Divine Silence

between the dying
and the helplessness
of the one who keeps vigil:
in the silence is God.

between the brokenness
of a relationship; the
pain of rejection;
the hopelessness
of closure:
in the silence is God.

between the human madness
of war, the dying of young men
and women on the battle field
and the prayers for peace:
in the silence is God.

between all human indifference
to poverty and the cry of
those who suffering:
in the silence is God.

between the tears of the repentant
and the joy of the forgiven:
in the silence is God.

death shows no partiality

he laid
in the hospital bed
that had been
brought to the house.

the sheet and blanket
draped his naked body,
hairless due to
the chemo.

some time he
was found sleeping,
and other times
entertaining:
wearing wigs,
trying on umiaks,
clutching rosaries;
loving his friends,
longing
not to loose them
in death;
frustrated that
he was still
here.

rest in peace,
new friend.

transformation of an illness

she is quiet now
resting in her hospital bed
breathing gently
the oxygen
that she needs;

she is weak,
but eager to be removed
from the ICU
to a room below.
She hopes it will
be tomorrow.

her spirit awakens
when one comes into
the room,
she asks about others
and for a moment
forgets herself
and her illness.

to be with her for
a moment is to be
ministered to;
to sit with her for
awhile is to
know the presence
of Christ in the room;
to rest with her
is to know that you
both are in the
hands of a loving Father.

Clouds On The Horizon

It really goes without saying that the Anglican Communion is quaking all over the world. You would have thought that after Adam and Eve were driven from the garden of Eden that the issues regarding sexuality would have been settled and the faithful would be able to respond to God's call to mission; but the evil one has other plans for us and we will simply have to live through the turbulence that we are presently facing. What has set the Episcopal Church apart from the rest of the Anglican Communion was the ordination of women to the priesthood in 1974; the ordination of an openly gay man as the Bishop of New Hampshire in 2003; and the enthronement of the first female Presiding Bishop within the Communion in 2006. Because of the actions of the Episcopal Church we find ourselves being punished by many within the Communion, even within our own country with several parishes withdrawing from their diocese in order to place themselves under the pastoral care of an African Bishop. Even within our own parish, several who are unhappy about the church's direction have decided that they need to leave and to find a spiritual home in "less" troubling waters.

Is is very sad when the Body of Christ becomes broken by forces that are dark and divisive. When people can no longer talk or listen to one another, and draw lines in the sand, as if they can live without one another. I have always believed that "truth" is to be found "between" and not in any one (supposed) authority; and that it is only through dialogue that people begin to see things differently.

In this Easter Season it is important for people of faith to reflect together on what they truly believe. Christianity is about grace and not simply about morality. It is about Christ on the Cross forgiving us before we knew what we were doing. It is about a love that will not let us go, but claims us for all eternity. If we are truly God's people we will do all we can to invite those who have left home. Yet we must remember that such an invitation is the message of the Good News itself, proclaiming hope to a darkening world.

The Fifth Day of Easter

Almighty and everlasting God, who in the Paschal mystery established the new covenant of reconciliation: Grant that all who have been reborn into the fellowship of Christ's Body may show forth in their lives what they profess by their faith; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Rule of Saint Benedict, Chapter 58

On the Manner of Receiving Brothers

When he is to be received
he promises before all in the oratory
stability,
fidelity to monastic life
and obedience.
This promise he shall make before God and His Saints,
so that if he should ever act otherwise,
he may know that he will be condemned by Him whom he mocks.
Of this promise of his let him draw up a document
in the name of the Saints whose relics are there
and of the Abbot who is present.
Let him write this document with his own hand;
or if he is illiterate, let another write it at his request,
and let the novice put his mark to it.
Then let him place it with his own hand upon the altar;
and when he has placed it there,
let the novice at once intone this verse:
"Receive me, O Lord, according to Your word, and I shall live:
and let me not be confounded in my hope" (Ps. 118[119]:116).
Let the whole community answer this verse three times
and add the "Glory be to the Father."
Then let the novice prostrate himself at each one's feet,
that they may pray for him.
And from that day forward
let him be counted as one of the community.

If he has any property,
let him either give it beforehand to the poor
or by solemn donation bestow it on the monastery,
reserving nothing at all for himself,
as indeed he knows that from that day forward
he will no longer have power even over his own body.
At once, therefore, in the oratory,
let him be divested of his own clothes which he is wearing
and dressed in the clothes of the monastery.
But let the clothes of which he was divested
be put aside in the wardrobe and kept there.
Then if he should ever listen to the persuasions of the devil
and decide to leave the monastery (which God forbid),
he may be divested of the monastic clothes and cast out.
His document, however,
which the Abbot has taken from the altar,
shall not be returned to him, but shall be kept in the monastery.