Yr. C, Wk. 7: the Stillness of God, Nuggets, and Images

Erica based our worship on Psalm 46. After we read verses 1 - 11 three times, three different ways, we silently meditated five minutes on whatever the images meant to us. Erica concluded with a lovely poem, "Teresa's Bookmark" by Teresa of Avila, which includes the lines "all things pass... God alone suffices."

Erica posed a question for us to answer during the meal, "For what in your life these days do you need to reclaim an awareness of the stillness of God?" Our answers ranged widely, and were deeply emotional - including concern about reaching out to someone, a process of discernment, a feeling that life is rushing or segmented, and a relationship in which "there is literally nothing I can do."

Christine's meal was more than sustenance, as she explained that the stuffed cabbage rolls are an old family recipe, and the confections for dessert were made joyfully with her mother, for whom so much of life is now a struggle.

[Photo: Christine's goodie bags, including wizard hats (PB stuffed Bugles dipped in chocolate), jack - o - lantern peeps and frosted ghost cookies]

Yr. C, Living as Spiritually Mature Christians Class: Matt, Pete, first year; Christine, second year; Mariel, Gene, third year; Erica, fourth year; Scott and Susan, co - mentors. Absent: none!

Three strands emerged from our discussion of the readings:

• "Nuggets" of fact lie at the roots of so many stories both in Scripture and in History, and variations result from the authors' different purposes for story - telling.
• Accounting for Evil has led some to Manichean ideas of co - equal forces of good and evil. Plato and Augustine saw evil as a lack of good, not a force in itself. Ancient Jews and pagans alike thought evil was the result of their doing something wrong.
• We found layers or cycles in Old Testament, New Testament, history, and life itself.

After our dessert, we shared the images we'd brought.

[Photos: Two collages of images that in some way express the spiritual lives of the individuals in our class.]

Erica closed the session with a prayer of surrender by Loyola, that ended, "Give me only your love and your grace.  With this I am rich enough, and I have no more to ask."


Next week: Brown bag dinner. All of us are reading the essay "Seeking Meaning" (RRG p.52 - 61) that opens the next unit, Theological Reflection as a Life Skill. Matt will lead worship. Susan will be bringing a story for our first Theological Reflection.