Deep Calls to Deep
In the Covenant of Grace
“Most of us do not take these situations as teachings. We automatically hate them. We run like crazy. We use all kinds of ways to escape—all addictions stem from this moment when we meet our edge and we just can't stand it. We feel we have to soften it, pad it with something, and we become addicted to whatever it is that seems to ease the pain.” (Pems Chödrön, When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times)
Grace is not cheap. It involves both praise and dispraise, a severe mercy. There’s no way around this truth. New life involves dying and resurrection through the storms of life in the Spirit.
I usually don’t include a prayer of confession here, but the beauty and power of these words from Coleman Brown ring true for our time:
Servant Lord and God of Glory: We are before you this day as broken men and women in need of forgiveness—having come from anguished moments in the night, and betrayals in the day; having said cutting words— or no words.
Often bewildered by the obvious or subtle suffering that we see—or is our own—we have been uncertain. We have concentrated on defense of ourselves, and have found the condemnation of others easy. We have not received others simply as they are, nor met them as ourselves.
Hear our various inward cries. Forgive us and heal us. Alone we cannot be healed. Therefore, lead us to the discovery of others; free us from our several bondages; cleanse our hearts with honesty; give us courage to accompany our fears; and bring us even to faith, hope, and love. Amen
Leader: The dwelling of God is with people. The One who creates us has promised saying, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you, I have called you by name. You are precious in my sight and honored, and I love you.” Therefore, lift up your hearts!
People: We lift them up to the Lord!”
When I was growing up in Hartsdale there were micro and macro problems—even dilemmas— in our lives, but also seeds of Hope and compassion: evolving and adapting in spite of resistance. Then the seeds of destruction— predatory capitalism, white racism, gender violence, ecological degradation, social cruelty and division—seemed to get the upper hand. It has been a hard road since, especially in recent years.
“The fall of the American empire is self evident. The decadence and loss of values have been manifesting consistently through the last decades. Will this empire last like the older civilizations?… We need a revolution of values coming from the heart based on love and compassion for all sentient and non-sentient beings. The urgency of the now demands better leaders, not genocidal or criminal rulers. The empire is falling apart.”(Cristobal Serran-Pagan)
How do we amend the path we’re on, both individually and communally? How do we keep moving, on the boundary of life and death, on stepping stones of grace and recovery?
As the song says, there’s still time to change the road we’re on.
I don’t have the answer, except that it’s not a technique, but an existential response, a way of life. A radical way of new life. It involves keeping our eyes on the prize of God’s self revealing grace, daily vigilance in going under the Mercy, resistance to evil within and without, perseverance in truth-love, agency in claiming blues-jazz stepping stones of recovery, walking together towards Beloved Community
“The most fundamental aggression to ourselves, the most fundamental harm we can do to ourselves, is to remain ignorant by not having the courage and the respect to look at ourselves honestly and gently. (Pema Chödrön)
Metanoia involves pressing into the offense of truth and grace, into relationships of honesty and compassion, not without pain, not without humor, abounding and abating: showing up on the playing field of life. Each day.
Staying in the game.
For we need each other.
As Maya Angelou said: in life’s challenges walk with your people in Love.
This can happen on multiple levels, in person, in prayer, in letter, by phone.
I remember in South Boston there was an elder, Bill McLeod, who was annoyed at me. He once said in utter exasperation:
“Well, at least he knows how to use the phone!”
So be it.
These days we are supposed to text before calling (except for us old school folks).
The bottom line is staying in the game of life, persevering in relationships of honesty and compassion.
We call it staying in the covenant of grace.
Life is grace; yet it involves grit, perseverance.
Something is expected of us.
I wrote yesterday in response to two friends, part of the great cloud of witnesses:
§ “Your words cut to the core in the face of dread and blues. Seeing glimmers of beauty as a way of life, with kaleidoscope turning, with freedom, with perseverance, with gratitude. It takes courage to be in spite of threats of destruction, to turn the magnifying lens of the heart’s eye on glimmers of beauty not the opposite…”
§ “I don’t fully understand this process but synchronicity leaps out as I read your letter. That means I wept. Sometimes love is throwing off the shame, fighting hard with tears of pain and freedom, scrappy perseverance. Not giving up. Yet it is also peace and joy.
They come together.”
Deep calls to deep.
Forever and always.
