Prayer and Activism

During a discussion/study on women in the Bible, one woman said to our group:

"I don't support feminism because I don't want to get political."

As the room went silent (I'm known as a feminist!), I was flooded with a plethora of instantaneous reactions.

My emotions screamed sadness at a woman supporting the status quo of the patriarchy.

My intellect railed against the perceived ignorance of her statement.

My inner political animal growled about how the affairs of the whole are not necessarily partisan and controversial.

Ah, intoned my pastoral heart, let's calmly define what we really mean.

After a deep breath, we gently and compassionately discussed what feminism means and what it looks like in our lives. We articulated that 'being political' is not limited to what we see in the news. And we all agreed with the need for equality, in all aspects of life.

It was a lively, lovely, and holy discussion.

My spiritual core was not satisfied with leaving it at that: stirring up within me was the need for action. So, I prayed, for prayer is itself an means of activism, as well as the invitation to invoke change through action.

I prayed that my desire for gender equality might not be off-putting to those with whom I worship and work, that I might not exude an arrogance from my feminist point of view over the perspective of those I encounter.

I prayed that today's feminists might both celebrate the trailblazing of our ancestors, and be patient with those who were instructed (individually and collectively) in a vastly different paradigm.

I prayed that the church, as an institution and as the community, would teach and support that all of God's people are worthy of equal rights.

I prayed that all people would feel loved and whole in the full stature of Christ, not needing to be completed by anyone else, as they live their ministry.

I prayed that everyone would be comfortable embracing their unique one-ness with themselves and with those around them, knowing themselves to be a beautiful and important part of God's creation for this time.

I prayed that everyone would delight in the deep and intimate knowledge that they are valued as a child of God and heir of the Kingdom.

I prayed - not to change someone else's perspectives or politics, but desiring to bring myself closer to God's will for a just and equal society.

For it is when our lives reflect the truth that we all have been made in the image and likeness of God, when we recognize and delight in our shared humanity and equal access to the Divine, that we will no longer need to be 'political' - for we will all be surrounded by the grace that God lavishes upon us.

I prayed - and I continue to pray.

(Originally written for the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender Based Violence in 2018, I am re-posting as the conversation can benefit from continuing, and today is the 4th Day of this year's 16 Days. For more blogs and prayers, see ecumenicalwomenun.org)

"ish"

 “I’m okay… ish.”

This is the response I’ve heard a few times lately when folks are asked the ubiquitous ‘how are you?’

It’s an honest response – we’re at that time of year where the skies are greyer, the daylight is shorter, the weather cooler. This year, we’re adding the weariness of a pandemic growing longer and the stresses of exposure sites creeping closer.

Things could be worse; things could be better - so we are okay… ish.

It’s the “ish” that catches me today – because it speaks of truth. With it, we are admitting that some days/hours/minutes are good, and others not-so-good. That our emotions seem to move like waves on the sea, or sunbeams through the clouds.

It’s in the “ish” that we are authentically sharing of ourselves with the other, which demonstrates a deep trust and relationship.

It is this “ish” that embraces the mystery of God: for into this “ish” we are invited to hear the assurance from Jesus that we are not in this alone. And that is the good news, the hopeful news, the sustaining news.

Because the “ish” reminds us that God never said our faith would make our lives perfect; but that it would mean we are never alone. God is with us, we are promised, “even to the end of the age” (Mt 28.20). That “age” is in fact every age – the age of grey days, the days of sorrow, the days of joy, the days of COVID, the days of happiness – God is with us through it all.

And so in the “ish” we dwell in the comfort of connecting with the God who journeys with us – always – the same way we welcome the warm time spent chatting with a heart-friend over a cup of tea.

So it’s okay to be okay-ish. For that is where God is waiting for us, arms extended in holy welcome.

“God hugs you. You are encircled by the arms of the mystery of God.” ~Hildegard of Bingen

Praying for the Planet; Praying for Ourselves

Screenshot from wikipedia

Yesterday, The Episcopal Church (TEC) hosted a prayer service as part of the faithful witness of the Church present at the UN’s COP26; an intergovernmental conference to address the devastating realities of climate change, and the role of humans in protecting God’s creation.

One of the prayers asked God to “Bless Our Inspirations”.

This piece struck me as particularly meaningful, as it integrates our prayers and our actions; it invites us to learn more about the realities of climate change, the role of humans in influencing our present situation, and the opportunity and responsibility of all of us today to work for the future. And we recognise that this is a ministry, an act of faith: God is summoning us into this work. The Spirit is whispering into our hearts and minds ways to remember how to live as inter-connected and inter-dependent beings.

And so we acknowledge that we have work to do; that we have opportunities ahead; and that we have been blessed with reason and skill to embrace this ministry of creation care.

Truly, may God bless our inspirations, that all we do may celebrate the divine creation which sustains our life. May God strengthen our faith, that we may embrace the wonder and awe of creation as a divine revelation. May God embolden our actions, that we may be faithful in our responses locally, nationally, and globally, that we are faithful and confident in all we do.