The Journey Continues

Over the past weeks I have prayed Psalms, done Lectio Divina, read about hospitality, and prayed a lot. I’ve also read The Rule of St. Benedict at least three times and read Joan Chittester’s amazing commentary companion to it.

Some musings.

My first musing is about my own weakness. Like everyone else I am often a weak and fragile person who grapples with my own weaknesses and sins. One thing I have begun doing is carrying a small wooden cross in my pocket. I found it in the gift shop at Christ in the Desert and have been carrying it around for a bit.

I was sitting in the Abbey Church the other day and holding it in my hand and something clicked. As Christians sin and the cross walk together. Our sings are forgiven when Jesus dies on the cross for those sins. The cross seems to be a place to bring sin. As I was sitting there I was praying to God for forgiveness of my own faults and I began to clutch the cross tighter and tighter and I realized the connection. I also realized that this cross in my pocket is a constant reminder to me and a huge piece of strength for me. As I was getting angry about something and seeking to judge I took the cross out of my pocket and prayed that judgment to the cross. Somehow I began to change my feelings. This cross is going to remain a constant companion to me.

Secondly, in reading Henry Brinton’s book, The Welcoming Congregation, he makes a very profound point. He cites a rabbi who says that the ultimate Jewish Law seems to be “Love your neighbor,” which is stated once of twice in the Hebrew Scriptures. The rabbi said, however, that “Loving the stranger,” is stated many more times. The greatest challenge is not loving our neighbor, the person we know, but loving those we do not know.

Brinton makes the observation that at church we should stop viewing strangers who come as our ‘visitors’ but see them as our guests. This is not just at meals or for clothing, but at Worship. People who come into the doors of a church for the first time are guests.

St. Benedict has a foundational principle that underlies everything in this. He says, “Let all guests be received as Christ.”

Talk about challenges…

I was thinking about this as sometimes these guests disrupt our lives. They force us out of our comfort zones and sometimes force us to change the way we do things. Often these guests make us resentful. We were happy before these guests came along and disrupted everything. Perhaps that is the point, however. The guests disrupt us because Jesus disrupts us.

Anyone who follows Jesus as a disciple and not just as a ‘fan’ knows something. Jesus disrupts. Jesus is not a comfortable Savior. Jesus is not a comfortable Lord. Jesus disrupted the people of his day to the point they put him to death. Jesus continues to disrupt us to this day.

Often Christianity likes to suppress Jesus and the power of the Holy Spirit as when the Holy Spirit gets loose, things really get disrupted.

Guests often bring about this disruption; but receiving them as Christ…

St. Benedict ends his rule by saying it is a ‘rule for beginners...’ I have found it provocative and profound and if I’ve learned anything, it’s this. In following Christ, we are all beginners.