|
Dear Covenant Family,
Our Roman Catholic siblings celebrate the feast of St. Francis on October 4. Two local churches in my neighborhood are hosting “Blessing of the Pets” events in honor of this beloved 13th century priest known for his love of nature and animals. Francis did not hold a sentimental love of animals but a deep respect, everything has a right to be what it is, even if inconvenient to us. We are not the center! This enabled Francis – unlike monastic spirituality – to be with the world. For all things belong to God. “Francis did not exclude anything,” explains Brother Samuel Double, “He was brother to a thief as much as to the community he lived in; brother to crows and wolves as much as to skylarks” [1]. In fact, the ones who reveal God most are those we least think of as Godlike – the lepers, the poor, the outcast and, what we avoid most, our sister bodily death. “When death comes,” Francis said, “welcome her as a long-lost friend.” Death is our sister; death is part of the family of God, part of God’s plan and God’s love. She reveals God.
Francis speaks of both the awesomeness and the intimacy of God. He holds together the two sides of God’s transcendence and God’s imminence – beyond all created things and yet also within them. On the one side he says that no one is worthy to mention God’s name and yet he also said, “God is my mother and my wife, my warmth and my food.” Francis is a what we call a ‘cataphatic mystic’ – everything points to God if it is doing what it is meant to do. He preached to the birds that they would remember to be grateful and joyful that God always provides for them. In turn creation reveals – and gives praise to – the Creator. The sun praises God by shining. We praise God when we gratefully and humbly serve him.
When Francis was lying on his deathbed he said to his Franciscan brothers, “I have done what was mine to do; may Christ teach you what is yours to do”.
Living out what we were created to do was the key to Francis’ mysticism. By accepting our creation all created things become our brothers and sisters. Humility is the key to love. All things are family – brother and sister. All relate together, belong together.
If you are interested in learning more about the long-standing Christian contemplative tradition of which St. Francis was a part, please note that Fr. Laurence Freeman, a Benedictine monk and Director of the World Community for Christian Meditation, will be in Cleveland on Wednesday, October 12. He will be speaking on how contemplative prayer can make a difference in our work, ministry, and stressed and fractured world. Two of the talks will be at the Covenant- "Spirituality in a Secular Age," (1:00 pm) and "Unified Consciousness: Finding inner peace, healthy minds, and love of life..." (6:00 pm, includes light dinner). Join us if you can.
Peace,
Pastor Jessie
jmacmillan@covenantweb.org
| 
