When is Enough Enough?

When is Enough Enough? An interesting question, isn't it. I am sure most of us can find good reasons for doing something, or purchasing something, that catches our attention. Or as Gerard Manely Hopkins once noted: “the dearest freshness that exists in all things”.

The Psychoanalyst Erik Erikson once said that the deepest act of love is not helping or service, (or buying more stuff), but “learning to live mindfully in the present moment”— and that might sound simple until you try to put it into daily practice!

Or as Elaine Wainwright has noted, Jesus also encouraged us to be “on our guard against all kinds of greed”. The reason Jesus gave was that “our life does not consist in the abundance of our possessions”.

Hmmm. I wonder how you respond to that? And anyway — who decides when “enough is enough?

Or as Pope Francis once advised: “Humans must not place themselves at the centre of things and organise everything for their convenience. ” The reason he gave was because: “We cannot presume to heal our relationship with nature and the environment without healing all fundamental human relationships”.

Wow! That sounds like a huge commitment! Even more so when you read St John of the Cross (1542-1591) who suggested the actual way we can move from one stage to another stage in our life will usually only occur when we experience some form of wounding, failure, or darkness (which he referred to as a “Dark Night of our Soul”). He went on to suggest that for most people, this will not occur until we experience some crisis that forces us to deal with our own conflicts and struggles.

Richard Rohr suggests that this is a reason why Jesus praised faith even more than love.¹ He also recommends that most people need to find a mentor, or wise person, who has made this journey for themselves, because having made the journey, they are better able to teach and guide others through these rough waters. However, such wise mentors are not always easy to find.

As I have mentioned once before in these blogs, one way I have found helpful was suggested by Denise Levertov in her poem, “The Conversion of Brother Lawrence”. Her poem refers to a 17th-century monk who made a choice to seek to live always in the present moment with an open attitude of gratefulness, regardless of all that was happening around him. Her poem includes these lines:

Everything faded, thinned to nothing,

beside the light which bathed and warmed,

the Presence your being had opened to.

Where it shone, there life was,

and abundantly,"it touched your dullest task,

and the task was easy.

Joyful, absorbed, you 'practiced the presence of God

as a musician practices hour after hour their art:

'A Stone before the carver',

you entered into yourself'. 

I find practising being open to God's presence is an ongoing conscious choice. The more I do this, the more I discover the 'dearest freshness that exists in all things', however challenging or stressful the current situation may be.

Kia mau te rongo me te pai ki a koe i to haerenga

May you find peace and goodwill on your journey.

Phil

__________________

l. Luke 12: I5

2.'Laudato Si' Summary, Chapter 3 — 'Living Laudato Si'

3.See Rohr, ''A Spring Within Us'' p 46-47

                                                          Mid Winter Journeys

"The longest life may fade and perish, but one moment can live and become immortal."

These words were written by Theodore Powys, a British novelist and short-story writer. I found it an interesting comment as I came to write this Blog, because I am sure we all have had significant moments which still stand out for us. They may have changed us and challenged us, and even changed the orientation and path of our life.

I raise this comment for several reasons. Partly because it occurs in the Gospel reading set for this month. It occurs in the Gospel story of a Jewish theological expert who wanted to test Jesus' knowledge of their scriptures. He opened his dialogue with the question, “What must we do to inherit eternal life?”(1)

I am not sure what sort of answer you would have given to such a question. I think Jesus perceived the man's intent was to test him because he was a well-trained expert of their sacred scriptures. Rather than answer the question, Jesus gently deflects it by asking him what answer was found in their sacred Scripture? The man promptly replies by quoting Deuteronomy 6:5:

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul,

and with all your strength and with all your mind.”

Luke's Gospel has him add another quotation from Leviticus 19:18

“You shall love your neighbour as yourself”

Jesus applauds the man's answer and suggests he should go and practice these two commandments!

However, that wasn't the sort of answer the Official wanted to hear. I suggest he hoped to show that Jesus was an ignorant heretic and should be condemned, if not stoned to death! (We might say, “Round one to Jesus!”).

The Official, however, wasn't finished. As a Jewish leader, he was well-versed in arguing points of law and theology. He asks Jesus a second (trick) question: “Who is my neighbour?”(2).

Jesus responds by telling a story about a Jew who had been set upon, robbed, and left to die on the side of a road. The first opportunity for help to arrive was when two Jewish religious leaders came by. Both men saw the injured man but chose to ignore him lest they also are set-upon by whoever had attacked the man and left him there to die.

However, when a Samaritan happened to come by, he stopped, gave the wounded Jew as much medical help as he could offer, and then placed him on his own animal and walked him to an Inn where he would be safely looked after. But before the Samaritan left the Inn, he also paid the innkeeper to care for the injured man.  When he returned, he promised to meet any additional costs incurred.

Jesus ends his story by asking which of the three men was a neighbour to the injured man? and suggests we also should be willing to help whenever we see someone in need.

This familiar Gospel story was generated by a simple but profound question:  “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” It was asked by an intellectually astute Jewish leader. Jesus would have known the man would give the orthodox reply and suggests that if he put into practice what he said, he would find life more meaningful.

I am not alone in noting that Luke's version of this parable has also added Jesus' command “You shall love your neighbour as yourself”– as found in Mark 12:31. This was a unique addition, even though it overrides the historical enmity that existed between the Jew's and the Samaritans.(3) 

However, as I reflected again on this familiar story in the context of my opening quote by Theodore Powy, I find I am also challenged on my winter journey, to be aware of those who would benefit from my support; and also to appreciate that I  am blessed as I journey through these cold and darker days of winter.

Kia mau te pai ki a koe I to haerenga

May you find peace and goodwill on your journey.

Phil

1. Luke 10:25

2. Luke 10:29

    3. See The Five Gospels Translation and Commentary R.W. Funk R.W. Hoover p 324

 The Role of Practice and Experience in Growing a Faith

Luke 8:26-39

As we look at the life, faith and ministry of Jesus, it is noteworthy to place it within the cultural, religious and medical practices available in the time in which he lived. Medical knowledge and practice were more advanced than we might assume. For example, Jewish physicians had a good grasp of remedies available to help relieve various health issues. Honey, for example, was used to relieve sore throats, rosemary was used for stomach ailments, a solution of pounded maidenhair fern for tapeworm infection and a poultice of fish brine was given to relieve rheumatism.^. Cupping and blood-letting were also practised along with thermal waters, cauterisation, curetting of wounds, trepanning and caesarean deliveries.

From the Gospel accounts, Jesus had a remarkable ability to heal the sick and to aid people physically and spiritually in an age long before modern medicine. This certainly attracted crowds who sought his help and healing. As his popularity grew, Jesus soon encouraged his disciples to share in this healing ministry:

When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.¹

We see a lovely example of this in the healing of the Gerasene Demonic². Jesus brings relief and transformation to each step of this healing account. In the process, he reveals the love and power of God, especially to those who felt lost and trapped in a society which offered them little hope or help.

At the same time, Jesus condemned the religious elite for the way they abused the poor by not practising what they taught! Instead, they 'tied up heavy, cumbersome loads and put them on the shoulders of the poor, refusing to lift even a finger to help and care for those who were struggling in poverty'. In contrast, Jesus laments on how he would love to gather the people of Israel to Himself for safety if only they were willing!³

In Luke's Gospel, however, there is a similar healing example. After Jesus had healed the man, he naturally wanted to become one of Jesus' followers. Jesus tells him instead to return home and share the good news of how much God has done for you. The man accepted Jesus' advice and “told everyone he met how much Jesus had done for him.”

I don't know about you, but I find this story incomplete. The man was struggling with three issues: first, his self-destructive behaviour; then his experience of isolation from normal society; and finally, his feeling of being trapped by his condition that he was powerless to change. In many ways, his actions were not unique. We also have our own issues, our own habits and beliefs, which may not be as destructive as the man's behaviour in this story; nevertheless, they may result in limiting or restricting us. I wonder how we deal with our own personal issues? How ready are we to let go of a habit, or a belief, or a personal issue, that is affecting our own growth towards wholeness?

But Doctor Luke has more to say about the way people deal with their personal issues as he introduces two more situations where people seek out Jesus to share their troubles with him. The first need was provided by the leader of the local synagogue. His twelve-year-old daughter was dying. In desperation, he begs Jesus help. However, on the way to visit the man's home, Jesus' journey is interrupted by a woman who had suffered from haemorrhages for twelve long years. The woman also reaches out to Jesus in the hope she might be healed. Jesus senses her need and stops. The result in both cases, the woman and the young daughter are healed. ⁵

While these stories may sound more poetic than historical, they do remind us that the grace and presence of God is never limited by our own faith struggles. This doesn't mean all our problems and illnesses will simply go away if we ask for God's intervention. Even St Paul discovered this when suffering from a limiting physical complaint. He had repeatedly pleaded to God to heal him,  but discovered his prayers were not answered the way he had hoped. In the end, he came to accept that God had not abandoned him and that his situation was not unique.⁶

Religious Faith is not magic. Faith in its essence, is about relationship – our relationship with God, with others, and with the world around us. When Jesus was inviting his would-be disciples to “Come, follow me” he was inviting them to enter into a living, transformative relationship with him. It was a two-way relationship. One that was built on trust, love, and personal commitment. And while the intellectual aspect of faith man provides a foundation, it is up to us to develop a daily practice that allows that faith relationship to truly grow.

Kia Mau te pai ki a koe I to haerenga!

May you find peace and good wiill on your journey!

Phil

___________

1. Matthew:36

2. Luke 8:26-39

3. Matthew 23:1-39

4. Matthew 8:23-27

5. Luke 8:40-42, 49-56

6. 2 Corinthians 12:7-9

                                                     The Sounds of Silence

One of the pop songs that I remember from my youth was Simon and Garfunkel's Sound of Silence which hit the charts in the 1960s. It had a gentle, singable and easy-flowing melody and soothing rhythm. It soon became an overnight success, claiming a 'top ten hit' in many countries. As a young adolescent, and learning to play the guitar, I was also captivated by the song.

Another interesting feature of the song, which added to its popularity, was the lyrics. They offered a warning to the 'all-consuming consumerism' that was rapidly spreading in Western society. It tended to dominate and shape people's lives and desires. For that reason alone, it rapidly became the key driver of the local economy.

Consumerism was especially appealing to younger people, who were growing up in a rapidly changing world. However, despite all its attractions and its promise of fulfilment and joy, it more often left a trail of dissatisfaction and a perpetual yearning for 'something more'. For example, Simon and Garfunkel's song included these lyrics:

And the people bowed and prayed

to the neon god they made

and the sign flashed out its warning

in the words that it was forming.

And the sign said, “The words of the prophets

are written on the subway walls

and tenement halls

and whispered in the sounds of silence.”

However, the song became so popular that Simon and Garfunkel included it at nearly every concert until the group broke up in 1970.

What I find interesting, especially in the lyrics and popularity of this song, is the emphasis on the importance and place of silence in a rapidly changing world.

Richard Rohr has also made a similar observation in more recent years. For example, in the closing chapters of his book “A Spring Within Us”, he includes the following observation:

“Silence precedes, undergirds, and grounds everything else. Unless we learn to live there, go there, and abide in this different phenomenon, everything – words, events, relationships, identities – becomes rather superficial, without depth or context. We are left to search for meaning in a life of events and situations that need to contain ever greater stimulation, more excitement, and more color, in an attempt to add vital signs to our inherently bored and boring existence.”¹

Rohr goes on to suggest that our best moments in life can arise from these moments of interior silence because when we allow ourselves to pause and become still, we open the door to a contemplative way of knowing, and in doing so, we allow Christ to be born within us.

Such an observation stands in direct contrast to the prevailing philosophy of consumerism within local Western society, which tends to invite us in quite a different direction. However, while it may catch our attention, in the long run it will not, and can not, make us happy!

Instead, consumerism is often criticised and blamed for increasing people's anxiety, stress, poor moods, unhappiness in relationships, and various other psychological problems, including greater anxiety and depression ².

The road to happiness, however, lies in quite a different direction. It involves things like nurturing positive relationships, making mindful choices, having a good and productive job or hobby, cultivating a sense of purpose in one's life, and developing a sense of mastery over both the good and bad events that occur in one's life. And finally, cultivating a positive faith experience, which will both facilitate and nurture our awareness of the peace and love that God has for each one of us.

Kia mau te rongo me te pai ki a koe i to haerenga

May you find peace and goodwill on your journey.

Phil

the mainstream society and its values.

1    Rohr, R. A Spring Within Us: A Year of Daily Meditations (SPCK 2018) Page 395

2  Investopedia: Consumerism: Definition, Economic Impact, Pros & Cons

 

Why is faith so difficult?

The Reverend Dr. Teri McDowell Ott is a pastor, writer, and editor/ publisher of the Presbyterian Outlook in the USA. While reading her blog recently, I was reminded of the time when Jesus told his disciples that his time with them would soon come to an end. The disciples naturally struggled with the news, partly because they had come to rely on having Jesus with them. Then Jesus promises that while they won't see him physically, he will still be with them spiritually as he prepares a place for them so they can be reunited with him in the spiritual life that continues after their physical death. Then we have a lovely insight into the disciple Philip's faith when he announces that he wanted some tangible proof before he was going to accept what Jesus was saying! 

While this conversation is unfolding, the disciple Thomas's thoughts have been elsewhere, so he has missed what Jesus was promising, and he finally interrupts Jesus by saying he hasn't understood what Jesus has been saying. If Jesus is going to be dead and buried...Then how can we know the way?

Teri then questions whether we have ever found our faith difficult, which is a good question! For who hasen't gone through periods of time when we question our faith, our beliefs and our hopes? Faith is not always easy. Sometimes we too can have our questions. For example: “Why does faith require so much effort, patience, courage, and strength of will ?' Couldn’t Jesus have made our life of faith a little easier?

It is true, Christian faith is not always easy to live – and more significantly to understand – because faith it is not something that can be rationalized or explained in simple words. This is partly because faith is primarily built on a relationship and not primarily on things like divine revelation or even the teachings of Jesus.

Christian Faith is also grounded in ancient Hebrew/Jewish history and writings. It has passed through twenty centuries of formation and development. While this can become a good excuse to ignore Christianity, and many do. However, the Theologian, Paul Tillich, in his book the “Dynamics of Faith,” described faith as containing a dynamic quality.

”Faith, in the Christian context, is more than mere belief; it’s a dynamic and transformative force in the life of a believer. Faith, as described in the New Testament, particularly in its original Greek context, conveys trust, confidence, and reliance. Faith as ultimate concern is an act of the total personality. It happens in the center of the personal life and includes all its elements.” The human mind’s most centered act is faith. Everything revolves around faith. It is not simply a function or section of a man but his total being   If faith becomes static, if it fails to move us, open us, deepen us, better us, then it is no longer faith.  Instead it is an idol; it is simply another idol that we put up on the mantle to worship but with which we don’t actually do anything.

Couldn’t you make this a little easier, Jesus?  Thanks be to God the answer is “No.”²

Faith is not easy because Faith is not something static that you can pride yourself in.  Or having attended the course, read the book, and studied the Bible doesn't mean you now understand all there is to know about Faith. Faith is not static. Faith is a living dynamic because Faith opens the door to allow God’s presence and peace to journey with us and within us. It is always unfolding as we learn to live within its shadow and begin to recognise its presence hovering within our struggles and joys. And this doesn't apply only to those who follow the Christian Faith.

For example, I recently came across an article on The Difficulty of Sustaining Faith by a practising Buddhist. In response to a practitioner's complaint that, having faithfully tried to follow all the instructions he had been given, he had so far not experienced the enjoyment of peace and security promised in their practice. Instead, he had encountered 'great hardships' that had 'showered like rain upon him' and now he had had enough. He had reached the point of giving it all up because he felt he was wasting his time!

However, when he discussed his struggles with his teacher, his teacher suggested he should choose a place that he considers “special” and possibly even “sacred” and use it only for his meditation practice. If he did this faithfully and regularly, then he would begin to cherish that space as he started to grow and develop his faith and practice ³.

Kia Mau te pai ki a koe I to haerenga!

May you find peace and good will on your journey!

Phil

_________________

1, Teri McDowell Ott – encouraging courage

2. Tillich, Paul. Dynamics of Faith. New York: Harper, 1958. Print.

3. The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra.

How Long Would You Wait?

 How Long Would You Wait?

(John 5:1-5)

Thirty-eight years is a long time to sit and wait. Every day was exactly the same for the crippled man. Waiting. Watching. Hoping... and not much changes because sitting at the Pool of Beth-zatha had become a way of life for the man in John's gospel story. He had a physical disability and had sat by the pool for the last 38 years waiting to be healed. How he arrived at the Pool, we are not told. But once there, he was not going to leave because he was convinced his healing and his future lay in this pool of water. So the man sits on his mat, day after day, waiting, watching, wondering, and hoping that one day his life would change.

Its a strange story, because the pool of Beth-zatha (meaning house of mercy) had the reputation of being able to heal – but only the first person to enter the water when it started to bubble. Popular belief was that an angel was stirring the water, which added to the pool's mystery and attraction. But curiously, it was only the first person to enter the pool that was healed; everyone else missed out, and had to wait until the next time the water began to bubble. But because the man in our story was disabled, he was unable to move as fast as others who came seeking healing, so he missed out every time. The result was that he was still waiting to be healed for 38 long years... until one Sabbath day Jesus visited the pool. He saw the man, perceived his problem, and simply told him to “Stand up! Pick up your mat – and walk”... and the man discovered he could!

While this story rests within the medical context of it's day, there are still contemporary stories of people being healed by bathing in the sacred waters of other shrines, such as at Lourdes and Fatima.

However, the pool of Beth-zatha story can also apply to us as well, especially when we hold onto our own unfulfilled hopes and disappointments. We also may end up feeling neglected, left alone, “sitting on our 'mat' (so to speak), and we too may end up believing that other people's needs should come first … and that we have to wait for someone else to fulfil our hopes and longings.

What I found interesting in this story is that Jesus didn't help the man to get into the water. Instead, Jesus responds to the man where he is – sitting on the same mat, stuck in the same situation that has entrapped him for 38 long years. Jesus was not interested in the man's past struggles, disappointments and complaints. Instead, Jesus invites him to do something – to “Stand up, take up his mat and walk.” And when the man responded to Jesus' invitation, he discovered he could walk!

As I dug a little deeper into this story, I discovered that the number '38' occurs in several other places in the Bible. It referred primarily to the time the 'Children of Israel' spent wandering in the desert after they had escaped Egyptian slavery. The lesson they had to learn (as the crippled man also had to learn in this story) is that often the things that we long for and seek are not found outside our various situations or circumstances, but within them.

We all carry our own hopes... and our times of disappointments. We may also have had our own moments when it would be nice if Jesus would change our situation, but he doesn't. We also have to discover that meaning and purpose is not normally found outside the various situations or circumstances we have to face in the course of our daily life, but within them. And we, like the man in this story, are not meant to face these situations alone. Jesus also walks with us, encouraging us and inviting us into a new way of being, and seeing, and believing.

This doesn’t necessarily mean our life will suddenly become easier for us, but we will find new insight and strength in the knowledge that we do not face the situation alone.

Kia Mau te pai ki a koe I to haerenga!

May you find peace and good will on your journey!

Phil

Our Journey into Christ

Part 2

As I was writing this blog, one of the things I noted, was how quickly the days slip by – we are almost halfway through 2025! Outside, as the rain falls noisily, reminding us that autumn has well and truly arrived! I was reminded of the time I spent in the Franciscan Community of Little Portion in Arkansas USA. By May, the winter snow had gone, and the days were filled with warmth … and our daily work was spent mainly outdoors working in the Community's farm and gardens. It was good and 'honest' work that engaged us, hands-on, in the 'Lived Experience' of Community Life.

What also reminded me of that time was this week's Gospel reading (John 13:31-35) where Jesus told his disciples that the time would come when he would no longer be with them and they would become his physical 'hands and feet'. For example:

"I give you a new commandment that you love one another, just as I have loved you"(John :34-35)

"You are(already) the light of the world-- so let your light shine so that others may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:14)

"Come to me all who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls". (Matthew 11:28-30)

I imagine the disciples panicked a bit- they were so used to having Jesus physically with them. Yet, Jesus had been preparing them to carry on his work ... and perhaps for this reason alone, the Way that Jesus taught and lived was inclusive, liberating, life-giving and life-enriching because he understood that the essential core of being a follower of Jesus was an experiential relationship with the God who created us and still continues to love us even when we might not understand or believe hat such a thing was possible. 

In a sense, Jesus was inviting his disciples (and us) to live in the moment and to 'cast your cares upon the Lord for he cares for you' (1Peter 5:7); yet, I don't know about you, but it is so easy to lose sight of that fundamental truth. It is not always easy or straightforward to learn how to weave our spiritual life into our secular life, so all of life becomes Holy. Yet it was only as the disciples grew in their awareness, that God's image and likeness was already hidden within themselves, were they able to guide and help others to grow in that knowledge and love of the One who created them (and us) and whose Word still has the power to renew us, as the Franciscan Priest Richard Rohr has noted: 

“God’s presence becomes experiential and undeniable for a person. Most of us believe things because our churches tell us to believe them, so we say 'I believe' as we do in the creed. A mystic doesn't say 'I believe'. A mystic says (with conviction)'I know' because they have a knowledge that comes from first-hand experience.”

Elsewhere, Rohr has noted that: 

 "We cannot attain the presence of God because

 we are already totally in the presence of God. What is lacking is our awareness".

His simple method inspired another Carmelite, St Elizabeth, to make it her daily goal to always seek to be aware of God's presence with her in a very similar way to Br Lawrence. She discovered this simple practice transformed her mission in life, and it enabled her to help others find a way that would help to transform their life into the image and likeness God intended them to be. She is also remembered by the following prayer:

O my God, Trinity whom I adore...

may each minute bring me more deeply

into your mystery!

Grant my soul peace.

Make it your heaven, your beloved dwelling,

and the place of your rest.

Amen.

Kia mau te rongo me te pai ki a koe i to haerenga

May you find peace and goodwill on your journey.

Phil