Category Archives: Peace and Justice

Merton’s Prayer and 9/11

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As the anniversary of 9/11 approaches, we are witnessing a surge of anti-Muslim attitudes. A Florida church is threatening to burn the Quran. Protesters across the nation are trying to stop the building of mosques. Our fear of the other and our insecurities based on memories of 9/11 are rendering us less than Christian in our approach to real-life situations.

Thomas Merton believed that we find God in the ordinary circumstances of life. He nurtured and developed a great innate ability to cut to the chase, to drill down, to peel back the onion to get at the truth of matters. Merton developed an appreciation for world religions and took to heart the Vatican II teaching that we are to honor that which is true and holy in other religions. Much of Merton’s contemplative spirituality comes from Sufism–the mystical tradition in Islam. In his final pilgrimage–the Asian journey–Merton encountered the truth and beauty of Eastern religions. Some have speculated that Merton was about to abandon Catholicism and his monastic vows; however, Abbot John Eudes Bamberger writes that there is no justification for this conclusion. Continue reading →

Come and See

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Monastery of the Holy Spirit Church

Jesus issues an invitation to Nathanael, a.k.a. Bartholomew, “Come and SEE.” Entering into a relationship with Jesus is about seeing. Alla Anthony DeMello, Jesus is calling on us to awake, open our eyes, see what is real.

Last week was blessed for us. I had the opportunity and privilege of co-leading a Merton retreat at the Monastery of Our Lady of the Holy Spirit in Conyers, GA with Father James Behrens. This monastery is one of my favorite go-to places. Getting up for Vigils, chanting the Psalms with the monks, visiting with Father Anthony, Father Tom Francis and Brother Chaminade are always rich experiences. Just driving in down the magnolia lined drive lets you know you are on holy ground.

For me, the retreat turned out to be about “seeing.” Father James has a great sense of Merton finding the sacred in the ordinary. This was a new learning for me. As Merton studied Zen and developed his perception of seeing as a photographer, he could see the divine in the ordinary and this seeing needed no mediation via words or descriptions. Continue reading →

Matthew 23 for Today

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Matthew 23 for Today

Jesus spoke to the people and to the faithful saying, “The Pope, many bishops, some priests, and even some of the self-righteous laity have taken their seat on the chair of Peter. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you, but do not follow their example. For they preach but they do not practice. Doctrine is more important to them than relationships. Right belief is more important than right practice. They tie up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them. All their works are performed to be seen. They have turned Jesus’ community of inclusive table fellowship into an exclusive club. They don their cassocks and birettas and lengthen their coppa magnas. They love places of honor at state banquets, seats of honor in cathedrals and churches, greeting in the marketplace and honorific titles. Call no one Your Holiness because God alone is Holy. Call no one Your Excellency because God alone is Excellent. Call no one Father because you have but one Father in heaven. Call no one Master because Christ alone is your Master. The greatest among you must be your servant. The most exalted among you must wash your feet. Whoever exalts him/herself will be brought low. But whoever humbles him/herself will be exalted.

Missed Opportunities

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Speaking of missed opportunities, I wonder how many homilists failed to see the message running through today’s scripture readings for the Feast of the Assumption. It is hard to see how we can preach about Mary and omit significant parts of her great hymn—the Magnificat.

Richard Rohr says that, when we lost the mystical element of our faith, we turned to pietism. Religion came to focus on a personal relationship between the person and God. In Catholicism, it was cast as having to save one’s soul. Pietism focuses on personal practice designed to assure one’s own salvation. This too is the thrust of much evangelical faith—have you given your life to Jesus? Continue reading →

Cabernet du Washwater

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Wine at CanaOur parish mission was led by Fr. Don Blanchard, a retired priest from Baton Rouge, LA. He reminded us that Jesus used water from the purification jars–water intended for people to wash before the wedding. As Christians we are called to make wine from the wash-water–the ordinary, common, nitty-gritty things of life. [Click on image to read label.] Thank you, Fr. Don, for a great thought!

Garbling in the Kin-dom

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Drying the Herbs before Garbling Them

Alaska was an amazing trip. Often our tour guides would stop and gather wild flowers for us to examine. Many of the flowers and plants had medicinal qualities and were used by the native peoples for healing.

Also, when I boarded the ship for the cruise, my left knee was killing me. I had three sessions of acupuncture and started taking medicinal herbs. After a while, my knee was 90% better. I must report that my traditional medical doctor was not too enthusiastic about alternative medicine and herbs but, I thought, “I am the one in charge.”

Upon returning to the North Georgia Mountains in the Southern Appalachians, I discovered that the Institute for Continuous Learning at Young Harris College in Young Harris, GA was offering a six session course on the “Medicinal Garden.” Hmm! Here we go again—plants with medicinal qualities. Maybe I should take the course. It was a good decision. After all the “tea leaves” all around me were introducing me to the new world of medicinal plants. The Southern Appalachians are blessed with an abundance of healing plants. The Native Cherokee Indians knew this and used the gifts from the Creator for healing. Continue reading →

Isaiah and Glaciers

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Meade Glacier (Click for larger view)

At the beginning of the first book of Isaiah, Isaiah stands in awe and wonder before the glory of God. He saw God’s garment filling the temple. Seraphim with six pairs of wings surrounded God. “Holy, holy, holy, holy is the Creator. All the earth is filled with God’s glory (doxa)!”

Humbled, Isaiah is profoundly aware of his own nothingness before the doxa of the Creator. Isaiah was aware of his “unclean lips” as he lived among a people of unclean lips; however, the Creator sent forth an angel with a burning coal to  purify Isaiah. Then, and only then, was Isaiah ready to go forth. “Here, send me.” Send me forth to proclaim the glory and grandeur of the creator. Continue reading →

Famine, Greed and the Fourth of July

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Grizzly with Cubs in Denali

Amos is one of my favorite prophets. When Amos prophesies at the king’s shrine, the king tells him to get lost. Amos does not back down. He continues to speak. In effect, he tells the king to stick it in his ear.

In today’s reading, Amos address the injustices done to the poor. He denounces exploitation, faulty scales, and anything that oppresses people. He issues a strong warning to the ruling elite.

Now Amos, in his day, believed that God directly punished injustice. Today we are more likely to say the what goes around comes around. When people treat others unjustly it usually redounds upon their own heads in some way. Alaska’s indigenous people say, “Live Carefully—What You Do Will Come Back to You.” Continue reading →

Peace, Healing, and the Creator

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[Last night—June 29, 2007—I led the meditation at the healing service at Good shepherd Church in Hayesville, NC where I am engaged in healing ministry. I began the Soaking Prayer Service by reading from Daniel 3 adapted to reflect glaciers and Alaskan wildlife.}

Quaker Thomas R. Kelly wrote:

Do we live in the steady peace of God, a peace down at the very depths of our souls. . . ? It is a life that is freed from strain and anxiety and hurry, for something of the Cosmic Presence of God becomes ours.

This is the Cosmic Presence the three men in Daniel sing about amid the fires of travail. It is the Cosmic Presence which sustains us.

I do not know about you but when I read that God rested on the seventh day, I tend to think of creation as a one-time event. But that is not the case. All life and the universe flared forth from the Creator some 14 billion years ago.  And it is still flaring forth.

As I stood on the ice of the Meade Glacier near Skagway, Alaska, I stopped and looked. It was a graced moment. I was filled with a sense of wonder and awe. This was not an inert, dead piece of ice. It was a living thing ever changing. Walking about the glacier we found water roaring down and creating deep crevasses. The water rumbled. Maybe that is the way justice roars down. Creation is groaning to its fulfillment. The glacier itself, filled with ice worms, expands and contracts, freezes and melts. It has carved deep gorges as it dislodged huge boulders which now lay on its surface. I was filled with a sense of the power and the Cosmic Presence of God.

Glaciers, magnificent snow-capped mountains, a grizzly with her two cubs, a wolf, moose, elk, caribou, golden and bald eagles soaring and Denali—Mt. McKinley—rising 20,320 feet into a cloud laced blue sky—these all immersed me in the power and presence of God.

Denali--Mount McKinley 20,320 feet Click for bigger picture of Great One c. J. P. Mahon, 2010

I did not seemed to need to follow my usual daily practice of scripture reading and reflection. I was immersed in God’s primary revelation—creation.

Since I have returned I am seeing life differently. I delight in walking in the power and presence of God daily. I am living in the steady peace of God. Peripheral things seem to matter less.

Peace—shalom, salaam—health, well-being. Wholeness is ours because the Creator is still alive and at work. As Thomas Kelly says, “this is an abiding, enduring peace which never fails.” God is making all things new. God is healing us and making us whole. God is gifting us with peace, with shalom. God is wiping away every tear.

In the words of Julian of Norwich, “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”

Wisdom of Alaska’s First Nation People

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Lake in Alaska

We had a wonderful trip to the Yukon and Alaska. This picture is just one of many magnificent scenes. Enjoy reflected grandeur. The Creator is alive and well in Alaska. Be sure to click on the picture for a full screen view.

We also visited the Alaska native Heritage Center. I really like their statement of Universal Values.

Universal Values of Alaska’s Indigenous People

Show Respect to Others—Each Person Has a Special Gift

Share What You Have—Giving makes You Richer

Know Who You Are—You Are a Reflection of Your Family

Understanding and Adapting to What Life Brings—You Cannot Control Many Things

Have Patience—Some Things Cannot Be Rushed

Live Carefully—What You Do Will Come Back to You

Take Care of Others—You Cannot Live Without Them

Honor Your Elders—They Show You the Way in Life

Pray for Guidance—Many Things Are Not Known

See Connections—All Things Are Related

Alaska Native Heritage Center

Cultural Advisory Committee