Posted by: Jivani Lisa | December 8, 2013

Gifts of the Spirit

“On that day, a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse,
and from his roots a bud shall blossom.
The spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him:
a spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
a spirit of counsel and of strength,
a spirit of knowledge and fear of the LORD,
and his delight shall be the fear of the LORD.”
(Isaiah 11:1-3a)

This passage is the source of the traditionally taught Gifts of the Holy Spirit:
* wisdom
* understanding
* counsel
* knowledge
* fortitude
* piety
* fear [awe] of the LORD

When I first learned of these Gifts as a teen, I was perplexed by wisdom, understanding and knowledge – because to me, they all seemed like the same thing.  Eventually, it occurred to me that maybe knowledge is in the head, while understanding is more in the heart – and wisdom uses both knowledge and understanding, yet transcends them.

Now I’m wondering if they’re connected to the chakras (energy centers) in the body.  They would fit like this:
1st chakra (the center of security) – awe of the LORD
2nd chakra (the center of creativity/connection) – piety
3rd chakra (the center of power) – strength/fortitude
4th chakra (the center of love/compassion) – understanding
5th chakra (the center of communication) – counsel
6th chakra (the center of knowledge/intuition) – knowledge
7th chakra (the center of transcendence/spirituality) – wisdom

This seems like a good fit, except I’d put piety and awe of the LORD in all of the centers rather than only the first two.

Our Lord Jesus, as prophesied by Isaiah, was filled with all the Gifts of the Holy Spirit; he was fully developed in all the energy centers.  We, on the other hand, find that we are lacking in one or more of these areas.  So we pray (and work) toward wholeness/holiness, letting the LORD do His work in us.

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Posted by: Jivani Lisa | December 7, 2013

Receive and Give

“The Lord will give you the bread you need
and the water for which you thirst.
No longer will your Teacher hide himself,
but with your own eyes you shall see your Teacher.”
(Isaiah 30:20)

“Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give.”
(Matthew 10:8b)

The LORD God gives us “bread” – food, money, protection, the Holy Eucharist. The LORD gives us “water” – whatever quenches our physical, mental and spiritual thirst; the Holy Spirit. The LORD knows what we need and He provides.

Our Teacher, Jesus Christ, is no longer hidden from us because he was born into this world through the action of the Holy Spirit in the Virgin Mary. Since we have seen Jesus (we know him through Biblical accounts), we have seen God. Our Teacher, Emmanuel, never leaves us. The Holy Spirit, our Guide who dwells within us, never leaves us.

Jesus reminds us that we have been given all these priceless gifts (for free!) for a very important reason: To give to others without concern for compensation.  Our blessings are meant to overflow to bless others each day.

Dear Lord, we are grateful for Your gift of Yourself.  Help us to give to others without worrying about our own safety and security.  We trust You.  Teach us to love as You love.  Through Christ our Lord.  Amen

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Posted by: Jivani Lisa | December 6, 2013

Seeking Without Knowing

“They shall keep my name holy;
they shall reverence the Holy One of Jacob,
and be in awe of the God of Israel.
Those who err in spirit shall acquire understanding,
and those who find fault shall receive instruction.”
(Isaiah 29:23-24)

“Help all mankind, LORD, in your loving mercy,
be near to those who seek you without knowing it.”
(from Morning Prayer for Friday of the first week of Advent)

In Morning Prayer today, we ask God to be near those people who are seeking and yearning without really knowing what it is they seek.  If we’re honest with ourselves, we can admit that we’re seeking “something;” we instinctively know something is missing in our lives.  We try to fill that empty spot within ourselves with all sorts of things:  money, power, possessions, alcohol, food, sex, entertainment – the list is endless.  Yet, we’re never satisfied, or certainly never satisfied for very long.

We can never be fully satisfied in this life because our emptiness is meant to be filled with God.  When we choose to hold our emptiness open to God, then God is able to come to us; we experience a deep sense of peace, love, joy and contentment.  This is a foretaste of the full satisfaction we will find in heaven.

Isaiah tells us that at the end of time, all people will “be in awe of the God of Israel” – who is the God of everyone.  At that time, everyone will understand the Truth.  God will instantly reveal everything.  Those who have been stuck in spiritual errors and busy finding fault with those who love God, will finally understand everything.  They will smack their own forehead and exclaim:  “Oh!  Now I see.  It’s so simple, why didn’t I get it before?”

At the end of time, all divisions and misunderstandings will cease.  We will clearly see that we are all one, all of creation is one in Christ in God.

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Posted by: Jivani Lisa | December 5, 2013

Yoga is Holiness

Okay, today I’m breaking my plan of writing a daily post based on one of the daily Scripture passages for Advent.  But I have a good reason.  Today’s post is based on one of the intercessory prayers addressed to Christ during Morning Prayer for Thursday of the first week of Advent.  Here’s the prayer:

“You are the source of holiness; keep us holy and without sin now until the day of your coming.”

Whenever I see the word “holy,” I think of “whole.”  This is due to a book I read some years ago called Holiness is Wholeness by Josef Goldbrunner (U of Notre Dame Press, 1964).  A holy person is not some perfect person who never makes mistakes, never uses swear words, and always seems to walk on some higher plane than everyone else.  Rather, a holy person is whole, complete – physically, mentally and spiritually.

This morning, I saw the word “holy,” then thought “whole,” and then – surprisingly – thought “yoga.”  The word Yoga comes from Sanskrit and means “union” or “to unite.”  The ultimate goal of Yoga (which most people have never heard) is union with God.  Union with God is not possible for anyone who is not “whole,” not “holy.”

Sin means separation from God.  Anything that divides us from God is “sin.”  Since all of us are separated from God to some degree, we all have sin in our lives.  That’s what we mean when we acknowledge that all people are sinners.  It’s not about some horrible damnation in hell; it’s about learning to recognize the thoughts, words and actions that separate us from God.  Since we are all unique human beings, we are all dealing with our own sins.

Now, believe it or not, the complete practice of Yoga – which is much more than rolling out a sticky mat and doing a series of exercises and stretches – leads to wholeness.  (If you would like more information on this, look up the eight limbs of Yoga as taught by Patanjali.)  Wholeness leads to union with God – or Holiness.

The prayer says to Christ:  “You are the source of holiness.”  So, for Christians, holiness comes through Christ; holiness is a grace.  But we don’t just sit back and receive; we’re expected to do our part, to examine ourselves, to discipline ourselves – to grow into wholeness.  If Yoga helps people (including Christians) grow into wholeness/holiness, then it can only be a blessing.

I’m not suggesting that this process is simple or quick.  On the contrary, it’s a lifelong process.  That’s part of the beauty.

 

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Posted by: Jivani Lisa | December 4, 2013

Compassion of Jesus

“At that time, Jesus walked by the Sea of Galilee, went up on the mountain, and sat down there.  Great crowds came to him, having with them the lame, the blind, the deformed, the mute, and many others.  They placed them at his feet, and he cured them.”
(Matthew 15:29-30)

Jesus has unending compassion for all the people.  In this passage, Jesus is tired from his journey and constant ministry.  His going “up on the mountain” shows his desire for some rest, peace and quiet with his Father.  Yet, he doesn’t isolate himself completely.  His compassion doesn’t allow him to ignore the suffering of the people, who are afflicted with every possible human ailment – physical, mental and spiritual.  (I wonder about the troubles of the “many others” who are mentioned here without elaboration.)  These people would probably have been mainly poor, dirty, uneducated and unsophisticated.  Yet Jesus is not disgusted by them; he (unlike many of us!) doesn’t try to preserve himself in some pristine gated community.  He doesn’t even wish for such a thing.  He wants to be with the people who need him, to help them with the things they need most.

We know that Jesus was a man of prayer and that he taught his disciples to pray (Luke 11:1-4), but he also never hesitated to perform the good works that were within his power.

May we follow the Lord’s example to find the ideal balance (for us) of prayer and good works, of contemplation and action.

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Posted by: Jivani Lisa | December 3, 2013

Joyful Good News

“Not by appearance shall he judge,
nor by hearsay shall he decide,
But he shall judge the poor with justice,
and decide aright for the land’s afflicted.”
(Isaiah 11:3b-4a)

This passage immediately reminded me of the recent apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium [The Joy of the Gospel], by Pope Francis.  The Pope reminds the world that hoarding money and property harms the poor everywhere in the world; he reminds us that “trickle-down” economics does not work – no matter how much we may wish that it does, and no matter how long we have been fooling ourselves into thinking that it works.  The Pope criticized unrestrained capitalism.  Note that he didn’t denounce capitalism itself, but rather unrestrained capitalism.  The problem is caused when lying, cheating and stealing are advocated in order to grow in wealth.  Lying, cheating and stealing are apparent everywhere with unrestrained capitalism.

Pope Francis teaches what Jesus teaches in the Gospel.  And the Gospel is joyful.  The prophet, Isaiah, is telling us that God (including the Holy Spirit in the world at this very moment and including Jesus when he comes again) cannot be fooled by appearances; God is not impressed by money and worldly power.  The LORD does not make decisions based on what influential people say is so wonderful.  No.  “The LORD has eyes for the just, and ears for their cry” (Psalm 34:15).  God judges and will judge in favor of the poor and afflicted who are used and abused in this world – because that is true justice.

With true justice comes real peace.  That is joyful good news, indeed!

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Posted by: Jivani Lisa | December 2, 2013

Faith to Enter the Kingdom

“When Jesus heard this [from the centurion], he was amazed and said to those following him, ‘Amen, I say to you, in no one in Israel have I found such faith.  I say to you, many will come from the east and the west, and will recline with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob at the banquet in the Kingdom of heaven.'”  (Matthew 8:10-11)

Here, Jesus reminds his followers, including all of us, that his Kingdom is open to everyone.  Those who enter the Kingdom are those who have the kind of faith Jesus is looking for – not necessarily those people who belong to a particular nation or religion.  In this passage, Jesus is speaking directly to his fellow Jews and telling them that the centurion (a foreigner in nationality and religion) has more real faith than they do!  This must have been shocking for them to hear.

I imagine Jesus speaking this teaching to his fellow Christians today:  “There are many people in other countries and other religions – east and west – who have greater faith than you do!  They will enter God’s Kingdom.  Indeed, many have already entered and joined our forefathers in true faith.”

He also seems to be implying that just because a person thinks he’s “saved,” that may not be, in fact, the case.  Like he says elsewhere:  “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”  (Matthew 7:21)

When Jesus comes again, he will be looking for true faith.  Such faith dwells deep within the heart where it manifests to God – and not necessarily outwardly in Christian trappings.  So let us be very careful in judging for ourselves who we think is acceptable to Christ.

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Posted by: John | November 29, 2013

Death Musings

There is no good,
there is no bad.
There is no better,
there is no worse.
It’s all the same
til our ride in the hearse.

*************

Just another talking head
telling me what I just read.
I wish now I’d stayed in bed.
Don’t they know I can’t be led?
Their opinions I won’t be fed.
I’d be nothing but dead.

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Posted by: John | November 10, 2013

Gossamer Life

Bits of gossamer
floating in the Indian summer sky
always remind me life is fleeting.

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Posted in Poetry

Posted by: John | November 9, 2013

Erase

For this poor planet to save face,
I’m afraid
it must erase every trace
of the human race.

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Posted in Poetry

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