“Get out of Jail, Free”

What a passage! The Gospel reading for today makes somewhat depressing reading (Luke 21:5-19). 0f course, I doubt that was the author’s intent. I think it was written to inspire and help a people under persecution. The list of what was to be endured is quite horrendous — wars, insurrections, earthquakes, famines, plagues and, on a more personal level, being arrested, persecuted, betrayed, hated and death. Quite a list! 

Yet, the message of the text is it will all ultimately be worth it.  Hopefully, this was to bring comfort to the early followers of the newly emerging Christianity.

When I read the list of horrors, I realized that it contained nothing new. If one reads the Old Testament, or studies ancient and modern history or even reads a newspaper or online news report, all the same horrors are happening today and have happened in the past. The list in the Gospel of Luke simply reflects the way of the natural world and the inability of humanity to live peacefully with all. 

So, as I shake this passage — looking for a blessing — I started to reflect on the way contemporary Christianity has viewed suffering and hardship. It occupied most of my time pondering this text.

I wondered:

Has modern thinking led to the idea that because a person embraces Christianity, they should have some special protection? Is Christianity viewed as a monopoly game, “Get out of Jail, Free” card?  Sadly, I sometimes think it is. 

Please, don’t read this as me saying that it is not worth praying for those in hard circumstance — of course, it always, always is worth praying. I will always pray for those in need.

I just don’t think that playing the Christianity “Get out of Jail, Free” card will exempt anyone from bad things happening. Like the rest of humanity those who embrace the Christian religion get sick, they get betrayed, they get caught up in wars, they experience floods, fires and earthquakes. I have experienced some hard times, as I’m sure almost everyone else has. The message of the text to early Christians is that their beliefs do not make them exempt from any of these things. I think it is a message to heed for contemporary times.

So where is the blessing? I found it in one word — wisdom (15). One can’t avoid wars, insurrections, earthquakes, famines, plagues, being arrested, persecuted, betrayed, hated and death. (Hopefully, not all experienced by the same person for which I am very grateful and thankful) Yet, in the face of sufferings there can be wisdom. 

Wisdom in words to be spoken or, in our world of social media perhapss words not spoken. Wisdom that will bring endurance as hard things are embraced. 

Rensho posted to the community’s email list this week. I was impressed by his closing phrase which I mused on along with today’s reading. Rensho wrote, “We have many profoundly wise women in the Lindisfarne Community, for which I am exceptionally grateful.”

Today, I want to extend that from “women” to “people”. People full of wisdom to know how to handle those times when suffering bursts, often unexpectedly, into their lives. 

To close, I want to join Rensho and say, “We have many profoundly wise people in the Lindisfarne Community, for which I am exceptionally grateful.

In the Lindisfarne Community everyone’s spirituality is equally valued.

In the Lindisfarne Community everyone’s spirituality is equally valued.

As I write this it is the closing morning of our weekend retreat on spirituality. We have had some great conversations together. One thing I realized is that, in one sense, spirituality is elusive, it defies a concrete definition. Even the quick google search we did in preparation for the weekend revealed that there are as many different definitions as there are websites trying to define it! Spirituality is an inward knowing which is hard to express through the limitations of language.

So, how would I try and define spirituality? My best attempt is to say that spirituality is an individual’s experience of connecting with the Divine, the Other. Yet, it is not simply reaching outward, there is a deep inner aspect. PsychologyToday acknowledges that spirituality is an “experience that involves [people] getting in touch with their spiritual selves through private prayer, yoga, meditation, quiet reflection, or time in nature.”

At the retreat, on Saturday morning we talked about the many different aspects of spirituality. This was followed by Monos (alone time) where each person pondered their personal spirituality. In the afternoon we shared our musings. It was revealing, each person’s spirituality is perceived in a different way. Each person’s spirituality is deeply personal and meaningful. It was a helpful exercise as each person’s perception of spirituality broadened our understanding of spirituality.

So, I return to my introductory sentence as I feel it is important. In the Lindisfarne Community everyone’s spirituality is equally valued. People have different callings, different manifestations and different understandings, yet all are valid and all are meaningful. There is not a hierarchy of spirituality. 

What is important is that the spirituality embraced by each individual sustains them in their daily life.

I want to take just a brief glance at the lectionary reading. Today is the story of Zacchaeus (Luke 19: 1-10). I always smile as I read this story as it reminds me of the children’s Sunday School song we used to sing. 

“Zacchaeus was a very little man
And a very little man was he
He climbed into a sycamore tree
The Saviour for to see
And when the Saviour passed that way
He looked into the tree
‘Now, Zacchaeus, you come down
 I'm coming to your house for tea’”

As Spirituality is our topic for the weekend, (indeed for the whole year). I thought it would be interesting to cast a glance at Zacchaeus’ spirituality. What is the quality in Zacchaeus drawing him towards the Other?  Perhaps, that is the first aspect of his spirituality — he was drawn. There was something in him that was reaching out. It reads like it was almost a desperation. Imagine, a respected (possibly!) and rich businessman climbing a tree to get a better view of someone. Something in that action speaks of a lot of humility. 

Another aspect of his spirituality is that he was welcoming. He opened his home and heart to a stranger, albeit a well-known one. Finally, he assessed his life with a willingness to change. So, if I was going to define Zacchaeus’ spirituality in a few words I would say; drawing, humbling, welcoming and life-changing. 

Actually, those words pulled from Zacchaeus’ life form quite a good understanding of spirituality. Spirituality is that quality that draws us out of ourselves towards the Other. Spirituality reveals our limitations and we are humbled. Spirituality causes us to reach out and welcome others. Spirituality is always life-changing, not a big once in a lifetime event, but constantly, causing daily growth moving towards maturity.

In whatever way it is perceived spirituality is the bedrock, the foundation on which lives are lived. In the Lindisfarne community everyone’s spirituality is equally valued.

(https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/spirituality)