Finding Peace Within

I wonder if you have ever experienced a time when you needed, or were strengthened or nourished, by another person? Alternatively, it might have been you who were there for a person who needed your help or strength or wisdom? Perhaps all they needed was your presence to support them – or to be someone who would listen to them as they worked through what they needed to do? Or they may have turned to you for some practical help, and your offering made all the difference in whatever crisis they were facing? You may not have thought or seen your contribution as life-giving, but as Mahatma Gandhi once said:

The Gospel will be more powerful when practised.... A rose does not need to preach. It simply spreads its fragrance. The fragrance is its own sermon…the fragrance of religious and spiritual life is much finer and subtler than that of the rose.” ^1.

Over the last few Blogs we have been exploring this topic in many different ways as we have reflected on the Disciple John's attempt to convey his experience and understanding of some of the significant moments he had experienced with Jesus. In the process we have seen how Jesus willingly shared his wisdom with a wide variety of people – from those who held the highest local authority in their community and who, by and large, were forever challenging his words and actions – to the poorest people within their community and who hung on every word Jesus spoke.

Not an easy task for Jesus nor for John, nor for us because often, the only way for us to enter into the realm of spiritual language, and share and understand what we have  experienced is through the gateway of metaphors, and images.^2.

John was not alone in trying to faithfully record the things Jesus said and did so that we, centuries later, using quite a different language and speech pattern, can still engage with the wisdom Jesus shared both then and now, as we, in our turn, ponder over what he is saying to us today, in our time and culture. And the authors of our Gospels were not alone in dealing with that challenge. Take, for example, the metaphors for faith – a concept that lies at the heart of Jesus Teaching – offered by the following authors:

• Khalil Gibran – “Faith is an oasis in the heart which will never be reached by the caravan of thinking”.

• Helen Keeler – “Faith is the strength by which a shattered world shall emerge into the light”.

• Martin Luther King – “Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase”.

We see a similar challenge happening over and over again with the fishermen-disciples Jesus chose to train and whose responsibility it was to share his teachings after his death. Perhaps that is why we have at least four differing records (or Gospels) of Jesus' life, ministry and teachings.However, at it's heart, faith is always a challenge, because it's about building relationships. It includes sharing one's self with those in need. It includes being open with those who might challenge us or with those we may not instinctively like! But most importantly, it is also about building a living and ongoing relationship with our Spiritual Source...and this is essential, because our divine source has the power to transform our life, and that is why it is so important... and because we can only share what we have received and internalized for ourselves.

Spirituality is not about how much time we may spend in prayer or in meditation, nor how often we might go to church. Spirituality is about our willingness and capacity to be guided, and our willingness to be actively engaged with our spiritual source. This is the main reason why Jesus called us into relationship with himself. In him we find and are fed with the food our souls long for – and which is given to us to share – like the fragrance of fresh bread.

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

May you find peace and goodwill on your journey.

Phil

1. Dkhar,  Damankhraw. R.:Mahatma Gandhi and Christianity                                                https://theshillongtimes.com/2021/01/30/mahatma-gandhi-and-christianity/

2. Elliot,M: Universalistic Style of the Gospel of John                                                                   https://bibleinterp.arizona.edu/articles/universalistic-style-gospel-john