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It's really amazing the energy and fervour with which our community is
attacked for our faith. What is more amazing is that, after all these
years, we still hear these strident voices. Usually we manage to shut
out particular frequencies to which we are subjected when these become
sources of irritation, yet we allow judgements passed by self-righteous
fundamentalists to irritate us. Sometimes those voices rise from within
our own community, issuing from the lips of those who are insecure,
frightened or filled with guilt and self-loathing. Such attacks would
be ridiculed were they subjected to the rigorous cross-examination of a
case brought to trial. Yet because these judgmental statements are
made by "respectable" men and women who declare themselves to be God's
spokespersons they are deemed to carry the weight of God's approval. If
the words written and spoken had no effect on the lives of our families,
our friends, our governmental institutions and legislators, our press,
or our educators we could choose to ignore them and their proponents.
But the truth is, they do affect our lives, and the lives of those
around us, to the highest levels of government. Many of the rural youth
suicides in Australia at this point in time can be traced directly, or
indirectly, to the hatred directed against us. September 1999 brought
unbelievable pain in its wake as four young gay men in my region chose
suicide over life during a ten day period.
Where do we find renewal for our strength?
I wonder how often we have sung, "They that wait upon the Lord will
renew their strength"? Here lies the truth of our renewal, our intimate
and unceasing relationship with God. Waiting upon God! Not rushing
hither and thither as if we were trying to put out brush fires with our
bare hands, but waiting upon God. Such a relationship develops until it
enfolds us every moment of our lives and moderates each and every word
and action.
When we answer God's invitation to "Come" we discover that we are all
sons and daughters loved by God. This is a truth no person can ever
snatch from us, no matter what methods of persuasion they use.
Scripture offers this truth in both Testaments: In Jeremiah 31: 3: we
read,-- The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: "I have loved you
with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with loving-kindness.",
John 3: 16, states "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and
only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal
life." Priest and author Henri Nouwen in writing on the topic of God,s
love for us draws first on the Scriptural use of the word "Beloved" as
he proceeds to expound the truth that we are "Beloved of God." As we
accept and experience the intimacy of our relationship as God's Beloved
we become changed. We begin to grasp the dimensions of God's love for
us, and find our security and peace in the presence of God. Knowing God
chooses us to be Beloved brings joy and praise into our lives and our
hearts sing with God's love. As we draw ever closer to God we find that
we draw God's presence into all the events of our days. The intimacy
established by prayer continues regardless of any distractions we
encounter, even in the face of seemingly impossible odds.
This intimacy finds its source in the silences between the words we
utter in prayer. Just as God's voice to Elijah was not in the mighty
wind, the earthquake, nor the fire, but in the gentle whisper, so it is
in the stillness of our bodies and minds that we hear God's voice more
clearly. Psalm 46: 10 offers this advice, "Be still, and know that I
am God," while in Isaiah 32: 17 we read, "And the work of
righteousness shall be peace; and the effect of righteousness, quietness
and assurance forever." Peace and stillness in the presence of God
provide an oasis for our soul's refreshment. Many Christians have
reclaimed centering prayer as the foundation for their prayer life.
Centering prayer focuses our thoughts and spirits on truths which are
pinpointed in this process. Meditation is also a means of focusing our
minds on particular texts or events and allowing God to unfold the full
meaning of these worlds. We begin to experience simple yet powerful
truths within the silence we have created. There is also a passion
springing up within the hearts of many Christians to revive the practice
of treading labyrinths paths as they focus on meditative, centering
prayer. Unlike the maze, which in many ways reflects life with its many
dead ends and false trails, the labyrinth has one path which leads to
its center, thus reflecting our journey to the heart of God.
Many religions and faiths use repetition to inscribe upon the believers,
hearts and minds those words on which the foundation of their faith is
built. The Shema, the most holy statement of the Jewish faith, is
recited not only each morning and evening, but also to the newly born
babe, and to those at the point of death. We may, as do lovers, commit
each precious word spoken by our Beloved God to our memories. When
access to printed material is denied, as it has been denied during our
own life-times, Scripture committed to memory will provide our spiritual
nourishment. With God's words resounding in our minds and hearts no
matter what our situation, we may echo Paul's words, "For I am convinced
that neither death nor life; neither angels nor demons, neither the
present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor
anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love
of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8: 38-39).
We also find strength and nourishment through interaction with
like-minded Christians. The body of Christ, the Church, is composed of
individuals who have vowed to serve God and humanity as did Jesus.
Scripture speaks much about friends, true friends and false friends
alike, but for us in the passage in John 15: 9-17 we hear Jesus, words
on his expectation of friendship. According to our Saviour, friends
love one another with the same loving that he showed his disciples, with
the same loving that he was accustomed to share with God. Again in this
passage we hear Jesus, assertion that it is not we who choose him, but
always he who chooses those he claims as friends and co-workers for the
Dominion of God.
Just as Jesus took time to inquire after the problems which beset his
friends and their families, so in true Christian circles we encounter
this genuine concern for the emotional, physical and spiritual health of
one another. Here is a willingness to assist practically, and a sharing
of assets. Judgement is absent, for Christ demanded we forgo judgement
- that being the prerogative of God. In honesty and love we become a
community prepared to listen to one another, to bear one another's
burdens, and to strengthen one another by sharing our own experiences
and understanding. As a community of faith, regardless of our
geographic location, our denomination, age, gender, abilities and
able-ness, we empower one another as we prayerfully bring all our
concerns before God. The Holy Spirit fills and controls our lives,
words and actions so that when we encounter hateful words or
circumstances, we stand together testifying to the truth of God's holy
presence in our lives. It matters not what is said of us, or how we
are rebuked by those who claim to have insight into God's mind, or
whether like sharks in a blood frenzy they attack, determined to have
justice rather than forgiveness and the law rather than love, for our
security and strength lie in Jesus.
The Beatitudes allow us an insight into the mind of God. "Blessed are
the peacemakers," our Saviour said, and peace is a gift we can offer the
world, as we draw our love and forgiveness from the One who could extend
love and forgiveness at Calvary. Peace rather than retaliation,
forgiveness rather than retribution, love rather than fragmentation -
all have their source in the strength we draw from the Holy Spirit.
Peacemakers constantly offer themselves on the altar of love, prepared
to sacrifice all for the sake of love. Not for them the verbal violence
directed by those who have not yet discovered the depths of peace
acquired during our interaction with God. Instead, like a cool breeze
in summer, peacemakers offer love's refreshment where fires of anger and
hate abound. We extend the cup of life, drawn from the wells of
salvation, to all including those who believe in a God who first
marginalises, and then condemns the marginalised. It is only when, in
our own insecurity and fear, we turn our eyes from Jesus that we falter
in life's race, in our quest to perform the work God has uniquely for
us. Yet all is not lost, for God waits, starting pistol in hand, while
we fidget at the starting blocks. Perhaps our shoes are not laced
correctly, perhaps our hair has blown into our eyes, maybe we're
straightening our shorts - while God continues to wait.
We have only one day at a time to experience. It is we who choose
whether to draw our confidence, courage and strength from God in whom
our lives are centered as we meet the challenges and opportunities each
day presents. Perhaps some days we may choose to draw on our own
strength and certainties. But, as we are finite, so these too are
finite, and we will surely become discouraged and defeated. As we draw
upon God's love, as God becomes the prime source of our strength, as our
awareness of being God's Beloved imprints upon every circumstance and
relationship, our lives become holy. Like Jesus, our lives reflect love
and light, a love which knows no ending and a light which can never be
extinguished. God is the source and strength which upholds us.
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Life of the Beloved : Spiritual Living in a Secular World Henri J. M. Nouwen
Henri J. M. Nouwen
Other Articles By Rev. Vera I. Bourne:
Forgiveness:
The Visible Outpouring Of Unconditional Love
Also In This Issue:
With Feeling
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