sheep of your-flock.



Heal the sheep who are wounded,.

Touch the sheep who are in pain,

Clean the sheep who are soiled,

Warm the lambs who are cold.



Help us to know the Father's love

through Jesus the shepherd

and through the Spirit.

Help us to lift up that love,

and show it all over this land.

Help us to build love on justice

and justice on love.



Help us to believe mightily,

hope joyfully,

love divinely.



Renew us that we may help renew

the face of the earth.



Amen.

 
Unknown

ON HOLY COMMUNION

"CHRIST WAS THE WORD, THAT SPAKE IT;

HE TOOK THE BREAD, AND BRAKE IT;

AND WHAT HIS WORD DOTH MAKE IT,

THAT I BELIEVE, AND TAKE IT."

JOHN DONNE

Sarum Primer Prayer (1514)

God be in my head
and in my understanding;
God be in my eyes
 and in my looking;
God be in my mouth
and in my speaking;
God be in my heart
and in my thinking;

God be at my end
and at my departing. Amen.



.

The Easter Sermon of John Chrysostom

Pastor of Constantinople (~400 AD)

IS THERE ANYONE WHO IS A DEVOUT LOVER OF GOD?

LET THEM ENJOY THIS BEAUTIFUL BRIGHT FESTIVAL!

IS THERE ANYONE WHO IS A GRATEFUL SERVANT?

LET THEM REJOICE AND ENTER INTO THE JOY OF THEIR LORD!



ARE THERE ANY WEARY WITH FASTING?

LET THEM NOW RECEIVE THEIR WAGES!

IF ANY HAVE TOILED FROM THE FIRST HOUR,

LET THEM RECEIVE THEIR DUE REWARD;

IF ANY HAVE COME AFTER THE THIRD HOUR,

LET HIM WITH GRATITUDE JOIN IN THE FEAST!

AND HE THAT ARRIVED AFTER THE SIXTH HOUR,

LET HIM NOT DOUBT; FOR HE TOO SHALL SUSTAIN NO LOSS.

AND IF ANY DELAYED UNTIL THE NINTH HOUR,

LET HIM NOT HESITATE; BUT LET HIM COME TOO.

AND HE WHO ARRIVED ONLY AT THE ELEVENTH HOUR,

LET HIM NOT BE AFRAID BY REASON OF HIS DELAY.



FOR THE LORD IS GRACIOUS AND RECEIVES THE LAST EVEN AS THE FIRST.

HE GIVES REST TO HIM THAT COMES AT THE ELEVENTH HOUR,

AS WELL AS TO HIM THAT TOILED FROM THE FIRST.

TO THIS ONE HE GIVES, AND UPON ANOTHER HE BESTOWS.

HE ACCEPTS THE WORKS AS HE GREETS THE ENDEAVOR.

THE DEED HE HONORS AND THE INTENTION HE COMMENDS.



LET US ALL ENTER INTO THE JOY OF THE LORD!

FIRST AND LAST ALIKE RECEIVE YOUR REWARD;

RICH AND POOR, REJOICE TOGETHER!

SOBER AND SLOTHFUL, CELEBRATE THE DAY!



YOU THAT HAVE KEPT THE FAST, AND YOU THAT HAVE NOT,

REJOICE TODAY FOR THE TABLE IS RICHLY LADEN!

FEAST ROYALLY ON IT, THE CALF IS A FATTED ONE.

LET NO ONE GO AWAY HUNGRY. PARTAKE, ALL, OF THE CUP OF FAITH.

ENJOY ALL THE RICHES OF HIS GOODNESS!



LET NO ONE GRIEVE AT HIS POVERTY,

FOR THE UNIVERSAL KINGDOM HAS BEEN REVEALED.

LET NO ONE MOURN THAT HE HAS FALLEN AGAIN AND AGAIN;

FOR FORGIVENESS HAS RISEN FROM THE GRAVE.

LET NO ONE FEAR DEATH, FOR THE DEATH OF OUR SAVIOR HAS SET US FREE.

HE HAS DESTROYED IT BY ENDURING IT.



HE DESTROYED HELL WHEN HE DESCENDED INTO IT.

HE PUT IT INTO AN UPROAR EVEN AS IT TASTED OF HIS FLESH.

ISAIAH FORETOLD THIS WHEN HE SAID,

"YOU, O HELL, HAVE BEEN TROUBLED BY ENCOUNTERING HIM BELOW."



HELL WAS IN AN UPROAR BECAUSE IT WAS DONE AWAY WITH.

IT WAS IN AN UPROAR BECAUSE IT IS MOCKED.

IT WAS IN AN UPROAR, FOR IT IS DESTROYED.

IT IS IN AN UPROAR, FOR IT IS ANNIHILATED.

IT IS IN AN UPROAR, FOR IT IS NOW MADE CAPTIVE.

HELL TOOK A BODY, AND DISCOVERED GOD.

IT TOOK EARTH, AND ENCOUNTERED HEAVEN.

IT TOOK WHAT IT SAW, AND WAS OVERCOME BY WHAT IT DID NOT SEE.

O DEATH, WHERE IS THY STING?

O HELL, WHERE IS THY VICTORY?



CHRIST IS RISEN, AND YOU, O DEATH, ARE ANNIHILATED!

CHRIST IS RISEN, AND THE EVIL ONES ARE CAST DOWN!

CHRIST IS RISEN, AND THE ANGELS REJOICE!

CHRIST IS RISEN, AND LIFE IS LIBERATED!

CHRIST IS RISEN, AND THE TOMB IS EMPTIED OF ITS DEAD;

FOR CHRIST HAVING RISEN FROM THE DEAD,

IS BECOME THE FIRST-FRUITS OF THOSE WHO HAVE FALLEN ASLEEP.



TO HIM BE GLORY AND POWER FOREVER AND EVER. AMEN!

On Philanthropy

Philanthropy is commendable, but it must not cause the philanthropist to overlook the circumstances of economic injustice which make philanthropy necessary.




- Martin Luther King Jr.

life interupted

January, 12, 2010, a major earthquake hit Port-au-Prince, Haiti,
causing immense death and destruction. Other news the same
week contained the usual reports of suicide bombers and drone
bombings.]

Life Interrupted

Earth shaking
  bricks raining
    hearts retching
Piles and piles
  of stones
    once homes,
Lives crumbling.

Children crying,
  injured, dying,
    wailing … wailing
Mothers frenzied,
  calling … calling
    searching, screaming.
Fathers missing.

Fires without fighters,
sewers running wild,
water polluted,
no food,
no milk,
no medicine
nowhere to turn.

Then looters, gangs
  scavengers;
    prowling, prowling
soldiers coming,
  bulldozing bodies:
    the mass graves … graves …

Are not earthquakes
 enough?
Must we also
  bomb one another?

-- Doug Behm 1/15/10

Dulce et Decorum Est

Bent double, like old beggars under sacks,

Knock-kneed, coughing like hags, we cursed through sludge,

Till on the haunting flares we turned our backs

And towards our distant rest began to trudge.

Men marched asleep. Many had lost their boots

But limped on, blood-shod. All went lame; all blind;

Drunk with fatigue; deaf even to the hoots

Of tired, outstripped Five-Nines that dropped behind.



Gas! Gas! Quick, boys! – An ecstasy of fumbling,

Fitting the clumsy helmets just in time;

But someone still was yelling out and stumbling,

And flound'ring like a man in fire or lime . . .

Dim, through the misty panes and thick green light,

As under a green sea, I saw him drowning.

In all my dreams, before my helpless sight,

He plunges at me, guttering, choking, drowning.



If in some smothering dreams you too could pace

Behind the wagon that we flung him in,

And watch the white eyes writhing in his face,

His hanging face, like a devil's sick of sin;

If you could hear, at every jolt, the blood

Come gargling from the froth-corrupted lungs,

Obscene as cancer, bitter as the cud

Of vile, incurable sores on innocent tongues,

My friend, you would not tell with such high zest

To children ardent for some desperate glory,

The old Lie; Dulce et Decorum est

Pro patria mori.







Wilfred Owen (1893–1918)

ST AUGUSTINE ON BIBLICAL INTERPETATION

Whoever, therefore, thinks that he under-stands the divine scriptures or any part of them so that it does not build the double love of God and of our neighbour does not understand it at all. Whoever finds a les¬son there useful to the building of charity, even though he has not said what the author may be shown to have intended in that place, has not been deceived.

HAITIAN HYMN AFTER THE QUAKE

Across the street, in St. Pierre's Plaza, hundreds, possibly thousands camped out, singing hymns overnight.

``God, you are the one who gave me life,'' they sang. ``Why are we suffering?''

Howard Thurman - ON CHRISTMAS

When the song of the angels is stilled, when the star in the sky is gone, when the kings and princes are home, when the shepherds are back with their flock, the work of Christmas begins: to find the lost, to heal the broken, to feed the hungry, to release the prisoner, to rebuild the nations, to bring peace ... to make music in the heart.

- Howard Thurman,

From I Have A Dream (delivered August 28, 1963)

Martin Luther King, Jr. (1929–1968)

From I Have A Dream (delivered August 28, 1963)

Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.

And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.

I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.

I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with the words of "interposition" and "nullification" — one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.

I have a dream today!

I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."

Death Be Not Proud (Holy Sonnet X)

John Donne (1572–1631)

Death Be Not Proud (Holy Sonnet X)

Death, be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou are not so;
For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow
Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,
Much pleasure; then from thee much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee do go,
Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery.
Thou'art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell,
And poppy'or charms can make us sleep as well
And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then?
One short sleep past, we wake eternally,
And death shall be no more; Death, thou shalt die.

Ambrose of Milan - A Prayer - The Journey with Jesus

Ambrose of Milan (340–397)

A prayer attributed to Saint Ambrose

Lord Jesus Christ, you are for me medicine when I am sick;
you are my strength when I need help;
you are life itself when I fear death;
you are the way when I long for heaven;
you are light when all is dark;
you are my food when I need nourishment."

Dietrich Bonhoeffer

The church must fight evil in three stages:
The first was to question state injustice and call the state to responsibility;
The second was to help the victims of injustice, whether they were church members or not.
Ultimately, however, the church might find itself called "not only to help the victims who have fallen under the wheel, but to fall into the spokes of the wheel itself" in order to halt the machinery of injustice

Dietrich Bonhoeffer on Cheap Grace

Let the Christian rest content with his worldliness and with this renunciation of any higher standard than the world. He is living for the sake of the world rather than for the sake of grace. Let him be comforted and rest assured in his possession of this grace - for grace alone does everything. Instead of following Christ, let the Christian enjoy the consolations of his grace!

That is what we mean by cheap grace, the grace which amounts to the justification of sin without the justification of the repentant sinner who departs from sin and from whom sins departs.

Cheap grace is not the kind of forgiveness of sin which frees us from the toils of sin. Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves. Cheap grace is the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession.

Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.

Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will gladly go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods. It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble, it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him.

Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must the asked for, the door at which a man must knock.

Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: “ye were bought at a price, and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us.

Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.

MEDLEY OF MUSINGS

PRAYER FOR THE SICK

SANCTIFY 0 LORD THE SICKNESS OF YOUR SERVANT THAT THE SENSE OF HIS WEAKNESS MAY ADD STRENGTH TO HIS FAITH AND SERIOUSNESS TO HIS REPENTANCE; AND GRANT THAT HE MAY LIVE WITH YOU IN EVERLASTING LIFE. -


.............

SELF DECEPTION

WE HAVE BEEN SO DISHONEST WITH OURSELVES ABOUT OURSELVES FOR
SO LONG THAT WE TAKE OUR DISHONESTY TO BE THE HONEST TRUTH.

FRED KEEFE
..........................


FIRE

THE DAY WILL COME
WHEN,
AFTER HARNESSING SPACE,
THE WINDS,
THE TIDES,
AND GRAVITATION,
WE SHALL HARNESS FOR GOD
THE ENERGIES OF LOVE.
AND ON THAT DAY,
FOR THE SECOND TINE
IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD,
WE SHALL HAVE DISCOVERED FIRE.


PIERRE TEILHARD DE CHARDIN
...................

A BLESSING


MAY GOD BE IN OUR HEAD
AND IN OUR UNDERSTANDING
MAY GOD BE IN OUR EYES
AND IN OUR LOOKING
MAY GOD BE IN OUR MOUTH
AND IN OUR SPEAKING
MAY GOD BE IN OUR HEART
AND IN OUR SPIRIT
MAY GOD BE WITH US AT OUR END
AND IN THE HOUR OF OUR DEPARTING
MAY GOD BE WITH US
MORNING THROUGH DARKNESS
AND THROUGH THE NIGHT
MAY GOD BE ALWAYS WITH US
AND WITH OUR ABSENT BROTHERS AND SISTERS


ANGLICAN PRAYER

................................

------ Galatians 3:27-28

22. Generally, women were deemed unworthy to study the Torah, Evans points out in her Woman in the Bible that the Talmud suggests, "let the Torah rather be destroyed by fire than imparted to woman and "whoever teaches his daughter Torah is as though he taught her obscenities" (qtd. 36.) Although one cannot fully assume practice from these kinds of statements, Jewish men prayed this prayer daily:

Blessed be God that he has not made me a Gentile. Blessed be God that he has not made me a woman. Blessed be God that he has not made me a boor.

Sometimes the word "slave" was substituted for "boor." Notice the contrast between this prayer and what is thought to be part of the baptismal service in the early church: "As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:27-28).

What does seem to be clear is that women in first-century

Judaism had access to the sacred only in and through the patriarchal

family: "Women are sanctified through the deeds of men" Jacob

Neusner, Method and Meaning in AncientJudaism, Brown Judaic Studies to, Missoula, MT: Scholars Press, 1979, 100).
--------
......................................

"For Christians, the problem is not how to reconcile homosexuality with scriptural passages that condemn it, but how to reconcile the rejection and punishment of homosexuals with the love of Christ." - An Open Letter from Rev. William Sloane Coffin to the National Conference of Catholic Bishops 2000


.................................
this delightful observation by Augustine, made near the end of his life when the doctrine of the incarnation was re¬shaping his views about human physicality: "Man's maker was made man that He, ruler of the stars, might nurse at His mother's breast."

------------------------------------------------


THE NIGHT IS NOT DARK

THEY TELL OF ADAM:
HOW FRIGHTENED HE MUST HAVE BEEN WHEN,
FOR THE FIRST TIME, HE SAW THE SUN DISAPPEAR,
ENDING THE LIGHT OF DAY.

IT WAS ADAM'S FIRST DARKNESS

HOW COULD HE ACCEPT THE NIGHT,
WHEN HE HAD NEVER SEEN A DAWN?

AFTER THE SPLENDOR OF THE SUN, HOW DARK THE DARKNESS
WAS FOR HIM; HOW DESPERATE THE LONG TERROR OF
THE FIRST FALL OF NIGHT... UNTIL ADAM LEARNED THAT DAWN WOULD
COME AGAIN; COULD SEE THAT THERE IS LIGHT AND ORDER
IN THE UNIVERSE.

AND THEN ADAM BEGAN TO SEE HOW MUCH LIGHT REMAINS
IN THE SKY AT NIGHT: THE STARS
AND THEIR ENDURING PROMISE OF THE SUN,
THE RETURNING STAR OF DAY.

ADAM LEARNED THAT THE NIGHT IS NEVER WHOLLY DARK,
AND THAT NO NIGHT IS ENDLESS.

EVEN AS EACH OF US MUST LEARN IT,
IN OUR OWN TIMES OF TROUBLE AND DARKNESS.

THE LIGHT IS NEVER FAR.



VICTOR RATNER AND RABBI BERNARD MENDELBAUM

...............................


HOW TO PRAY

WE CANNOT MERELY PRAY TO YOU, 0 GOD, TO END WAR;
FOR WE KNOW THAT YOU HAVE MADE THE WORLD IN A WAY
THAT MAN MUST FIND HIS OWN PATH TO PEACE
WITHIN HIMSELF AND WITH HIS NEIGHBOR.
WE CANNOT MERELY PRAY TO YOU, 0 GOD, TO END STARVATION;
FOR YOU HAVE ALREADY GIVEN US THE RESOURCES
WITH WHICH TO FEED THE ENTIRE WORLD
IF WE WOULD ONLY USE THEM WISELY.
WE CANNOT MERELY PRAY TO YOU, 0 GOD,
TO ROOT OUT PREJUDICE,
FOR YOU HAVE ALREADY GIVEN US EYES
WITH WHICH TO SEE THE GOOD IN ALL MEN
IF WE WOULD ONLY USE THEM RIGHTLY.
WE CANNOT MERELY PRAY TO YOU, 0 GOD, TO END DESPAIR,
FOR YOU HAVE ALREADY GIVEN US THE POWER
TO CLEAR AWAY SLUMS AND TO GIVE HOPE
IF WE WOULD ONLY USE OUR POWER JUSTLY.
WE CANNOT MERELY PRAY TO YOU, 0 GOD, TO END DISEASE,
FOR YOU HAVE ALREADY GIVEN US GREAT MINDS WITH WHICH
TO SEARCH OUT CURES AND HEALING,
IF WE WOULD ONLY USE THEM CONSTRUCTIVELY.
THEREFORE WE PRAY TO YOU INSTEAD, 0 GOD,
FOR STRENGTH, DETERMINATION, AND WILLPOWER
TO DO INSTEAD OF JUST TO PRAY,
TO BECOME INSTEAD OF MERELY TO WISH.



JACK RIEMER LIKRAT SHABBAT

.............................

SAYINGS OF BUDDHA


WE ARE WHAT WE THINK.
ALL THAT WE ARE ARISES WITH OUT THOUGHTS.
WITH OUR THOUGHTS WE MAKE THE WORLD.
SPEAK OR ACT WITH AN IMPURE MIND
AND TROUBLE WILL FOLLOW YOU
AS THE WHEEL FOLLOWS THE OX THAT DRAWS THE CART.

WE ARE WHAT WE THINK.
ALL THAT WE ARE ARISES WITH OUR THOUGHTS
WITH OUR THOUGHTS WE MAKE THE WORLD
SPEAK OR ACT WITH A PURE MIND
AND HAPPINESS WILL FOLLOW YOU
AS YOUR SHADOW, UNSHAKEABLE.



"LOOK HOW HE ABUSED ME AND BEAT ME,
HOW HE THREW ME DOWN AND ROBBED ME."
LIVE WITH SUCH THOUGHTS AND YOU LIVE IN HATE.

"LOOK HOW HE ABUSED ME AND BEAT ME,
HOW HE THREW ME DOWN AND ROBBED ME."
ABANDON SUCH THOUGHTS AND LIVE IN LOVE

..................................

IN THIS WORLD
HATE NEVER DISPELLED HATE,
ONLY LOVE DISPELS
...............................

IN MEMORY OF THOSE LOVED

MAY YOU ALWAYS WALK IN SUNSHINE
AND GOD'S LOVE AROUND YOU FLOW;
FOR THE HAPPINESS YOU GAVE US,
NO ONE WILL EVER KNOW.
IT BROKE OUR HEART TO LOSE YOU,
BUT YOU DID NOT GO ALONE;
A PART OF US WENT WITH YOU
THE DAY GOD CALLED YOU HOME.
A MILLION TIMES WE'VE NEEDED YOU,
A MILLION TIMES WE'VE CRIED.
IF LOVE COULD ONLY HAVE SAVED YOU,
YOU NEVER WOULD HAVE DIED.

TRADITIONAL IRISH

...................................


BIBLE QUOTES


I HAVE LEARNED, IN WHATSOEVER STATE I AM,
THEREWITH TO BE CONTENT.


ST. PAUL, PHILIPPIANS 4:11
..........................................

THE OXEN

CHRISTMAS EVE, AND TWELVE OF THE CLOCK
"NOW THEY ARE ALL ON THEIR KNEES,"
AN ELDER SAID AS WE SAT IN A FLOCK
BY THE EMBERS IN HEARTHSIDE EASE.

WE PICTURED THE MEEK MILD CREATURES WHERE
THEY DWELT IN THEIR STRAWY PEN,
NOR DID IT OCCUR TO ONE OF US THERE
TO DOUBT THEY WERE KNEELING THEN.

SO FAIR A FANCY FEW WOULD WEAVE
IN THESE YEARS! YET, I FEEL
IF SOMEONE SAID ON CHRISTMAS EVE,
"COME; SEE THE OXEN KNEEL,

IN THE LONELY BARTON BY YONDER COOME
OUR CHILDHOOD USED TO KNOW,"
I SHOULD GO WITH HIM IN THE GLOOM,
HOPING IT MIGHT BE SO.


GEORGE HERBERT
................................

WHEN I AM AN OLD WOMAN


WHEN I AM AN OLD WOMAN
I SHALL WEAR PURPLE
WITH A RED HAT
WHICH DOESN'T GO
AND DOESN'T SUIT ME.

AND I SHALL SPEND MY PENSION
ON BRANDY
AND SUMMER GLOVES
AND SATIN SANDALS,
AND SAY WE'VE NO MONEY FOR BUTTER.

I SHALL SIT DOWN
ON THE PAVEMENT
WHEN I AM TIRED
AND GOBBLE UP SAMPLES
IN SHOPS
AND PRESS ALARM BELLS
AND RUN MY STICK
ALONG THE PUBLIC RAILINGS
AND MAKE UP
FOR THE SOBRIETY
OF MY YOUTH.

I SHALL GO OUT IN MY SLIPPERS
IN THE RAIN
AND PICK THE FLOWERS
IN OTHER PEOPLE'S GARDENS
AND LEARN TO SPIT.

YOU CAN WEAR TERRIBLE SHIRTS
AND GROW MORE FAT
AND EAT THREE POUNDS OF SAUSAGES AT A GO
OR ONLY EAT BREAD AND A PICKLE FOR A WEEK
AND HOARD PENS
AND PENCILS
AND BEERMATS
AND THINGS IN BOXES.

BUT NOW WE MUST HAVE CLOTHES
THAT KEEP US DRY
AND PAY OUR RENT
AND NOT SWEAR IN THE STREET
AND SET A GOOD EXAMPLE
FOR THE CHILDREN

WE WILL HAVE FRIENDS TO DINNER
AND READ THE PAPERS

BUT MAYBE
I OUGHT TO PRACTICE A LITTLE
NOW
SO PEOPLE
WHO KNOW ME
ARE NOT TOO SHOCKED
AND SURPRISED
WHEN SUDDENLY
I AM OLD
AND START
TO WEAR PURPLE

.............................


EARTH PUSHING BACK

IT'S INTERESTING TO NOTE
THAT EACH STEP WE TAKE
UPON THE EARTH
IS RESISTED BY THE EARTH
WITH PRESSURE EQUAL TO OUR WEIGHT
OR ELSE WE WOULD SINK
AS IF INTO A MUDDY PLACE

INTERESTING
THAT THE GOD OF NATURE
WHO MADE ALL THE RULES
PUSHES BACK
WHEN I WALK UPON THE EARTH

A CONTINUAL REMINDER
OF MY NEED FOR HIM
LEST I BE LOST IN A MUDDY PLACE

LEAN ON ME LORD
I NEED TO KNOW YOUR PRESENCE

LEAN ON ME LORD
I LIKE THE THOUGHT
OF HAVING YOU
AROUND

..........................


DANCE AS IF NOBODY IS WATCHING

...........................

YAHUDA BAUER - ISRAELI HISTORIAN

YOU SHALL NOT BE A VICTIM
YOU SHALL NOT BE A PERPETRATOR
ABOVE ALL
YOU SHALL NOT BE A BYSTANDER

----------------------------------


TWELVE DAYS OF CHRISTMAS
AUTHOR UNKNOWN

THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS WAS WRITTEN IN ENGLAND MORE
THAT 400 YRS
AGO BY
CATHOLICS WHO WERE TOLD BY THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND THEY
COULDN'T
EXPRESS
THEIR RELIGIOUS BELIEFS. FEARFUL THAT THE CHILDREN
MIGHT FORGET
THE IMPORTANT
SYMBOLS...AN ALLEGORY WAS WRITTEN. HERE IS WHAT THE
12 DAYS OF
CHRISTMAS
MEANS.

A PARTRIDGE IN A. PEAR TREE
A PARTRIDGE WAS A VALIANT BIRD THAT WOULD FIGHT TO
IT'S DEATH
TO DEFEND IT'S YOUNG - SYMBOL OF CHRIST.
A PARTRIDGE IN A PEAR TREE SIGNIFIES THE CRUCIFIXION
OF JESUS

TWO TURTLEDOVES
THE OFFERING MARY AND JOSEPH BROUGHT WHEN HE WAS 40
DAYS OLD.
TWO TURTLEDOVES REPRESENT THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS.

THREE FRENCH HENS
SYMBOL OF THE RICH AND REPRESENTED THE THREE WISE MEN
WITH GOLD, FRANKINCENSE, AND MYRRH.
THREE FRENCH HENS REPRESENT THE THINGS THAT WILL LAST
-
FAITH, HOPE AND CHARITY (LOVE).

FOUR CALLING BIRDS
FOUR GOSPELS - CALLING FOR PEOPLE TO BE SAVED.
FOUR GOSPELS SING THE SONG OF SALVATION, REFERENCED BY
THE CALLING
BIRDS.

FIVE GOLDEN RINGS
FIRST FIVE BOOKS OF THE OLD TESTAMENT.
THE GREATEST BOOKS TO THE JEWS - WORTH MORE THAN GOLD.
FIVE GOLDEN RINGS ARE THE ORIGINAL BOOKS OF THE BIBLE
GIVEN TO
MOSES.

SIX GEESE A LAYING
EGGS WERE A REMINDER OF NEW LIFE - 6 DAYS OF CREATION.
SIX GEESE A-LAYING SYMBOLIZE THE SIX DAYS OF CREATION.

SEVEN SWANS A SWIMMING
SEVEN GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT - CHANGING US FROM UGLY
DUCKLING
TO SWANS - NEW LIFE IN CHRIST.
SEVEN SWANS STAND FOR THE SEVEN GIFTS OF THE HOLY
SPIRIT.

EIGHT MAIDS A MILKING
EIGHT BEAUTIFUL TEACHINGS OF JESUS KNOWN AS THE
BEATITUDES.
EIGHT MAIDS A-MILKING ARE ACTUALLY THE EIGHT
BEATITUDES FROM THE
BIBLE.

NINE LADIES DANCING
NINE FRUITS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.
NINE FRUITS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT (FROM GALATIANS 5) ARE
DANCING
LADIES.

TEN LORDS A LEAPING
MEN WITH AUTHORITY - GOD'S TEN COMMANDMENTS.
TEN LORDS A-LEAPING ARE THE TEN COMMANDMENTS

ELEVEN PIPERS PIPING
ELEVEN APOSTLES WHO REMAINED FAITHFUL -
PIPED HIS WORD - HE'S ALIVE.
ELEVEN PIPERS PIPING REPRESENT JESUS' FAITHFUL
DISCIPLES.

TWELVE DRUMMERS DRUMMING
REPRESENT THE 12 VITAL CHRISTIAN BELIEFS IN THE
APOSTLES CREED.
FINALLY, 12 DRUMMERS DRUMMING ARE ACTUALLY THE
APOSTLES CREED.

He will leave again.

He will leave again.
Again, I'll be broken, a relic
of that young woman I was when
I stood over his bassinet and
hoped his rash would heal
if I changed to cloth.
……………………………………………………………………………………


He left it out
of sight, as if recalling
my refusal,
when he was a boy,
to buy him one.
The only evidence
it existed, a small
brown square of paper,
slightly buckled,
three holes shot
through at the heart,
lying on the table
by his will.
…………………………………………………………………………….







His head was freshly shaved.
A blue square bandage
on his shoulder covered
the small pox shot they all get
before they ship out to Iraq.
In days he'd be cargo on some army plane,
and I'd be in New York City listening
to his message on my machine.
I save all his messages.

………………………………………………………………………………………….












Last Mother's Day,
when he was incommunicado,
nothing came.
Three days later, a message
in my box; a package,
the mail room closed.
I went out into the lobby,
banged my fist against
the desk. When they
gave it to me, I clutched it
to my chest, sobbing
like an animal.
I spoke to no one,
did not apologize.
I didn't care about the gift.
It was the note I wanted,
the salt from his hand,
the words.
……………………………………………………………………..


Frances Riche