photos and writings by June Friesen, all scripture given in The Message translation
This day is set to commemorate the deaths of two of the first apostles of the Christian church. Even though Paul was not one of the original disciples, after his dramatic conversion he was called an apostle.
As I was considering the lives of both the Apostle Peter and the Apostle Paul, I realize that they are two men who contributed greatly to the spread of the Christian church in the world as it was known in their time. They were both in many respects disliked greatly by the Roman government and leaders as well as the people of Israel, especially the religious leaders of the Jewish people. Today I would like to reflect on a few verses first from Peter and then from Paul to encourage each one of us in our remembering of them, to also take up the challenge they gave: to stand true to Jesus and live totally for His cause.
Peter, who was with the group of people awaiting the descent of the Holy Spirit, was empowered with great wisdom as well as a very bold spirit and he took no time to begin to address the people after the Holy Spirit descended and empowered Jesus’ followers. Here in Acts 3 he calls for the people to come and believe, follow the ways of Jesus and find rest and peace for your spirits.
Acts 3: 19-26 (The Message)
19-23 “Now it’s time to change your ways! Turn to face God so he can wipe away your sins, pour out showers of blessing to refresh you, and send you the Messiah he prepared for you, namely, Jesus. For the time being he must remain out of sight in heaven until everything is restored to order again just the way God, through the preaching of his holy prophets of old, said it would be. Moses, for instance, said, ‘Your God will raise up for you a prophet just like me from your family. Listen to every word he speaks to you. Every last living soul who refuses to listen to that prophet will be wiped out from the people.’ 24-26 “All the prophets from Samuel on down said the same thing, said most emphatically that these days would come. These prophets, along with the covenant God made with your ancestors, are your family tree. God’s covenant-word to Abraham provides the text: ‘By your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed.’ But you are first in line: God, having raised up his Son, sent him to bless you as you turn, one by one, from your evil ways.”
When I consider Peter and Paul particularly, I picture a couple of rather rough-and-scruff-looking men. I definitely do not picture them as three-piece suit and tie kind of people calling others to come to the synagogue/Temple to hear a sermon about the Messiah. No, rather they go to where the people are or where they know the people will come and gather to listen to them. Both Peter and Paul were well versed in the scriptures that were then available as they would have heard them expounded in the Synagogue/Temple. We also know that the scribes and Pharisees followed Jesus around listening to Him and His teaching. They did this it tells us so that they could try and catch Him teaching false things about the Law and Old Testament Scriptures. In this passage Peter is pleading with the people to consider, to think seriously about all of the recent events in their community. Can you not understand even a little bit what Jesus tried to tell you? Will you not open yourselves now to His Spirit and come believe in Him as ‘your Messiah’ today? Before I go further let me share a few verses from Paul that I also really like.
In Acts 9 we have the account of Saul meeting God/Jesus as he was on his way to the city of Damascus to wreak havoc on the Christians there. Many if not all of us know this story readily of God’s blinding visitation on the road as Paul was traveling on his way to lead a persecution of Christians in Damascus. I choose some verses immediately after Saul’s change of heart as well as a couple of verses from Philippians that are favorites of mine from childhood.
19-21 Saul spent a few days getting acquainted with the Damascus disciples, but then went right to work, wasting no time, preaching in the meeting places that this Jesus was the Son of God. They were caught off guard by this and, not at all sure they could trust him, they kept saying, “Isn’t this the man who wreaked havoc in Jerusalem among the believers? And didn’t he come here to do the same thing—arrest us and drag us off to jail in Jerusalem for sentencing by the high priests?” 22 But their suspicions didn’t slow Saul down for even a minute. His momentum was up now and he plowed straight into the opposition, disarming the Damascus Jews and trying to show them that this Jesus was the Messiah.
14-16 Do everything readily and cheerfully—no bickering, no second-guessing allowed! Go out into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in this squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse of good living and of the living God. Carry the light-giving Message into the night so I’ll have good cause to be proud of you on the day that Christ returns. You’ll be living proof that I didn’t go to all this work for nothing. 17 Even if I am executed here and now, I’ll rejoice in being an element in the offering of your faith that you make on Christ’s altar, a part of your rejoicing.
Saul, who from here on I will refer to as Paul had an incredible change of heart as well as attitude. Another thing that I gain from Paul is that his enthusiasm and determination to spread the truth about Jesus was equally as strong in face of the opposition that he now faced from the Jewish persecutors where he had once been the leader.
So how may you and I celebrate/commemorate the lives of Peter and Paul today in 2022? How can we show respect for them and all that they did for the Christian faith that we now embrace? You may have already noticed that I have chosen photos of crosses to be a part of today’s thoughts. It is because history holds that both Peter and Paul met their deaths at the hands of the Romans by crucifixion. Peter, who did not want to be crucified like Jesus, His Lord, asked to be crucified upside down.
I believe that as we choose to remember these two apostles and how much each one of us have benefitted by the lives they lived as well as the recorded letters that they shared with the early Christians we can find strength and courage to face struggles in our lives today. So often I have heard people say that when one chooses to become a follower of Jesus their lives will be so much better as they will have assurance of living in heaven after their earthly death. However, when I look at the followers of Jesus in the New Testament their lives were anything but easy. They were filled with struggles, persecutions, false accusations, prison time and martyrdom. Yet over and over these men stood strong and said that they were only preaching the truth from God/Jesus through the Holy Spirit. So, as we take time to reflect on the lives of Saint Peter and Saint Paul let us be encouraged as well as challenged by their examples to also stand strong in our faith walk with God.
Today I have shared with you some photos that I have taken of crosses. Actually, the blue cross I created out of a photo I took of an old door recently. The final photo is of an altar area in my home where I have placed several crosses I have collected over the years. I am doing this intentionally during this month to remind me of what Peter and Paul faced as early believers yet they remained true to God. May God give each one of us the ability to stand strong and true for God in today’s world as well. Amen and amen.
Available as an online course, sign up here to gain 180 days of access while you work through this retreat at your own pace. Join Lilly Lewin and Christine Sine in the awe of the broad array of summer symbols that can gain spiritual significance for us when we stop and think about them. Everything from beachcombing to putting on suntan lotion can be the inspiration for practices that draw us closer to God.
Ground yourself in the earth and its summer season where you live and find the ways that God is speaking through it – all the details can be found here!
Editor’s Note: This is excerpted from John van de Laar’s work Just Living – A Liturgical Guide to Everyday Justice. You can find more information here or on his site sacredise.com. Photo by Dan Meyers on Unsplash
He has told you, human one, what is good and what the Lord requires from you: to do justice, embrace faithful love, and walk humbly with your God. (CEB)
If caterpillars knew what lay ahead, I wonder if butterflies would even exist. Apparently, new imaginal cells begin to emerge in the caterpillar’s body shortly after it enters the chrysalis. At first the caterpillar’s immune system views them as invaders, and sets out to destroy them. But in time, the imaginal cells overpower this immune response, and the caterpillar is reduced to a kind of goo which then feeds the cells so that they can create the butterfly which is to emerge.
This awe-inspiring metamorphosis offers a striking metaphor for human transformation. Both societies and individuals experience radical change first as a kind of disintegration and only later as an improved reality. The disintegration feels just like a battle between imaginal cells, that carry the image of the new reality, and the old cells that seek to maintain the status quo, and it leaves us feeling rather like that amorphous goo that was once a caterpillar.
Why You Matter
One of the most important imaginal cells that can emerge within our personal and collective consciousness is the one that tells us that we matter. Too many of us go through life with total blindness to our own value—a blindness that is reinforced by religions that make feeling worthless a spiritual virtue. Yet every one of us has a deep and basic need to feel seen, known, and appreciated. When this need is met, we become more whole, peaceful, and resilient in the face of life’s challenges. When it remains unmet, we become increasingly unhealthy, broken, and even destructive to ourselves and those around us.
One of the primary tasks of spirituality is to convince us that we do matter and have dignity simply because we are. There’s the famous story of the little black boy who was told by an arrogant white man that he was worthless. He stood as tall as he could, looked the man in the eye, and proudly stated, “I know I’m somebody because God don’t make no junk!”
When the realisation that we matter sinks into our souls, we can often find ourselves responding in two ways: firstly, we recognise that other people have to matter as much as we do and secondly, we recognise that the world does not value all people equally. The result of these insights is that we may be moved to join the effort to make our world more just and equitable for all. This, of course, is exactly what our spiritual practice is designed to do and it leads to another level of understanding about our value.
Why Else You Matter
It’s a strange truth that for most of us, it is not enough to know that we matter simply because we exist. We also need to know that we will be missed and remembered because our lives have mattered to someone. It is when we believe that our lives make no difference to anyone that we doubt our worth and fall into despair.
This is immensely important, because nothing can change in the world without people who seek to change it—even if only for the sake of one other person. And this is the purpose of our spirituality. It convinces us of our value and then of the value of all others. Then, using our need to matter to someone, it moves us to live a life of justice by making some contribution to the betterment of the world. If we are ever to create a just, compassionate, and peaceful society every such small contribution matters.
Another famous story tells of a boy on the beach where a whole shoal of starfish had come aground. A man watched as the boy picked up a starfish and threw it back into the sea, then picked up another, and another. Finally the man said to the boy, “There are too many. You’re not going to make any difference.” To which the boy replied, holding up the starfish in his hand, “It will make a difference to this one!’
It Matters To Matter
If our lives are to be fulfilled, meaningful, connected, and whole we need to know that we matter, that we are intrinsically valuable, and that we make a difference to the world. If our world is ever to become more unified and equal then we need to know that we all matter and that our contribution helps toward the healing of our society.
Spirituality that makes us feel worthless is not just unhelpful. It is evil. Spirituality that is only about individuals gaining entry to some future heaven is not just selfish. It is cruel. Authentic spirituality always connects us ever more deeply with the divine energy and human dignity within us and all people (and also in non-human beings) and with our unique capacity to leave the world a little better off—because it matters that we matter, and it matters that we know that we matter. That is what will ultimately motivate us to live justly in whatever small ways we can each day. In a time such as the one in which we now live, this simple but profound truth makes all the difference.
Just Living – A Liturgical Guide to Everyday Justice
The twelve meditations in this beautiful full-color book are designed to provide moments of refreshment throughout the day or week. The blending together of prayers, reflections, questions, and photos invites us to pause, reset and refresh ourselves. Rest is such an important part of the rhythm of our lives, not just a weekly rest of Sabbath, but pauses of rest throughout the day to reset our focus and renew our connections to God. Enjoy as a PDF download, or purchase the hard copy here.
You may think that the statement “Don’t take another photo” is a rather radical one for someone who is as keen a photographer as I am. And it is. But I don’t mean quite what you think I mean by this statement. In his book The Little Book of Contemplative Photography Howard Zehr talks about how aggressive, predatory, acquisitive and imperialistic our language and actions associated with photography are. We take photos, we aim our camera, and we shoot a picture then we claim it as our own. Yet none of us own a beautiful sunset, a butterfly basking on a leaf or a bird hovering in the sky. Nor do we own the images of faces snapped in the midst of a war scene or captured from a crowd.
When we do photography, we receive an image that is reflected from the subject. Instead of photography as taking, the, we can envision it as receiving. Instead of a trophy that is hunted, an image is a gift. (The Little Book of Contemplative Photography Howard Zehr p16)
Christine Valters Paintner in Eyes of the Heart, another book on contemplative photography that has inspired me, expresses this same understanding. She suggests we see photography as an act of reverence that allows us to enter more deeply into a knowledge of ourselves, of others, of God, and of God’s creation. When we photograph with this attitude it can become an act of revelation, a process of discovery, out of which we are able to offer others a vision of graced ordinary moments.
Over the years I have combined my favourite photographs with prayers and made them into prayer cards that I know many of you have appreciated. I also have several printed on canvas boards that I rotate on my desk as an ongoing focus of delight and reverence.
It was my Facebook live session with June Friesen a couple of weeks ago in which we talked about the delight of reflecting on our photos that encouraged me to take a more serious look at how I treat my photos. June shared about how she was drawn into a meditative form of writing and spiritual reflections in conjunction with her photos. Like Christine Valters Paintner, it was the practice of Visio Divina that started her on the way and it made me realize how essential this type of practice is for all of us who like photography. Visio Divina means sacred seeing and is essentially the process of applying Lectio Divina to an image.
Visio Divina invites us to see at a more contemplative pace. It invites us to see all there is to see, exploring the entirety of the image. It invites us to see deeply, beyond first and second impressions, below initial ideas, judgments, or understandings. It invites us to be seen, addressed, surprised, and transformed by God who is never limited or tied to any image, but speaks through them.(Praying With Art – Visio Divina)
So I thought I would share a shortened version of this practice here.
Look through your photos and choose one that stands out for you, tugging at your heart-strings with a pull of delight or even of sorrow. It is best if you can sit with your image in your hand but if not, use your computer or phone screen.
Close your eyes and take a few deep breaths in and out, centering yourself on the presence of God. Alternatively you might like to use the prayer above to focus yourself.
Open your eyes and allow your eyes to wander over the entire image. Take some more deep breaths as you notice the shapes, colours, details and symbols. Dwell on the people, the birds and other creatures. Immerse yourself in the details of the image.
What place in the image invites you to rest and savor its details? Allow it to unfold in your imagination. Are there memories or emotions that it stirs? Are there actions or responses it invites you to? Do you think it made you view the image differently?
Write a reflection about the responses your image has stirred.
End with a prayer to God for the revelation you have received.
As a further suggestion, every time you photograph in the next week, try to visualize yourself receiving the image rather than taking it. See it as a gift and offer a prayer to God. What difference does this make to your art of photography?
You might also like to think about the photos you see in the news, especially those of war zones and environmental disaster. I wonder if the way we flick through these each day is another form of unhealthy consumption that we need to reevaluate.
And last but not least, if you have time watch this video of the Facebook live session June and I did. What other thoughts or ideas does it stir?
Prayer cards are available in the shop for many occasions and seasons–from everyday pauses and Lenten ruminations to breath meditations and Advent reflections, enjoy guided prayers and beautiful illustrations designed to delight and draw close. Many are available in single sets, sets of three, and to download–even bundled with other resources!
by Lynne Baab
Editor’s Note: As Christine mentioned in her Meditation Monday, we are reposting some old favorites on the subject of hospitality. This post is adapted and excerpted from a two-part series by Lynne Baab on the subject. You can find Lynne’s original posts here, and here. Additionally, we are including a recipe from our archives as well! The Basil Pesto at the bottom of the post is wonderful to make with summer basil and have on hand for breaking-bread occasions. You can find more basil recipes from the post It’s Basil Time. More recipes and hospitality posts can be found on our Hospitality Resource Page.
Hospitality, The Bible and Jesus
Both the Old and New Testaments encourage hospitality, but one story has shaped my understanding more than any other. On the day of Jesus’ resurrection, a disciple named Cleopas and another person—perhaps a friend, a sibling, or Cleopas’s wife—left Jerusalem before news of the resurrection reached them. Both of them had been eager followers of Jesus, and they walked home to Emmaus disconsolate and discouraged because Jesus had died. A stranger on the road joined their discussion, asking them why they were sad. They told him about Jesus, their hopes about his kingdom, and the dashing of those hopes at his crucifixion. The stranger, extremely well-versed in Jewish history and the Hebrew scriptures, told them his perspective about the life and work of the Messiah.
When Cleopas and his companion reached their home in Emmaus, they invited the stranger in for a meal. When the visitor broke bread at the table and blessed it, they knew instantly that this was Jesus, now resurrected and still alive. After their moment of recognition, he vanished. They thought back to the conversation on the road, and realized the thrill of hearing him explain his own mission in his own words. “Were not our hearts burning within us while he was talking to us on the road, while he was opening the scriptures to us?” (Luke 24:32)
These disciples invited a stranger into their home for a meal. They were the hosts, the ones who asked him in, but at the table this guest turned things upside down. The stranger broke the bread and blessed it, becoming the host. Like Cleopas and his companion, Christian individuals and congregations today are increasingly exploring ways to provide hospitality. As they do, they are experiencing the presence of Jesus, who is present in friend and stranger. God invites us to extend the rich welcome that we ourselves have been offered.
Hospitality plays a role in the Bible from beginning to end. The Jewish sacrificial system involved contributions of food that were consumed in festivals in the Temple. Some of Jesus’ most memorable encounters with individuals occur in the context of hospitality in people’s homes. Two examples are his discussion with Mary and Martha about the “one needful thing” while Martha was preparing a meal (Luke 10:38-42) and Jesus’ extension of loving grace to an outcast woman who washed his feet with her tears in the middle of a dinner (Luke 7:36-50). Several of Jesus’ parables present vivid pictures of feasts; one example is the parable of the great wedding feast in Matthew 22:1-14. In his last meal with his disciples, Jesus invited them to adopt a celebration of remembrance and presence that involves bread and wine.
New Testament believers viewed hospitality as an essential component of ministry. In 1 Timothy, the good works attributed to bishops and widows above reproach include hospitality (1 Timothy 3:2 and 5:10), and being hospitable occurs throughout the epistles in lists of recommended behavior (Romans 12:13, Hebrews 13:2, 1 Peter 4:9).
It is no accident that two of the post-resurrection stories involve Jesus acting as host. In the Emmaus story, Jesus begins as a stranger and guest, but then is revealed to be the host of the meal. In the incident on the beach in Galilee, Jesus helps the disciples catch fish and then cooks it for them (John 21:1-14). Both of these stories are a culmination of the generous and hospitable earthly life of the Son of God. Jesus was hospitable in spirit before his death, speaking with honor and respect to outcasts, and he demonstrated hospitality in concrete forms—involving bread and fish—after his resurrection. We are invited to go into the world with the same spirit and goals that Jesus had (John 17:18). Sometimes we are stranger and guest, and sometimes we are host. Sometimes our hospitality involves food and sometimes we act hospitably in our words or other deeds. In all roles, we are called to be open to the people we encounter in a spirit of hospitality and welcome that reflects the generosity of the God who has welcomed us.
Hospitality As A Call For All Of Life
A handful of books have changed my life, and Making Room: Recovering Hospitality as a Christian Tradition by Christine D. Pohl is one of them. I read it soon after it was released in 1999, and immediately I began to see hospitality as a metaphor for ministry, a metaphor that opened my heart and changed my daily encounters with others.
I was raised by a mother with a distinct and significant gift of hospitality. My childhood memories are full of parties and dinners that my mom hosted. She is an excellent cook, and her extraverted and warm relational style helps people feel welcome in her home. As soon as I moved into my first apartment, I started having people over for meals. When I got married, my husband and I continued that tradition. I deeply enjoy hosting people for meals, and I know I learned that skill and attitude as a child from my very hospitable mother.
Before I read Making Room, the word “hospitality” meant hosting people for meals and having houseguests from time to time. Christine Pohl helped me see hospitality as something bigger, an opportunity to meet the risen Christ in the lives of others, which might involve hosting people for meals or lodging but also means meeting Jesus in conversations and encounters with others in many settings where I am not necessarily the host or a guest. I now believe that every encounter is an opportunity to show hospitality and welcome, and this has shaped my understanding of Christian ministry in all forms.
The Bible is full of commands to be hospitable and models of hospitality. However, the biblical invitation to engage in hospitality goes far beyond specific verses that command it or stories that illustrate it. The deepest invitation to engage in acts of hospitality and welcome comes from the sweep of biblical history that shows the actions of a generous and hospitable God. This history began with God’s invitation to Adam and Eve to dwell in the Garden, and to abstain from eating one particular food. Adam and Eve violated this act of hospitality on God’s part, and the rest of biblical history is the account of God’s continual invitation and welcome to the people God created in love. In the incarnation we see Jesus, who came as a stranger to earth, but showed a profound welcome to the people he encountered.
We are sent into the world in the same way Jesus was sent (John 17:18), and this means trying to be receptive to the gift inside each person we meet. To be truly hospitable is to welcome with tenderness and kindness each person we encounter as a precious reflection of the image of God, even in those moments when we need to be forthright about something important to us. Being hospitable means to learn from everyone, growing as a listener and watching for the ways God is transforming us through the lives of the people we meet. Sometimes we meet people over a meal and sometimes in another setting, but wherever it happens, God calls us to extend a warm welcome in the spirit of Jesus Christ.
Basil Pesto
We love this on bread, pizza dough or mixed through pasta with dried tomatoes
- 1 cup basil leaves
- 1 cup spinach (or other greens)
- 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 cup pine nuts
- 1/4 cup olive oil
Combine all ingredients in a food processor until smooth. Keeps fresh in the fridge for several weeks if you cover with olive oil or can be frozen by ladling into ice cube containers and placing in freezer until solid. then transfer to a plastic bag.
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Looking for hospitality inspiration? We have an entire resource page dedicated to hospitality. Find recipes and reflections on numerous hospitality topics, including Celtic hospitality, prayers, and liturgies. Click on Hospitality for more!
Summer officially started on the calendar this week, June21st…some people are just starting their summer break but many folks in the south have been out of school since the end of May, and some college students have been on summer break since early May. So depending upon where you live, the cup you are drinking from today may be overflowing, or feeling somewhat empty. You may have poured too much into it with an abundance of activities, or you may feel your summer cup is empty and needs new wine!
As you drink your coffee or tea today talk to Jesus about where you are. What’s in your cup?
Are you feeling empty today? Or is your cup filled?
What cup would you like to drink from in the coming days?
the cup of peace…the kind that passes all understanding
the cup of joy…the kind that overflows
the cup of grace… for myself and for other people
the cup of compassion…for myself and others
the cup of rest…overflowing refreshment
the cup of living water, a cup that doesn’t run dry
the cup of new wine…more Holy Spirit…new vision, more power
the cup of forgiveness
the cup of understanding
the cup of love …filled up by Jesus
What have you been holding in your cup that you might need to pour out, or wash out in order to receive these new things? Pour out Bitterness, Anger, Resentment, Fear, Comparison, Condemnation of yourself or someone else? What else?
As you physically wash your cup, ask Jesus to remove and wash away the stuff that is getting in your way.
As you pour yourself a cup of your favorite beverage, ASK JESUS FOR WHAT YOU NEED! ASK JESUS to fill your cup!
Lord, you alone are my portion and my cup;
you make my lot secure. Psalm 16:5
You revive my drooping head;
my cup brims with blessing.Your beauty and love chase after me
every day of my life.
I’m back home in the house of God
for the rest of my life. Psalm 23: 5b-6
HOLD YOUR CUP filled with your favorite tea, coffee, etc and pray
Loving God!
We breathe in your fragrance
We taste and are reminded that you are good.
We breathe in your fragrance and
We confess that we cannot keep pouring out from an empty cup.
Fill our cups with peace, hope, joy and love!
Living Water! Quench our thirst!
We are parched and need you to overflow in us!
Holy Spirit!
Fill us again til we are overflowing!
We drink in your love & receive your wisdom!
We are grateful that you are a God of abundance.
Thank you for making all things new!
In your Name!
Amen
God loves you where you are…with an empty or dirty cup, or if your cup is cracked or chipped.
Jesus longs to fill your cup with love and blessing! Drink in the BLESSING of God today.
©lillylewin and freerangeworship.com
Join Christine Sine for a FREE Webinar on Saturday, June 25th at 9:30 am PT as she discusses her brand-new book and invites you for some fun activities and discussion. If you sign up before June 24th at 9 pm PT, you will be automatically entered into a *giveaway* for Digging Deeper – for giveaway details, visit tinyurl.com/diggingdeepergiveaway or click here. For webinar details and to sign up, visit tinyurl.com/diggingdeeperwebinar or click here.
On June 24, Christian churches around the world will mark the holy day of The Nativity of St. John the Baptist. Additionally, St. John’s Day will be celebrated in many countries as a public holiday.
The church celebrates his birth on this day as it falls six months before Christmas Day. According to the Gospel of Luke, his mother Elizabeth became pregnant six months before the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary announcing her miraculous conception. If you have never read the account of John the Baptist’s conception and birth, today would be a wonderful day to do that. (Luke 1:5-25)
Today is also a marvelous day to reflect on John’s ministry as an adult. My own reflections are guided by the pictured statue of John the Baptist. In 1996, a congregational member gifted me with this statue of the Baptist. She hired an artist to carve his likeness using walnut and oak. The artist used her thirty-four-year-old son’s face as a likeness for John’s face. I have spent hours contemplating on the ministry of John the Baptist through the lens of this work of art.
John was known as a provocative preacher calling others to repentance. As I look at the stature, I notice that John points a finger not at the crowds to rebuke them. Rather, he points toward heaven, proclaiming God and the coming of God’s kingdom. John’s mission was to herald the coming of the Messiah and this he did at the baptism of Jesus. The scriptures tell us that John was executed before the death of Jesus. And yet, I appreciate how the creator of the statue depicts John holding the cross of Christ, proclaiming what is to come historically.
John the Baptist is celebrated as a prophet and preacher. I also think of him as a pastor. He does this by offering us concrete ways to live out our roles as Christians. In my favorite sermon given by John recorded in the Gospel of Luke, John does just that.
“John the Baptist said to the crowds that came out to be baptized by him, ‘Bear fruits worthy of repentance.’ And the crowds asked him, ‘What then should we do?’ In reply he said to them, ‘Whoever has two coats must share with anyone who has none; and whoever has food must do likewise.’ (Luke 3:7, 8, 10-11)
Share your resources, be honest, resist violence. He calls for concrete neighbor-like love to be put into action. He sends the crowd home with the commandment to live their lives fully by practicing loving-kindness.
Interestingly, this day is also referred to as St. John’s Day, a major public holiday in the Western world. Celebrations are held on June 24 and also on the evening before. There will be celebrations in Spain, Portugal, Brazil, Ireland, Scotland, England and Northern Europe. There will be fireworks, parades and revelry and most notably bonfires. For many cultures, St. John’s Day has become a blend of Christian reverence, the celebration of the summer solstice and the midsummer festival.
More simply, St. John’s Day were also quiet celebrations in the Southwest evidenced by this photo of a painting called, “Eve of St. John” by artist Peter Hurd (1904-1984) at his Sentinel Ranch, San Patricio, New Mexico.
St. John’s Day is near the time of the summer solstice. It is likely that the Roman church fixed the Baptist’s day to distract the faithful from the summer solstice festivals. I have been delighted to do just the opposite. I have crafted a Christian church service which celebrates the ministry of John the Baptist together with a celebration of the summer solstice on the 23 or 24 of June.
I see no conflict in celebrating the fire of John’s preaching and legacy alongside celebrating the fire of the sun. And of course, my statue of John is placed on a pedestal for everyone’s contemplation followed by a bonfire outside to give thanks for the sun and longer days of light. It is good to celebrate the warmth of summer and the generosity of the Earth at this time of year in the Northern hemisphere.
Both John the Baptist and summer solstice celebrations celebrate the element of fire. Fire, for both Christians and creation-based spiritualities, represent repentance and cleansing; purification and protection. John the Baptist’s fiery sermons also equated fire with love.
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881-1955) was an interesting French scientist, Jesuit priest, and mystic. He has won the distinction of being claimed as a contributor to the history of Celtic spirituality by John Philip Newell in his most recent book Sacred Earth, Sacred Soul. I think that the following poem by de Chardin does a brilliant job of holding together the two traditions of the Nativity of John the Baptist and St. John’s Day:
That first burst of Fire
from which we came
Love was its name and that
sacred Fire still burns
to create its magic in our hearts.
Someday, after we have
mastered the winds, the waves,
the tides and gravity,
we shall harness for God
the energy of love.
Then for the second time in the history of the world,
Humanity will have discovered
Fire. – Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, Toward the Future
As we celebrate this mystical time of year, let us pray that the Holy Spirit will fill our hearts with the fire of love and the justice of John the Baptist.
TOMORROW IS THE LAST DAY TO ENTER!
That’s right, Christine Sine is giving away two copies of her latest book, Digging Deeper: The Art of Contemplative Gardening!
June 24th is the last day for your entries to be counted! Click here for more information or visit tinyurl.com/DiggingDeeperGiveaway!
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all words and photos by June Friesen Editor’s Note: Make Music Day is a worldwide celebration on June 21st
Why Worldwide Music Day? What is Worldwide Music Day? How may it be celebrated? Or how is it celebrated? As I did some study on this day there was a lot of material that came up. One of the things that I noted was that invitations kept popping up inviting one to take part in different aspects in celebration of music on this day. The noted theme that I found was for there to be ‘Music in the Intersections.’ While it did not seem to give me any real directives, I could not help but think of how there are places and times when music is offered along the street, in the parks, on the street corners where there are intersections. While many of those offering these gifts of music are hoping for someone to drop some money into their collection everyone that is around them or who passes by benefits from the blessing of their music.
When I think of music in the Scriptures I immediately think of the Psalms as well as David. Many times, as a child growing up I wished to be able to play a harp like David did. The Scriptures talk about how his harp playing was soothing and even today harpists are known to go to hospice centers to play for the people there. However, as there was no availability of a harp teacher and/or a harp I had to settle for piano lessons instead which I also learned were/are very soothing for a breaking spirit. In fact, I took piano lessons on the piano my grandmother received for her 16th birthday and I still have that piano today (see photo below).
Here are three short passages from the Psalms that are favorites of mine.
5 That’s the only quiet, secure place in a noisy world,
The perfect getaway, far from the buzz of traffic.6 God holds me head and shoulders above all who try to pull me down.
I’m headed for his place to offer anthems that will raise the roof!
Already I’m singing God-songs; I’m making music to God.92 1-3 What a beautiful thing, God, to give thanks, to sing an anthem to you, the High God!
To announce your love each daybreak, sing your faithful presence all through the night,
Accompanied by dulcimer and harp, the full-bodied music of strings.Hallelujah! Thank God! Pray to him by name! Tell everyone you meet what he has done! Sing him songs, belt out hymns, translate his wonders into music! Honor his holy name with Hallelujahs, you who seek God. Live a happy life! Keep your eyes open for God, watch for his works; be alert for signs of his presence. Remember the world of wonders he has made, his miracles, and the verdicts he’s rendered.
Oh, to give thanks to God in praises and music all night long – all day long. Well, this may not be reality but maybe it is something to consider as one needs to find rest/respite for the inner soul, especially in today’s world of angst. Yes, we can do that in so many different ways as well in today’s world. There are offerings of concerts in so many and varied venues worldwide. There are offerings of recordings by thousands of music artists of all kinds of music – music that expresses praise to God, music that expresses angst of spirit, music that comes out of pain one is experiencing, music that is full of joy and exuberance, and I am sure that you can add many more ideas to this list.
The beginning photo of this article as well as the one just below are both taken at our Phoenix Zoo. During the month of December every year they have what is called Zoo Lights and my most favorite feature is this one on the water. Every year they use different music and several times an hour they play a song and the lights interact with the beat of the music. This is absolutely refreshing to view as well as to listen to. As I write this today I find myself wanting to go and bathe my spirit in this music.
MUSIC REFLECTIONS IN THE DARKNESS
Oh, how music brings a soothing to my soul,
Oh, how it causes my heart to slow,
Oh, how it turns my spirit heavenward,
Oh how it helps me embrace the Spirit of wonder, joy and peace.
When the world around me is filled with darkness,
I need to take a bit of time and pause,
Pause – and consider where God will arise
And bring a soothing to my soul once again.
And then I hear that faint sound –
The sound of a note – alone – but giving a cue,
For all other notes to take up
And blend in a beautiful harmony.
Oh, how quiet it begins –
Oh, how gentle it sounds –
Oh, it is now beginning to swell –
Oh, how my spirit is uniting to it as well.
The music rolls onward in a crescendo –
And dances and waltzes deep into my being –
And I find myself an embodiment of it all –
And soon I am dancing and waltzing as well.
Oh, the healing power of music –
How refreshing and healing it is to my soul –
I pray that today you will as well –
Take some time to welcome dose of healing music as well.
May the Spirit of God sing over you,
May The Spirit of God bathe you in healing,
May the Spirit of God awaken within you
A new spirit of music to share with the world today.
Amen.
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