In honor of the Saint of Gardeners, St. Fiacre Day by Barry Jung —
In the most recent of the 17 years that I’ve lived on the Cambie Corridor in Vancouver, mid-century homes are being demolished and replaced with higher-density buildings. Within a block of us, a row of 6 storey condos will be completed by spring of next year. In another 5 years, the mega re-development of a nearby shopping mall will have towers as tall as 42 storeys. There’ll be over 6500 new residents moving into our neighbourhood.
Despite the uncertainties we have been facing in our neighbourhood the last few years and the drastic changes ahead, we continue to invest our time and resources into it. St. Fiacre, Patron Saint of Gardeners and Carriage(Taxi) Drivers would have been pleased that one of our investments in the neighbourhood is our garden, which also sees a fair bit of moving trucks, taxis and car-shares drive by. In the process of growing flowers and food, we are subverting Vancouver ‘s version of the Seattle Freeze by making connections and cultivating relationships.
Gardening out front has invited conversation and advice from our neighbours. It has also inspired our neighbours to plant their own gardens. The noise and dust of condo construction and volumes of traffic(36,000 vehicles/day) has not deterred us as we remain rooted in this place.
Our garden is for sharing. We share all kinds of vegetables, herbs and flowers. We’ve shared our freshly cut dahlias with strangers walking by and have observed sojourners taking selfies with our colourful sunflowers. Sharing the produce that comes from our garden leads to meaningful connections with our neighbours.
Our free little library out in our garden allows us to share not only books but include seeds, plants, and food from our garden.. It’s not just a vessel for us to offer what we have but it also gives opportunity for others to contribute herbs, potted plants, fresh figs , seeds from their gardens and notes of encouragement and appreciation. This has nurtured us in unexpected ways. Our relationship with our neighbours is not only giving but in the receiving.
In the book of Luke, Jesus talks about the harvest. “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few.”
I have long interpreted this harvest metaphor as, “neighbours ripe to be brought into the Kingdom of God” and “saved”. Recently I’ve looked at this passage from a different perspective using the lens of a gardener. I see clearly that the bounty from a harvest nourishes me, sustains me, gives life to me. It’s Jesus that grows and produces the harvest. I don’t save the harvest and give it life. It’s the harvest that gives me life.
My experience of being in our front yard and engaging with a stranger – a neighbour. – through simple conversations and encounters enlivens me, animates me. My neighbours who are made in the image of God, they are giving me a more meaningful life, they are saving me. My interaction with them is transforming me to be more like Christ. And so I try to make myself more available and more present to the growing number of people in my neighbourhood.
Julie Canlis writes: There’s a sun-engraved sign made of wood scraps in the midst of our garden. It’s seen better days. It’s a reminder to me that God is at work. Growth, transformation, renewal, restoration and reconciliation are taking place. Seeds from plants and simple conversations that are sown in this garden will germinate and eventually grow to provide beauty, shade, fragrance and nourishment. An ecosystem of relationships will flourish. The sign is a testament of my presence in our neighbourhood – that we’re not moving, that we’re sticking it out. But more importantly it’s a signpost of God’s presence— a faithful presence that provides a glimpse of his Kingdom here in my block on Cambie Street as it is in heaven.
“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow”
As our burgeoning neighbourhood transforms into a city within a city, the humble garden plunked right in the middle of it brings to mind the image of the Garden City described in Revelation. I wonder and eagerly anticipate how my story on Cambie street will weave into the Master’s Story. His Story that starts with a garden in a place called Eden and eventually brings us to a City with a garden – A Garden city, a new Eden – where all Creation is healed and all it citizens will experience the fullness of God’s Shalom.
I have hope for our neighbourhood. I have hope for our city, I have hope for all of God’s Creation…. because a garden which has been planted, gives us HOPE to believe in tomorrow.
By Mark Buhling —
I won’t pretend to be an expert on Catholic saints, much less an expert on St. Fiacre of Breuil. My knowledge of St. Fiacre comes mostly from wikipedia. Honestly, I am writing this because of my interest in local, earth friendly food production, food sovereignty, food security and how these can be part of our spiritual conversations. To that end, I was intrigued by Christine Sine’s request for a word about St. Fiacre. Here is what I have discovered in my quick search:
St. Fiacre is the patron saint of, among others, gardners. St. Fiacre was a gardner, an herbalist, a healer, probably an abbot, and probably an introvert. Identifying St. Fiacre as an introvert is, of course, speculation, but it is informed speculation; informed by my own introvert tendencies. If he was an introvert, he was an introvert that often, but apparently not always, required himself to live in community. And not only live in community but to engage in community in such a way as to recognize the burdens of others and ease their suffering though his gift for healing.
Though I do not have the gift of healing, I am, like St. Fiacre, and I suspect, like many of you, a gardener and an introvert that chooses to engage in community. I help manage Englewood Community Farm in Missouri and our best days on the farm are when there is strong community engagement. Our best days on the farm are when we are planting or tending or harvesting together. It is on such days that the hard news of the world fades and the louder voices of beautiful community are ringing. It is on such days that our farm, our common place, our gathering place fully expresses its potential to bring people together. But some days I am gardening alone. Some days I am pulling weeds by myself
This season at the farm we planted a large area of sunflowers. The have grown well and are now well over seven feet tall. They are impressive and have drawn people to the farm. Many have stopped to see them, to come get a closer look, and we are thrilled that our little farm is drawing such attention. But right next to the sunflowers are a few rows of purple hull peas. They are hardly noticed, so low to the ground next to the sunflowers but this small patch is one of my favorite places on the farm this year. Many days this summer I have spent a quiet hour in that patch,enjoying the solitude, the sun, and the tug of war with the weeds (the weeds are winning). Even still, my new awareness of St. Fiacre has helped me appreciate the contrast between the attraction of the tall, bright sunflowers and the low and quiet pea patch. I see the value in both, but my inclination is toward the low and the quiet. My inclination is toward solitude.
It is said that St. Fiacre began his work in Ireland but moved to France looking for peace and quiet. Or as Patrick Duffy writes: “As crowds flocked to him because of his reputation for his holiness and cures, he sailed to France in search of greater solitude.” As he settled in France, he was given a space to plant. A plot on which to grow his herbs and his vegetables. I don’t know if he found all of the quiet he was looking for.
Shall we stop for a moment and absorb this lesson from St. Fiacre: some of us are more compelled by the sunflowers; that which is tall, colorful, and bright. Some of us are drawn closer to the earth, to the low and quiet. May the life of St Fiacre be our guide. May we recognize the need for both community and solitude. And always, may we listen for the whispers of the Spirit of God in our gardens informing us which of these we need each day.
- Patrick Duffy, “Aug 30 – St Fiacre (7th century) patron of gardeners and taxi-drivers” (30 August 2012)
Mark Buhlig is the director of Points on the Wheel, a non profit dedicated to making the world a better place and co pastor at Englewood Baptist Church in Gladstone, Missouri
A prayer by Alicia Dykstra —
Tomorrow (or September 1st for some) we celebrate St Fiacre who had a monastery in Ireland at Cill Fiachra (Kilferagh), Co Kilkenny, and later in France. He is the patron saint of gardeners and taxidrivers. He is also often invoked for healing of cancers and venereal diseases.
You took after the father
Working miracles in a garden
Growing herbs and flowers
Healing the cancers of this world
Seeking solitude digging soil
You heard divine revelations
And your soul was filled
A plenitude of blooms
Enough to serve others
Who came to you for help
The wisdom that comes
From being close to the earth
Getting dirt under your nails
Watching a garden up close
Throughout every season
As we continue to kick off our new Godspace theme, What does your soul long to do? below is a wonderful post by Britni D’Eliso —
I am not a particularly spontaneous person, much to the chagrin of my Enneagram Type 7 husband. I much prefer to plan, generally a few weeks out in advance, and if I’m feeling a bit reckless, maybe plan for a specific evening to “do something unplanned” (does that count?).
Not only does this often make life with two small children a bit frustrating at times, as their mood swings and bowel movements do not always cooperate with “the plan,” but it also makes for a life where adventure does not come easy. When I fill my schedule with lunch dates and house projects, I’m not often flexible for spur of the moment opportunities that might prompt an exciting venture into the unknown. I can find myself living a fairly quiet, controlled life, which generally suits me just fine.
It does, however, make it difficult to write a blog post about Adventuring.
I have had numerous thrilling experiences throughout my life–while traveling, raising babies, and ministering on city streets; but what I am seeking in this season is how to see adventure in the mundane. Can quiet self-reflection and faithfulness in the small things provide experience that still falls within the category of adventure?
I turned 30 this year, and in honor of transitioning into a new decade, I have committed myself to increased understanding about myself and the way I navigate this world. Though it has been mostly quiet work, interwoven throughout the menial tasks of my work life and home life, it has most certainly been an adventure of discovery and insight. Just as God has handcrafted masterpieces of mountain peaks and endless waves for me to explore in nature, he has intricately woven me together in my mother’s womb. There are endless caverns and meadows and mountaintops within our own internal selves, that he has created within us–begging to be explored.
When meeting with my spiritual director recently, God used her to confirm to me that this work of earnest self-discovery is not only worthwhile, but functions as a form of worship and a spiritual practice. Intentionally seeking out how God created me to engage with others, and how he wired me to uniquely interact with him is a sacred way to honor him and his work in me.
As I plan out our week of grocery trips, daycare and house cleaning, I can be aware of the activity happening within me. I can tune into how my mind makes sense of what is around me and how my heart is pulled and I can see God’s handiwork within each small detail. There is an adventure to be had in the quiet spaces, beneath the surface, and God is inviting us to enter in.
Psalm 139:1-16
For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.
1 You have searched me, Lord,
and you know me.
2 You know when I sit and when I rise;
you perceive my thoughts from afar.
3 You discern my going out and my lying down;
you are familiar with all my ways.
4 Before a word is on my tongue
you, Lord, know it completely.
5 You hem me in behind and before,
and you lay your hand upon me.
6 Such knowledge is too wonderful for me,
too lofty for me to attain.
7 Where can I go from your Spirit?
Where can I flee from your presence?
8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there;
if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.
9 If I rise on the wings of the dawn,
if I settle on the far side of the sea,
10 even there your hand will guide me,
your right hand will hold me fast.
11 If I say, “Surely the darkness will hide me
and the light become night around me,”
12 even the darkness will not be dark to you;
the night will shine like the day,
for darkness is as light to you.
13 For you created my inmost being;
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.
15 My frame was not hidden from you
when I was made in the secret place,
when I was woven together in the depths of the earth.
16 Your eyes saw my unformed body;
all the days ordained for me were written in your book
before one of them came to be.
As we begin our new series, What Does Your Soul Long to Do?, I am posting a second resource list. This one is on discernment. I have really enjoyed revisiting some of these books in the last few weeks and appreciate all who recommended books to add to the list. They are recommended by a diverse group of people and are from very diverse perspectives which I always think enriches and strengthens our faith. Some are about discernment for individuals, others about discernment in groups. If there are other suggestions of “must have” books on discernment there is still time to contribute. Just leave your suggestions in the comments.
- Anderson, Hannah: All That Is Good – The Lost Art of Discernment
- Anderson, Keith: A Spirituality of Listening: Living What We Hear
- Armstrong, Karen: The Spiral Staircase
- Au, Wilkie and Noreen Cannon: The Discerning Heart: Exploring the Christian Path
- Barton, Ruth Haley: Pursuing God’s Will Together: A Discernment Practice for Leadership Groups
- Bass, Dorothy: Practicing Our Faith
- Breathnach, Sarah Ban: Simple Abundance: 365 Days to a Balanced and Joyful Life
- Dawn, Marva: Joy in Divine Wisdom: Practices of Discernment from Other Cultures and Christian Traditions (Enduring Questions in Christian Life)
- de Caussade, Jean-Pierre: The Sacrament of the Present Moment
- Dougherty, Rose Mary: Discernment: A Path to Spiritual Awakening
- Farnham, Suzanne G., Hull, Stephanie A., McLean, R. Taylor: Grounded in God, Revised Edition: Listening Hearts Discernment for Group Deliberations and Listening Hearts: 20th Anniversary Edition – Discerning Call In Community
- Fendall, Wood, and Bishop: Practicing Discernment Together: Finding God’s Way Forward in Decision Making
- Freeman, Emily P.: The Next Right Thing: A Simple Soulful Practice For Making Life Decisions
- Funk, Mary Margaret, OSB: Discernment Matters: Listening with the Ear of the Heart
- Glick , Sally Weaver: In Tune with God: The Art of Congregational Discernment
- Levoy, Gregg Michael: Callings: Finding and Following an Authentic Life
- Liebert, Elizabeth: The Way of Discernment: Spiritual Practices for Decision Making
- Fryling, Alice: The Art of Spiritual Listening: Responding to God’s Voice Amid the Noise of Life
- Kelly, Thomas: A Testament of Devotion
- Morris, Danny E.: Discerning God’s Will Together: A Spiritual Practice for the Church
- Morgan, Robert: The Red Sea Rules
- Mueller, Joan.: Faithful Listening: Discernment in Everyday Life
- Nouwen, Henri J.M.: The Wounded Healer: Ministry in Contemporary Society and Discernment – Reading the Signs of Daily Life
- Palmer, Parker: Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation and A Hidden Wholeness
- Robb, Susan: Called: Hearing and Responding to God’s Voice
- Sire, James: The Universe Next Door: A Basic Worldview Catalogue; Habits of the Mind: Intellectual Life As A Christian Calling
- Smith, Gordon: The Voice of Jesus: Prayer and the Witness of the Spirit and Listening to God in Times of Choice: The Art of Discerning God’s Will.
- Teresa of Avila: The Life of Teresa of Jesus: The Autobiography of Teresa of Avila
- Tozer, A.W.: God Still Speaks, Are We Listening?
- Townsend-Evans, Colleen: Start Loving: The Miracle of Forgiveness
- Wink, Walter: Engaging the Powers: Discernment and Resistance in a World of Domination.
For more books on The Art of Listening, check out this resource list.
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by Christine Sine
It’s time to think of a new Godspace theme. Our Read life differently has provided many inspiring insights and ideas and I appreciate all who have contributed over the last couple of months either through posts or comments. I have even changed some of my own practices as a result, digging into the ideas I suggested in The Gift of Wonder and expanding them as the inspiration of awe and wonder continued to flow. I have shed my shoes and walked barefoot (not quite game enough to try Andy Wade’s idea of a barefoot walk round the neighborhood though). And on the west coast of Vancouver Island my beach combing adventures gained new significance, though now I have a new collection of items I need to find a home for. I would love to hear how this theme or your reading of The Gift of Wonder has changed your thinking, or if it has created a new practice for you too.
Discerning a New Theme.
So how do we come up with a new theme?
This time it all began when I met with our associate rector, Danae Ashley a couple of weeks ago. She was busy putting together discernment circles and asked me to help facilitate them, a privilege that unfortunately is impossible with my present travel schedule. What if we make how do we discern the path ahead? the topic for the next few months I wondered? That thought was especially inspired by this profound quote by Henri Nouwen;
(Discernment) is about listening and responding to that place within us where our deepest desires align with God’s desire. As discerning people, we sift through our impulses , motives, and options to discover which ones lead us closer to divine love and compassion for ourselves and other people and which ones lead further away. (Discernment: Reading the Signs of Daily Life xv)
Hilary, my assistant thought it could be a little restricting, so I started mulling over another theme: what nourishes your soul? Then I came across a sketch that I created a couple of months ago with the words What does your soul long to do? I felt it brought my promptings above into focus as understanding what our soul longs to do requires both discernment and soul care. So what does your soul long to do? is our theme for the next couple of months.
I think that the process that I have gone through to define a theme for the next couple of months is the kind of process that we need to consider in all our decisions and directions. As Nouwen says
while discernment begins in solitude, individual seekers of God always come together in community, for Spirit gathers all believers into one body for accountability mutual support. A person honestly seeking to know God’s will and way will choose to be in community (Discernment: Reading the Signs of Daily Life 13)
Begin in solitude
Frame the question that you want to come to a decision about. (For me – What should our Godspace theme be for the next couple of months?)
Relax into the presence of God and open yourself to listen quietly to the presence and instruction of God.
I found this one of my prayers to be helpful at this early stage of the process:
May my heart beat to the rhythm of eternal breath,
My spirit be filled with the wonder of eternal presence,
My life embrace the joy of eternal love.
May I know the Eternal in me, around me, before and behind me,
And welcome the Triune God into every thought and word and deed.
It was a good prayer to help me center myself on the eternal presence of God as a guide in the decision making process.
Listen to Community
My embrace of community in this decision was a little different from my usual kind of process. I needed to listen not just to the nudges of God rising up from within my spirit but also from the diverse voices around me that formed the community that could help me discern.
On this occasion the community that I needed to embrace was unexpected. Our church leadership is outside my usual circle of community, but as Danae and I talked I realized that God had directed me to her (or her to me to be more accurate) to help me discern the way ahead. Her discernment circles inspired me, but I realized that I needed input from the Godspace community before I “set in concrete” the theme we would use.
One of our writers had suggested soul care or What nourishes your soul to me, and I wanted to be able to incorporate or at least honour that suggestion. And when I talked to Hilary, my assistant, she liked that suggestion too.
Then I came across a doodle I created a couple of months ago with the words What does your soul long to do? on it. That’s it I thought. I ran it by Hilary and she was very enthusiastic. So What does your soul long to do is our theme for the next couple of months. I feel it is a question that requires soul nurture and discernment to answer. God continually seeks to reshape our hearts, our live and our participation in community and that is only possible when we take the time to open ourselves to both discernment and soul nurture.
Set Your Heart in the Right Direction.
To want to know God’s plan and purpose without regular prayer and engagement with scripture and God’s people is like trying to bake a cake without assembling the various ingredients. Discernment grows out of the life of faith rooted in community. (Nouwen 16)
Henri Nouwen’s book is such a valuable resource that in some ways I don’t feel I need any others except for the Bible, but here too I realize that a “community” of books and diverse opinions are helpful. So I have pulled out my books on spiritual direction, soul care and discernment. I have asked Facebook friends for their suggestions too. I like to involve as broad and diverse a community as possible so that each of us has the opportunity to discern what God is saying to us, as our spirits are nurtured and strengthened by our own study and our interactions with community.
Last week I reposted an updated version of our Spiritual Direction reading list. Tomorrow I will post one on Discernment. Next week hopefully another on soul care will be added. If you have suggestions for any of these lists let me know.
So my question for today is: What are you doing for soul care and discernment at this season of your life?
NOTE: As an Amazon Affiliate I receive a small amount for purchases made through appropriate links in this post. Thank you for supporting Godspace in this way.
As an Amazon Associate, I receive a small amount for purchases made through appropriate links.
Thank you for supporting Godspace in this way.
When referencing or quoting Godspace Light, please be sure to include the Author (Christine Sine unless otherwise noted), the Title of the article or resource, the Source link where appropriate, and ©Godspacelight.com. Thank you!