“Piece of Mind on PEACE”
West Virginia Institute for Spirituality 2013 Daily Advent Reflections
You may access these reflections on the West Virginia Institute for Spirituality website: wvis.org
Introduction
During a recent West Virginia Institute for Spirituality staff meeting a question was raised regarding our desire to create an Advent reflection book. There was a unanimous yes! The next question was a little more challenging. What will be our theme? We stopped to ponder what was in our minds and hearts?
At that time, both the national and international headlines were troubling. Syrian men, women and children died from a deadly gas attack. There was a threat of a U.S. strike on Syria. There were reports of a shooting at a naval shipyard in Washington, D.C. Then news reports of a terrorist attack on innocent people who were shopping at a mall in Kenya. This news comes to us as we’re reading our morning papers, listening to the radio in our cars, opening our e-mail, or watching television in the evening. In the darkness of so much violence, it seemed that an obvious choice of a theme would be PEACE. It’s important for us to ask: How am I called to be a peacemaker now in a culture of escalating aggression?
Advent is a time when we listen with renewed hope to the words of the prophet, Isaiah. Isaiah proclaimed that the name of the child to be born to us is: “the Prince of Peace”. In her book, She Who Brings Peace, Megan McKenna writes; “This is the time for the child to be born in each of us who bear the name of the child: Christian and Peace, to be initiated into being peacemakers and the presence of peace on earth”.
May these reflections on “Peace” written by our Associate Spiritual Directors bring you peace and continue your own initiation in being peace to all people. May you have a blessed Advent and a joyous, peace-filled Christmas Season.
Sr. Molly Maloney, O.S.F.
Recommended Reading through the Christmas Season:
The Decalogue For A Spirituality of Non-Violence, Rosemary Lynch, O.S.F and Alain Richard, O.F.M.
Living Peace: John Dear, S.J.
She Who Brings Peace, Megan McKenna
December 1, 2013 First Sunday of Advent
“Peace begins with a smile.” Mother Teresa
Let us prepare for the birth of Jesus, the “Prince of Peace”, with a smile. Then I ask, what do I have to smile about for the world I live in today is anything but peaceful? The media continually reminds me of the violence, greed, injustice, inhumanity going on around me. How can a smile make my world more peaceful? When Blessed Mother Teresa said “Peace begins with a smile.”, what did she mean? Perhaps she meant that peace begins with a kind gesture toward others. Certainly, a smile is a kind gesture. It costs nothing – there are those who say it takes fewer muscles to smile than to frown. For sure, to smile makes me feel better than to frown. However, when I smile I should really mean it. A genuine smile will show not only on my mouth, but my eyes, my whole body – my heart! In addition, I can make my world more peaceful by following the example set by Jesus during his public ministry. He made time for quiet and prayer. By taking time for quiet and prayer in my busy life, I will be more at peace. I will be better able to share peace with others. Today, as we begin this Advent Season, let us take more time for peace in our lives and to share that peace.
Suggested Practice (s) of the Day: Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It may be the only sunshine he sees all day. (H. Jackson Brown, Jr.) Pray for peace. Do an act of kindness for someone in need – ‘Pay It Forward’.
Margaret (Susie) Pace WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 2, 2013 – First Monday of Advent
“The day the power of love overrules the love of power, the world will know peace.” Mahatma Gandhi
Living in a retirement community, the aging process becomes very apparent. We arrive by Divine Providence. We are all created for good purpose. But are we really doing what we are created to do? Not at all! Genuine love never forces us to willingly choose anything. Forcing is controlling, and in turn controlling with the love of power and not the power of love. The power of love and the love of power are two very powerful forces. One loves and brings people together but the other divides people. The power of love is a magnificent source that makes you aware of other people’s sufferings and needs. By allowing the power of love to reign in our lives, eventually the power of love will overpower the love of power. May God continue to abundantly bless our nation and us all.
…”for God did not give us a spirit of cowardice, but rather a spirit of power and of love and of self-discipline.” 2 Timothy 1:7 NRSV
PRAYER: Thank you Lord, for the unexpected serenity that comes with growing old in the faith. Growing old teaches that this divine serenity doesn’t necessarily mean lack of pain or that things will be as we want them. May healthful life’s choices allow us always to praise you, to serve you, and to love you. Lord, the world continues to be full of violence and suffering. Strengthen the hands of those who work for peace. In Jesus name we pray, Amen
Virginia H. Masters WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 3, 2013 – First Tuesday of Advent
“Peace does not mean an absence of conflicts; differences will always be there. Peace means solving these differences through peaceful means; through dialogue, education, knowledge; and through humane ways. Dalai Lama XIV
Prince of Peace is one of the prophetic expectations of ancient Israel for its Messiah (Isaiah 9:6). It is one of the titles historically associated with Christ in the Church’s observance of Advent. It is the promise of the coming Christ as Prince of Peace and the Reign of God that motivates this deep Christian witness to the hope this promise contains. There is, however, a crucial point that cannot be missed in our Advent-inspired longing: that is, God can do nothing to us, we are not willing to allow God to do through us. Peace has never been, nor will it be an exterior reality. As the Dalai Lama reminds us, peace is a state of being that flows into constructive engagement with the world around us. Peace isn’t the absence of conflict, but the courage to be peaceful within ourselves even when we exist within a world rife with such conflict. It does little for us to pray for peace in Syria, Somalia, Afghanistan, or any other region of conflict in the world if we are harboring unforgiveness or hatred toward others in our own heart. The welcoming of the Prince of Peace into our lives is to welcome soul development. Soul development is the rich soil from which peace can be cultivated. It is then that this inner state of peace can translate into meaningful and constructive action in the world. We know that within a system, when one aspect of the system experiences change—no matter how small—the whole system is affected. So, with the proverbial hymn we can proclaim, “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.”.
Practice for the Day: World peace begins with inner peace. Take an opportunity at mid-day to stop, take a deep breath, and be aware of the moment. From this moment of peace, all peace flows.
Michael C. Richards, D.Min. WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 4, 2013 – First Wednesday of Advent
If you seek peace and tranquility, you will certainly not find them so long as you have a cause for disturbance and turmoil within yourself. St Ignatius of Loyola
Today is Wednesday, December 4, 2013. On March 5, 2014, Ash Wednesday, we will incorporate the spiritual tools of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving as part of our Lenten journey to Easter.
Advent is a penitential season too. How many of us neglect to incorporate one or all of these spiritual tools as part of our journey to Christmas?
How many of us are so caught up in the disturbance and turmoil within ourselves as we worry about what gifts to buy, cards to send or party to plan? Do we lose sight of the opportunity for inner peace by practicing one or all of these spiritual tools during our Advent journey to Christmas?
Practice for the Day: Use December 4, 2013 to refocus. Decide today which of these three spiritual tools you have been neglecting during this Advent penitential season. Once you have decided on which of these three tools you will select, then resolve to incorporate this tool into the remainder of your Christmas preparation. Merry Advent and a Joy-filled Christmas Season.
Bob Harrison WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 5, 2013 - First Thursday of Advent
“If in our daily life we can smile, if we can be peaceful and happy, not only we, but everyone will profit from it. This is the most basic kind of peace work.” Thích Nhất Hạnh, Being Peace
In my work as a school based Occupational Therapist, I have the task of providing calming activities to students who respond aggressively to the expectations and demands of their day. One of the therapeutic modalities I use is the linear motion of a platform swing. While rocking the student back and forth, I wait with hopeful anticipation for a relaxation response. Often, if not always, that response is exhibited in a smile. The transformation of frowns, scowls, and grimaces into smiles is a nonverbal communication to me that calmness has occurred within. The result brings happiness and peace to the student which contagiously spreads to everyone working in the environment with and around them.
Prayer Practice: During this advent season may we prayfully rock the Christ child within; with hopeful anticipation may we experience internal peace and joy, exhibited to others through a contagious smile.
Leanna Lake WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 6, 2013 - First Friday of Advent
“Peace demands the most heroic labor and the most difficult sacrifice. It demands greater heroism than war. It demands greater fidelity to the truth and a much more perfect purity of conscience.” Thomas Merton
This season of winter’s darkness is like the seasons of our living when we recognize the diminishment of light and warmth, clarity and certainty, hope and peace. Isaiah announces, just as Jesus did, that God is present in the works of mercy: the blind see, the deaf hear, the poor rejoice, the tyrant and arrogant disappear, shame vanishes.
Authentic peace demands mercy, heroic labor, sacrifice of the false self for the true self, greater fidelity to the works and the Word of God becoming flesh –a real presence-- in each of us, and all of us. The Word of God who is our peace and reconciliation.
The God of Mercy demanded a response of St. Nickolas when he encountered the poor. The God of Mercy demanded a response of Thomas Merton when he experienced the unconditional acceptance of his Trappist family. He felt he now had something to offer the world through his writings. And that was “mercy within mercy within mercy”. (Sign of Jonas, p.362) God grew this experience of mercy into A Passion for Peace: the Social Essays.
Here is an excerpt of his “Prayer for Peace” : “ Almighty and merciful God, Father of all men, Creator and Ruler of the Universe, Lord of all History, whose designs are without blemish, whose compassion for the errors of men is inexhaustible….Grant us to seek peace where it is truly found. In Your will, O God, is our peace. “ (Read in Congress on April 12, 1962)
Peace Practice: - Notice who or what evokes a response of mercy from you today. - Exchange any fearful, negative, judgmental thought, by saying NO to it, then BY SAYING YES TO any positive, grateful thought.
Fr. Bill Petro WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 7, 2013 – First Saturday of Advent
“Do not be afraid to take a chance on peace, to teach peace, to live peace...Peace will be the last word of history.” John Paul II
Among the things that Jesus did not say in the Sermon on the Mount is, “Blessed are those who prefer peace, wish for peace, await peace, love peace, or pray for peace. His blessing is on the makers of peace. He required an active, rather than a passive role. In fact, peace itself is a dynamic state that can be anything but peaceful from the point of view of those who wish people would simply go away and be quiet, and do what is expected of them by whoever happens to be in charge. No saint has been more identified with the beatitude of peace-making that St. Francis of Assisi. The most famous prayer for peace, echoing the seventh beatitude, is attributed to him. There are numerous stories about Francis and his quest for peace. The most famous one was in his meeting with one of Christianity's chief opponents, the Sultan, during the Fifth Crusade. Francis unafraid went to the Sultan and talked about peace and how all should live together as brother and sister. Francis did not convert the Sultan but he did receive a passport allowing him to visit the Christian holy places. It is said that “the two, Francis and the Sultan” parted as brothers. We are all called to be peacemakers. God calls us and uses us to help heal damaged relationships.
Dear Lord, let me be an instrument of peace to all those around me, especially to my spouse, my children, relatives, co-workers, neighbors, my parish and all those I meet. Give peace to our spirits and prepare us to welcome your Son, the Prince of Peace, with ardent faith.
Deacon David Wuletich WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 8, 2013 Second Sunday of Advent
“Ultimately, we have just one moral duty: to reclaim large areas of peace in ourselves, more and more peace, and to reflect it toward others. And the more peace there is in us, the more peace there will also be in our troubled world.” Etty Hillesum
It is a moment, no longer than a breath really, when twilight drains an impossibly blue winter sky of promise. The world hushes, and the Creator of All Seasons pauses to hear childish wisps of sorrow swirling in the icy clouds bedding down for the night on the horizon. Some sorrows are simply too big to understand for a 12 year old blown sideways by the winds of adult disappointment, I reasoned as I took a shortcut through the woods on my way home from school. It was the last day of school before the Christmas holidays, and I had looked forward to it with such excitement! But before boarding the school bus that morning my mother pulled me aside to tell me that she and my father had decided to get a divorce, and that something would change - although she did not know what – before the day ended. I had no frame of reference for imagining what that change might be, so I resolved to think about it later in the anonymity of my secret hiding place in the woods. It was a place I stumbled upon as a six year old playing hide-and-seek with the neighborhood boys, and now a sympathetic gust of wind, sensing my pre-adolescent confusion, parted the drifts of snow obscuring the path to my retreat. The darkening sky above me opened up, dusting the earth with pristine snowflakes, and, in response, bare branches, eager to protect me from the troubles of an adult world, cupped the cascading flakes before releasing them earthward. I closed my eyes and stuck out my tongue to catch this heavenly manna as I sat in the crook of a low-slung branch childishly carved with my initials and listened to the pianissimo of falling flakes. Hours later – I lost track of time in this icy balm of nature - I slipped down from my frozen perch and began my trek home. Pillows of snow, pearlescent in the light of the moon, swallowed my feet. I decided to turn around and walk home backwards, a practice I used to do as a child after every new snowfall hoping to trick a stranger into believing that I was taking a different direction. It was a prayer, I have come to believe, the body prayer of a confused 12 year old in a season when words froze, unspoken and suspended, like icicles in mid-air. Since that time, a moment no longer than a breath really, I have reflected on the wisdom of a Jewish prisoner of war whose sorrowful heart shimmers with hope in an icy world of frozen spirits. On a train bound for Auschwitz, a woman-child who skates that fine line between adolescence and adulthood as the world shatters around her and her loved ones, discovers the cost of twilight draining an impossibly blue winter sky of promise. With home all but a memory, the young Etty Hillesum clings to a childish belief and therein finds a peace that passes all our human understanding. That belief? That when the world tilts, it always tilts toward peace.
Spiritual practice: Join seekers around the world and throughout time who pray to be instruments of God’s peace: Lord, make me an instrument of Your peace…
Rev. Rindy Trouteaud WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 9, 2013 – Second Monday of Advent
“the search for meaning is really the search for the lost the discord in the world will be healed and the symphony of the universe will come into complete harmony with itself.” John O'Donohue, Anam Cara: A Book of Celtic Wisdom
I have been reading ‘Buying the Field’ by Sandra Schneiders where she describes the Cosmic Compassionate Christ (who took the form of a human vulnerable child) Philippians 2:1-11 and, who, in my words, embraces the billions of years religion has been ‘evolving’. Bringing to birth the ‘Cosmic Christ’, for me, is a concept that allows me to hear the ‘discord of humanity’ as a symphonic whole, as ‘ divine harmony’. I teach young adult piano students to appreciate, to be mindful of each sound, to give each ‘note’ meaning. These practices apply to our spiritual meaning - making one note, one experience at a time. We need to be an anam cara to ourselves, to be our own ‘soul-friend’.
“Holy Wisdom” Br. Robert Lentz, OFM
Practice: Listen to your own inner ‘discord’ and allow the ‘discord’ to teach you today of God; then, ask the God of discord to teach you to hear with Divine Harmonic Ears.
Sister Carole Riley, CDP, Ph.D. Professor of Piano and Music Education, Duquesne University Executive Director of WVIS [email protected] December 10, 2013 – Second Tuesday of Advent
“While you are proclaiming peace with your lips, be careful to have it even more fully in your heart.” St. Francis of Assisi
Words are potent. They have the power to incite division or create peace. Who of us hasn’t heard the familiar phrase: “it’s not what you say, but how you say it that matters”? When we are speaking to another are we mindful of relating, of being in relationship to the other? How sensitive are we to the tone of our voice, the words we choose to speak, the mode of our delivery? This quote of St. Francis invites us to greater integrity of mind and heart. It makes me wonder…is there congruency in what I say to others and what I feel in the depths of my heart? “Before Francis preached to those gathered about, he first prayed for peace for them, saying: “The Lord give you peace.” He always most devoutly announced peace to all he met. For this reason many who had hated peace and had hated also salvation embraced peace through the cooperation of the Lord, with all their heart and were made children of peace and seekers after eternal salvation”. (Thomas of Celano –early biographer of St. Francis) The liturgical seasons of Advent and Christmas evoke a deep yearning for peace. Peace within, peace in families, peace in our communities, and certainly peace in the world. Let this Advent season initiate a deeper consciousness of our call to truly proclaim peace in the everyday activities of our lives and to seek the grace of peace filled hearts.
Practice(s) of the Day: As you begin this day pray that “Peace” be in your mind, on your lips, and in your heart. At lunch, take a few minutes of silence. Renew your morning intention. As you examine your day thus far, has there been congruence between your words and the feelings in your heart?
Sr. Molly Maloney, O.S.F. WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 11, 2013 – Second Wednesday of Advent
Who except God can give you peace? Has the world ever been able to satisfy the heart? St. Gerard Majella
My peace is an uncomfortable one this Advent. I have just come from a retreat where the focus was hunger, both our spiritual hunger and the physical hunger that millions in our world are experiencing right now. Knowing that millions of people will go to bed hungry tonight, even though there is plenty of food in the world, is an uncomfortable thought. Can I have “satisfaction” of the heart when there are those whose very stomachs are not satisfied? My answer to that is a bit of a hesitant “yes.” I can sit in my quiet space and feel God’s presence. I know that God lives in my heart which gives me peace, but there is also that nudge to grow which has taken the form of a new desire to help the world in its pain. That is uncomfortable. But it is also satisfying. It follows the way of Christ. It is not the world’s way, which is to avoid seeing any pain and to pursue that “which does not satisfy” (Isa. 55:2). It is the beginning of a prayer for healing for the world and a prayer to see how God is calling me to act. Jesus says, “For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matt. 11:30) I get peace from that statement. In Christ, when we take on the burdens of others, they are made easy and light and that it leads to the peace of Christ, which can be uncomfortable.
Prayer Practice: Find a marble or small ball or rock. Imagine that it is our Earth. Hold it reverently in your hand. Imagine Earth surrounded by the healing light of God. Move your mind around the world to a place that particularly needs healing. Stay with those people in your prayer and hold them in the light of God.
Mary E. Quick, M.A. WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 12, 2013 – Second Thursday of Advent
Go forth in peace, for you have followed the good road. Go forth without fear, for he who created you has made you holy, has always protected you, and loves you as a mother. Blessed be you, my God, for having created me. St. Clare of Assisi
One of the fruits of having a daily prayer practice is a growing peace within. At the core it is a deep knowing that “All is well” in the words of Julian of Norwich, no matter the external circumstances. By showing up each morning to BE with God the spaces for peace within are widened and deepened so that our entire being, even to the very cells of our body, are at peace. The call each morning is to “Go forth in peace” to love and serve God and our neighbor. It is no small thing to be a peaceful presence in this 21st century world of incessant communication of news, hype, social and political drama, family demands, workplace stresses, and the added challenge of Christmas preparations. So many times I feel as if I have “ to do” SOMETHING: lead, direct, guide, fix, heal, save. Urgency sets my motor running and banishes all peace. Sometimes action IS called for and I ask for discernment to decide whether it is action for ME to take. However, what if what is really needed is a peaceful presence? A human BE-ing rather than a human DO-ing. Peaceful presence. Letting the Christ light shine from within. Allowing the Spirit breath to blow where it will. A peaceful loving presence that listens, blesses, and affirms. “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.”
Prayer Practice: Sit in the quiet for 20 minutes. No words needed. No action needed. Simply – Let God Love You. Only then “Go forth in Peace.”
Eileen Chwalibog WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 13, 2013 – Second Friday of Advent
“May today there be peace within. May you trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be. May you not forget the infinite possibilities that are born of faith. May you use those gifts that you have received, and pass on the love that has been given to you. May you be content knowing you are a child of God. Let this presence settle into your bones, and allow your soul the freedom to sing, dance, praise and love. It is there for each and every one of us.” Teresa of Ávila
On best days, I am mindful. I am mindful of both light and shadow, mindful of being open and where I am closed up as tight as a bud. I am mindful of open hands and receiving what is being given to me today. On best days, I KNOW that I am exactly where I am meant to be and I am at peace. But on worst days, when the shadows are especially dark and deep, that is when I pray for grace...grace given that I not forget the infinite possibilities born of faith, even in the shadow times. I pray for grace to remember that I am a child of God and grace to let the presence of this grace giving Lord settle into my bones, and grace for the freedom of my soul to sing and dance and praise and love... even in the midst of deep shadows.
Today is the Feast Day of our Lady of Guadalupe and we read again of Gabriel’s visit to Mary. I assume it was a shadow day for Mary... afraid, confused, aware that she was being asked to accept a counter cultural journey and yet she said, “let it be done to me”. Hail Mary, full of grace...... given.
Practice for today: Read again Gabriel’s visit to Mary (Luke 1: 26-38). Be mindful ... what are you being asked to receive today and what grace do you ask to be given?
Cynthia Neely WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 14, 2013 – Second Saturday of Advent
Nothing is so characteristically Christian as being a peacemaker. St Basil the Great, Letter 114
“Blest are the peacemakers: they shall be called children of God.” Nelson Mandela is a peacemaker who challenges us by his words and actions to be faithful to the Glory of God that is within each of us. In one of his powerful poems he says: “We are all meant to shine as children do.” That caused a rush of hope in me the first time I read these words. The picture of Jesus embracing little children came immediately to mind, then a relief followed. I sat with this gift of relief and came to realize that all of us have a restlessness within us, a yearning deep inside to find peace and acceptance - to know the embrace of our God in Christ Jesus, our relief! For Jesus as he walked among us, peace was a life style. He opened his arms to caress the world and loved everyone without distinction. He saw each person as a child of the light, and his disarming love for them, if accepted, caused them to see their own beauty and to find the peace that was already deep within themselves. Jesus invites us in our “waiting time” this Advent to look within our own hearts and find the peace that is already there. Can we wait patiently, in faith, to give birth to something immensely beautiful to happen within our hearts? As we come to embrace our own light and share it with our brothers and sisters, we will recognize the peace that it gives us – peace that is freedom , a witness to others that following Jesus frees us to be completely who we really are. May we rush into the arms of Jesus and be more deeply transformed into his love!
Prayer Practice: “I want to be a child of the light. I want to follow Jesus.”
Sr. Diane McCalley, CSJ WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected]
December 15, 2013 Third Sunday of Advent
You cannot be too gentle, too kind. Shun even to appear harsh in your treatment of each other. Joy, radiant joy, streams from the face of one who gives and kindles joy in the heart of the one who receives. All condemnation is from the devil. Never condemn each other. We condemn others only because we shun knowing ourselves. When we gaze at our own failings, we see such a swamp that nothing in another can equal it. That is why we turn away, and make much of the faults of others. Instead of condemning others, strive to reach inner peace. Keep silent, refrain from judgment. This will raise you above the deadly arrows of slander, insult and outrage and will shield your glowing hearts against all evil. St. Seraphim of Sarov
If I were St. Seraphim of Sarov, I’d be a 19th century monk in a cold, isolated uncomfortable part of White Russia outside a huge forest. I’d be an Orthodox holy man, a teacher of nonviolence, a writer, and a spiritual director. If I were--or pretended to be--this would tell me not just whether I could measure up to the hardship and joy he lived through daily. It would also show me why and how he did that. For instance, he called everyone he met “My Joy.” And he meant it. His shining face and the peace he showered on people around him lit a fire in their hearts. Who around me could do that? Although he lived at a time when the State persecuted religion savagely, he believed, and acted out his belief, that life’s purpose is to acquire the Holy Spirit. Do we not also believe that? One day as he walked in the forest three men beat him nearly to death with the handle of his own axe. He refused to defend himself. He forgave them and asked mercy for them when they were tried. The beating crippled him for life. He continued to pray and meditate in the silence of the forest. What did he hear there that prepared him for a life of such peace, joy, and goodness?
PRAYER PRACTICE: Do as he did. . Practice transcendence; expect to be transformed. . Glow in the dark for those around you. . Find that forest, copy - paste it enlarged-on the walls of your house. . Imitate the metaphors you meet in life: grow by loving.
Barbara Richter, WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 16, 2013 – Third Monday in Advent
The soul cannot know peace unless one prays for one’s enemies. The soul that has learned of God’s grace to pray, feels love and compassion for every created thing, and in particular for humankind, for whom the Lord suffered on the Cross, and His soul was heavy for every one of us. St. Silouan the Athonite (1866-1938)
St. Silouan was a modern day Saint, an Eastern Orthodox monk, originally from Russia. Thomas Merton described Silouan as “the most authentic monk of the twentieth century.” A simple man, St. Silouan was sought out for his wise counsel, especially on prayer. “We must always pray, so that the Lord will tell us what we must do, and the Lord will not leave us in confusion.” But for St. Silouan, prayer goes beyond just asking the Lord what we should do. Through prayer we feel the grace of the Holy Spirit. And whoever has within him the peace of the Holy Spirit brings peace to others as well. For through the Holy Spirit, is our path to forgiveness and mercy, and humanity’s path to eternal life. This path began with God’s creation of all living things, was demonstrated by Jesus Christ when He prayed for those who crucified Him and died for the salvation of all, and continues for all mankind, throughout the generations. So, what does this tell us this Advent Season? Be diligent in our praying and the Lord will give birth to our prayers. Pray for all people, for all mankind, even our enemies, that all the nations may rejoice in God’s peace. If our souls are to obtain inner peace, we must love our brothers and sisters. And who are our brothers and sisters? Every other human being, for we are all connected through the body of Christ. ~Peace be with you during this Advent Season.
Prayer Practice for the Day St. Silouan said “if your mind wishes to pray in your heart but cannot, then read the prayer aloud and keep your mind on the words of the prayer. In time, the Lord will give you prayer of the heart without interfering thoughts… whoever loves the Lord remembers Him always, and this memory of the Lord gives birth to prayer.”
Elaine Soper WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 17, 2013 – Third Tuesday in Advent
There is no peace more wonderful than the peace we enjoy when faith shows us God in all created things. Jean-Pierre de Caussade
The author of the above quote, a Jesuit Priest, wrote about the Sacrament of the Present Moment. What greater creation has the Lord given us than the moment in which we live. It is both freeing and challenging to live in the present moment. Free of moments that are gone forever, we are free to co-create with the Lord who dwells within us, NEW moments, FRESH experiences, DIFFERENT beginnings. We have more control/power over our own lives and schedules than we sometimes realize. We have the opportunity to choose to create moments that will be long-cherished; memories that will cause us to look back and say, ‘Surely God was in that moment!” One of my favorite translations of the scriptures is Eugene Peterson’s, The Message. His translation of Psalm 5: 3 is how we can begin each day as peaceful partners with the Lord: ‘Every morning I lay out the pieces of my life on your altar and watch for fire to descend.’ Does this not call us to appeal to the Lord to show us the way, to accept the challenge of the moment, to be a part of God’s good created order? According to de Caussade, that is precisely what will bring us to peace.
Prayer Practice for Today: Write a cinquain! Here is an adventure in prayer for you. When finished, your prayer/poem will resemble the shape of a Christmas tree. 1st line – One word (Title – what you call God) 2nd line – Two words that describe the title 3rd line - Three action words about the title 4th line – Four words that express a thought or feeling about the title 5th line – One word that means the same thing as the title Example (by C. Hill, a student in my New Testament class at Waynesburg University):
Father Loving, Caring Healing, Loving, Accepting The Creator of All Lord
Rev. Barbara M. Bailey, NBCC WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 18, 2013 – Third Wednesday in Advent
“As long as we imagine and live as if there is no peace in sight, and that it all depends on us to make it come about, we are on the road to self-destruction. But when we trust that the God of love has already given the peace we are searching for, we will see this peace breaking through the broken soil of our human condition and we will be able to let it grow fast and even heal the economic and political maladies of our time.” Henri Nouwen
Sometimes we can become uncomfortable around people who are not like us or do not think like us. This can be divisive to peace in any situation. When we learn how to listen to God’s loving Spirit, in our self and others, we invite peace. I experienced an example of this recently in a prison ministry weekend retreat at a men’s maximum security institution. Even though the main focus was to teach these men how to heal the broken soil of their lives through the enduring, forgiving, and gentle love of Jesus Christ, we also taught them how to come together in their differences and to relate to each other in healthy ways. They experienced the God of relationship. They learned corporate and individual prayer, how to listen for God, and how to have fun in song and celebration. They learned how to set aside a time every day for God and to pass the time with God and how to trust in and reach out to the God of their creativity. I witnessed a remarkable transformation in these men, a transformation from uncomfortable to comfortable trust and much more. They discovered paths to the peace God had already given them within themselves and among themselves - something we all can discover. The season of Advent provides us the time to wait just as these inmates were taught to wait. The Church gives us this time of preparation to quietly ready our hearts for the great expectation. It is not a time when nothing happens. In his book, “The Selfless Way of Christ,” Henri Nouwen describes prayer as a “discipline of the heart” that leads us not only to our own heart, but to the heart of God. Prayer also leads us to the hearts of others. As suggested by Nouwen, try to find your own place when and where you can be with God and God alone, not once in a while, but regularly. Schedule and reserve this time for personal prayer and meditation. Through a discipline of heart we create a space in which the Spirit of God can cry within us. This can be hard, however. When facing God alone we face our own inner chaos. We come in direct confrontation with our restlessness, anxieties, resentments, unresolved tensions, hidden animosities, and long-standing frustrations. It is worth the expenditure of time. It is worth the peace that results. It is worth the waiting.
Bob Sylvester, M.A. WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 19, 2013 – Third Thursday in Advent
"Peace to the whole world, torn apart by violence linked to drug trafficking and by the iniquitous exploitation of natural resources! Peace to this our Earth! May the risen Jesus bring comfort to the victims of natural disasters and make us responsible guardians of creation.” Peace in Iraq, that every act of violence may end, and above all for dear Syria, for its people torn by conflict and for the many refugees who await help and comfort. How much blood has been shed! And how much suffering must there still be before a political solution to the crisis will be found?” Pope Francis
How I long for silence and peaceful calm as I await in six days the coming of Christ among us. The commercialism of the season distracts me from the real meaning of Christmas, and yet as I yearn for an inner peace, the true gift of Christ among us, I think of those whose surroundings exude violence and oppression. How important it is for me to live as Christ, in the present moment, as I reflect on the lack of peace in so many people surrounded by violent forces beyond their control. I pray I walk with my brothers and sisters whose external peace is so nonexistent. May I be one with them in hope, in love, in true concern and prayer.
Practice: Today I will expand my vision, and pray especially for my brothers and sisters living in war torn and violent areas in our world for whom peace is only a dream.
Sr. Ritamary Schulz ASCJ WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 20, 2013 – Third Friday in Advent
“What we would like to do is change the world--make it a little simpler for people to feed, clothe, and shelter themselves as God intended them to do. And, by fighting for better conditions, by crying out unceasingly for the rights of the workers, the poor, of the destitute--the rights of the worthy and the unworthy poor, in other words--we can, to a certain extent, change the world; we can work for the oasis, the little cell of joy and peace in a harried world. We can throw our pebble in the pond and be confident that its ever widening circle will reach around the world. We repeat, there is nothing we can do but love, and, dear God, please enlarge our hearts to love each other, to love our neighbor, to love our enemy as our friend.” Dorothy Day
Change; fighting; crying; throwing: I felt resistance emerge within me as I read these words. I welcomed my morning walk with my dogs to clear my head and ponder what message of peace lay within Dorothy Day’s quote. As we walked, Pepper became skittish and resistant. He was disturbed by the noise of a train below, the beeping of trucks on an upper road, and the banging of a dumpster being emptied. His fear was real although the threats were false. I coaxed, cajoled, and reassured him along the path. I realized I too am easily overwhelmed by the “noise” of clashing ideologies, political posturing and plethora of opinions that permeate our culture. May I listen for understanding, be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger. My fears, assumptions, and disordered attachments also muffle God’s call. God, enlarge my heart with your love. Like Mary may I find freedom to say yes to the birth of the Prince of Peace in my heart and actions.
Prayer practice: Envision tossing a stone into the water and observe the rings that move outward from the center. Throughout the day, when you wash your hands, drink water, or look at a body of water pause to consider the ripple effect of your actions and words. Have they facilitated a movement toward wholeness and well being for the persons you have encountered? How do your buying and consumption patterns impact the global community? What changes or actions are you called to make? Pray for forgiveness and the grace to move forward.
Ann Winton WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 21, 2013 – Third Saturday in Advent
World peace through nonviolent means is neither absurd nor unattainable. All other methods have failed. Thus we must begin anew. Nonviolence is a good starting point. Those of us who believe in this method can be voices of reason, sanity, and understanding amid the voices of violence, hatred, and emotion. We can very well set a mood of peace out of which a system of peace can be built. Martin Luther King, Jr., December 1964
Advent not only celebrates the coming of our Lord into human history, but it also challenges us to live in expectation and hope in the midst of life’s situation while we anticipate his second coming. In reflecting on Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1964 quote on World peace I am yet reminded of our challenge. Amid the voices of violence, hatred and emotion of our day, societal ills, bullying, mass shootings, loss of life, war and rumors of war, World peace through nonviolence for many may very well seem absurd and unattainable. Yet if we would examine our love relationship we may find that even in the midst of failure we can start anew. God has provided human beings with a realistic and powerful way of disarming a violent society. God has set the mood perfect love is the goal. Love of God, love of neighbor and love of self. Yet the fact is that most human beings love badly or not at all. Why? Is it because we are dominated by fear? The word of God says: “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casteth out fear:…" (1st John 4:18 a). God’s love is limitless. Our love must grow without limit. Our love grows by moving closer to God. As we share in this Advent season those of us who believe in this method can be the voices of reason, sanity, and understanding simply by loving perfectly? Let’s love perfectly! Let’s move closer to God!
Scripture Reflection Luke 10:27, John 15:
Rev. Dr. Michael A Poke Sr. WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected]
December 22, 2013 Fourth Sunday in Advent
“There is no time left for anything but to make peacework a dimension of our every waking activity”. Elise Boulding
We can only begin to influence peace in the world when we begin to experience inner peace. Making peace within ourselves is an essential element which leads us to bring peace to others. I noticed a distinct increase in inner peace when I realized it was not dependent on the lack of chaos in the world. Inner peace is a grace given us when we allow ourselves to be grateful for the blessings in our lives. Once we are aware on a moment by moment basis of our inner peace, we can then begin to make “peace work a dimension of our every waking activity”.
Prayer Practice: As you go through this day, be aware of your inner peace and with intention share this peace with all those you encounter. When you are not experiencing inner peace, pause to recall that in the Gospel reading for today, Matthew tells us the baby to be born will be called Emmanuel, God is with us. Ask the Lord for the grace of restoring your inner harmony so that you may share this peace with others.
Gerri Wright WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] December 23, 2013 – Fourth Monday in Advent
Peace comes from being able to contribute the best that we have, and all that we are, toward creating a world that supports everyone. But it is also securing the space for others to contribute the best that they have and all that they are. Hafsat Abiola
When I first read this quote, and realized the depth of its meaning, I was curious about the author and the intention of her words. Hofsat is a 40 year old Nigerian human rights, civil rights and democracy activist. Her passion for peace was awakened early in her life when her pacifist parents were murdered by radical militia attempting to overthrow the Nigerian democracy. She found inner peace as she continued their work to bring peace to her country. Her words bring to light that sometimes as we seek peace in our lives, we tend to focus on the attitudes and intentions that bring us to a place of calm and serenity, void of worry, tension and anxiety. The words of Hofsat Abiola remind me that the sense of peace is much deeper than what I simply feel in the moment. It’s the space where I contribute the best that I am, AND space for others to contribute the best they are. These words brought to me the purest example of spiritual direction. As a director prepares a space of peace (with the best, and all that he/she is), a place of peace is created that supports a directee to be able to contribute the best that they have and all that they are. In the director’s peace, another is supported to discover a deep and meaningful peace. That same attitude of peace on an interpersonal level, translates to a global level, affecting peace for all. Does the peace I seek, create a secure space for others to contribute their best?
Practice of the day: Today: Pray for all spiritual directors, and the work they do to create peace, in themselves and their directees. Pray that as we seek peace, we also support the same space for others.
Mary Malamisura WVIS Associate Spiritual Director Intern [email protected] December 24, 2013 – Christmas Eve
“There is no trust more sacred than the one the world holds with children. There is no duty more important than ensuring that their rights are respected, that their welfare is protected, that their lives are free from fear and want and that they grow up in peace” Kofi Annan
Kofi Annan was the seventh Secretary-General of the United Nations, serving from January 1, 1997 thru December 2006. In 2012 Annan worked with the Arab League Joint Special Representatives for Syria to help find a resolution to ongoing conflict there. Annan quit after becoming frustrated with the UN’s lack of progress with regard to conflict resolution, stating “when the Syrian people desperately need action, there continues to be finger-pointing and name-calling in the Security Council.
How often have I wanted to quit! Quit fighting, quit struggling, quit trying to have a positive influence on this world. The Secretary-General of the UN wanted to quit. Jesus wanted to quit. Neither of them really did, they changed the direction of their efforts. They stepped out of the box, out of the expected and ‘colored outside the lines’! And the impetus was the care of children.
The hectic nature of the holiday often invites us out of our individual peace. We say Christmas is for children! Find the child in you. Find the peace in your heart. Share that peace with everyone.
Honor the power of prayer! Honor the influence you have through the seeds you sow. Honor the smile, the hug, the briefest of encounters. Bring peace to your corner of the world. Each child is precious and deserves to live … in peace.
Daily Practice: Throughout the year, not just at Christmas, recognize and acknowledge the preciousness of a child. Give them a welcoming smile, ask them about their day, find something to compliment and encourage them.
Kathy Lester WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected]
December 25, 2013 CHRISTMAS DAY
“For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us; And the government will rest on His shoulders; And His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6
Think of what it is we celebrate. God who is the almighty, became a baby. God before whom the angels continually cry “holy, holy, holy” was born into a sinful world. God who is all-knowing had to communicate through baby cries. God who is the creator became a creature. God who is eternal allowed himself to be bound by time. God who was infinite allowed himself to be bound by space in Mary’s womb. The One who was sovereign God Became dependent on a human man and woman for food and clothing. God who is clothed in majesty was born in a stable. The God of the universe became a baby! God did it all for you and me. That is who is lying in the manger. The only greater mystery and miracle is that same God died on the cross for us. [Adapted from Saint Ephrem (306-373) and added to by me.]
Father Paul J. Wharton WVIS Associate Spiritual Director [email protected] Your thoughts on PEACE!
Your thoughts on PEACE!
Quotations selected by: Sister Molly Maloney, O.S.F.
Reflections compiled, organized, printed by Margaret (Susie) Pace.
MAP2013
‘Rooted and living in the light of God's love.’
The West Virginia Institute for Spirituality 1601 Virginia Street, East Charleston, West Virginia 25311 304-345-0926 Website: www.wvis.org Email: [email protected]
Sr. Carole Riley, C.D.P., Ph.D, LPC, AAPC – Fellow WVIS Executive Director [email protected] 412-901-4259