Following along the way of the cross

For last Thursday night’s bread for your journey,we had an experience of Jesus’ journey to the cross and what it really means for us. If you weren’t able to be there, you can try out this virtual journey…

As you walk into the darkened conference room, your eye is caught by the colorful image projected on the wall you’re facing. It's a painting by Palestinian artist Sliman Mansour of Jesus and his disciples eating together, in an open-air roof-top room, sitting at a round table sharing a feast, under a canopy of grape vines.

The next thing you notice is there are several places to sit. Lots going on in the room. There are people sitting in a circle of chairs, so you head over to join their conversation. In the middle of the circle is a huge cross made from two tree trunks bound together with leather thongs, and in the very center is the gathering candle waiting to be lit.

After everyone introduces themselves to one another, someone lights the candle and you’re invited to join in a centering prayer. The leader talks a bit about the flow of the evening, what to expect, and then she hands out booklets of a dramatic reading of the story of Jesus’ journey to the cross, according to a writer named Mark. All read together the story, with those who volunteered having special parts to read.

(Here’s a link to the reading: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2014:1%20-%2015:47;&version=65 )

The leader than explains that now that we have the big picture, we’ll be entering into the story for a more experiential version. Spreading out on the floor some shawls that look like those that might have been worn in Jesus’ day, she talks about how Jesus and his followers were welcomed into the great city of Jerusalem. Some people were so thrilled to see him that they threw their cloaks on the road in front of Jesus, while others were so threatened by Jesus’ charismatic presence that they started plotting to do away with him.

That was on Sunday. The next few days after that, the tension increases, with Jesus continuing to teach his radical views about God’s love being accessible to all. By the time Thursday comes around, and it’s time for the festive Passover meal, Jesus’ followers have got to be a mess of emotions: Is this all going to end badly, with Jesus getting in trouble bigtime?

The group that’s been sitting in the circle of chairs now gets up to walk over to the corner where a blanket and picnic basket are waiting. Someone carries the big cross over and puts it in the middle of everything, while everyone finds a seat on the blanket. You hear about what that Passover meal might have been like on that night, with all the joy of eating your favorite festive foods but all the tension of the looming reality of the executioner's cross that all realize may be Jesus’ fate.

The leader takes out of the picnic basket some round loaves of bread and a cup of wine, recalling how Jesus gave these items of the feast new meaning, saying the bread was his own body and the wine his own lifeblood. Just as Jesus’ followers ate and drank, this group also passes around the bread and the wine, talking about what this meal means to us today.

Then you leave the Passover picnic to go to a third area of the room, a half-circle of chairs facing a counter lined with votive candles. Here you have time to remember Jesus’ struggles in the Garden of Gethsemane… and your own struggles as well. You light a candle, remembering how Jesus knew the full range of human suffering, including doubt and fear and arguments with God.

The group returns to the place where the evening started and once again, the cross is in the middle of it all. Here you listen to others talk about what Jesus’ gift of his life on the cross means for them. The discussion is sometimes quite deep and other times light-hearted, but always respectful of the views and experiences of others. There are so many ways we experience the saving love of God, the forgiveness and second chances, the accompaniment in our times of pain and grief, the transformation that happens inside when we long to make Jesus' visions come to life in our world, the assurance that God will never let us go.

It seems like those gathered don't want the night to come to an end! They linger and get to know each other better, agreeing to come back next Thursday to share how the Resurrection becomes real and meaningful to us, as we celebrate the new life of Easter.

Giving it up for your friends

You see them all over, in various shapes and sizes, decorating buildings and around people’s necks, even hanging from the ears of random rock stars: crosses… those ornate symbols of… what? What does the cross really mean anyway?

Of course, crosses identify places as churches and people as Christians or followers of Jesus. And many know that Jesus died on a cross and that that was a gift of life to us. Plenty of people value that symbol of their identity and their love for Jesus. But many more people are left wondering: What’s so significant about Jesus’ death? How, exactly, does his death accomplish anything for us?

As a small child I was told that Jesus died to save me from my sins. That worked for me for a little while… and then I started asking questions. The answers I heard were for the most part unsatisfying. And yet, when I worshiped during those days before Easter, remembering Jesus’ death on the cross, I felt strongly that it was a gift of love for me. That it brought me close to God’s heart. I didn’t have the words to explain intellectually how Jesus’ death affected me, but I experienced it powerfully.

I’ve learned since then that there are many different words that can explain how the cross brings God’s love to the world. There’s not just one way of understanding it. But I do believe that understanding the cross is beyond words, too. Sometimes the best understanding comes through experience.

I invite you to come to the Crowne Plaza this Thursday night, 7pm, to have both a “head” and a “heart” experience of the power of the cross… an evening gathering with the theme: “Giving it up for your friends”. Please feel free to bring a friend who may be curious about this cross business. And bring your own questions and answers about what Jesus’ gift of life means for us… and what difference it makes for our world.

Peace,
Kari

Linking into "Bread for your journey"

If you weren't able to get to last night's bread for your journey gathering at the Crowne, you can experience it this way instead, if you like...

There’s conversation going on as you walk into this Crowne Plaza room set aside for by the way. You take a seat from a semi-circle row of chairs, noticing the colorful words of welcome on the screen in front of you. Others are still arriving as the group begins to get centered… a candle is lit, and you’re invited into God’s presence with some words of prayer.

You have some time to reflect on some readings chosen to go with the theme: Fan or Follower – Considering our Commitments. You can see the brief readings up on the screen, each in turn, followed by the lighting of a candle and some words of prayer:

1st reading: exerpts from “So Tough” by Freddie Foxx
How can I find who's the real divine
when everytime I take a book and take a look
my strong mind sees a new sign…
Who do I follow and who do I lead
do they really wanna help me or is it just greed
is everybody all for self to get wealth
the street wanna dust me off and throw me on the shelves…

prayer: God, the words of this song remind us that the world is asking the questions of who to follow and how to find you. Let us see a peek of you in this time together, or at least a look into who you are… and who we are… in relationship to you. In your name we pray… amen.

2nd reading: Luke 5:27-32
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%205:27-32;&version=65

prayer: Loving God, in Jesus you went seeking for so many who didn’t fit the mold. Thank you that these stories of Jesus’ reaching out were preserved for us, so we have a chance to be found as well. Help us to hear your call to follow you… and to figure out what that might mean. In your name we pray… amen.

3rd reading: “All I Do” by St. John of the Cross
Forever at his door
I gave my heart and soul. My fortune too.
I've no flock any more, no other work in view.
My occupation: Love. It's all I do.

prayer: God, as you speak powerfully through poets like John, speak to us through the silence, through words of prayer, through the words of each other, through the bread we share. Occupy us with your kind of love, that we might be your loving servants and poets in your world. In your name we pray… amen

You are then invited to join in a discussion of the theme and the readings. Here are a few highlights…

Who do I follow is a pretty fascinating question, especially because of how Twitter and Facebook and My Space have connected us with old friends, new friends, famous people, groups, causes galore… which on one level is really great. But it can be hard to keep up with all we’re interested in.
~ Google “who do I follow” and you get a whole lineup of Twitter philosophies of how to decide who to follow.
~ Even rapper Freddie Foxx is asking the question, wondering if his followers/fans really care about him or just his wealth.

Who do I follow and what difference does it make?
Who follows me and what’s good about that?
Can I really be committed to all these people and causes?
Is it all just a blur of interests, or is there some kind of organizing principle, some way of focusing it all or sifting through what’s important and what’s not?

Not everyone is scattered and overextended and unfocused. Some are really intentional and focused, and have their acts together. Some are even hyper-focused in their fandom, knowing exactly what they center their lives on.

To go with that thought is a film clip from the movie Fever Pitch, with Ben (the obsessed Red Sox fan) introducing Lindsey (upwardly mobile workaholic) to his “summer family”, those who have season tickets in the same spot.
~ Being an intense fan can get you into something bigger than yourself, give you that exhilaration of being connected, even give you a “family” that won’t let you down (like Ben)
~ Having the Sox as his “organizing principle” only worked for Ben up to a point… then he and Lindsey had to figure out how their love could be at the center instead.

Next, we take a closer look at the story of Jesus and Levi, someone who seems to be a bit like Lindsey (wrapped up in his own successful career) and in another way like Ben (Levi’s “family” is made up of fellow tax collectors, because they’re all outsiders together and can’t get beyond that)

It’s important to know what leads into this story of Levi and Jesus (link above, 2nd rdg). See this poignant story of friends who care, and Jesus' response:
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Luke%205:17-26;&version=65
~ After this awesome healing, Jesus is poised to have tons of fans… so now all he has to do is schmooze with the right people and he’ll have more fans and followers than he ever dreamed of.
~ But what does he do now to capitalize on his big success? He goes out and sees the least popular person he could find: a tax-collector (aka traitor to his own people and therefore an outsider freak, with absolutely no fans… except for one…)

Yep, it’s Jesus, who shocks Levi and everyone else by telling Levi to follow him. This has got to be a stunning moment for Levi. This Jesus must have incredible charisma, don’t you think? How else would it be possible for the next line of the story to read: “And he did – walked away from everything and went with Jesus.”

Take a look at this Bernardo Strozzi (1581-1644) painting “The Calling of St Matthew” (Levi’s story under another name)
http://www.worcesterart.org/Collection/European/1941.1.html
~ What do you think the painter communicates about the state of mind of the one called by Jesus…. to completely re-orient himself, away from his money, his shameful but profitable career…

The story doesn’t say how he felt about this incredible turn but it does tell us what he did next: He threw a party! a huge feast for all the tax men and all the other shady characters he could gather… feeling pretty ecstatic about his new focus.
~ Notice there’s no family there; just a bunch of work cronies
~ These tax guys had to watch each other’s backs; no one else would claim them… again, no one except Jesus.

Jesus notices the snooty people who are peeking into Levi’s house, saying, “What in God’s name is he doing?"
~ Jesus compared himself to a doctor: I’m hanging with the sick folks, the ones who need me because they had their priorities screwed up. and I’m offering an amazing kind of healing
~ You were amazed that I could make a paralytic walk! Why can’t you get into the healing of these outsider losers!

So now… if Jesus were to butt into your life like he did Levi’s, what could he possibly do (or be like) that would so thrill you, that he could ask you to walk away from your main focus, and to walk with him and have a new focus?
~ This gets you thinking about your own experiences of how someone reached out to you with a life-changing word or action... while others share their stories of this happening to them, .
~ Maybe if we’re really open to it, we could imagine many ways this has happened to us, that God reaches out to us to shift our priorities throughout our lifetimes (little or big ways)

Jesus calls us to put God in the center of all that our lives are made of… all our following, our major commitments and our shallow ones.
~ And through this story of Levi, Jesus calls us to consider that having God at our center is not a burden or a “should”, but an incredible gift, a release of tension and insecurity, a way of feeling like it all fits together somehow
~ That’s one reason people come together to experience God’s presence and power… to feel once again that things might make sense if God is the center, and to explore with others how that might happen in real ways.

Next you see just one more reading up on the screen. This time it’s not about us following God but about God following us.
~ Take a look at this poetry, especially at the final verse:
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%2023;&version=76
~ The word, “following” in the original language of Hebrew, literally means “pursuing” or “chasing after” which leaves us with quite an image: of God running after us, following us in hot pursuit, to give us the good stuff we need…

With the discussion drawing to a close, the group is now invited to a time of “open space” where we can experience God’s presence in a variety of ways: lighting candles, sharing bread, talking to one another or having time to ourselves.

We gather together for a few more minutes to share announcements of what’s coming up… and then we are sent out into the world once again.

Who's following who?

The other day a friend and I were thinking back to not-too-long-ago when “being followed” was a bad thing. Either it meant someone dangerous is creeping up behind you or maybe your little sister is in your shadow, copying everything you do. Nothing good about being followed. Especially if you’re driving and the one following you has turned on the blue flashing lights.

But now, thanks to Twitter and other social sites, being followed has new meaning. It’s kind of nice to know someone else out there cares that you’re peeling carrots or thinking some profound thought. It feels good to know some little tidbit about someone you wouldn’t otherwise be connected to.

Following and being followed has never been so good. You stay connected. You learn about great (and not so great) causes. You can claim bragging rights if you have more followers than the buddy you’re always competing with.

But there’s following on the one hand (like a distant fan) and really following on the other. I can’t possibly keep up with all of my interests, so I dabble and peek in on some, while I’m totally into following other people, groups, and causes.

So what’s the organizing principle, the “something” that keeps you focused instead of scattered? What’s at your center that helps you feel like it’s possible to be balanced rather than spread so thin? What can you take the time to be truly committed to, and what needs to stay on the sidelines?

If you happen to be thinking that I think I’ve got the answers all packaged up for you nice and neat, you’d be wrong. I’m not that presumptuous. But I do have some really great questions. And a few Bible words to explore. And I know some great people who like to get together and tackle tough questions and offer insights. And we’re getting together tomorrow night (Thurs.) at 7pm at the Crowne Plaza over the theme: "Fan or follower: considering our considerable commitments".

Sorry if you’re long distance or work on Thursday nights. But if you do want to join the discussion, feel free to add your own Q’s and A’s that are on your mind here and now. Or tune in Friday to see what the btw group du jour has wrangled with. I’ll be giving you the highlights here.

Peace,
Kari