Spirituality, Prayer, and Doubt

Jones: Spiritual Direction and Doubt

“The opposite of faith is not doubt, but certainty.”—Alan Jones.

I first heard this quote attributed to Alan Jones, former dean of Grace Cathedral, San Francisco, at a Trinity Wall Street conference at Kanuga in 2001. It warmed my heart when I heard Jones affirm this, and I have shared it with many others. Anne Lamott is also a writer and speaker to whom many attribute the quote. Theological friends tell me it is actually from Paul Tillich’s work, Systematic Theology, Vol. 1, pp. 116-117!

I will stop tracking it down, but I am confident the sentence is scriptural in its wisdom. I share it with many who come for spiritual direction regarding their doubts.  

In his book Soul Making: The Desert Way of Spirituality, Jones writes about doubt and the finding and nurturing of the soul according to the spirituality of the Desert Fathers. The spirituality of the desert involves encountering God but subsequently feeling God’s absence and then experiencing the divine joy of God’s presence again. Jones describes this threefold experience of soul-making after awakening with the first conversion, which entails self-knowledge, often with tears; the second conversion, in which things seem to fall apart; and the third conversion, which occurs when we enter the life of contemplation.

These awakening periods have recurred for me: at church camps, when I suddenly decided to go to medical school, during my discernment process for the diaconate, and at Cursillo. The conversion of self-knowledge with tears came to me, and the falling apart when I decided my only hope to survive was to enter a 12-step program. It also came when people close to me: my grandfather, my mother, my father, and my brother died—and now, as my mobility becomes increasingly limited. 

Often, only at the death of a loved one do we clearly recognize the nature of genuine love, as many of us did in years past with the death of our dear friend and deacon Linda Brown.

 Jones describes those tears as like the breaking of waters of the womb before the birth of a child.

 The task of love, as experienced in the “desert,” is to free us of our well-built-up exoskeleton.

Soul-making is paying attention to invisible things that do not lend themselves to manipulation and control. It requires receptivity to the life of the mystic rather than being the problem solver. Too often, we spend most of our energy building up our frail ego by setting dozens and dozens of minor situations before it—while the life of the soul is aborted. If the world is to change, we must first change, which happens when we live more deeply into our questions and doubts.

 Sharing our doubt can sometimes bring us together more effectively than sharing our faith, as our faith eventually strengthens. It is a paradox.

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

Right Brain and Left Brain Living

Right vs. Left Brain

Guest Writer Lara Patriquin

Our brilliant minds have evolved over millennia, allowing us to tackle increasingly complex tasks in our modern world. From booking flights on our phones to filing taxes, the left brain, responsible for logic, language, and critical thinking, has developed exponentially since our ancestors roamed caves. It enables us to analyze data, create to-do lists, perform intricate calculations, and operate advanced technology.

But while our left brain hungers for logic and analysis, the right brain holds the key to creativity, intuition, and holistic thinking. Success in life isn’t just about being left-brain “smart.” Anyone leading a company or practicing medicine knows that intuition, big-picture thinking, and creativity—right-brain functions—are equally essential. Often, it is our “secret sauce.” 

The left brain may help us achieve success, but does living solely in that space make life fun? 

Awe, inspiration, joy, and love all flow from the right brain. You can live a “successful” life by external standards, but the magic of the right brain truly makes life worth living.

So, take time today to nourish your right brain. You can strengthen it through activities like:

• Creative Arts: Painting, drawing, sculpting, and other forms of visual expression.

• Music and Rhythm: Playing instruments, composing, singing, and dancing.

• Imagination-Based Tasks: Creative writing, storytelling, and visualization exercises.

• Emotional Expression: Understanding and expressing emotions through art, music, or dance.

• Spatial Awareness: Engaging in puzzles or designs that require spatial reasoning.

• Holistic Thinking: Recognizing patterns and connecting seemingly unrelated ideas.

• Intuition: Trusting gut feelings and making decisions based on instinct.

Soooo....get off your computers and phones and play a game, walk in the woods, watch a movie, listen to music, or just hang out. 

You will feel more like yourself, more creative and connected. 

With plenty of right-brain love,

Lara Patriquin

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

A Hurricane, a Stroke, and the Church

A Hurricane, a Stroke, and the Church

Guest Writer: Alan Schlesinger

A week before Hurricane Helene hit our community in Western North Carolina, my wife Paula and I flew to Brooklyn to meet our first grandchild. Less than twenty-four hours after we arrived, we got a call that Paula’s 94-year-old mother had suffered a devastating stroke. We returned on the next flight. Although she received immediate state-of-the-art care, including emergent thrombectomy and anti-coagulation, she failed to improve, and the doctors and Paula and her brother had to make difficult decisions regarding whether to pursue aggressive rehabilitation or hospice care. 

Before enough time elapsed to make a final decision, one week after the stroke, Hurricane Helene devastated Western North Carolina, including our community in Asheville. Our neighborhood is heavily wooded and was particularly hard hit with literally thousands of trees blown down. We had at least 40 trees down on our own property, including one that landed on our house (thankfully with minor damage). We had no power, internet, or cell service to allow us to reach our family and friends. 

For more than a day, we could not reach the end of the driveway, let alone our street. After the fire department and many residents cleared a narrow lane to leave the neighborhood, we could not reach the hospital (only 5 miles from our house) due to flooding. We had to drive nearly an hour, use precious gasoline at a time when no gas stations were open, and take a circuitous route to reach the hospital. 

I dropped Paula and her brother off at the hospital to check on her mother, and I pursued cell service to contact our children and friends, who I knew must be worried. I was given many tips by people I encountered: try Pack Square in the center of town, try the sidewalks outside certain hotels, etc. I went from place to place but could not get service. 

Ready to give up and drive home, I felt a need to check on our downtown church a few blocks away—First Presbyterian Church, Asheville. To my surprise, when I walked into the church, I was greeted by our associate pastor and found a half dozen church members on cell phones, tablets, and laptops. There was power and internet connectivity. Using WiFi-enabled calling, I could talk to my children and friends and let them know, after more than 24 hours without contact, that we were safe. I told our associate pastor how I had first tried to get cell service, chasing tips and rumors without success. Still, I eventually inexplicably found myself drawn to the church, where I found everything I needed. Half-joking, I told him he could certainly find a sermon in that story. 

There has been unfathomable devastation here in Western North Carolina, and I was amazed on a daily basis by the grit of our community as people worked tirelessly to help each other. People with chainsaws cut up downed trees. Others, including children, stacked logs and carried away debris. People shared precious food and water. Despite being stressed and stretched thin, the doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers helped Paula and her brother make the decision to place their mother in Hospice care, where she is now comfortable.

I will always appreciate how everyone banded together to help one other, but I certainly will never forget how I was drawn to our church on that overwhelming first day, and how I found everything I needed in that place. 

If you want to help Ashville, The River Arts District was heavily hit. There is a River Arts District Artist Foundation (RADA):

https://riverartsdistrict.com/donate/

Also, the Red Cross at

https://www.redcross.org

Alan

Joanna  joannaseibert.com