Iraq War is Over?

This week the last of US combat troops were sent home from Iraq. The news headlines heralded this as the end of the war. Let us not forget that the long-term effects of war will be with us for years to come. Many soldiers will have suffered traumatic injuries to body, mind and spirit, and will be faced with the challenge of finding compassionate and successful healing treatment for their invisible injuries as well as their physical ones.

As a VA Hospital chaplain, I was told by combat veterans, repeatedly, that the emotional and spiritual trauma was worse than their physical injuries. The Organ Mountain Institute for Spiritual Growth has a primary focus on outreach to those who have suffered traumatic events leading to PTSD. We believe that healing and improvement in symptoms is possible. Our goal is to be able to provide access to treatment for those who do not have adequate insurance to get the help they need.

We also recognize the impact on families, loved ones, partners and spouses of those suffering from PTSD, and we want them to know we can help them too.

For those who read this blog who feel they do not have the skills to directly contribute to the healing program for those with PTSD, I urge you to do all you can to contribute to the creation of peace: in yourself, in your home, in your schools and community. Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with you.

In the Spirit of the Christmas Season, let us all work toward ending war and violence everywhere, as the Prince of Peace, and those who have followed his example, call us to do.

Peace, love, justice and joy to all.

(submitted by Rev. Dalene Fuller Rogers)

Hope is a Movement

I CARE ABOUT YOU. These words appeared on a sign being held aloft by a peaceful demonstrator at Occupy Wallstreet. There is a radical message in this statement. To look someone in the eye and say that you care, creates an immediate sense of commitment and connection; a recognition of a person's humanity, vulnerability and interdependence.

Congress is once again in grid lock. They spend hours talking at each other, when they should be listening to the people their decisions may effect adversely. What continues to disappoint me is the inability of public servants to work from a personal moral compass that acknowledges that the power and influence given to them in a democracy is a privilege that must not be abused.

My spirituality and my political views are inseparable. In seminary, I identified how my relationship with God and Christ informed my progressive politics. The historical Jesus would demonstrate with the sign "I CARE ABOUT YOU"--the man of God who stood up to oppressive Roman rule and religion that was leaning too heavily on law and too weakly on grace. The prophetic messenger from Galilee who said, "Come to me you who are heavy with burdens and I will give you rest", is supposed to be the role model for all the Christians in Congress; over 88% of the membership. Imagine if they asked themselves the proverbial question, "What would Jesus do?" I can tell you with confidence it would not be pepper spraying the peaceful demonstrators and balancing the budget by stealing the hard-earned social security and Medicare benefits of our senior citizens.

What would Jesus say about a system that always has money to bailout banks and engage in wars, but can't seem to help 24 million Americans looking for full-time work, or the 47 million Americans who need government aid to eat, or the 15 million families whose mortgages are upside down, or the 50 million Americans who cannot afford to see a doctor when they are sick?

It is time to use our influence, regardless of our place in this American democracy, to show that we do care about each other. A Seventh-Day Adventist pastor in Budapest, Romania, Adrian Bocaneanu, describes influence as "...a privilege obtained on the basis of real interest in human affairs, systemic observation, serious thought, courageous opinion, and responsible interactions with society." I see the Occupy WallStreet movement as the use of influence to give hope to those who feel powerless by exercising the liberty and freedoms we all too often take for granted, and speaking a clear message to financial powers and government leadership that EVERY person does matter, not just a privileged few.

Transforming hope into a morally-driven domestic policy is something we all must support.

Rev. Dalene Fuller Rogers
(The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of other members of the Organ Mountain Institute for Spiritual Growth)

Not Knowing As Spiritual Practice

It's difficult to live in the midst of ambiguity. Most people seem to thrive on a sense of security that comes from having a "black" or "white" view of every situation. If "this" is happening, then "that" is the response. This type of thinking leaves no room for the gray areas: not knowing, not having a solution, an answer, a reason, a cause, a scapegoat to blame. To simply be a witness, to be present to our places of not knowing, sitting as a companion to our ambiguity, is a spiritual practice that can move us beyond fear and attachment to outcomes.
My current hospice ministry places me in a healthcare setting, heavily managed by government regulations and expectations. Though we have "patient-centered/patient directed" plans of care, every intervention must be attached to an outcome, even spiritual care. If we cannot measure the success of our interventions based on outcomes, the argument goes, then how can we assess the quality of our care? How can we design and implement changes and improvements? Whoever decided to apply these standards to spiritual care had grandiose (if not co-dependent) ideas of how to control another human's behavior, decisions, relationships, and spiritual discernment process.
Many of the people I have accompanied on their spiritual journeys, as both pastor or chaplain, have been suffering from some degree of fear of the unknown. Uncertainty and attachment to outcomes exacerbates our fear of failing. Holding hands with this fear is hope--the two are inseparable colleagues. Hope is the spiritual state of non-attachment to outcomes. It is the ability to shift from fear of the unknown, to a place of curiosity and openness. Hope arises from our soul.
Czech poet Vaclav Havel described hope this way: "It is not the conviction that something will turn out well, but the certainty that something makes sense regardless of how it turns out." Moving towards this understanding of hope sets us free to seek what gives meaning to our suffering and struggles.
I have learned that it is relationships that give meaning to my struggles. As long as I stay grounded in my interconnectedness with others, I can endure all difficulties. Partnered with those who support me, listen deeply to me, offer me comfort and celebrate my happiness, I will not despair. My invisible lines of connection with God, with nature, with family and friends have liberated me from most fears, anxiety and expectations. I face nothing alone, and that's all I need to know.

Unexpected Visitor

Last weekend, I led a retreat at the San Patricio Retreat Center. The focus of the weekend was healing from traumatic loss. I always prepare for leading a spiritually-based retreat by meditation and prayer, and express my humility and gratitude to God for calling me to minister with whomever God sends to the retreat.
Suffering, in body, mind and spirit may be intense for those who are feeling powerless to help themselves or those they love. Re-discovering the healing power of God inside themselves, that was given to them at the time of their creation, may require exposure to many different, or new, forms of spirituality. With this in mind, when I create the altar for a retreat, I always use diverse symbols of spiritual pathways, including the native american healing wheel.
One of the most powerful guided meditations I led with the participants of this retreat, took place on Sunday morning before our "Wilderness Meal" healing communion ceremony. I began with a reading and teaching from the second creation story in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew scripture. In this story, we are told that God "breathed" life into Adam. In the Hebrew, the word "ruah" is used in this story for breath. This is the same word in Hebrew used for "spirit". How empowering it is to recall that we are created by the breath and spirit of God entering into us. With this in mind, we practiced a breathing meditation, imaging God/Jesus standing before us, breathing new life and healing spirit into us with each breath. With each exhalation, we left our pain and sufferings at the feet of God/Jesus.
I had not planned this particular guided meditation. It was a gift that came to me upon arising Sunday morning, after experiencing an unexpected spiritual presence as I prepared for sleep the night before. Keep in mind, as I share this story with you, that the San Patricio Retreat Center is believed to have been built on land in San Patricio, NM that originally belonged to the Mescalero Apache.
Saturday night, I returned to my room about 9:30pm, after a long day of teaching and spiritual counseling. Almost a full moon filled the grounds around my casita with light. Stillness blessed the night. I put out the light at my bedside and closed my eyes, relaxing into my nightly prayer of gratitude. I had not been in my bed three minutes, when I was startled by the sound of something moving in the bushes and the sound of lightly jingling bells. I sprung from bed, asking myself "What IS that?" I did not feel fearful, only curious. I gazed out the windows, scanning the area outside the casita for some sign of a person with bells. There was no person, no bells, no windchimes. Nothing. I returned to my bed wondering to myself what it could have been. I felt that the jingling bells reminded me of a sound I had heard before. Yes! It reminded me of the sound of the jingle dress dancers I have seen at many Native American pow wows. Could I have scared off some native spirit I wondered?
I returned to bed, closed my eyes, and no sooner had I begun to relax again, the sound of rhythmic, light jingle bells returned, only this time, they were in the bedroom with me. I decided not to open my eyes or move; simply experience the sounds of the Jingle Dress Dancer in my room. She danced for a few minutes and stopped. I said, "Thank you", and fell asleep. When I awoke the next morning, my first thought was to use the creation story as entry into a guided meditation about the Spirit of God that was given to us at birth. I also knew I needed to research the meaning of the Jingle Dress dance. I was unsure if this dance was part of the Apache tradition.
Mescalero Apache women do perform the Jingle Dress dance for many of their ritual ceremonies. The origin of the dance comes from the story of a tribal elder whose granddaughter was ill. One night, he had a vision of a spirit in a dress that told him if the grandfather made this dress and put it on his granddaughter, she would become well. The medicine man made the dress, put it on the child and brought her to the dance circle. The first time around the circle, the girl had to be carried because she was too weak to walk. The second time around, she could walk, but still needed help from some of the women in their community. The third time around the circle, the girl walked on her own. After this, women adopted the jingle dress as a healing dress. When they dance wearing the jingle dress, they recall the healing medicine.
I believe the spirit of the Jingle Dress dancer was present at San Patricio that night. It was a blessing for me to hear her, even without seeing her. Maybe she inspired my Sunday guided meditation. Maybe she blessed the healing ministry God called me to offer that weekend. Maybe I needed healing at some level before I could continue. Now, as I reflect back on the experience, I do not feel that I need to know anything about why she was there. I simply accept, with deep gratitude, that healing for the soul comes in many ways, if we are openhearted.
I often use the blessing that begins, "The peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God...". God's powerful peace is often beyond our understanding, but to receive it we need only keep our hearts and minds on God's love that manifests in many, sometimes mysterious and unexpected ways.

Question Authority

Matthew 11: 16-19 & 25-30

 Sermon preached July 3, 2011 at First Christian Church, Disciples of Christ/United Church of Christ
    To fully understand what has prompted Jesus' remarks according to Matthew, it is helpful to have a sense of the context. Matthew tells us that John the Baptist has just left the area and Jesus is giving the crowd a piece of his mind. He is expressing frustration about the criticism of John's behavior and also his own.
     John is believed to have been an Essene; a Jewish sect that was very particular about following the Holiness Codes or Jewish laws. In spite of John's strict practices, he is still criticized for his behavior.
     Then we have Jesus, who has, shall we say, a more relaxed view of life. Today we might label him progressive or reform in his religious practices. He is certainly viewed as being at an opposite end of the spectrum from John the Baptist and he is receiving criticism. Apparently, there were some Jews who were listening to Jesus' teaching, who expressed a weariness about the difficult task of remaining obedient to the Torah.
    The Sadducees required strict obedience to the Laws, but the Pharisees were a bit more lenient. However, both branches of Judaism at the time taught that the Holiness Codes were a means of remaining ritually clean as required by God. The holiness rituals also helped clearly identify the Jews in contrast to the Gods and practices of the Greeks and Romans.
     While it is evident that Jesus is critiquing the Law, we must avoid giving the Pharisees unfair judgment, running the risk of being perceived in Jewish circles as anti-Semitic. The Pharisees were the founders of modern day rabbinic Judaism, and it's possible Jesus himself was a Pharisee who was arguing--as Jewish teachers do--from with the group, not as an outsider.
     We must remember that Pharisees applied Jewish Law to mundane activities to SANCTIFY their every day world. Not exactly a bad idea to make holy the ordinary is it? They also emphasized social justice, and faith in redemption of all humanity. But they did interpret the Torah literally, which is clearly not where Jesus is coming from.
     Do you remember the bumper sticker "Question Authority"  Well that's what Jesus is doing in the Gospels. He is looking for a SPIRITUAL APPROACH TO THE LAW--a way to find meaning and purpose in our actions, not just blind obedience to a practice of the law. He doesn't want the Law to be a burden; he wants it to lead to the way, truth, and abundant life.
     Of course, it's always a little tricky to know when to question authority and when to simply accept it. I have an example of two young men who did question authority that led to a victory for human rights in New Mexico. Late February (2011) James Walker and Steven De Los Santos, seniors at Clovis High School, were moved to action by high rates of suicide among gay youth around the country, to apply to create a Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA) at their high school. Their objectives were clear and noble: safe environment, education, support, fight discrimination, harassment and violence.
    As required, they had a teacher to sponsor the group and obtained approval from the principal on March 1, and set about planning their first meeting. But, three days later, the principal revoked his approval, claiming he had forgotten to refer the club to the Clovis school superintendent. Weeks went by with no action from the superintendent.
     Clovis high had a past history of rebuking GSA applications. They also suspended several students in 2010 for participating in the national "Day of Silence": a act of solidarity with gay students who must exist silently or risk bullying or worse. Finally, the superintendent and the school board adopted "a closed forum policy" which banned all non-curricular clubs, thereby preventing the formation of the GSA. The students questioned the timing of this authorities decision and sought help from the American Civil Liberties Union of New Mexico.
     There was an overwhelming response of support for the efforts of these two young men, including signatures on a petition from thousands of people across the US. There was also a deluge of unflattering press coverage criticizing the school board and superintendent. The ACLU threatened a lawsuit.
    On May 5, just 10 days after the school board meeting that turned them down, the GSA was approved by the New Mexico district attorney.
     There is a BALANCE to be sought between Law and Grace--between rules of the humankind and God's love. To find that balance, there are times we must question authority.
     Ask yourself now:
      What makes you weary? What feels like a burdensome yoke to you? Where do you see the "least of them" under the yoke of injustice? What authority do you need to question?
     When you identify the answer to these questions, remember it is Jesus Christ who extends the invitation to seek rest in a life and a way, yoked with him. Not a life of ease, for the risks and challenges are many. Rather a life of humble service with a God who loves and accepts each one of us just as we are...not because of our education, or wealth, or charm, or good looks.
     When you embrace God's love and acceptance, you are energized and empowered to participate in the joy of kingdom-making. You will be free to liberate others with Jesus' LIFE_GIVING LAWS: justice, mercy, and compassion summed up in the two Great Commandments: "Love God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind...and love your neighbor as yourself."
    
 

Extravagant Welcome

     Last Sunday, the Revised Common Lectionary presented a reading from the Gospel of Matthew, Chpt. 10: 40-42, and Jeremiah 28: 5, 7-9. Matthew's description of Jesus' teaching on welcoming, disciples and prophets, and the least in first century Palestinian culture--a child, is a description of extravagant welcome.  Out of all these acts of welcome, the simplest gesture to the most vulnerable guarantees the surest reward according to Matthew.
     If we take Matthew's account of what Jesus said in a very literal sense, we in the southwest may recall the actions of the organization "No More Deaths" whose volunteers were placing gallon jugs of water in the desert on the Arizona border. These gallon jugs of pure water placed to those at risk of dying from thirst, each had a heart and a cross on it and the words “Good Luck Friends”. A simple gesture to the most vulnerable in the desert. 

Their reward? An arrest for "littering garbage" resulting in 300 hours community service and  one year probation. A few days before one volunteer, Daniel Mills was arrest, he found the body of a 14 year old Salvadoran girl.

     From 2001 to March of 2011, more than 2,058 deaths have been recorded. There are no official records being kept, simply the noting of deaths by the Pima County sheriff's office.

The United Church of Christ participates in offering a cup of water through the leadership efforts of Revs. Randy Mayer and Liana Rowe, and thousands of volunteers who have left over 100,000 gallons of water in 55 gallon drums through collaborative efforts of multiple agencies and denominations supporting HUMANE BORDERS.

    Cups of water in the desert to the most vulnerable is an example of what some disciples are doing. But, we need to ask why? To get a promised reward or for the personal satisfaction for doing “the right thing”. Or, maybe simply because the work of Jesus Christ is incomplete here.

            The prophet Jeremiah said – the prophet who predicts peace (something much different than creating war, famine and plague)  has to prove that God sent that prophet. The bottom line: only when the prophet’s message becomes a reality can we know God sent him or her.

       It seems essential that if we believe that Jesus was the prophet of peace, we must continue his efforts to make peace the reality that validates the world God intends for us to create. We are responsible for contributing to "shalom"-- peace that is more than the absence of war; peace that is accompanied by justice. Whether it is peace on the Mexican border, or peace in our homes and in our selves, we are called as partners in Christ's service.

            It doesn’t need to be extravagant. In fact, it is important to keep it simple. What is necessary is discernment as preparation for our actions. We must ask our self--

            What am I doing?

            Why am I doing it?

            And how do I prepare myself?

If I am not engaged in  border ministry, then who else needs that cup of cold water? What vulnerable person or place needs my attention? What is my motivation—personal reward or gain? 

            Jeremiah says it must contribute to the expansion of the reality of the “peace of God that passes all understanding.” Our actions should contribute to building up what connects us rather than what separates us!

        So, how do I prepare myself to be a Christ-bearer? A peace-builder? A co-creator with God? The answer is simple and profound: establish and maintain a spiritual discipline.

Create a habit, a practice that nurtures and enhances your Source of holiness, compassion, kindness, love, goodness, gentleness, generosity, open-heartedness, and extravagant welcome---a practice that manifests the divinity that lives within each one of us.

Whatever you choose to do, ground it in gratitude: thankfulness for everything; for all life’s events act as our teachers.

            What?

            Why?

            How?

Who knows what extravagant form your servanthood will take or what peace your simplest action may bear.

 

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