The Lens Through Which We See

 The Lens Through Which You See

“If you wear glasses, you likely often forget that they’re even there! Only when you take the lenses off do you realize how much your capacity to see is informed by the lens through which you are seeing, or as Richard Rohr often says, ‘How we see is what we see.’”—Cynthia Bourgeault in The Shape of God: Deepening the Mystery of the Trinity (CAC, 2004), disc 2.

Here, Cynthia uses an analogy to teach us about the Trinity, but we can also apply it to everyday life. If you or the spiritual friends you meet wear glasses, try this exercise:

Take off your glasses. Try to see at a distance or read a passage of text. Perhaps you will “see” or realize that what you “see” depends on the lenses of your glasses. Our lens, or how we see the world, is often filtered by our work, family, or position.

We might experience a need for prestige, a desire for money, control, or power, a longing to be in the spotlight or successful, or we could be obsessed with beauty, clothes, food, another person, alcohol, drugs, or other addictions. We must wear sunglasses when our world or the sun is too bright. Sometimes, if we are depressed or grieving, we indeed may see the world through dark glasses.

Meditation, prayer, and meeting with spiritual friends can help us find the prescription of the lenses we use to view our family, friends, enemies, and the world. We learn to take those glasses off and are led inward to see the light, the Christ in ourselves, and the Christ in our neighbor.

We begin to see ourselves, the world, and others through the lens of the fruit of the spirit: love, joy, peace, forbearance (patience), kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).

Joanna  https://www.joannaseibert.com/

 

 

 

Willingness and Surrender

Gerald May V: Willingness and Surrender

“The gentlest form of spiritual narcissism is the idea that one can accomplish one’s own spiritual growth. ‘I can do it.’’”—Gerald G. May in Will and Spirit (HarperOne, 1982), p. 115.

Return of the Prodigal Son National Cathedral Bishop’s Garden, Washington DC

In Will and Spirit, Gerald May writes about struggles in our world today and the many battles within ourselves. We will likely have will, willingness, control, and surrender issues in our spiritual lives. Whenever we start our spiritual journey with willingness, as soon as we are aware of some spiritual growth, we become vulnerable to spiritual narcissism: the unconscious use of spiritual practices to increase our self-importance. We try to become holy, assuming we can accomplish our own spiritual growth. This becomes willfulness masquerading as willingness.

When we gain awareness of our own self-interest in participating in charitable works, these actions and gifts will be better given and received. But, on the other hand, sin occurs when self-image and personal willfulness become so vital that one forgets, represses, or denies one’s absolute connectedness and grounding in the God within us, the power who creates and sustains the cosmos and who placed in us that yearning.

May encourages us to let attachments come or go rather than constantly clinging to them. We must be aware of our need for self-importance; thus, he cautions us about immediately leaping to shore ourselves up. He places less emphasis on coping and mastery, and more on waking up to whatever is happening in the present moment.

As we surrender some of our self-importance, we make friends with mystery. Even though we may not always find God when we sacrifice our self-importance, May believes that as we lose our need for self-importance, we realize that God has already found us. We will experience more spontaneity and awareness when we are not driven to perform, and can let things flow when we no longer need to be defined through self-judgment or evaluation of our own actions.  

May reminds us that spirituality cannot be a means to end our discomfort.

Spiritual growth must be a way into life, not an escape from it. God calls us to be in the world, not of the world. But, unfortunately, this side of the world may be uncomfortable.

I share this familiar statue of the Return of the Prodigal Son in the Bishop’s Garden at the National Cathedral. It is an icon of surrender and willingness for both the son and the father. They are our role models.

Joanna. https://www.joannaseibert.com/

 FREE download of Sing a Song of Six Birds from September 2—6:

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Mother Bilbee reimagines classic nursery rhymes with a refreshing modern slant.

“The tales are a rhyme of encouragement, especially when we are learning and, even later in life, deciding the next right thing to do!”—The Rev. Joanna J. Seibert, M. D.

A Prayer Wheel

The Liesborn Prayer Wheel

“Sometimes returning to ancient sources is exactly what we need to renew our spiritual lives.”—Payton Dodd, Jana Riess, and David Van Biema in “Foreword,” The Prayer Wheel: A Daily Guide to Renewing Your Faith with a Rediscovered Spiritual Practice (Convergent, 2018).

Three well-known religious writers join forces to present a meditative method using the ancient practice of the prayer wheel. The medieval Liesborn Wheel consists of four concentric bands containing the Lord’s Prayer, the Old Testament Gifts of the Spirit from Isaiah, Events in the Life of Jesus, and the Beatitudes. Each of these four texts is divided into seven stepping stones. Together, these texts comprise a complete vocabulary of faith.

The seven phrases or petitions, or stepping stones, are spiritual tools or disciplines putting us in a position to connect to the God within us. The authors suggest journeying around the wheel as a daily prayer practice. The wheel can also be used topically for special needs, in times of grief, offering gratitude, or praying for others. Its use is appropriate in times of joy, discernment, or needing forgiveness. The wheel can aid prayers for healing, hope, praise, and calmness. It can also be a guide for Bible study. There are endless possibilities.

The invitation to return to this ancient source is an opportunity for all who want to learn alternative ways to experience contemplative prayer.