ordinary

We are now well into the period of time on the church calendar that is known as “Ordinary Time.”  There are actually two such stretches of time.  The first, the shorter one, runs between Epiphany and Lent.  The second and longer one runs between Pentecost and Advent.

The word “ordinary” has more than one meaning.  It first refers to the “ordinal” numbers of the Sundays:  for example, the 14th and 15th Sundays in Ordinary Time, or the 7th and 8th Sundays after Pentecost.  But it’s more than a description of the numbers!

Hearing the word “ordinary” might prompt a yawn.  There’s nothing glamorous about “ordinary”—that why it is ordinary!  But that’s where the majority of life is lived.  It’s in between the spectacular events, whether we’re thinking of holidays, like Easter and Christmas, or in our own lives, like graduation, marriage, or watching your team win the Super Bowl!  (For me, that’s been a while!)

In her book, The Liturgical Year, the Benedictine author Joan Chittister describes how life meshes with Ordinary Time:

“It is what we do routinely, not what we do rarely, that delineates the character of a person.  It is what we believe in the heart of us that determines what we do daily.  It is what we bring to the nourishment of the soul that predicts the kind of soul we nurture.  It’s what we do ordinarily, day by day, that gives an intimation of what we will do under stress.  It is the daily—the way we act ordinarily, not rarely, that defines us as either kind, or angry, or faithful, or constant.”

That sentence, “It is what we do routinely, not what we do rarely, that delineates the character of a person,” is both challenging and comforting.

It is challenging in the sense that there really is no time like the present.  The present is what we’re given; if we imagine that we’ll wait until something remarkable happens, we’re likely fooling ourselves.  (I’ve often thought that I would get a bicycle for the exercise it provides.  I have yet to do it!) 

But it is comforting in the sense that we don’t need to wait for something remarkable.  We’re surrounded by an infinite weight of glory right now.  And looking at the church calendar, we’re reminded that every Sunday is a “little” Easter, every Sunday is the Lord’s Day, the celebration of resurrection.

Let us celebrate the splendor of the ordinary.

holy dance

In a couple of days, we will have the celebration that is Trinity Sunday.  For many people, that elicits a yawn or leaves them with eyes that are glazed over!

Trinity isn’t three as the answer to a math problem.  Trinity speaks about the nature of God.  God is a community.  You need at least three for there to be a community.  But this isn’t “community” the way we often think of it.  It isn’t a collection of individuals who just happen to be in the same area.

There’s a term called “perichoresis.”  It comes from two Greek words meaning “around” and “to contain” or “to dance.”  It was used by ancient writers to describe how the Persons of the Trinity share the lives of each other, constantly interwoven in a vibrant intimacy of love, a dance of love.  They hold each other in a holy dance.  That is what’s happening within the heart of God.

The German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche once said, “I would believe only in a god who could dance.”

I’m reminded of the chorus from the hymn, “Simple Gifts”:  “When true simplicity is gained / To bow and to bend we shan’t be ashamed / To turn, turn will be our delight / ‘Til by turning, turning we come round right.” 

This is a joyous love that is interwoven into creation itself.  God, who is love, says of creation, “It is good.”  When we get a glimpse of that, we realize that the Holy Trinity is far from some dry, dusty doctrine.  We dive right into the heart of truth and get the invitation that says, “There’s a party going on!”

ascension

We understand Jesus as the Christ.

It must be so.

A tank filled with air will suffice for one diving into the water.

But an atmosphere is needed for a planet.

The solar wind caresses an entire system.

And many unknown particles dance throughout the universe.

more than enough

The fifty day long season of Easter ends this month on Sunday the 19th.  That is the day of Pentecost, which is sometimes called the birthday of the church.  The word “Pentecost” means “fiftieth.”  It’s the Greek name for the Hebrew Festival of Weeks.  As Christians, what really gets our attention is Acts 2:1-4, which reads:

“When the day of Pentecost had come, [the disciples] were all together in one place.  And suddenly from heaven there came a sound like the rush of a violent wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.  Divided tongues, as of fire, appeared among them, and a tongue rested on each of them.  All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave them ability.”

Speaking in tongues!  That gets the attention of plenty of people!  These followers of Jesus have been through a lot recently.  Their Lord and friend has been crucified, put in a tomb, and raised from the dead.  As the Christ, he has ascended.  Now, as promised, the Spirit has visited them and filled them with power.

Still, aside from the drama and spectacle, the real power of the Spirit is seen in the halting, stumbling efforts that this community of people from different backgrounds demonstrates in their life together.  “With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all.  There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold.  They laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need” (Acts 4:33-35).

In The Power of the Powerless, here’s what Jürgen Moltmann says about it:  “Why does the Pentecost community always have ‘more than enough’?  Because the power of the resurrection and the Spirit of fellowship have liberated them from the fear of death and from anxiety about life.  If God is for us, if God is in our midst, between each and all of us, then there is no longer any want, in any sector of life.  People share everything and share in everything, divide and confide all that they have.  That is the message of the Pentecost community in Jerusalem, which made so many rich.  And that is their message to us as well.” (131)

There isn’t any one single right way to “do” church.  Still, what can we learn from their example?  One of the amazing things about the Spirit is that there is always more than enough.  Can we trust that?  Can we trust the call and receive the courage it takes to be Pentecost people?

May we seek the power of the Spirit.

spurred on to hope

Not very long ago, a Spurs-Lakers series was considered to be a clash of the titans.  However, with the banged-up Spurs stumbling into the playoffs on a three game losing streak, facing the Kobe Bryant-less Lakers, neither team is hardly at full strength. 

The Spurs should still be able to win the series, but I
fear it might take them six or seven games to do so. 

This may be Tim Duncan’s last chance to get another ring; but then, people have been saying that for the past three or four years!