In our experience of God’s presence, poetry can help us focus and engage our senses and entire being. Poetry can help us process life and emotions—and see ourselves—in new ways, and thus be open to hearing God say fresh, new things to us. Scripture does this also, of course. In fact, much of the Bible was written as poetry. I have long found soul nourishment and renewed perspective in the Psalms. And how can a person read Song of Solomon and not believe God seeks to woo and reach us through the five senses he has given us? The prophet Isaiah wrote often in poetry. Sometimes poetic expression reaches straight to the heart more effectively than prose.
“Poetry, in capturing the moment, captures the soul,” says poet Mary Harwell Sayler.
I believe God still speaks through poets today. Sometimes with a prophetic voice. Sometimes imparting wisdom. Sometimes bringing clarity. Sometimes lifting the soul to hope and love.
Even if you think you aren’t, you probably are more “into” poetry than you realize. Song lyrics are a type of poetry. Along with the instruments and voices, the words of songs can pierce or soothe our hearts as well as our minds.
Voltaire called poetry “the music of the soul.”
On this World Poetry Day (March 21) I encourage you to begin the practice of including poetry in your devotional reading, meditative prayer, quiet times, and soul care.
Eugene Peterson stated, “People who pray, need to learn poetry.”
But don’t just take my word for it. Listen to these comments from readers who have found poems help them focus on, and open their hearts to, God’s presence and love:
“In our own seasons of suffering, [these poems give us] words to explain the pain, to cry out to God, or to get a grip on our faith.” –Elaine Wright Colvin (after reading I Cry Unto You, O Lord by Sarah Suzanne Noble
“This book is a steady and wise companion for those who read the Bible with real devotion and honest questions.” –Connie Wanek (after reading Bible Poems by Donna Marie Merritt)
“Each one [of these poems] lifts my heart towards God. They have become a part of my morning devotions.” –Bev Coons (reader of PRAISE! Poems by Mary Harwell Sayler)
“So many of the poems provided moments of prayer for me.” ~Jimmie Kepler (speaking of Glimpsing Glory by Catherine Lawton)
Poetry, and all the feelings it represents, connects us to all of humanity’s longings and searchings for God. Here is one of my favorite poems of devotion, written by Irish poet Thomas Moore, about 200 years ago.
MY GOD! SILENT TO THEE!
As, down in the sunless retreats of the ocean,
Sweet flowers are springing no mortal can see,
So, deep in my heart, the still prayer of devotion,
Unheard by the world, rises, silent, to Thee,
My God! Silent, to Thee,–
Pure, warm, silent, to Thee.
As still to the start of its worship, though clouded,
The needle points faithfully o-er the dim sea,
So, dark as I roam, thro’ this wintry world shrouded,
The hope of my spirit turns, trembling, to Thee,
My God! Trembling, to Thee,–
True, fond, trembling, to Thee.
(I took the photo in the Redwoods in Humboldt County, California.)
Preparing for the Garden Walk of Holy Week
In the last few days of his life, Jesus moved from garden to garden from suffering to resurrection.
Join Christine Sine for a Lent retreat that reflects on this journey and prepares for the challenging week that follows Palm Sunday.
Click here to register! We are once again offering several price points to aid those who are students or in economic hardship
A couple of days ago we celebrated the equinox, that day that occurs every six months when the sun sits directly above the Equator. On an equinox, roughly half the planet is light while the other half is dark. Here in the U.S. it is the official start of spring which is a little confusing for me as I celebrated the start of autumn in Australia on March 1st. That is because there are two ways of defining the seasons. Those that use the astronomical seasons change at the equinox, those that use the meteorological seasons changed on March 1st.
The celebration of the changing seasons is something that we all relish. Here in Seattle the daffodils are now in full bloom and flowering trees greet me wherever I go. Unfortunately, this year the changing seasons also made me aware of what a challenging climate environment we face. “There is a rapidly closing window of opportunity to secure a livable and sustainable future for all” according to the latest report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. According to the report, earth is likely to cross a critical threshold for global warming within the next decade, and nations will need to make an immediate and drastic shift away from fossil fuels to prevent the planet from overheating dangerously beyond that level.
News like this can overwhelm us and make us feel that there is no hope of making a difference. It lies very heavily on my heart. Yet there is hope. All of us can make a difference and it begins with changing our perspectives and recognizing the central place that God’s love for creation plays in the biblical story. This is the focus of Saturday’s retreat Preparing for the Garden Walk of Holy Week. As we approach the events of Holy Week this is particularly relevant. Earth participates in each step of the story. From the waving of palms and Jesus’ entry to Jerusalem on a donkey, through the garden of Gethsemane to the crescendo of earthquakes and splitting tombs at the moment of Christ’s crucifixion, and on to Easter when life overcomes death and Jesus is proclaimed as the gardener of the new creation. I believe this retreat will change your experience of Holy Week and your relationship to creation. So don’t forget it is time to sign up.
In yesterday’s Monday Meditation – Walls That Create Barriers to Peace I said “If there is one practice that should be established and reinforced during Lent, it is that of listening. Listening with our ears and our hearts. Listening with a willingness to be changed by what we hear and with a desire to see life differently than we have in the past. What if I rethink who I am not in terms of what Christ has done for me, but in terms of what Christ wants to do through me for others?” This is a time for listening, for rethinking, for refocusing, and for me God’s love for creation is at the centre.
This week to the delight of many, I started posting the beautiful Taize style services from St Andrews Episcopal church again. It was not possible while I was away in Australia so I am very glad they are once again available to refresh and renew us.
Friday was St. Patrick’s Day and Carol Dixon posted a beautiful reflection and worship service for us to enjoy. Then on Saturday Karen and Karen provided another beautiful painting and reflection Love Covers for our enjoyment.
With Palm Sunday only a couple of weeks away I wanted to highlight the resources we have available for Holy Week. My favourite is the Stations of the Cross which provides perspectives from many parts of the world on Jesus’ walk towards the Cross. I also highly recommend our free downloads Maundy Thursday Agape Liturgy and A Journey Into God’s Resurrection-created World.
Many blessings on you as you continue your walk towards Holy Week,
Christine Sine
Photos and Writing by Carol Dixon
Featured photo: Cuthbert’s Isle, Lindisfarne
Opening Prayer (David Adam Tides & Seasons)
Thanks be to the Father, I arise today,
He gives me light, he guides my way.
Thanks be to the Savour, I arise today,
He gives me love, he hears me pray.
Thanks be to the Spirit, I arise today,
He gives me life, with me to stay.
Song: Cuthbert’s Isle (Tune: Whittingham Fair -trad)
1. Behold the beauty of our God,
in vast expanse of sea and sky,
in bobbing seal and cuddy duck,
in tern and puffin’s raucous cry.
2. We sense the imprint in the sand
Aidan and Cuthbert’s feet once trod,
upon their daily pilgrimage
to draw them closer still to God.
3. We catch the whisper of their prayers
in gusts of wind on rippling dunes,
and lapping waves on Cuthbert’s Isle
dance to creation’s joyful tunes.
4. We learn to praise the living God
in service and in solitude,
and draw aside from teeming throng
to work and pray for greater good.
5. The Spirit wings across the air
to touch us with God’s kiss of peace,
and so renewed in heart and mind
our love for all will never cease.
6. All glory be to Christ our strength,
safe haven of the Father’s love,
and praise to God the three in one,
from saints below and saints above.
© Carol Dixon
Carol’s comment: I sang this in Alnwick Castle Guest Hall for the pilgrims travelling from Canterbury to Iona commemorating the 800th anniversary of St Augustine and St Columba in 1997. A wonderful occasion and a great privilege.
Thoughts on St. Cuthbert (from David Adam’s Walking the edges)
In Cuthbert we see someone who has “tuned the five stringed harp”, the human senses, until they vibrate with what is going on around him. When people are insensitive to the mysteries and wonders of life, to the wonderful world or to people, they are not open to the glories of God, which are about them. The more open we become to God, the more open we are to his creation: the more open we are to creation, the more open we become to God.
Cuthbert saw through the false divisions we make between heaven and earth, God and ourselves, other people and ourselves. Cuthbert was aware of a unity of creation that we have become insensitive to, though the modern world is learning once again that nothing stands alone, all things are in unity with other parts of God’s Universe. Heaven is woven into our world, and is here and now. A world viewed with this insight gives us a vision of a world that is ablaze with the glory of God.
We need to reawaken our senses so that they will react to the depth and wonders of the world about us. Too often we have taken a closed-circuit attitude that will not let anything enter that is strange or challenging. We seek to be in control and in so doing limit our vision, our senses and our experiences. The world we live in has many levels and is multidimensional and yet we often opt for a narrow view with a tightly controlled environment.
Prayer
Lord, open my eyes to the wonder of the world
and your presence within it.
Lord open my ears to the calls of creation
and to your voice, quiet and near.
Lord open my heart to the love of others
and to your love, close and real.
Lord open each sense and make me aware
of the wonder and beauty always there.
©David Adam
A time of reflection
In our imaginations let’s go on a pilgrimage around the island, and at each ‘station’ for prayer-
Beginning at St. Cuthbert’s Church
A prayer from St Cuthbert’s
Be still…
From the expansiveness of the skies – to the feathers of the sparrow
from the rhythm of the waves – to the falling of the leaves
from the undulating horizon – to the journey of the sands
the Spirit calls us to observe – the constancy of change
the intricacies of creation, the complexities of life
to be -at one with ourselves
with all that is around us – and with the Divine
to inhabit spaces – where clamour is calmed
questions paused, souls are fed
to become
at home – with change
with rebirth, and with hope
©️ Rachel Poolman, URC minister St Cuthbert’s, Holy Island
Statue of Cuthbert….
Collect for St Cuthbert’s Day
Almighty God,
who called your servant Cuthbert from following the flock
to follow your Son and to be a shepherd of your people:
in your mercy, grant that we, following his example,
may bring those who are lost home to your fold;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
St Mary’s Church from the Heugh
A prayer from St Mary’s
Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known,
Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit,
That we may perfectly love you and worthily magnify your holy name,
Trough Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Heugh…..
As we contemplate your Cross
And think of the sacrifices of islanders
Who gave their lives for others
In the name of peace,
We offer you our prayers, Lord God
For peace in our world today. © Carol Dixon
The Harbour…..
A safe harbour prayer
Lord of earth, ocean and sky, you rule the mighty deep,
your loving hands reach the uttermost part of the sea,
even in rough waters your hand will lead me,
your strong hand will uphold me.
You are my compass, my lighthouse,
my safe haven in the storm,
your grace surpasses the mightiest wave,
protects me in raging winds and treacherous billows!
May your peace keep me whole – spirit, soul and body,
until you come and take me home.
May your Spirit guide me, into your save harbour,
My Redeemer and Lord. Amen. [adptd From The Lutheran Book Of Prayer (1951)]
St Aidan’s Church…..
A voyagers prayer
As St Aidan approached this Holy Isle in a small boat,
travelling in faith and hope, with a vision of discovering
new ways to share your name, Lord Jesus,
and bring your word of hope and love to those in darkness,
may we be open to new opportunities to travel forth in faith
and reach out to those who live in darkness in our world today. © Carol Dixon
Ending at Statue of Aidan….
St. Aidan’s prayer
Leave me alone with God as much as may be.
As the tide draws the waters close upon the shore,
Make me an island, set apart, alone with you,God, holy to you.
Then with the turning of the tide
Prepare me to carry your presence
to the busy world beyond, the world that rushes in on me,
till the waters come again and fold me back to you.
Song: Cuthbert (Tune: Sussex Carol )
St Cuthbert, humble shepherd saint
and hermit on the inner Farne,
who lived a simple life of faith,
praised God, and kept his folk from harm.
On Holy Island he worked and prayed
that all might come to God and be saved.
He blessed the cuddy ducks and seals,
and priests and pilgrims called him friend.
The poor and needy sought him out,
for help and hope, their lives to mend,
learned to set time apart to pray,
care for others and follow Christ’s way.
(Optional last verse)
Still in St Cuthbert’s Church today,
Folk dedicate their lives again,
And strangers come to feel at home
So all are welcomed in Christ’s name.
Praise God for saints who served of old!
May we who serve today be as bold!
© Carol Dixon 2014
Based on St Cuthbert’s Holy Island Mission Statement
We follow the example of St Cuthbert by offering: A place to be apart with God, A simple hospitable welcome, A place of prayer & renewal, A place where strangers feel at home.
Blessing:
May God who guided St Cuthbert throughout his life
Be with us today and always. Amen.
Preparing for the Garden Walk of Holy Week
In the last few days of his life, Jesus moved from garden to garden from suffering to resurrection.
Join Christine Sine for a Lent retreat that reflects on this journey and prepares for the challenging week that follows Palm Sunday.
Click here to register! We are once again offering several price points to aid those who are students or in economic hardship
by Christine Sine
A few weeks ago, the Guardian published the following article: Tear Down these Walls or Get Used to A World of Fear, Separation and Division which made me feel that our challenge to break down walls during Lent was indeed a timely topic. Evidently “the EU/Schengen area is now surrounded or crisscrossed by 19 border or separation fences totalling 2,048km in length, up from 315km in 2014. Similar trends are discernible worldwide.” Walls that split nations in half, or that surround nations to keep out refugees and displaced people are more common than ever. In fact Wikipedia lists 59 such walls throughout the world, most of them designed to curb the movement of refugees and illegal immigrants. .
Walls are not new. The Roman Empire built several including Hadrian’s wall in Britain, designed to keep the warlike Scots out of Roman occupied territory and the Great Wall of China built to keep out the nomadic tribes of Mongolia. What is concerning however is that most of today’s walls have been built in the last 20 years. We live in a very sobering world of division and isolation. As the article in the Guardian says:
These barriers are supposed to fend off military and terrorist threats. But what they mostly do is create obstacles to peace. Often they increase frictions. At best, they freeze enmity in place.
Walls, whether they be physical, emotional or spiritual often create barriers to peace. They highlight that people who are different from us be it because of race, ethnicity, gender orientation or beliefs are not welcome and maybe more importantly their views and ideas are not welcome and are seen to have lesser value than our own. In many cases that are not regarded as having any value at all.
A few weeks ago, in the lead up to Lent, I wrote a post What If We Gave Up Walls for Lent, in which I talked about some of what I see as the keys to creating peace rather than animosity. First we need to really listen to what others are saying. So often we are more interested in voicing our own opinions than in listening, and what others say hardly registers in our consciousness.
If there is one practice that should be established and reinforced during Lent, it is that of listening. Listening with our ears and our hearts. Listening with a willingness to be changed by what we hear and with a desire to see life differently than we have in the past.
What if I rethink who I am not in terms of what Christ has done for me, but in terms of what Christ wants to do through me for others?
What if I read life:
through the lens of laughter and fun?
through the filter of joy and peace?
through the framework of gratitude and thankfulness?
I am starting to think beyond Lent and even beyond Easter, and as I think about breaking down walls in the coming season there are other questions that lodge in my mind.
As the seasons change what do I need to let go of in order to fully enter the richness of this new season?
As I look at our world, what language do I need to change to become a better steward and carer for those who look and think differently from me ?
As I think about my faith what perceptions and understandings need to change in order embrace that which I normally exclude?
And with all these questions revolving in my mind it is not surprising that my initial thoughts have turned to poetry, that fertile ground of exploration and expression for me.
Read life differently,
Read with the desire to break down walls.
Read with love and not with hate,
with compassion and not with judgment,
with generosity and not with scarcity.
See your cup,
not half full,
not half empty,
but overflowing with goodness and light and life.
Read life differently.
Look for the wonder of uniqueness,
not the exclusion of sameness.
Embrace don’t reject,
Forgive don’t condemn,
Seek the Son of God.
Work diligently to know
he who is the way, the truth, the life.
Follow his footsteps
into the way that leads to eternal life
Amen
(c) Christine Sine
Preparing for the Garden Walk of Holy Week
In the last few days of his life, Jesus moved from garden to garden from suffering to resurrection.
Join Christine Sine for a Lent retreat that reflects on this journey and prepares for the challenging week that follows Palm Sunday.
Click here to register! We are once again offering several price points to aid those who are students or in economic hardship
A contemplative service with music in the spirit of Taizé. Carrie Grace Littauer, prayer leader, with music by Kester Limner and Andy Myers. It’s good to be back posting these beautiful contemplative services again.
Thank you for praying with us!
Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained from One License with license #A-710-756.
“Aber Du Weisst” (Taizé song)
“Što Oko Ne Vidje” (What No Eye has Seen) – Taizé song
“Your Word, O Lord, is a Light” (C’est toi ma lampe)
By the Taizé community, copyright 2010, all rights reserved by GIA/Les Presses de Taizé
Permission to podcast/stream the music in this service obtained from One License with license #A-710-756
“Be Thou My Vision” — Folk arrangement
Traditional Irish hymn, public domain. Arrangement by Andrew Myers and Kester Limner, shared under the Creative Commons License, Attribution (CC-BY)
Kyrie written and performed by Kester Limner.
Service readings:
“To see ourselves as we truly are—a wisp of love itself—is perhaps our deepest fear. But it is also our greatest grace. If we are to be the new human, we must begin by embracing love, which always seeks to incarnate itself. Love is enfleshed everywhere. Everywhere the Holy One is shouting and whispering, ‘Let me love you.’ And all that is asked of us is to receive. In reality, that is our life’s work. Nothing more, and certainly nothing less.” -Judy Cannato, Field of Compassion
“Help Us to See” prayer by Andrew King, copyright 2017.
Writing by Karen Wilk and visual art by Karen Tamminga-Paton
Love Covers
“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers a multitude of wrongs.” 1 Peter 4:8
My daughters and I had a conversation about this verse last summer. It needs some midrashing. Surely it does not mean that love just covers up wrongdoing- injustice, abuse, prejudice, discrimination, inequality! They were dissatisfied with the way it could be interpreted. So what does it mean? How does love break down walls and forgive without dismissing, denying or diminishing the magnitude of wrongs done and being done in the world, both near and far? Good questions for Lent. Good questions for pondering Karen Tamminga-Paton’s painting, titled Love Covers. Study it and ponder the poetry…
Love covers
Like a cozy sweater
Comfortably snug
Like a soft blanket
And a warm hug.
Love covers
When we need to see
When it’s time to learn
Or unlearn what used to be
Some say, “I don’t see colour”
I say I want to see more
And know more, honestly
That love might cover
With tender-heartedness
Listening ears, and open-handedness.
For there is no separation
in a hug, we embrace
On par, mutual grace,
A shared, and safe space…
So that in covering, love reveals
Our common humanity
Creator’s inclusivity
The beauty of diverse community
The wonder of colour in unity
The sweetness of multiple harmonies…
BUT how can love cover a multitude of wrongs?
Racist violent brutalities
Bombings with words and weapons,
fatalities
So many systemic biased realities
How can love cover
Our ignorance, and impudence
Such widespread avoidance and discordance?
I have no answer, yet I know:
Love endures, and love with kindness grows,
Love carries, cures, and cares
Love gives, forgives and all things bears
Love, Eternal and Divine,
And we, the heirs
Don’t we know?
Love, love
is at the end of every road
Carrying the heavy,
dirty,
load
Covering all the flaws and vice
In life restoring sacrifice
In willing, woeful suffering–
Un-cover-ing
That we might behold:
Love’s warm embrace unfold
And with gentleness take hold
And change our every day
Compassion on display
Precious poignant tug
Simple, not-so-simple hug
Come, come what may–
Love, hear us when we pray,
Love cover all
Love have Your way.
Find more of Karen Tamminga-Paton’s art on her website here.
Preparing for the Garden Walk of Holy Week
In the last few days of his life, Jesus moved from garden to garden from suffering to resurrection.
Join Christine Sine for a Lent retreat that reflects on this journey and prepares for the challenging week that follows Palm Sunday.
Click here to register! We are once again offering several price points to aid those who are students or in economic hardship
It’s only a week away and it is time to sign up. March 25th I will conduct my annual Lenten retreat Preparing for the Garden Walk of Holy Week. This one has a little different focus than usual and I am very excited about it.
It is another journey into changed perspectives and the breaking down of walls. This retreat is not about gardening. It is about walking with Jesus through all the seasons of creation as he walks from Palm Sunday to Easter resurrection.
To be reconciled to God we must be reconciled to the whole created world and this we catch a glimpse of in Jesus’ walk through Holy Week. Did you know that Palm Sunday resounds with echoes of Sukkot and the celebration of harvest? Shouts of “Hosanna” sound a prayer for Earth’s productivity that echoes again in the birthing of the Christian liturgy of bread and wine inaugurated on Maundy Thursday at the last supper. From there Jesus moves into the garden of Gethsemane, and onward to Golgotha where the potency of Christ’s life, now released in death, reverberates through the earth itself with shakes, the splitting of rocks and even the revival of the dead who rise in witness. Finally we move to the garden of resurrection where Mary “thinks he is the gardener”, that tiny verse of cosmic importance because Jesus is indeed the gardener of the new creation.
Jesus walk through Holy Week is a walk through creation, and the last few days is a journey from a garden of sorrow, through suffering to a garden of resurrection life. Adam and Eve move from a garden paradise to a garden of suffering. Jesus moves from a garden of suffering to the garden of new creation. Recognizing these strong connections between the life ,suffering and death of Christ, and the beautiful creation God gifted us with has become an essential part of my walk during Lent and Easter.
It is an aspect of the Gospel story at all all of us need to embrace and Lent is a perfect season in which to do so.
I hope you will join me on this journey and draw closer to Christ and creation in the process.
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