ADVENT 2006

ANGELA CENTER 535 Angela Drive, Santa Rosa, CA 95403

Phone: 707 528-8578 Fax: 707 528-0114

Preparing the World for God

“A herald’s voice in the desert, crying, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord, clear a straight path. Every valley shall be filled and every mountain and hill shall be leveled. The windings shall be made straight and the rough ways smooth, and all humankind shall see the salvation of God’.”

Many of the Scriptures for Advent speak to this task of “preparation”, making the kingdom of God happen on earth. Several places recently I have seen the “kingdom” translated as “KINDOM”, that realization of our connection to God and to one another, that we are all “kin”. In our world of chaos, conflict and war, we are called to prepare a different kind of world, one of relationship, respect and belonging. Let’s spend some reflection time thinking of how we can do just that this Advent.

The invitation went out to friends of Angela Center to share their thoughts, insights and creativity on this theme for Advent 2006. And here we want to share those reflections with all of you in order that your Advent be a time of fruitful preparation for the coming of God anew into our world.

“People need to live in harmonious kinship with

each other. We feel the effects if we don’t: the whole community of life is endangered.” Elaine Prevallet

COME, O COME, EMMANUEL--

Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him. Psalm 37:1

It’s difficult to ignore that ubiquitous angst coinciding with retailers’ decorating for Christmas as early these days as just after Halloween, which escalates to a visceral gnawing as Advent draws nigh---an ambivalent longing to experience and share ‘the spirit of the season,’---that ambiguous feel-good feeling which eludes most and, remaining un-sated, may lead to a free-fall into an abyss of depression; a depression Madison Avenue suggests, by way of its clever marketing ploys, may be sated with consumerism. The adrenaline rush of compulsive buying to calm the angst may be a short-term fix, since it often begets deeper debt which in turn begets yet even deeper depression.

In the comic books of our childhood, we recall when a bright idea, awareness or solution popped into our super hero’s head, it was often depicted by the cartoonist drawing a switched-on light bulb over the character. As we take a time-out from a frantic cycle which draws us from awaiting the Day of His Coming and the ‘reason for the season,’ may we too experience an a-ha moment in the lighting of the candles on the Advent wreath. May our fervent prayer be that, as we anticipate the celebration of the coming birth of our professed Super Hero, we also are born anew to a living hope for fullness of life; that the star over Bethlehem which guided the Wise Men may also illuminate our pathway and spiritual journey. Let our lives, like God’s ultimate gift of the Christ Child, be a ransom for humankind. It is indeed in giving that we receive---yet beyond tangible gold, frankincense and myrrh, to good deeds of loving kindness in reciprocation for His intangible love.

Through that familiar, professed faith story, we know the birth in Bethlehem ended in death with Resurrection, leaving this “in between the times” before Christ the King will come again in power. Let this time become one of peace, preservation and preparation of our inherited world--- where we submit to God rather than compulsiveness, and our faith will increase, our spiritual life mature and strengthen---dispelling depression and displacing it with the Holy Spirit which leads to truth and lasts beyond seasons. A time when our lives become a living Sacrament—an outward manifestation of an inner awareness and spiritual grace--- a living tribute to his birth and example of the time when He walked among us and left simple, straightforward instructions of what to do until He comes back. As we walk His walk---loving the Lord God with all our hearts and loving our neighbors as ourselves, we too may become a beacon and lifeline for those held ransom. Talking His talk, by proclaiming the Good News so all of creation might be reconciled to God might be the best palm branch-waving we can do until the Messiah comes again---this time forever and ever… Hallelujah! Hallelujah!

Lovie B. Spencer, Jr., Editor The MissionaryEpiscopal Diocese of Northern California

Feel the Stillness

Feel the stillness Touch the quiet of your mind You will feel it Close your eyes so you can find That place inside yourself A place of peace A place of love where you can be Hear the voices Of the gentle ones on high They’re proclaiming Peace and joy for you and I A song of love Go within Find the way For peace, good will toward men. Feel the stillness; touch the quiet of your mind You will feel it, close your eyes so you can find That place of love Go within Find the way for peace – good will toward men

From a song by Christine Covington

Make ready the way of the Lord.

This year I will create space, in my home and in my life.

Joseph will find me awaiting his knock at the door. I will

sweep the deck, clean the coat closet, clear my calendar, stock the pantry, empty the trash, do it all ahead of time. This year I will read Isaiah, Jeremiah,

Luke and Matthew every day. I will write cards early. I will bake cookies and stolen both. Lord, I'm ready when you are.

—Donna Hardy

“Make ready the way of the Lord ... clear a straight path ... make the windings straight and the rough ways smooth so that all humankind shall see the salvation of God.” In our darkly violent times, this seems impossible, yet, every day, I see people caring, loving, respecting and living life with great courage. It will take time and all the kindness and courage we have, but right now, right here, we are beginning peace. Believing, I see our little pebbles of peace spreading out, circles on the water. Things Small A small pebble tossed and a circle on the water spreads outward to the tiny beach waters sorrel and ferns waters the redwoods. A pebble on the water – your kindness and courage. Many pebbles could make a flood. Many kindnesses and much courage will make peace. Suggested meditation: Visualize people you know, one by one, seeing their “pebble” of kindness and courage fall into the water, spreading out and out, meeting other circles and watering the world with peace. --Kay McMullen

Stepping Carefully

Recently the focus of our wisdom circle was the phrase “stepping carefully”, and although our sharing took a multitude of directions, the wisdom of that phrase was profound. Since that wisdom circle, the phrase keeps filling my head and demanding attention. Must be something more there that I need to heed in my own life. So I started thinking of all the common phrases that we use about “stepping”. We speak of “stepping up” to the plate, taking responsibility to do something, to do our best at that something. We speak of “stepping down”, or resigning from some power position or job. We speak of “stepping over” as in climbing that proverbial ladder and passing others on the way up. We speak of “stepping into” as into a role that we’re playing or as landing in a mess of something. We speak of “stepping forward”, of taking initiative or we speak of “stepping back” to get perspective. Sometimes we’re “in step” with those around us, fitting in just fine, but sometimes we’re “out of step” with those around us, odd one out. Sometimes we’re “a step ahead” leading the pack, but sometimes we need to “step it up” or we’ll be left behind. So what’s with this “stepping carefully”? Never heard that before but it hit the mark and has my head and heart spinning. We do a lot of “stepping” but not always so carefully. Mostly we move with intent to get somewhere, but not necessarily with the intention of caring for anything or anyone on the way. This idea of “stepping carefully” presumes a consideration for others (all people as well as all things of the earth) that underlies all that movement. It seems to be more about the “how” of our encounters than about where we’re going. The crux of the matter is the care and respect of all encounters. So that’s what I’m going to concentrate on this Advent: the stepping carefully. If Advent is about preparing for the coming of Jesus, preparing for the coming of the kindom of God, then “stepping carefully” is central. So I’m going to spend these weeks examining the care that goes into each of my steps. Want to join me in this “stepping carefully”? We could really start something…….. Dianne Baumunk, osu

Without Borders

Oh, I know that there are good reasons for fences. Do need to keep those cows from roaming out onto the highway and colliding with traffic. But lately I’ve been looking around at all the fences and walls and barricades that we’re building higher and stronger. We’re even building a wall at our southern border to keep people out. That’s what I find so sad about all these fences and walls. They may have started as ways to protect our livestock and provide us shelter, but they have multiplied to keep people out: out of our country (even though we have more than enough to share), out of our property (even though there’s more than enough beauty and space), out of our yard (even though the lawn might be a nice place to meet new friends), out of our homes (even though there is seating for a crowd). Recently Chris and I drove up to the Red Bluff area to look at a piece of property that we own. The map we were mistakenly given indicated that the property was located in the Ishi Wilderness and our excitement knew no bounds at the thought. As we drove over the rutted dirt road and through the trees sharing what tidbits of native lore we knew, our excitement only grew. Yes, we were in the middle of a beautiful nowhere! But then the reality of today hit as we saw side road after side road barred by huge brightly colored metal barricades and posted with trespassing warnings by the mega- corporation that claimed ownership. Then we shared stories of corporate takeovers and of barricades like these that had even been booby trapped with explosives to keep people out. The excitement turned to distress; the sail of our adventure were punctured. The next day we found the correct map and explored in the opposite direction. Now we drove through rolling hills with dry grass, scrub oak, madrone and probably a multitude of snakes. There were new spacious homes as well as pieced together dwellings with outdoor showers, but what caught our attention the most was all the fences and “no trespassing” signs. Seemed like every few feet there was another posting. I began to feel uneasy, even to be driving on this public road. At one point we drove down an unpaved side road attempting to find the property. As we passed a house with a group of adults in the yard, we

were riveted with looks that were anything but welcoming. The hostility was palpable. Not a neighborhood that I’d want to join. What has happened to us?? Why do we need all these walls and fences and barricades? Why are we so concerned to keep people out? I guess we could go on and on about our fears and insecurities, about our greed and possessiveness. But this Advent I want to look at my own life and see what walls and fences I can dismantle, to look at ways that I can “invite in” rather than “keep out”. If Advent is about preparing for the “Kindom”, about including all as brother and sister, then I need to start right at home with any ways that I have that exclude or ignore or turn away. And I don’t think it’s just enough for me to stop excluding. I need to be creative in the task of “including”, of drawing others into the circle of warmth that is “family”. It’s way too easy to rant against the big corporations and against the government about all the barricades and walls that keep people on the outside. But the important thing for me is to take that energy and use it instead to welcome people in…… preparing the way for Jesus’ Kindom. Dianne Baumunk, osu

THE GIFT

Brendas Views Photo Sept. 2006

The gifts of the Creator Birds kept aloft in flight

Reflection of light in the heavens Plants that nourish all creations of the earth

Mothers, fathers, children, friends Appreciate the gifts given

Be ready and open to give of yourself To this circle of love

Brenda Balding 2006

The quiet place

Sebastopol Marshlands

The quiet place A place created For thought, prayer To find inner peace Or questions answered A gift Speak to another From your quiet place Of peace, joy, acceptance Take in, radiate out The quiet place now shared

Brenda Balding 2006

Mercy Birlingame Gardens

BrendasViews Photos 2006

Gold

A chaplain/colleague shared with me the following story: " A woman visiting her husband in the hospital asked to speak with the chaplain. The woman shared with the chaplain that her husband of 60 years had Alzheimer’s and her husband no longer knew her. She was feeling very upset, distraught, weary and angry about her husband's current medical condition. The chaplain asked the woman if she and the chaplain would be willing to visit the patient. The woman agreed. The chaplain introduced herself to the woman's husband and kindly asked the patient if he knew who this woman was. He said, 'I don't know you, but I love you.' " Let us pray to be open to the present, since it holds gold for us. Suzanne Hudson

Anno Domini My father-in-law recently had a moment of not panic but genuine concern. His talking wristwatch had broken. You see he has been sightless for over a year. When you’re

sightless after some ninety years of vision, you find yourself suddenly adrift in time and space. You exist in a kind of emptiness with only caregivers to inform and direct you. And that’s why he missed his talking wristwatch - because at any time he could press its button and hear a recorded voice say, “It’s twelve minutes to ten A.M.” In other words, it oriented him as to whether it was morning or night, close to dinner time or bed time. It made his existence meaningful in terms of expectations, if in ever so reduced a way. One of the earliest things humanity learned during its long evolution was how to measure time, the flow of the seasons, the passage of day and night. Hour glasses, sun dials, clocks, calendars were designed to help us organize our lives, specify significant moments of our past, present and future lest we be swept away by change like children on a roller coaster or paddlers in a kayak shooting the rapids of some aimless river – something I’m sure my father-in-law feared without his talking watch. It’s something that can happen to us, too, even with our eyesight. Oh sure, our wristwatches are visible; we know what time it is by a mere glance at its digits. And we have our calendar visibly marked, are aware of an appointment tomorrow and what’s to be expected on Thursday. We are not lost in time like someone who may be blind. Or are we? Will our grandchildren ever know what AD 1920 means on a cornerstone? To us it means the building was dedicated in Anno Domini (The Year of Our Lord) 1920. On the cornerstones of the future and even in their history books they will likely read CE 1920 or CE 2020, because our old marker of Anno Domini has been expelled from the academic and public arena in favor of The Common Era. Now while that’s an understandable concession to the diversity of a society that’s no longer definable as Christian, it is a bit scary, because we not only used to measure or mark time by lunar cycles and clocks and numbers but by a calendar loaded with markers that accentuated humanity’s past encounters with God, such as Christ’s birth and resurrection and God’s descent upon the Church at Pentecost – markers supplemented by tinier doses of God’s presence as on the festal days of saints like Agnes, Cecilia, Leo, Francis, Valentine, Patrick to say nothing of Hallowe’en. Ours was a calendar that measured time as profoundly meaningful, replete with daily opportunities to transcend time, to meditate about the direction of our lives, to live each day in companionship with time’s Creator - as if inhaling already the immortal breath God.

And lest that precious way of measuring time be indeed swept away by meaningless TV schedules that incessantly seduce us to waste our time staring at the same old bed room scenes, explosions, gossip, sports highlights and “news”, isn’t it time for us to reclaim our ancient liturgical calendar which prefers to call this season of the year Advent instead of autumn – and thereby salvage our sense of time as something capable of giving birth to God in our midst even at this darkest time of the year? Which is why I recommend you go out and get yourself an Advent calendar which invites us to discover behind the closed, numbered window of each day of December the image of an angel or a manger or a star or a Wise Man or a Virgin – an image of that deeper meaning that lies ready to be discovered beneath every moment of your life – that surprise to which the calendars of what we now call The Common Era are necessarily blind.

We’re not speaking of Arnold Drive In this the sixth year of the presidency of George W. Bush, while Arnold Schwarzenegger is governor of California and Tony Blair prime minister of Great Britain, during the opening days of the presidency of Felipe Calderon of Mexico and the closing terms of Alan Selig and Paul Tagliabue as commissioners of Major League Baseball and the National Football League respectively, the word of the Lord is heard among us once more as it has been during every and whatever regime over the past two thousand years. And its message remains the same: Allow God (for once in your life) direct access to your mind and heart. Make straight his path; fill in every pothole to make his access smooth. Eliminate all speed bumps designed to slow down his approach. Eliminate all twists and turns, the detours you set up to divert his influence, the diversions you yourself undertake to divert his influence. Rather pave his way for him, bulldoze all the clutter, devote more time to thinking about him, about all that he stands for, about all

that you long for from deep within yourself. Ponder the meaning of your life, the things that are of primary concern to you. It’s Advent time, Advent meaning the arrival, the return of Christ amid the darkness that dominates our world, the worries that becloud our lives – the rebirth of Christ in our midst to establish our lives upon a firmer foundation. Listen to more of what the word of the Lord has to say: All mankind is grass, that lasts no longer than a flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades but the word of God endures forever. So now is the time to embrace that Word both in its biblical expression and in Christ who is that Word made flesh, made Eucharist to dwell among us as the one foundation that can keep us from fading away, from being swept away – unlike the foundation of sand, of contesting ideologies and passing fancy and fashion upon which we seem to build our lives. It’s time to get real, to put first things first, to make of our hearts new Nazareths where Christ can be conceived again; to make of our minds new Bethlehems where Christ and all that he stands for can be born again – where he may grow to a maturity within us that will chase out all those money changers who have taken over the sanctuary of our soul. Which reminds me of a poem by the Jesuit Gerard Manley Hopkins, which he called “The Blessed Virgin Compared To The Air We Breathe”. In it he imagined the Mother of Christ as the atmosphere, the air that surrounds us and keeps us alive: I say that we are wound / With mercy round and round / As if with air; the same / Is Mary . . . / She, wild web, wondrous robe, / Mantles the guilty globe, . . ./ And men are meant to share / Her life as life does air. And here’s the part that echoes what I said about our becoming new Nazareths: She holds high motherhood / Towards all our ghostly good / And plays in grace her part / About man’s beating heart . . . / And makes, O marvelous! / New Nazareths in us, / Where she shall yet conceive / Him, morning, noon, and eve; / New Bethlehems, and he born / There, evening, noon, and morn. In this modern era of so many potentates like the ones named in Jesus’ time (remote, preoccupied with so many things “superior” to Nazareth and Bethlehem) - since even the public display of Christ’s birthday is “incorrect”, don’t we have all the more reason to cradle him in our hearts and become ourselves living, walking, talking displays of his arrival in our world?