Unconditional Love

Loving and Making God’s Unconditional Love Visible

“Whenever contrary to the world’s vindictiveness, we love our enemy, we exhibit something of the perfect love of God. Whenever we forgive instead of getting angry at one another, bless instead of cursing one another, tend to one another’s wounds instead of rubbing salt into them, hearten instead of discouraging one another, give hope instead of driving one another to despair, hug instead of harassing one another, welcome instead of cold-shouldering one another, thank instead of criticizing one another, praise instead of maligning one another...in short, whenever we opt for and not against one another, we make God’s unconditional love visible; we are diminishing violence and giving birth to a new community.”—Henri Nouwen in You Are the Beloved (Convergent Books 2017).

I share pictures of those I know who give unconditional love, members of my family, and, of course, Christ, even on the cross.

My image is that I am a loving person.

Nouwen proves me wrong.

 I rarely love my enemy or anyone who harms me, my family, or my friends.

 I am just scraping the surface of forgiveness.

I less frequently bless, as my excuse is that deacons are not supposed to bless! Sounds like a Pharisee!

I know subtle methods of rubbing salt into wounds.

I also have mastered the cold shoulder.

 I often forget to thank others for what they do. 

I try to encourage others, and I try to offer hope, especially to those grieving. However, I could do better by encouraging and offering hope to those I disagree with.

So, Nouwen has given us a Lenten list of loving and unloving practices to pray that the Spirit will change in us.

I also have a part. I am to stop and pause when I have an opportunity to show love or not show love in a multitude of daily situations.

 Let us pray that each other may love.

Joanna. https://www.joannaseibert.com/

 

 

Phyllis Tickle: Divine Hours

Phyllis Tickle: Divine Hours

“Prayer is a nonlocative, nongeographic space that one enters at one’s own peril, for it houses God during those few moments of one’s presence there, and what is there will most surely change everything that comes into it.”—Jon Sweeney, ed., Phyllis Tickle in Phyllis Tickle: Essential Spiritual Writings (Church Publishing, 2018), p. 93.

Phyllis  Tickle’s birthday was yesterday. She died in September 2015. Every year, I try to remember this outstanding writer who took time out of her amazing schedule to help me with my writing for so many years.

Phyllis Tickle, founding religion editor of Publishers Weekly, was a prolific writer and incredible lecturer, rarely speaking from notes. She was also a great mentor and friend. My thank-yous to her are feeble attempts to continue the kindness and encouragement she showed me.

She is remembered for her analysis of the Emergent Christian Church, but I most treasure her Divine Hours, a series of books of observance of the fixed hour of prayer for spring, summer, fall, and winter.

I know she not only wrote about it, but she also practiced it. I remember seeing her slipping away at meetings for a few minutes to pray at one of the fixed hours of the morning, midday, vespers, or compline. Phyllis’ books allow us to follow a set prayer time, no matter where we are in time or place. She brought an ancient rule of life back to modern times and reminded us how this would change our lives. She taught us that we would never be the same after experiencing the practice.

I am not as faithful as Phyllis, but instead, I practice the fixed hours of prayer at certain seasons of the year, sometimes for only a week or a month and sometimes for a whole season.

Lent is an excellent time to start.

Joanna    https://www.joannaseibert.com/

 

 

 

 

Crafton: Praying for Others

Crafton: Praying for Others

“I can compare prayer to a river-strong, clean, swift, carrying everything along in its powerful current. When I pray, I have stepped into the river and allowed it to carry me. When I pray for you, I have taken your hand, and together, we step into the river and let it carry us with power.” —Barbara Crafton in The AlsoLife (Morehouse 2016), p. 128.

barbara crafton

 Episcopal priest and well-known speaker and writer Barbara Crafton taught us a different view of prayer at a Lenten retreat at St. Mark’s about her book, The Courage to Grow Old.

Hers was a surrender prayer, a prayer of few words, feeling the power of prayer as we pray, bringing others with us into prayer. It is prayer that comes with sitting, swimming, or walking in silence and simply waiting for the Spirit’s lead.

Swimming once was a favorite exercise. I could visualize those in my prayers swimming or walking in the water with me. However, Crafton gives us an even more powerful image of swimming in a river or ocean, where we surrender to let the current or Spirit move us.

Crafton also writes about prayer as connecting ourselves and aligning ourselves with the energy of the love of God. Prayer is love, loving God, ourselves, and our neighbor.  

Some people imagine Jesus in prayer, walk with or carry friends to Jesus, and leave the person they pray for in Jesus’ arms. I often used this prayer image when praying for my children and grandchildren.

For some, kneeling at the rail for the Eucharist is an image used in prayer. We can imagine walking with or bringing our friends in need in prayer to that rail and kneeling with and beside them.

This image also helps us pray for enemies or those with whom we are having difficulty. It is hard to keep hate in our hearts when our enemies kneel beside us, waiting as we are for the body and blood of Christ.

You can say daily prayers with Barbara Crafton on her Facebook page.