Say AMEN - another look at prayer

I recently stumbled upon this early interview that Krista Tippett did with a theologian named Roberta Bondi (whom I had not known).  You can listen to the 30 minute podcast by clicking HERE.  I found the interview about prayer to be very thought-provoking.

Bondi starts by saying “No matter what your reason for starting to pray, it’s a good one.”  She goes on to talk about how there is no one “right” way to pray and that one does not need a noble or serious reason to pray. Just the desire to do it, even though not knowing why or to whom.  JUST SHOW UP she says.

I have long had an on and off relationship with prayer – the word and the practice.  I remember when I was a chaplain at Children’s Hospital.  In the chapel we had a simple notebook. labelled “prayer requests”.  People often noted in this book, the names of people that they wanted prayers for.  I will never forget the one entry   that was unsigned and said. “I don’t know what prayer is.  I only know that I need one.”   That touched me very much. 

Bondi suggests that prayer is a very ordinary activity that deals with very ordinary things.  She says that while doing things like reading a book or doing a crossword puzzle are not in and of themselves “prayer”, that they could be done prayerfully.  She suggests setting a timer for 5 minutes (or 10 or however many or few you want).  Sit down in a comfortable chair or rocker – ask God (or whatever term you use for mystery/divinity/etc.) to be with you as you read or do a crossword puzzle, watch the birds or just sit still.  When the timer goes off, say “thank you” to whomever you have asked to be with you.  Be patient she says.  It may take 10 years of sitting like this to feel like you have connected with mystery/god/the universe.  God has lots of time!  She also says that we don’t or shouldn’t become different people when we pray.  We simply bring our whole real self and our attention and intention to the act of prayer. 

I could do that!

Here is a poem I wrote recently while sitting alone in the church sanctuary one afternoon;

A QUIET AMEN

I sit in the silent sanctuary

unlit candles as holy as ever,

choir stoles hung on their hooks,

the piano closed up.

Late afternoon sun shines

through colored glass.

No hallelujahs.

What makes a place sacred?

sound AND silence,

the intention of all who enter.

Amen

Walking A Labyrinth

I attended a talk today by labyrinth “expert”, Lauren Artress.  I’m pretty sure she wouldn’t claim the word “expert”. But she is one of the people who has widely promoted the use of labyrinths in this country and others.  She has written several books about labyrinths – and she is my neighbor.  I am borrowing some text of hers and from my notes on her wonderful talk today.  If you want to know more about her and her work on labyrinths, click HERE for her website “Veriditas”. --- which means the greening of the world.

I am lucky to have a labyrinth in my neighborhood – and you likely are too.  They are proliferating and are found in parks, on church properties, on college campuses, in camps and retreat centers.  The idea of walking the labyrinth has become understandably popular.  So, why?  Why do we walk the labyrinth?  Here is Lauren’s answer;

Walking the Labyrinth quiets the mind, opens the heart and grounds the body ... Some find answers to questions long asked, some find healing, creativity, a sense of wholeness ... It also is a way to quiet your mind, get a perspective on your life – what do you seek?

The labyrinth is not a maze. There are no tricks to it and no dead ends. It has a single circuitous path that winds its way into the center. The person walking it uses the same path to return from the center and the entrance then becomes the exit. The path is in full view, which allows a person to be quiet and focus internally.

There are many ways to walk the labyrinth and there are many sizes and styles of labyrinths.  But here is one way she suggests you walk…  Before you enter, take a few breaths to remember why you want to do this.  As you begin walking toward the center, what do you want to release?  In the center you might see if there is something you are “receiving” from this walk.  On the way out you focus on what you are carrying back into the world.

Remember that the spiritual path does not have a goal.  The goal is not to get to the center and back out.  The goal is to deepen your life.  Blessings on your walk..

MAKE SOMETHING

I have always liked making things – little bundles of sticks and stones and feathers, “spirit dolls”, collage, drawings made with my eyes closed, pot-holders, little altars, cakes, parties, poems….  I firmly believe that making anything is very important.  Even and maybe especially if what you make has no obvious “use”.  The fact of making something and putting it into the world is a spiritual practice I’m pretty sure.  Something that never existed until you made it – is an act of creation.  Even if no one else ever sees it, you might be changed by your own creativity.  Daring to enter the world of the unknown is not a light task. It requires a trust of sorts and a confidence and a measure of “not caring” what the product looks like.  Here’s a poem I wrote this week about this;   Happy creating this week!!

MAKE SOMETHING

Make anything

and it will

change you;

a painting, a cake, a poem,

an impromptu dance, a prayer, a theory,

a doodle, a letter, a paper hat.

Oh, to put something into the world

that wasn’t there before.

An act of creation—

you can be a little god.

You can set the constellations spinning.

Even a scribble

that has never existed

until you made it,

can be a gift –

can bring a smile –

can let your spirit off its leash.

Make something.

even if no-one sees or hears

or appreciates.  Something

inside you might learn to applaud

or smile, or cry

because you dared to enter

the world of the unknown.

~Penny Hackett-Evans

And here is a poem by Chelan Harkin about the same topic;

THE THING THAT MAKES YOUR HEART SING

~Chelan Harkin” from the book Let Us Dance

The thing that makes

your heart sing

might be quirky as hell,

it might not do anything for capitalism,

no one might buy it.

You’ve probably written this thing off

countless times

for those reasons

and because you probably should

do the dishes or something more practical

like that instead.

But this thing that make your heart sing

is the thing inside of you that most wants

to topple your kingdom of should

that wants deeply and burningly

to be prioritized

and for no particular reason

but that it brings so much light.

It wants to look you straight in the eye

and say, “Let’s do this, baby!”

even if it’s drilling holes in seashells and stringing them to

fishing line,

even if it’s drawing anatomical pictures of a flower

with great care that are never meant

to be hung in an art gallery

but to be pressed

into the precious pages of your heart,

even if it’s making a new kind of cookie

each week

and devouring them with relish on your couch

by yourself,

a sweet sacrament

just meant to share

with your taste buds.

This thing that makes your heart sing

will resurrect parts of your life

and restore a sacred nutrient

to your days.

It can be muted

but never silenced.

If you’re not sure what it is,

just listen for the reoccurring whispers

in your chest

of that flame that will not die.

The paradox is this:

while the thing itself might seem simple.

this thing that makes

your heart sing

will create luminosity

so bright

you’ll be the envy

of all the stars

and they’ll want to jump into

your body

to feel it.