Tolerance is not my word

The past two weeks during our Education for Ministry (EFM) class, our lessons for the week and occurrences in the church and our community led us into a discussion of bigotry, its causes and roots. As we talked about such feelings and the problems in the Communion, I looked down at a trivet on our conference table and saw this: "Episcopalians embrace love, inclusion, tolerance and respect for everyone."

Do we? This word, tolerance, has been a thorn in my side. When I read this to the class and stated my dislike of the word tolerance, the reactions from my classmates were almost unilaterally negative. No one had a good feeling about the word.

I had the blessing to come into the church at All Saints, Indianapolis, a parish that is very open and affirming, where gay and straight could just as easily describe the weather or the way a road runs as a person's orientation; a parish where black and white more often describes the victory flag for the "500." I was fortunate to have a community teach me compassion and understanding for everyone.

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The Season of the Spirit

With the coming of Pentecost, the remembrance of our Lord's crucifixion, death, and resurrection become a part of the fabric of our humanity, for we have been invited into a reality that will transform our lives, the letting go of the old self and the embracing of a new self; the putting behind us those things that prevent us from living fully and embracing the abundance that comes only from God.

The Season after Pentecost is the longest season of the Christian Year, from Trinity Sunday until the Feast of Christ the King. This season carries us through the heat of summer into late fall, and in the midst of this ordinary time we celebrate major feasts that continue to recall us to the new milieu of our existence: The Transfiguration (August), The Veneration of Holy Cross (September), and All Saints Day (November). At the heart of our faith is the continual conversion of life that is asked of us as a baptized people, letting go more and more of the old and embracing the new. In the incarnation, God has brought humanity into God through Jesus Christ, and as a result of this mystery we are invited to live more deeply and truly into this reality of Divine Love.

You Will Be Missed!

I am troubled by the news today that Cindy Sheehan, the outspoken critic of the Iraq War, is withdrawing and returning to her native California after standing in the brink to hold before the American people an unpopular view. What is amazing to me is that she has been criticized and denounced by both Republicans and Democrats, from the right and from the left for her position on the war.

It is troubling that we, who hold a different view point, are deaf to those views that we wish to deny and go away. Why can't we listen and learn from one another? Do we really think that someone, or some group, holds all the answers to all the questions regarding the morality of war? Why can't we be open to opposing points of view and allow ourselves to be challenged by the diversity of opinions?

I am sorry that she is returning to "normal" life and departing the market place of ideas. She has contributed well to the ongoing debate, and I am grateful for her presence among us. She has been strong against those things she believes are wrong. Perhaps, as she departs, we may begin to raise our voices against the evils of our day.

The Rule of Saint Benedict

On Humility

As for self-will,
we are forbidden to do our own will
by the Scripture, which says to us,
"Turn away from your own will" (Eccles. 18:30),
and likewise by the prayer in which we ask God
that His will be done in us.
And rightly are we taught not to do our own will
when we take heed to the warning of Scripture:
"There are ways which seem right,
but the ends of them plunge into the depths of hell" (Prov. 16:25);
and also when we tremble at what is said of the careless:
"They are corrupt and have become abominable in their will."

And as for the desires of the flesh,
let us believe with the Prophet that God is ever present to us,
when he says to the Lord,
"Every desire of mine is before You" (Ps. 37:10).