Then what should we do when the spirit calls us? The first thing we should do is repent. While I was preparing for this reflection in Korea, I had a chance to spend some time with Christian grassroots women activists in Korea. I asked them if there was anything they wanted me to say to the Christians from around the world gathered in Canberra with the theme “Come, Holy Spirit - Renew the Whole Creation.” They told me: “Tell them they don’t have to spend too much energy to call the Spirit because the Spirit is already here with us. Don’t bother calling her all the time. She is busy working hard with us. The only problem is we do not have eyes to see and ears to hear the Spirit, as we are occupied with our greed. So tell them repent!” So sisters and brothers, I give you a “not-so-pleasant” greeting from my sisters, “Repent!” . . . Indeed repentance is the first step in any truthful prayer. Genuine repentance, metanoia, also means a radical change of direction in our individual and communal life. In order to feel the Holy Spirit, we have to turn ourselves to the direction of the wind of life, the direction the Holy Spirit blows.
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Lectio Divina - Fifty-four
Then what should we do when the spirit calls us? The first thing we should do is repent. While I was preparing for this reflection in Korea, I had a chance to spend some time with Christian grassroots women activists in Korea. I asked them if there was anything they wanted me to say to the Christians from around the world gathered in Canberra with the theme “Come, Holy Spirit - Renew the Whole Creation.” They told me: “Tell them they don’t have to spend too much energy to call the Spirit because the Spirit is already here with us. Don’t bother calling her all the time. She is busy working hard with us. The only problem is we do not have eyes to see and ears to hear the Spirit, as we are occupied with our greed. So tell them repent!” So sisters and brothers, I give you a “not-so-pleasant” greeting from my sisters, “Repent!” . . . Indeed repentance is the first step in any truthful prayer. Genuine repentance, metanoia, also means a radical change of direction in our individual and communal life. In order to feel the Holy Spirit, we have to turn ourselves to the direction of the wind of life, the direction the Holy Spirit blows.
Friday, August 21, 2009
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Lectio Divina - Fifty-two
Mohandas Gandhi, quoted in Diana Eck, Encountering God: A Spiritual Journey from Bozeman to Benares. Boston: Beacon Press, 1993, p. 219.
I hold that it is the duty of every cultured man or woman to read sympathetically the scriptures of the world. If we are to respect others' religions as we would have them respect our own, a friendly study of the world's religions is a sacred duty.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Lectio Divina - Fifty-one
The Fifth Precept: Cultivate Don’t-Know Mind
This describes a mind that’s open and receptive. A mind that’s not limited by agendas, roles and expectations. The great Zen teacher Suzuki Roshi, was fond of saying, “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.”
From this vantage point we realize that “not knowing is most intimate.” Understanding this we stay very close to the experience allowing the situation itself to inform our actions. We listen carefully to our own inner voice, sensing our urges, trusting our intuition. We learn to look with fresh eyes.
Sunday, August 2, 2009
Lectio Divina - Fifty
Frank Ostaseski, Founder & Director Metta Institute, Five Precepts
The Fourth Precept: Find a Place of Rest in the Middle of Things
We often think of rest as something that will come when everything else is complete, like when we go on a holiday or when our work is done. We imagine that we can only find rest by changing the conditions of our life. But it is possible to discover rest right in the middle of chaos. It is experienced when we bring our full attention, without distraction, to this moment, to this activity. This place of rest is always available. We need only turn toward it. It’s an aspect of us that’s never sick, is not born, and does not die.
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