Author: erin

This homily was presented during an online Catholic “liturgy of the word mass” for our parish, St. Mary in Seattle. The readings for Sunday 1/10/21 are included at the end for reference:

These readings washed over me with a profound wave of peaceful gentleness. Let’s address Jesus heeding the call for gentleness, a deep respect for embodiment, and clarity around original sin and worthiness.

First, the gentle.

Jesus likely would have heard the first reading from Isaiah as a prophecy about the messiah to come. We don’t know whether he believed it was about himself. Viewing the entirety of the gospel stories, Jesus lived these words through his ministry (Leslie).

The reading prophesizes bringing justice without crying or shouting, without further breaking down those who suffer. It’s gentleness that brings light to the nations and those in darkness, opens blind eyes and frees prisoners.

Initially I felt such a beautiful gentle peace, but I’m writing as our nation’s Capitol is being stormed by white nationalists. Who are those dark nations? What really is the dark dungeon, that causing blindness and self-imprisonment?

The image of a gentle revolution is beautiful, but in the face of white supremacy and fascism is it realistic? I think of warrior pose in yoga – we must be trained to fight for love because not all people are on the side of love and sometimes love must be defended. Jesus showed us there are moments for anger and violence. He turned over a whole lot of tables and caused massive destruction when the temple was disrespected. But Jesus acted out of deep and abiding love for God and a sense of equality among all people. Every act of violence I know of in the Black Lives Matter revolution was started by those in power. Those fighting oppression truly were following the subversive nonviolent example of Jesus. Isaiah isn’t saying don’t retaliate, don’t stand up for yourself and oppressed people, it says start gentle and allow love and healing to grow on an individual level. Imagine the world if more of those in DC on Wednesday were raised with this sense of love rather than a sense of scarcity that drives them to demand the maintenance of hierarchy and oppression? (Brown)

And now for embodiment.

Isaiah is believed to be a mix of writings over 200 years apart (Newsom & Ringe). In the middle Jerusalem and Judah fell. The older 1^st Isaiah begins the biblical practice of blaming women for behavior the prophets determined was against God. Isaiah encourages Jewish people to stick with Judaism and make sense of their suffering by suggesting that they were sacrificial lambs of atonement, suffering for all people who sinned so that everyone could be returned to wholeness with God. 2^nd Isaiah – today’s reading – has a much more positive view of both women and men, as well as the body itself. In today’s reading, no one is scapegoated for the sins of all humanity. All bodies are good and necessary to physically do God’s work of spreading love.

Our second reading in 1 John was most likely written by the community who produced the Gospel of John. The writings all together suggest the community often disputes Jesus’s humanity and continues to vilify women. Somehow childbirth makes women more embodied than men and therefore lesser (Newsom & Ringe). John’s response: it is all about body and spirit. Body isn’t bad. We all – women and men – are begotten by God.

Spirit, water and blood all testify together. Our spirit cannot do the work of God without a body made of blood and water.  Jesus asks for baptism in the gospel – he asks his fully divine spirit, the water of the river and the blood of his fully human body to testify together.

Finally we come to baptism today and the question of original sin and worthiness. Our baptisms were about faith – being baptized into a faith community from which we could grow in deeper faith.

I was taught in childhood that as a descendant of Adam and Eve, I carry Eve’s sin of eating the apple God said not to. It took a Master’s degree to understand the bible story says Eve’s sin of omission, doing something you are told not to and Adam’s sin of commission, going along with someone else’s sinful behavior, are equivalently bad. The apple opening one’s eyes to nakedness means eyes open to the possibility of scarcity- and fearing scarcity will always be sin that takes us from God – only faith can counter that.

Vilifying those who do not look like us; voting for people we believe represent our beliefs even when we know they live from a sinful fear of scarcity; judging those who are not on a journey to be antiracist, or at least not as far as we, rather than heeding the words of Isaiah for how to minister as a Messiah; refusing to be a vulnerable person who has things to learn, feeling vindicated by our news feeds repeating the same unsubstantiated information we espouse – all of this would be the perpetuation of original sin in our world today.

I never really understood the idea of someone else’s sin living in me until reading My Grandmother’s Hands by Resmaa Menakem. He pulls apart how the trauma of generations is literally passed down in our bodies, our genetic code, the physical matter that makes us, such that unless we do our work to metabolize that trauma, it perpetuates in the world. He speaks specifically about trauma of race relations and whiteness. But I would say anything that is sin – anything that separates us from God – is trauma which could be passed generationally and already embedded in the bodies our souls come to inhabit. Cue the faith we are baptized into – faith that the extreme gentleness Isaiah calls for can heal our original sin.

But in the process of baptism, John the Baptist claims to be not worthy. Perhaps it is just overexposure to false modesty and extreme self-consciousness in our culture, but I have a problem saying we aren’t worthy. It strikes me as saying no to God’s repeated offering of unconditional love that has absolutely nothing to do with our worth – paying the workers on the vineyard equally regardless of time, welcoming back the prodigal son, Isaiah’s message of gentle healing, John’s message of body and spirit testifying together. Sure, we can all behave better and sin less – particularly our sins of commission – the unrecognized aiding and abetting we do every day – and days like Wednesday happen when we question how anyone who could act with such hatred could be worthy. Being born a white American is being born into the original sin of the ignorance of white privilege. But God extends love to every single one of us equally – the fact that we only get to experience this unconditional love when we are engaged in the work pretty much requires that any unworthiness we may have is going to be addressed before the full reward could possibly be experienced anyway.

In his act of asking for baptism, Jesus tells John the Baptist John was worthy to unstrap the sandals of the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit. Jesus came seeking John the Baptist! God comes seeking every single one of us in our currently embodied forms. God needs us to spread the gentle Messianic love! Yes, dig deep and uncover sins you didn’t know you had, repent and sin less! But stop demurring! We are always worthy and as long as we are doing the work – the true, baptized faith to wade through our internal body and soul trenches with gentleness and vulnerability work – God’s love will be there. 

Bibliography

1. Menakem, Resmaa (2017). My Mother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the pathway to Mending our Hearts and Bodies. Las Vegas: Central Recovery Press. https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781942094470
2. Brown, Brene’ (2012). Daring Greatly: How the Courage to Be Vulnerable Transforms the Way We Live, Love, Parent, and Lead. New York: Avery. https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9781592408412
3. Newsom, C.A. & Ringe, S.H. (1998). Women’s Bible Commentary. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press. https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9780664237073
4. Leslie, Robert (1968). Jesus and Logotherapy. Abingdon Press: Out of Print.

Readings:

Reading 1: Isaiah 42:1-4, 6-7

Thus says our God: Here is my servant whom I uphold, my chosen one with whom I am pleased, upon whom I have put my spirit; he shall bring forth justice to the nations, not crying out, not shouting, not making his voice heard in the street, a bruised reed he shall not break, and a smoldering wick he shall not quench, until he establishes justice on the earth; the coastlands will wait for his teaching. I, your God, have called you for the victory of justice, I have grasped you by the hand; I formed you, and set you as a covenant of the people, a light for the nations, to open the eyes of the blind, to bring out prisoners from confinement, and from the dungeon, those who live in darkness.

Reading 2: 1 John 5:1-9

Beloved: Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is begotten by God, and everyone who loves the Creator loves also the one begotten by God. In this way we know that we love the children of God when we love God and obey God’s commandments. For the love of God is this, that we keep God’s commandments. And God’s commandments are not burdensome, for whoever is begotten by God conquers the world. And the victory that conquers the world is our faith. Who indeed is the victor over the world but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? This is the one who came through water and blood, Jesus Christ, not by water alone, but by water and blood. The Spirit is the one who testifies, and the Spirit is truth. So there are three that testify, the Spirit, the water, and the blood, and the three are of one accord. If we accept human testimony, the testimony of God is surely greater. Now the testimony of God is this, that God has testified on behalf of God’s Son.

Gospel: Mark 1:7-11

This is what John the Baptist proclaimed: “One mightier than I is coming after me. I am not worthy to stoop and loosen the thongs of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.” It happened in those days that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized in the Jordan by John. On coming up out of the water Jesus saw the heavens being torn open and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him. And a voice came from the heavens, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

This homily was presented during an online Catholic “liturgy of the word mass” for our parish, St. Mary in Seattle. The readings of the day are included at the end for reference:

I love this parable. I love the idea that eternal life – the Kingdom of Heaven – makes absolutely no sense in capitalism. I love the idea that God’s payment to us is pure unconditional love no matter how much or little time we put into tending God’s vineyard. If we are doing the work of God come pay time, we will receive eternal life. I love the idea that when we compare what we get with what others get, we are no longer doing the work of the vineyard. We can no longer experience eternal life because we are no longer in the mindset to do so. Thus, we put ourselves at the back of the line for receiving payment.

So why would you want to be an early arrival to work? What is your job when it comes to the late or seemingly misdirected workers? And what is the work of the vineyard anyway?

Why Arrive Early?

As the first reading said, “your thoughts are not my thoughts, your ways are not my ways.” Our ways of payment based on production rather than need are not the ways of God.  Our thoughts concerning fairness rather than the experience of the work as the payment itself are not the thoughts of God. We are being told that our mindset and attitude about our work matter to whether we experience eternal life.

Jesus tells this parable in direct response to Peter asking what’s the reward for the disciples who already gave up everything to follow Jesus? Eternal life. There is no more or less to eternal life based on how long you have labored. Jesus tells the parable knowing that the society of the day viewed wage fairness as commensurate with output, like us today. 

Jesus never says the people who never work get paid. At some point you must do God’s work to receive the payment. If you are truly engaged with the work of the vineyard and doing things aligned with God’s love, then you will be experiencing eternal life. The second you turn your heart towards the work of God, you will be receiving God’s love because you are now open to receiving it. Turn your heart away from God by measuring your work with that of others and you have closed yourself from receiving, going to the back of the line. While eternal life is the same, the plea for starting sooner is that eternal life only occurs in the time you spend fully engaged in the vineyard work.

But what about the people with whose work we disagree? What is our role with recruitment on the vineyard?

Initially I was thinking this reading just meant that God gives the same love to the white supremacist militant who claims to be Christian as the Black Lives Matter peacefully provocative protestor.  I thought that God loves the people who claim to be good Christians in the belief they earned what they have through their hard work equal to the native and Black people whose land and labor was stolen to fund the seeds of that hard work generations ago. I read this to mean that God loves the people who believe God is on the side of justice in law and order policies equal to the communities who are being killed by those law and order policies that maintain oppression. That God loves our neighbors who celebrate their faith by coming together with singing and social distancing practices that are scientifically proven to spread pandemic equal to those of us who maintain strict quarantine to respect healthcare workers and vulnerable populations.

Then I realized while my intention may be a desire to equalize us in the eyes of God, my spirit is doing exactly what the reading says not to do. I am still comparing myself and my beliefs and actions to those of other people to decide who should get paid, what and when.

Another person’s journey is between them and God. I will never know another person’s experience of God’s love. I will never know if it is similar to a person who engages in what I believe is the work of the vineyard. And the second I start to wonder, I’m back at the end of the line for actually experiencing eternal life in the Kingdom of Heaven.

The love God has for all of us -whether working the vineyard or not – may be exactly the same. But the reading suggests we may only get the payment, experience the fullness of God’s love, if we are doing what God deems is the work of the vineyard. We could be those hired last who receive first with awe and gratitude. We could be those who have believed for years we were doing the work when in fact, it was not truly the love God asked of us and only now are we recognizing that our spirit was not open to identify our shortcomings. We could be long term laborers who must surrender our desire to be arbiter of who gets how much as well as our desire to be first in the eyes of God.

Our work is not-not trying to get the late arrivals to start working sooner. It’s still our job to do that and speak out. But in the end, no matter when people show up, our jobs are the same.  Our payment is the same. Questioning payment puts us at the back of the line. Questioning why someone didn’t get there sooner – and the role we may have played in keeping them away – could definitely be the work of the vineyard.

In looking for the 2020 silver linings, I learned that Ruth Bader Ginsberg left this life on the first day of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish new year celebration beginning the high holy days. According to Jewish tradition, a person who dies on Rosh Hashanah was needed to do God’s work until the last minute of the year and is a person of great righteousness. Her righteous advice for our role in recruiting people often and early to work the vineyard: “Fight for the things that you care about but do it in a way that will lead others to join you.”

Finally, what is the actual work of the vineyard? How do we know whether we are on the side of God? Jesus provides some basics in the preceding chapter.

First husbands may not divorce their wives, particularly in order to marry someone else. In historical context women were completely dependent on their fathers, brothers, or husbands for their livelihood. Divorce meant a woman was unprotected with no income.  Today, who is protecting women from being detained by ICE and having their uteruses removed? What does income equality mean when a hierarchy of gender and race still exists in pay scales? It means it’s still complicated and we still need to ensure women’s needs – financial, physical, emotional, spiritual – are being equitably met. Perhaps most importantly, in the words of RBG, “Women belong in all places where decisions are being made.” Interesting statement in a Catholic community…

Second was let the children come to me – the kingdom belongs to such as these. Everyone has a place in the kingdom. No one is unimportant including the children. Want to advance the kingdom of God? How are you helping the children feel loved and healed by Jesus? I’m guessing weapons and cages aren’t involved but equitable access to education and healthcare probably is.

Third the man asked what good deed to do to have eternal life. Jesus spouted off the commandments about how we treat one another. The man continues to push, and Jesus says if you wish to be perfect, go sell everything, give the money to the poor and follow me.

In telling the disciples about this man, Jesus claims it is easier for a camel to get through the eye of the needle than the rich man to enter the kingdom of God. The “eye of the needle” was the narrow gate to the protected walled city. It wasn’t impossible for the camel to get through. You had to be willing to unload all your belongings from your camel. While your things were on the ground, you had to convince your camel to kneel down and crawl through the eye of the needle that was built for a single person to pass. If you could convince your camel, you would then be on the opposite side of the gate from all your possessions. You had to be detached enough from your possessions either to trust no thieves would take them or not care if they were all stolen.  It wasn’t easy. It isn’t easy. Dealing with it all took time away from doing the work of the vineyard. Doing only an hour of God’s work may enable you to experience God’s ultimate love, but will you really experience that love on the level of the Kingdom of Heaven if the rest of your time is spent otherwise?

Is all the hassle of protecting one’s possessions – which in the US today can most definitely be traced to some form of slavery – worth it?

Jesus says, for mortals this level of detachment is impossible but for God all things are possible. Prompting Peter to ask his question. Jesus uses this parable to show the reward of eternal life is not just detachment from our possessions, as Peter and the disciples had done. It is also detachment from being rewarded for our detachment. And detachment from comparing our reward to that of people we judge as more or less detached than us.

Jesus is never telling us to be perfect. Only God can be perfect and make us so. Our work in God’s vineyard means applying the commandments to our interactions with all people, especially women and children. One can see how fighting oppression in any form to ensure the women and children are cared for is imperative to the vineyard. Then our work is detachment – from possessions, from comparing, from results.

This builds on the forgiveness we heard Ed talk about last week. No one has wronged us by doing less but receiving the same from God. But we still may need to let go of a grudge about it. It is not for us to judge how God loves or keep tabs on who is doing how much of the work. It is our job to defend women and children by disrupting oppression and to encourage others in finding their job on the vineyard. Do your thing, trust that the more you do, you will not receive more reward, but you may have more opportunity to experience the fullness of it. Trust that the minute you start comparing your work to that of others, your attention has been diverted from the payment.

This parable doesn’t address those of us who start the work but get distracted. We only get paid if we come back. So, know that we are human, not perfect, just as Jesus said. Work to be perfect with God’s help if you wish. Practice detachment – from possessions, from comparing your eternal reward to that of others. Expect that all are being paid the same. And just keep coming back. The payment of unconditional love will always be there.

Now off to our next community vineyard project – the Harvest – get ready to unload some of your camels in support of the food bank!

Reading 1: Isaiah 55:6-9

Seek our loving God while God may be found, call God who is very near. Let the scoundrels forsake their ways, and the wicked their thoughts; let them turn to God for mercy; to our God, who is generous in forgiving.

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways my ways, says our God. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways above your ways and my thoughts above your thoughts.

Reading 2: Phil. 1:20-27

A reading from St. Paul to the Philippians.

Brothers and sisters: Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death. For to me life is Christ, and death is gain. If I go on living in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. And I do not know which I shall choose. I am caught between the two. I long to depart this life and be with Christ, for that is far better. Yet that I remain in the flesh is more necessary for your benefit. Only, conduct yourselves in a way worthy of the gospel of Christ.

Gospel: MT 20:1-16

Jesus told his disciples this parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out at dawn to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with them for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. Going out about nine o’clock, the landowner saw others standing idle in the marketplace, and he said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard, and I will give you what is just.’ So they went off.  And he went out again around noon, and around three o’clock, and did likewise.

Going out about five o’clock, the landowner found others standing around, and said to them, ‘Why do you stand here idle all day?’ They answered, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You too go into my vineyard.’ When it was evening the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Summon the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and ending with the first.’ When those who had started about five o’clock came, each received the usual daily wage. So when the first came, they thought that they would receive more, but each of them also got the usual wage. And on receiving it they grumbled against the landowner, saying, ‘These last ones worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us, who bore the day’s burden and the heat.’ He said to one of them in reply, ‘My friend, I am not cheating you. Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage?  Take what is yours and go. What if I wish to give this last one the same as you?  Or am I not free to do as I wish with my own money?  Are you envious because I am generous?’ Thus, the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

I delivered this homily to an online Catholic “liturgy of the word mass” for our parish, St. Mary in Seattle tonight. The Sunday readings for 11/8/20 it breaks open are posted at the end for reference. Please know that while they may seem to support misogyny, taken in context, they actually direct men to combat it and women to stand up for themselves. The speeches I just watched with my daughters & husband could not have demonstrated that better. If you ever wonder how a person can work for social justice and claim to be Catholic I hope this homily explains that in order to truly be Catholic one must work for social justice. Today Love beat Hate. There is nothing holier than that:

I find today’s readings equally inspiring and disturbing. Inspiring with the possibilities for wisdom and readiness. Disturbing with gendered language driving implicit bias both in our church and the world.

Let’s start with the disturbing. Context. Going to a “gay” party 60 years ago meant something very different than going to a “gay” party today. If words meant something different 60 years ago, how about 1700 to multiple thousands of years ago when the words of the bible were spoken and eventually written down? The context of today’s readings -both in terms of what happens before and after the excerpts we heard and what the words and concepts might have meant when they were produced – transport me from a place of desolation to hope. 

If we have learned nothing else this week, macho sells, people fear socialism and many people operate from an absolute right/wrong morality – unable to recognize or unwilling to admit how their actions maintain white male supremacy.  As written, today’s readings may appear to support these positions. Taken in context, the readings counter them instead.

A big part of dismantling forces that have brought us to this place is counteracting the implicit biases we all have. Biases about women, men, immigrants, Black people, college educated, anti-maskers, the list goes on. Every label I just named brought a judgment to my mind. Likely to yours as well, whether you realized it or not. 

Our minds develop biases naturally and need to because we are inundated with thousands of pieces of information every moment and our brains must filter it. I learned this from Rosetta Lee, a local teacher and diversity trainer. I highly recommend checking out the Implicit Bias Test she uses which I’ll send out in my references. The Catholic Church maintains implicit bias through hierarchy, traditions, and lack of historical context. We can help our minds process our Catholic biases with greater love and intentionality. And challenging how the stories of the bible are presented could be a big part of that.

My first glance at these readings without context demeaned women as somehow lesser and more faulted than men.

In the first reading, Wisdom is described as an unembodied female who is resplendent, loved, hastening, anticipating desires, waiting, gracious, solicitous. My hackles go up immediately – she’s not a real person! Why is feminine being presented as ethereally perfect while a man is physically human waiting for her? What does this do for our brains’ automatic images about men and women?

Reading the surrounding material, the first reading is addressed to kings. Kings are being told to watch for wisdom, not commoners like us. The message that wisdom is waiting for us is great for all people, but the way it is presented in mass suggests it is only for men.

To dig deeper I went to the Women’s Bible Commentary and learned all the connections between the Hellenic god Isis and Woman Wisdom. This connection is particularly reflected in both of their relationships to rulers. Woman Wisdom gave Jewish people an image that could protect and save them in ways the Jewish image of God did not. This meant they were less likely to look outside of Judaism to the Hellenistic society they lived in for this kind of figure.

In my initial glance at the second reading, Paul is speaking to men and calling God a “he.” We don’t know who has fallen asleep or how. The context of the excerpt as part of a letter is not much help. The Women’s Bible Commentary reports this letter was likely written after Paul had been driven away by persecution. The people worked as tent and leather artisans, work often done by slaves. Paul encouraged them to have limited interaction with non-Christians to avoid persecution. The simple message of the excerpt used for this reading is “The Christians who have died – possibly victims of persecution – will come with the Lord and be reunited with the community” (Newsom, p. 440)

As for the gospel, read on its own we have some women prepared, some not, but they all fall asleep. My initial read was infuriating. Women felt horribly judged and as though the prodigal son story of God celebrating the sinner’s return only applied to men, not us. Are women truly undeserving of God if we aren’t prepared? What does that say about my dirty house, kids in front of the TV and lack of dinner plans while I write this homily?

Investigating the surrounding material we find this is one of many parables telling people to be ready. The previous parable speaks specifically to the men. It makes sense to follow this with words speaking specifically to women.

Carrying lanterns to light a bridegroom’s way may have been the role of young servant women. Women’s Bible Commentary says this parable is the only time Matthew’s gospel judges people: describing women as wise or foolish. This makes me feel ill and question yet again why I am exposing my daughters to the bible.

Further reflection on the era and entire chapter suggests while the language seems awful, the concept might have been revolutionary. Women – even young servants – are each responsible for their own salvation. Women were not responsible for anything beyond following the orders of their fathers, husbands or masters. Women were being told to take responsibility for their own salvation, just as men were responsible for theirs. We have to get all the way to the end of the chapter to hear Matthew tell us we do this by service to the poor, the imprisoned, the hungry. It has nothing to do with my dirty house, bored kids or cooking! God’s not judging me for those things at all. But what does it say that’s where my unconscious biases led?

For further context, why on Earth are these 3 readings put together? Understanding this may be the difference between supporting or refuting political beliefs that warred this week. Women’s Bible Commentary reports that in history, after men have a religious conversion, they often give up competition with other males in favor of characteristics or saints identified as feminine.

The men written to in the second reading may have been likely to identify with Woman Wisdom, like the rulers Solomon was calling on in the first reading, because they had experienced religious conversion. Paul encouraged them in their slave like artisan work and directed them to avoid interactions with non-Christians so they wouldn’t get stuck in competition or persecution. The excerpt is their reminder that even if they died for their actions, they would be reunited with God and their community in the afterlife.

This is a pretty awesome message – men are responsible for breaking down misogyny by turning away from competition and towards wisdom. In a time when misogyny was the norm, something traditionally feminine is being touted as better than something traditionally masculine.

So why do I feel insulted that men are being told to act more like wise women and give up pointless battles of ego? Shouldn’t that be a good thing? This is speaking to my ongoing struggle with Lean In – I felt like that book was telling me to be more like a man instead of telling men to stop the race and look at the other jobs that need to be done. Is that wisdom? Why in our day and age do these things have to be gendered? Why can’t it just be about setting aside competition in favor of wisdom? Why does the competition have to be male and the wisdom female? And why is there a positive feeling of consolation in the readings telling men to seek wisdom even to death and a negative feeling of judgement in that telling women to use wisdom in taking responsibility their own salvation?

All of this gender talk is really important because it does things to our brains. It gives our brains snippets of information that get simplified to the point of being at least partially false. It pulls us away from true wisdom and towards votes that seem supported by the readings.

I have a hard time with gendered terms for things like Wisdom, God- the unknowable. Does gendering the unknowable promote understanding or strengthen a dualistic either/or vision of the world? Jesus was a man. I accept that. But God as only father and Wisdom as woman both contradict my experience of either.

Will Americans ever be able to support females in the highest office of power if we continue to espouse religious traditions that maintain the highest image of God as masculine? If religious practice is a primary source of moral development in adults, how can adults develop beyond a basic level of dualistic either/or thinking when the images of God are presented in a dualistic manner? Will we ever grow as Catholics to be able to consider the complexity of many issues when voting – like character, love, and dignity – instead of choosing just one issue – like abortion or the privileged mindset that everything one has is deserved and purely due to one’s hard work – when our language for God continues to maintain an either/or duality that we have no evidential proof to support?

James Fowler in Stages of Faith surmises with others that human development requires each individual to be challenged at a level just above their current reasoning. I wonder how many social media feeds truly present us with information that challenges our current level of development rather than reinforcing it. And I wonder, when we are repeatedly espousing the same thing over and over on a public platform, how much more entrenched a level of development may become with our identity such that it takes that much more challenge for us to be able to actually grow.

I recently took a class on raising antiracist white kids. We were encouraged to teach kids about their ancestor’s cultural identity before “whiteness” existed. The lesson was that if we don’t give them a sense of identity outside of White Supremacy, there are plenty of people on the internet who will indoctrinate them. While these readings may not lead directly to white supremacy, without context they definitely contribute to misogyny.

How does it become our role as Catholics to promote a Catholic identity independent from White Supremacy and Misogyny? How are we helping people to recognize implicit biases and the possibilities for further religious development? How are we giving people a voice and identity so the conservative branches of the church don’t hold the same attraction much like Solomon presenting Woman Wisdom to Jewish people as a counter to Hellenic Isis?

Let’s finally turn from the disturbing and close with just the inspiring. Today our family celebrates that read in context, the wisdom and service these readings proclaim won. Kamala Harris, a woman of color, was just elected to the second highest position of power in our country. The readings point us towards our extensive yet surmountable work to help heal the chasms in our nation. Work towards true wisdom, away from competition – towards trust in God in this life and the afterlife – towards preparing for God’s coming by caring for one another.

Watch for wisdom – it is out there and wants us. But we have to be open.

Trust that persecution isn’t the end – we will be with God and together again.

Be prepared at all times. We don’t know when God is coming. Much like the vineyard we heard so much about in September and October, perhaps the only time we experience God is when we are doing the preparatory work.  How are we taking responsibility for our own salvation? How are we keeping ourselves awake and alert? How are we letting our lights shine and showing off our good work?

Resources:

1. Rosetta Lee: https://www.theequityexchange.org/rosetta-lee
2. Implicit Bias Test: https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/ 
3. Newsom, C.A. & Ringe, S.H. (1998). Women’s Bible Commentary. Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press. https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9780664237073
4. Sandberg, S. (2013). Lean In. Knopf. https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9780385349949
5. Center for the Study of White American Culture: https://www.euroamerican.org/default.asp
6. Fowler, J.W. (1981).  Stages of Faith: The Psychology of Human Development and the Quest for Meaning. San Francisco: Harper.  https://www.thirdplacebooks.com/book/9780060628666

Reading 1: Wisdom 6:12-16

Resplendent and unfading is wisdom, and she is readily perceived by those who love her, and found by those who seek her. She hastens to make herself known in anticipation of their desire; Whoever watches for her at dawn shall not be disappointed, for he shall find her sitting by his gate. For taking thought of wisdom is the perfection of prudence, and whoever for her sake keeps vigil shall quickly be free from care; because she makes her own rounds, seeking those worthy of her, and graciously appears to them in the ways, and meets them with all solicitude.

Reading 2: 1 Thessalonians 4:13-14

We do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, about those who have fallen asleep, so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose, so too will God, through Jesus, bring with him those who have fallen asleep.

Gospel: MT 25:1-13

Jesus told his disciples this parable: “The kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish and five were wise. The foolish ones, when taking their lamps, brought no oil with them, but the wise brought flasks of oil with their lamps. Since the bridegroom was long delayed, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. At midnight, there was a cry, ‘Behold, the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise ones replied, ‘No, for there may not be enough for us and you. Go instead to the merchants and buy some for yourselves.’ While they went off to buy it, the bridegroom came and those who were ready went into the wedding feast with him. Then the door was locked. Afterwards the other virgins came and said, ‘Lord, Lord, open the door for us!’ But he said in reply, ‘Amen, I say to you, I do not know you.’ Therefore, stay awake, for you know neither the day nor the hour.”

How many things have you done in the past 6 weeks you never imagined? You have continued to get up even though it may feel like your world turned upside down. How many fears have you set aside? How many new ways to manage and process and eat food have you found? How much have you taught your children – whether traditionally or non traditionally? How have you reinvisioned your professional life? How long have you avoided people who weren’t healthy for you anyway? How have you left – or helped someone else leave – an unsafe situation? How have you found to entertain yourself and others? How have you set forth on a new wellness journey? How have you helped ensure someone else’s physical, mental or spiritual needs have been met?

This is not about the 800 moments you have felt you like you have fallen short. This is about what you have actually done because it truly is amazing, no matter how little it may seem. 

For meditation today:

1. Find the best comfortable position for you. 
2. Notice your breath. Concentrate on the exhales, breathing out everything that no longer serves your best self. Draw the pelvic floor up towards the naval, the ribs down towards the naval, and the naval in towards the spine to push each breath out of your lungs. Keep the neck and chest as relaxed as possible. This will engage the diaphragm – the muscle meant for moving the lungs. 
3. When exhaling is established, turn your attention to the inhale. Envision the back of your lungs pulling all the way down to your heels as the air fills the bottommost parts first. Only once this begins do the back of your ribs expand out to the sides and then the front ribs may expand slights as they are pulled along for the ride. The upper chest, neck and pectoral muscles stay relaxed. 
4. Turn to your mind. Exhale every thought of failure, letting go of your attachments to what success has meant before this time. Inhale feeling your new accomplishments and ways of being in the world fill your body.
5. Continue these exhales and inhales, completing a body scan as you go emptying all thoughts of failure from the crown of your head to the tips of your toes and filling with the joy of all you have actually accomplished. 

Today is midway through Passover and Easter Sunday. It is a season for celebrating the evasion of the angel of death. Someday, many months from now, we will all resurrect from this transitional place we are living. There will be space to mourn all that has been lost. There will also be rebirth as we revive our relationships through physical proximity to others again.

As with all resurrection, it will not be the same as it was. It is almost impossible to imagine from this point what that future will look like. The revitalization of our communities, neighborhoods, cities and even countries as a whole is hard to anticipate.

But we know love. And we know joy. And we know light. In preparation for our resurrection, today we celebrate the light by filling ourselves so fully there is no room for anything else.

For meditation today:

1. Find a comfortable position. 
2. Notice your breath. Begin to lengthen the exhales and inhales, engaging the diaphragm as previously taught.
3. Do a body scan, beginning at the top of your head and going all the way down to your toes. Envision the greatest light of the universe filling your entire body, preparing you for the resurrection. Each space the light fills opens up to the amazing possibilities the future may hold for you.
4. Sit in this place full of light and send out any words of gratitude or petition that arise for you from this space of great light and possibility.

Today in the Catholic church is the Easter vigil – the celebration of the new holy water and eternal fire that will burn for the next year. Given the current situation, going to church to get new holy water or light a candle with the new fire is out of the question. This evening our family will have a little ceremony around our fire table, lighting candles to welcome in a new year and following one of these rituals to make our own holy water. 

For those unfamiliar with holy water, you can use it to bless just about everything. We are back to intentions here. It could be a blessing for safety, welcoming in love, clearing out everything that isn’t love.  We regularly spray it around the house after cleaning – bring in a little blessing to our space.

For meditation today:

1. Light a candle and consider blessing the fire with the words of blessing you may have identified for yourself in an earlier meditation.
2. Get a spray bottle or small bowl of water – holy water if you have some or made some would be great. Spray or sprinkle all around and over you, if you wish. Continue to use your words of blessing with the water.
3. Find your comfortable position for this practice. 
4. Turn your attention to your breath. Begin the diaphragmatic breathing, emptying completely with the exhale and filling from the bottom up with the inhale. 
5. Practice a grounding exercise in this space you have created with the new holy light and holy water.

Today Christians celebrate Good Friday. The “good” is the word that has people scratching their heads – it’s a celebration of someone being put to death for preaching a gospel of love because it made the people in power feel nervous. Historically the “good” simply refers to it being holy. 

The piece of the story I want to concentrate on which I hope can be a place of meditation across all religious (or not) affiliations is forgiveness. One of the few things Jesus is reported to have said while suffocating on the cross is “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.” We are all human. We do things all the time that may seem like a great idea but in fact have horrid consequences for other people. Yes, it is our responsibility to educate ourselves as well as we can to make decisions out of love and facts. But the truth is, it is not always possible. 

For meditation today:

1. Find the best comfortable position for you. 
2. Notice your breath. Concentrate on the exhales, breathing out everything that no longer serves your best self. Draw the pelvic floor up towards the naval, the ribs down towards the naval, and the naval in towards the spine. Keep the neck and chest as relaxed as possible. This will engage the diaphragm – the muscle meant for moving the lungs. 
3. When exhaling is established, turn your attention to the inhale. Envision the back of your lungs pulling all the way down to your heels as the air fills the bottommost parts first. Only once this begins do your ribs and chest move as they are pulled along for the ride.
4. On your next exhale, begin a body scan from the tips of your toes, up to the crown of your head. As you move through the body, notice any parts holding on to old hurts or grudges. Gently exhale away anything that is ready to leave.
5. As you complete your body scan, bring your attention to any thoughts around forgiveness that remain. 
   • Does anyone come to mind who you need to forgive for behavior they didn’t realize was hurting you? Notice if you feel ready to offer forgiveness or if you still need to do more healing first. 
   • Does anyone come to mind who you need to ask for forgiveness for behavior you didn’t realize hurt them at the time? Some ways we hurt without meaning:
     • We fail to recognize how our privilege takes power away from someone else. Privilege could be from race, gender, socioeconomics, sexual orientation, body type, health, access to education, tolerance for disgust, exposure to cultures other than our own, access to a balanced diet, or a multitude of other things.
     • We fail to physical distance and put the lives of healthcare and other necessary workers at risk.
     • We act on limited knowledge without researching diverse viewpoints to establish a conclusion based in love. 
   • Is there anything you may wish to forgive yourself for? 
6. Finish your meditation this evening by envisioning all of your offerings of forgiveness floating out through the air like little clouds or beams of light and heading directly to the highest self of the person who needs that information.  

Today marks Holy Thursday for Christians and the first full day of Passover for Jewish people. Both feasts mark the time when God sent a plague on the first-born sons of Egyptians who held Jewish people in slavery. The angel of death would “pass over” the homes of Jewish people marked by the blood of a slaughtered spring lamb. While masks, gloves, handwashing, and physical distancing are all fantastic ways to divert the angel of death right now (not to mention meditation, diet and exercise), what sacrificial lamb might we still be called to slaughter? Sometimes I wonder which angel of death this giant pause in life actually has us avoiding. 

The facet of Holy Thursday that is key to Christian celebrations is the concept of God serving the people. Jesus washes the feet of the disciples present at the seder meal. These people lived in a dusty desert and wore sandals all day – they had dirty feet and cleaning them was the role of a servant. Some suggested questions in meditation today have us exploring many different possibilities around what serving and being served may mean.  

For meditation today:

1. Find a comfortable position. 
2. Notice your breath. Begin to lengthen the exhales and inhales, engaging the diaphragm as previously taught.
3. Ground allowing your cord to connect with the center of the Earth. Do a body scan from the top of your head to the tips of your toes, clearing out anything that stands between you and wholeness right now.
4. Call to mind the word “serve.” Notice any thoughts or feelings that come up for you. Consider the following questions if you need a prompt:
   • How do I allow my higher power/God/universe to serve me? 
   • How do I surrender myself to being served? 
   • How am I being asked to serve?
5. Finish by concentrating on your breath and your connection with the universe.

The homonyms holy and wholly have always given me a little smiling pause. Much like Son (Jesus) and sun. I love that “holistic” is in a sense a union of the two. Someday soon – in like a year or 18 months maybe – I won’t be in charge of 3 children all day, every day. Then I will get to put on my Holistic Consultant hat for hours at a time. I will get to have amazing conversations with people who want to better understand and enhance the connections that will make their life feel like a better incorporated whole.

In the meantime, in this holiest of weeks for many people, let’s meditate on our wholeness and our holiness. For me, wholeness is the sense that my truest self – not my ego and fears but the me that is all joy and love – fills my entire body down to the last toe nail. Holiness seems entirely about the extent to which I allow spirit or higher power to guide my life. Every moment I spend living in a true state of unconditional love is a moment of holiness.

For meditation today:

1. Find your comfortable position for this practice. 
2. Turn your attention to your breath. Notice whether it is shallow or deep. Concentrate on the exhales, breathing out everything that no longer serves your best self. Draw the pelvic floor up towards the naval, the ribs down towards the naval, and the naval in towards the spine. Keep the neck and chest as relaxed as possible. This will engage the diaphragm – the muscle meant for moving the lungs. 
3. When you feel confident in your exhales, turn your attention to the inhale. Envision the back of your lungs pulling all the way down to your heels. Only once this begins do your ribs and chest move as they are pulled along for the ride.
4. Complete a body scan beginning at the tips of your toes and working your way up. With each inhale, envision yourself becoming more whole. Envision your body fill up with the flowing love and joy that is the best version of yourself. Envision each exhale carrying away anything of ego or fear that blocks your truest self. Slowly work your way up the body through every bone, muscle, organ and cell all the way up to the crown of the head. 
5. Sit in this place of wholeness for a few breaths and connect with any holiness you sense in or around you. Can you surrender a bit more to some higher power today? Can you let this holiness be part of your wholeness today?