Journey
This is about my spiritual journey and trying to find what God is calling me to next.
Contemplative Snow Shoveling
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Wed, 03/15/2017 - 20:31It is still dark when I rise,
a late winter storm
having dropped
a heavy blanket
of snow
on the driveway.
I normally spend this hour
in contemplation and study
but I know
it will take me
much longer
to clear
the driveway.
The waning gibbous moon
hangs low in the western sky
flanked by two bright stars,
or perhaps
more likely,
by the planets
Venus
and Saturn.
I lean on my shovel,
relax;
I can feel each muscle
in my body.
Deep breaths.
What is your body telling you?
I feel my heart pounding
within my chest.
It is telling me
to go slowly
to pace myself;
wise advice
for both
the shoveling
and life.
The scape of my shovel
and the scrape
of a distant plow
are joined
by the wind chime
swaying
in the post storm
breeze.
How am I Called to Embody Love in the World?
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Tue, 03/14/2017 - 15:23In the online course I’m currently taking, we have been asked to reflect on the question, “How am I Called to Embody Love in the World?” As I listened to the guided meditation for the week, the question came to me in a different form, what sort of light are you?
We were asked to think about where we feel called to show God’s love. My thoughts drifted among the homeless, the immigrants, the refugees, and those seeking asylum. I thought of those who are strangers among us because of differences in sexual orientation, expression, or gender identity. I thought of those who are strangers among us because they come from different cultures or look different from ourselves.
The reflective exercise invited us to
Take a few minutes to look through the newspapers or magazines and notice if any picture attracts you or stands out for you.
Yet even that question reflects different cultures. I often write about Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants by Marc Prensky. The exercise seems written for the digital immigrants, still reading the newspapers of the old world. Those of us who identify as digital natives, or, if you are like me, a digital aborigine, may find a different formulation of the question resonates more.
Look through your Facebook feed. What articles or pictures catch your attention? What did you chose to share on your feed?
I’ve written about this in the past and I’ll take a quick view of my Facebook feed today, trying to put it into the context of the course.
Sunday was the final service of the priest at the church I attend. She has been a wonderful priest for our parish and will be greatly missed. Her departure was met with the combination of sadness at her departure as well as joy for her and her family in her new adventure as well as for the church that is so fortunate to have her as their new priest. A friend shared a meditation from Henri Nouwen about “Bringing the Spirit Through Leaving” that I reshared with best wishes for our priest. I also reshared various posts from church and from the going away party for the priest.
I continue to share my poems. Two of the most recent ones are centered around grief, inspired in part, by a friend whose husband died a few months ago. Grief, and donuts.
There are posts from an automated feed about connected learning. There are posts about some of the inane comments by members of the current administration. There are posts about health care, racism, visiting detainees, and local politics.
Light of the World
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Tue, 03/14/2017 - 07:06You are the light of the world,
but what sort of light are you?
Are you the campfire
that everyone gathers around
for warmth and companionship,
perhaps to share some sweet food?
Are you the lighthouse
casting a light
for out o’er the sea
warning others
of nearby dangers?
Are you the spotlight
helping others
find something important
or focusing on
an actor on stage?
Are you the lights
at a party or concert
bringing joy
to all who see it?
Are you the flashlight
or candle
after the power has gone out?
Are you moonlight;
a reflection of some greater light?
Where are you going?
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Sat, 02/25/2017 - 21:21The other day, I wrote about going to a dinner and worship service at Yale Divinity School as part of an assignment to make a pilgrimage to a sacred space for a class in English Spirituality and Mysticism I’m currently taking. I’ve been thinking a lot about the words of Walter Hilton, from one of the assigned texts for this week. “I am nothing. I have nothing. I seek one thing.”
It came to mind as I drove to the transfer station. What if we thought of every trip we take, no matter how small or mundane, as part of a spiritual pilgrimage. What if we managed to see each place we visit as a sacred space? Could we approach the town transfer station this way?
“I am nothing.” How contrary this is to the message of today. What if, instead of focusing on people who talk about how great they are and how great they are going to make everything, we focused on Walter Hilton, “I am nothing”?
This is not about self-loathing or denying any of what is great about ourselves, it is simply putting it into perspective. It is counting everything we are and have as nothing compared to the surpassing value of being as compassionate as possible. I’ve written in a secular sort of way in hopes that it will resonate with friends that don’t have much use for religion, but Christians may recognize it as a paraphrase of Philippians 3:8.
“I seek one thing”. What is that one thing you seek? I seek? Perhaps some of the answer is, “I’m not really sure”. That’s okay. Perhaps some of the answer is, to try and put it into some sort of secular spirituality, to become one with all compassion. Perhaps some of the answer to put it into the language of Walter Hilton, is to be recover our imago dei, to recover how we are created in the image of God.
Where are you going?
Postscript: As I prepared to post this on my blog, a few associations came to mind. “By My Side” from Godspell came to mind,
Where are you going?
Where are you going?
Can you take me with you?
For my hand is cold
And needs warmth
Where are you going?
as did, “Plane Wreck at Los Gatos”
Goodbye to my Juan, goodbye, Rosalita,
Adios mis amigos, Jesus y Maria;
You won't have your names when you ride the big airplane,
All they will call you will be "deportees"
One Thing...
Submitted by Aldon Hynes on Thu, 02/23/2017 - 22:34The words of Walter Hilton rattle in my head as I sit in the Commuter Room at Yale Divinity School. “I am nothing. I have nothing. I seek one thing.” It has been nearly two years since I last worshipped at Marquand Chapel at Yale Divinity School. I was there for a conference on poetry and worship and during one of the services, I had a profound experience of the presence of God. It is tempting to try and put the experience in the language of mystics. Was it purgative? Illuminative? Unitive? Some combination of the three? I could easily digress on the human desire, bounded by time and language to find the appropriate category, but that seems wrong. Perhaps the only word to be used is ineffable.
I am currently taking a course on English Spirituality and Mysticism as part of the journey that started taking its current shape at Marquand Chapel two years ago. For this week, we have been reading Walter Hilton and Margery Kempe. One of the assignments is to make a spiritual pilgrimage.
I have been thinking a lot about the pilgrim, the alien, and the immigrant recently. Last Sunday in church we read from Leviticus, “When you reap the harvest of your land, you shall not reap to the very edges of your field, or gather the gleanings of your harvest. You shall not strip your vineyard bare, or gather the fallen grapes of your vineyard; you shall leave them for the poor and the alien”. Afterwards, I went to a meeting of how different faith communities could work together to welcome and care for the alien.
I had thought that perhaps I should make a pilgrimage to a federal court where there are deportation hearings. Perhaps I should make a metaphorical pilgrimage to Jericho, and join brothers and sisters walking around the federal court building praying that the walls of oppression would come down. If not there, perhaps to some church that provides sanctuary for immigrants.
I had thought that perhaps I should make a pilgrimage to some sacred space tied to monastic traditions like Holy Cross Monastery or The Cloisters in New York City. It would be a more complicated trip, logistically.
I had thought that perhaps I should make a pilgrimage to a digital space. A friend of mine recently died, an activist for those differently abled that I met online.
Yet the idea of returning to Marquand Chapel captured my attention. I looked and found that there was an Emmaus Dinner scheduled for Thursday evening, followed by a worship service in the chapel.
The words of Robert Louis Stevenson join my reflections. “To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive”. During the bible study there was talk about the process, of going from point A to point B and I wondered again about the human concept of time. T.S. Eliot bursts into my inner dialog.
Time present and time past
Are both perhaps present in time future,
And time future contained in time past.
If all time is eternally present
All time is unredeemable.
We go around the room introducing ourselves, a mixture of divinity students and professors, one prospective student, and myself. I think back to reading Aelred of Rievaulx and spiritual friendship. I want to find a spiritual friend. I want to be accepted. I want to find some way of getting my process back on track. Should I talk about my pilgrimage or my larger journey as I introduce myself? Can I make some sort of witty remark that will endear me to the others? Hilton’s voice pops up again, “I am nothing. I have nothing. I seek one thing.”
We talked about Colossians 1:15-20 and everyone complimented one another on profound comments. There were wonderful comments about the poetry of the section and explorations of Greek and Hebrew words. Yet I kept coming back to seeking that one thing.
One of the verses said, “all things have been created through him and for him” and that resonates with me. We are created for him. We are good. We are created in the Imago Dei. That one thing, to rediscover my Imago Dei, to clear away my brokenness that hides the Imago Dei. Yeah. Hilton is helping shape my thoughts this evening.
I’m not sure, yet where Margery Kempe fits in. I’m thinking that as a blogger, I share a certain kinship with Kempe and her autobiography. Yes, this is a part of my autobiography, posted online.
Next week, I intend to return to the Emmaus Dinner. The following week, I have two other things going on at the same time and won’t be able to make it. Then, we will be into Lent and a Lenten series will be taking place at the same time as the Emmaus Dinners. I will need to figure out which to go to when.
