My Friends–we continue again this week with the wisdom of Fr. Ed Hays…

Kything Day–The Scottish word kything means to be spiritually present to another person. Today, experiment with the practice of being spiritually in communion with someone. As you connect with a friend, a family member or someone you know who is in need, do so by recalling memories of that person, perhaps an image, a common thought or emotion or a scent. In your kything prayer you might strive to picture that person in his or her environment.  Then add to your kything a blessing prayer for whatever needs that person might have on this day. On any day, whenever the thought of someone enters your mind, practice the prayer of kything.  Blessed are those who do not only go to Communion but live in Communion.

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We need each other.  By consciously connecting yourself with those who share the same vision as yours, those with whom you are joined by love and friendship, is to be for them a source of graceful energy.  While invisible to the eye, even the eye of a microscope, love is as real a source of energy as electricity.  Perhaps someday we will have the technology to see love.  For now, we can  only see its powerful effects all around us. Even when we love others at a distance, we see those effects by eyes of faith, for love knows no limits or boundaries.

Blessings on your Lenten Week!

Pastor Kathy

More wisdom from Fr. Ed Hays—

The Feast Day of Your Conception–This week on March 25, we will celebrate the Conception of Jesus, whose birth will be celebrated nine months hence on Christmas.  Today is a feast to remember the day you were conceived in your mother’s womb.  As a symbolic gesture, count down nine months from the date of your birth and turn to that day on the calendar. As one of your Star-Date entries, inscribe it as Conception Day. When we come to that day, remember your father and mother prayerfully and with gratitude.  Then reflect on how, along with their love, the Holy Spirit was also involved as the Spirit of Love in the holy act of your conception.

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If you believe the life begins at conception, then consider measuring your years from that date instead of your birth date. When asked your age, you can playfully give two numbers.

Or you can count six months from your birth date and inscribe that day on your calendar as your half-birthday. Consider throwing a half-a-party for yourself on that day. On your half-birthday you might reverse the usual birthday custom and give gifts to those you love to celebrate the occasion.

Life is a celebration, and the more personal feast days we enjoy the more life can be lived as a joy instead of a duty.

 Dear Friends,

I came upon this reflection from Sr. Joan Chittister this morning and thought it a good one to share for our thoughts and prayer today, and tomorrow. Enjoy! 

Happy Love Day!—Pastor Kathy

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Happy Valentine’s Day
Ananda, the beloved disciple of the Buddha, once asked his teacher about the place of friendship in the spiritual journey. “Master, is friendship half of the spiritual life?” he asked. And the teacher responded, “Nay, Ananda, friendship is the whole of the spiritual life.”

Love is something learned only by the long, hard labor of life. It is sometimes over before we’ve ever known we ever had it. We sometimes destroy it before we appreciate it. We often take it for granted. Every love, whatever happens to it in the long run, teaches us more about ourselves, our needs, our limitations, and our self-centeredness than anything else we can ever experience. As Aldous Huxley wrote: “There isn’t any formula or method. You learn by loving.”

But sometimes, if we’re lucky, we live long enough to grow into it in such a way that because of it we come to recognize the value of life. As the years go by, we come to love flowers and cats and small infants and old ladies and the one person in life who knows how hot we like our coffee. We learn enough about love to allow things to slip away and ourselves to melt into the God whose love made all of it possible. Sometimes we even find a love deep enough, gentle enough, tender enough to detach us from the foam and frills of life, all of which hold us captive to things that cannot satisfy. Sometimes we live long enough to see the face of God in another. Then, in that case, we have loved.

—from 40 Stories to Stir the Soul by Joan Chittister

 

 

Hello Friends,

Being that tomorrow  is the traditional feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary, I thought this updated theology on Mary might be refreshing! It comes from two sister priests. Be enlightened!

Homily for Mary Mother of Jesus Inclusive Catholic Community in Sarasota, Florida on Second Sunday of Advent, Dec. 5, 2015 by Mary Murray and Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP

1. On Tuesday we celebrate the Feast of the Immaculate Conception. The Feast of the Immaculate Conception centers on the belief that Jesus’ mother, the Virgin Mary, was conceived without sin. Pope Pius IX issued an apostolic constitution, known as the Ineffabilis Deus, on December 8, 1854, amidst a situation of seeking to preserve papal power.*Mary and Bridget Mary shared paragraphs in dialogue style, followed by community conversation on homily starter questions below.

2. We believe that the deep meaning of this feast is not only that Mary was filled with grace from the first moment of her existence, but all of us were filled with grace from the first moment of our existence too. Theologians today refer to this as the theology of original blessing. Original sin is a concept that was developed to understand the presence of evil in our world.  No longer does the church teach that babies who die who are not baptized go to Limbo, so we have made progress in the understanding that from the first moment of our existence we are infinitely loved and called to love.

3. Since our community is named after Mary Mother of Jesus, we wanted to share a brief summary of what theologians are offering today to restore Mary to her rightful place as disciple and companion on the journey.  Mary struggled with a unplanned pregnancy. She knew what it meant to be homeless and a refugee, and she was forced into exile in Egypt because of the threat of violence.
4. While it is true that Mary took over the shrines and titles of the Mother Goddess, Mary is not divine, but human. God needs to have her own maternal face. Patricia Fox, Australian theologian refers to God as Mother of Mercy.  This is especially significant during this Holy Year. Mystics like Julian of Norwich calls God, our mother as did the late, John Paul 1. Meister Eckhart, the medieval mystic, reminds us that God needs to be born in every era. Like Mary, we are called to be mothers of Christ today.

5. Neither is Mary the ideal woman whom women should emulate, obedient and subordinate. From medieval times, this image has been dangerous to women’s well-being and resulted in abusive relationships. Think about trying to emulate Mary by becoming a virgin mother: in order to accomplish the one, a woman must sacrifice the other. Not a reasonable goal!
6. Mary was a Jewish woman of faith, a friend of God and prophet. Elizabeth Johnson suggests a beautiful image: “Mary lighting Sabbath lamps as Joseph blesses the bread and wine to begin the Sabbath meal.”  There are many similarities between her life and the lives of poor women today who struggle to feed and clothe their families in tough times.
7. For example, Mary faced the challenges of homelessness. She gave birth in a barn and placed her baby in a manger. This was not a romantic setting in spite of Christmas cards. If you have ever been in a stable, you know it is smelly and filled with creepy, crawly critters.  Shortly after Jesus birth, they became refugees, fleeing for their lives to Egypt. Today, we have millions of people seeking asylum, a similar situation, under grave threat to their lives and well-being.
8. In her book, Abounding in Kindness, Elizabeth Johnson reflects on Mary’s words: “They have no wine.” “” … far from keeping silent, she speaks, far from being passive, she acts, far from being receptive to the wishes of the leading man, she contradicts and persuades him otherwise, far from yielding to a grievous situation, she takes charge, organizing matters so that a bountiful abundance soon flows to those in need.”
9. In our world today we still have as Johnson observes “no wine, no food, no clean drinking water, no housing, education of health care, no employment, no security from rape, no human rights… As her words propel Jesus into action at Cana, her challenging words address the conscience of the church, the Body of Christ in the world today. They have no wine, You have to act.”
10. Mary is the first priest. She is the first who could say: “This is my body and this is my blood.”  So Mary is a visible reminder of the priesthood of the people because all of us can and do say “You are the Body of Christ as we share the Body of Christ with our sisters and brothers, the Body of Christ.
11. Today we focused on Mary, as a model of discipleship as we prepare the way for our God this Advent and the question is how are we doing this?

Homily Starter Reflection Questions for Dialogue:

1. How are we being called today to speak out for and to take action for justice, for peace, for abundance for others?
2. Were there times when you were able to identify a need and take charge in order to help another person or persons?

3. Where are the places today in which “they have no wine and we have to act?”
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