Chrysalis

Lately, I find myself oft walking in pastoral moonlight at the invitation of a rediscovered friend. It is a spiritual walk through grove and field, with much talk of theology and mystical views. We strolled last night ahead of a predicted wind storm. I could smell the charging air. Weather was indeed afoot.

As we walked through a grove, I was struck by how ALIVE the flora seemed. I swear I could feel the trees and plants bursting from their winter quiescence into an exultant sentience. I commented as much.

"Oh," replied my friend, Chris. "That's because we're in the midst of Beltane. It isn't just a one-day celebration. The party is still going on."

In contemporary times, Beltane is celebrated on May 1 - also known as May Day. It is a Celtic festival that marks the midpoint of the spring season. It is characterized by bonfires and birth, by the making and the springing forth of new life. It does make sense that the world would feel especially alive right now.

We walked into a open grass field. "Can you feel it?" I said.

"Indeed," he replied.

"I have the strongest impulse to roll in the grass,"

"Well, then, why don't you?"

So I did. I took off my coat, lay down in the grass and rolled and rolled and rolled. When I finally whumped to a halt on my back, I was so dizzy that the cloudy sky spun for several minutes, making me nauseous. But I laughed delightedly, and the spinning - and my stomach - slowly calmed.

I arose and staggered around. (I have a cranky inner ear.) As I wobbled home, I felt as though I had tumbled in long filaments of spirit-stuff, which were now swathed about me in a light, gauzy cocoon.

The feeling persists today. I wonder what will be born of this chrysalis?

Wings

Wings.
I feel my
WINGS.
Unfurled,
heavy attachments
to my shoulders.
The breeze,
the Holy breeze
as they flap lazily
keeping my spirit aloft.
Wings.
I had forgotten.

Special Treatment

The blessing of the elements in Christian communion is more than just show; it is the unfolding of the miraculous before our eyes, each & every Sunday, as the earthy elements of bread & wine are imbued with the living presence of Christ. We should treat the blessed elements in a special way when service is over.

And we should treat ourselves & each other just as specially, because we too are transformed with the living presence of Christ & the Holy Spirit.

Forgive

Forgive. Forgive. Forgive. Body pain is often symptomatic of what's happening inside our souls. Heal the spirit --> heal the body.

Things You Need to Know, part six

Religious belief & practice are important, because they open us to Spirit. The body & blood of Christ in the Sacrament; the resurrection - these are 'esse', because they are the Spirit-openings into our lives. (Or more correctly, the openings for our lives to travel into Spirit.)

That's why religion is not the enemy. We hear about 'spirituality' vs. 'religion'. Religion is our spirituality developed & put into practice. Without it, spiritual progress doesn't happen, & it remains in the realm of fantasy. Just like great dreams of earthly accomplishment - without a concrete plan, action & follow-through, they remain castles in the air.

But spirituality is not fantasy. It is reality of the deepest & wildest kind. But we cannot travel the path without instruction & guidance & discipline, which is religion.

Things You Need to Know, part five

The point of religion is to make us better able to see Spirit, to BE Spirit. It is deep love, deep passion, deep thought. To be alive, to connect with Spirit - which is every bit of matter, living & quiescent - this is 'esse', the essential part. All the rest comes after.

Things You Need to Know, part four

Spirit is not some ephemeral, intellectual abstract. It is love, it is tangible, it is palpable, it is both real & true.

Things You Need to Know, part three

Matter matters. There is Spirit oozed into every space between the electrons. We cannot separate matter from Spirit. It is all sacred.

Soaring with the Spirit

What would it look like to let go completely, so stop trying to use my own frail strength to forge the godly relationship? I picture the Spirit holding me back to belly, her arms gently & safely around me, as we soar above the earth together - looking down upon the world in mutual delight, pointing out to each other trees, flowers, rocks, people. Delight. Total delight.

That's how we are supposed to live. Held in the unfailing arms of the Spirit, buoyed into a lightness of being that allows us to delight in God's creation, in communion with our Deity, full of love & joy.

Enjoy the Harvest

What do you have for me, God?

He replies, "It's the season of harvest. Relax & enjoy! Look also for opportunities for spiritual harvest, for they will be present." I sense that God desires my joy. To be pleased & excited with the gifts of the harvest touches Him deeply.

God chooses to need us, and our delight pleases Him above all else.

The Gift of Matter

A few years ago, I sat in St. Mary’s Cathedral in Mount Angel, enjoying a choir concert. My son was in the choir, and as the men took a solo section, I could hear his voice, sounding faintly like his father's. I wished my late husband was there to listen. Then it occurred to me that all the departed saints and all the hosts of heaven could very well fit into the vaulted ceiling of the sanctuary, because they were energy, not matter. Perhaps he was there, after all.

And it struck me what a great gift matter is. Spirit beings stand in awe of us because we are matter. We can experience things they cannot. All the angel choirs of heaven cannot produce the sound of a human voice raised in song.

I think that it was not easy for the Eternal to produce matter. Even for an omnipotent Being, this was a Herculean task. But into this effort, the Eternal poured her love – the love of creatures, her children.

And so, our very matter is a gift, a joy, a blessing. Even in our pain, even in our sorrow and our dying, the gift of matter is an awesome one. We sometimes wander this earth feeling clumsy and awkward in our flesh wrapping, but it is a miracle and a blessing. To feel, to see, to smell, to taste and sense with our fleshly bodies is a unique and holy gift.

Little Balls of Spirit-stuff

We are all little balls of Spirit-stuff, rolled lovingly in caring Hands, breathed into Being, and tossed upward into the world to fly free. Our whole lives are a joyful journey forward to our first Home.

Broken Vessels

There is a reason that the Hebrew word for ‘Spirit’ is the same as for ‘breath’. It is not a metaphor, but a reality. With every breath, we truly renew our Spirit. We bring the Holy (eternal, greater) Spirit into our bodies with each inhalation. It is when we cease to bring the eternal into ourselves that our spirit flees and we die.

I have a vision of sinking into holy waters and taking a deep breath of Spirit. The Spirit waters are viscous and I am struck with terror, for I am choking and drowning. My lungs, accustomed to vapid air, are not prepared for the rich nourishment of Spirit.

Then the feeling passes and I feel euphoric. It is as though this is the first time I’ve ever truly breathed. I look down. Through the patchwork of cracks in my shattered self, light shines brightly through, casting a beautiful and complex design upon the Spirit waters around me. I realize that the light is love, pouring through me because of the cracks in my being. I realize that this Love light shines brightest through the most broken vessels. It can shine brightly through me only because of my brokenness.