Return on Blue Sky on Earth Day

Charleston: Return of the Blue Sky on Earth Day

"Did you notice any stories about the return of the blue sky? Unfortunately, there were not many of them, and they were usually tucked away behind other news reports that seemed much more critical. But they were there: the return of clear skies above cities like Los Angeles, which had not been seen for generations. As the traffic level declined, the pollution declined, and the clear sky appeared like a sign from heaven.

It is a visual aid to show us that positive change is possible on the other side of COVID-19. Not just for the environment, but our whole society. The blue skies can return for us in many ways if we have the courage to change."—Bishop Steven Charleston's Facebook Page.

ted soqui NBC News

Today, we celebrate the 55th anniversary of Earth Day. Last year, Bishop Charleston reminded us that trying to stop this pandemic had given our planet a rest. As a result, pollution and greenhouse gas emissions fell worldwide. For example, India's capital, New Delhi, is one of the world's most polluted cities. But its skies were now blue, and many could see the Himalayas Mountains for the first time.

Researchers found a 5 to 10% decrease in air pollutants, such as carbon dioxide, in New York. Carbon monoxide emissions dropped by 50%. Grounding flights, reducing cars on the road, and shutting down businesses and factories brought about the change. Some predicted we might reach the Paris Climate Accord goals even sooner. In Venice, canal water was so clear that fish were easily seen. This may be because there are no boats and people in its waters. But environmentalists warn all this could be temporary. 

Today, all of this has been at a great expense—the death of over one million people in our own country and over 7 million worldwide. We can only guess what it will be tomorrow if we have another flare-up of infections.  

Bishop Charleston tells us to give thanks for the blue sky, honor its presence, imagine ways to keep the skies blue, and never forget the cost in the lives of so many who died. There must be another way to save our planet that is not so costly.

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

Nothing Can Separate Us

Nothing Can Separate Us

“For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.”—Romans 8:38-39.

I talk to many people who do not believe they deserve God’s love. I remember visiting with a very alert, highly educated woman in her 90s, still involved in her successful business, who wanted to start going back to church—but only after she got her life together and felt she was a better person. I told her the famous line, “The church is not a museum for saints, but a hospital for sinners.” But she never returned.

I talk to many people recovering from addiction who feel so much shame for the life they have led. They do not see how God and others can forgive them. So many have been taught to fear a judgmental God looking over their shoulder to catch them in sin.

I want to tell them there is another way, a belief in resurrection, an Easter that can be redeemed after a Good Friday life or experience. I remind them of Jesus’ disciples who abandoned and denied him if I can. He did not return to them in that upper room on Easter evening and say, “Shame on you.” Instead, he said, “Peace be with you.… When he said this, he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven.” (John 20:21-23).

We discuss the difference between shame, “I am a bad person,” and guilt, “I did a wrong thing.” We also talk about addiction not being a moral failing but a disease. Finally, we look for any sign of God’s love alive and well, working in their life. We pray that the Holy Spirit will lead both of us to recognize this presence alive in each other so we will both see and be led by Christ in each other.

Sometimes, I tell my story of  God’s presence in my life through many difficulties to see if they recognize similarities between my story and theirs.

 Lastly, I may share the above mantra from Romans that I still use as I became aware of my harm to others and myself and now seek forgiveness.

Sometimes, I share this image from Trinity Cathedral’s Pierce Chapel of Jesus, the Light of the World, with his bright lantern, constantly seeking us to love us.

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

Resurrection Takes a Second Look

Resurrection: It Takes a Second Look

“Seeing things as they actually are usually takes time. How else are we to explain the fact that no one- no one!—noticed the resurrected Jesus at first sight? Seeing the resurrection requires a second look, another glance. It takes a while for our eyes to adjust to the light of the resurrection, and then all of life looks radically different…Seeing God’s “new thing” is about seeing an old thing in a new way through a new lens.

Such is the miracle of Gospel sight—to see what has always been there in such a radically new way that it becomes a new thing. This is always a work of grace, and we can only handle so much of it at once.”

—Kris Rocke and Joel Van Dyke in Geography of Grace, Doing Theology from Below.

Caravaggio suuer Emmaus London National Gallery

When friends ask what life must be like after the resurrection, I remind them that our only stories are about the resurrected Jesus. After the resurrection, the disciples on the road to Emmaus did not recognize him, and Mary Magdalene did not recognize him. The disciples who met Jesus on the beach were not sure who he was. Jesus came and went through closed doors. The resurrected Jesus gave fishing tips, cooked meals, and ate dinner with his friends.

The Easter season is the perfect time to read and meditate on the resurrected Jesus’ appearances on Easter Day and the next forty days (Acts 1:3-8).

We may be most familiar with several Easter Day accounts of Jesus's appearances (Mary Magdalene in John, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary in Matthew, Mary Magdalene and the Galilean women in Luke, two disciples on the road to Emmaus in Luke, and disciples in the upper room when Thomas is absent and then present in John).

The resurrected Jesus appears at least 12 times. This Easter Season is an excellent time to practice Ignatian meditative practices, imagining ourselves in more unfamiliar scenes.

Jesus appeared to the disciples eight days after the resurrection (John 20:24-29), with Thomas present in the upper room. He appeared to seven disciples at the Sea of Galilee, asking Peter to feed His sheep (John 21). Jesus appeared on a hillside in Galilee (Matthew 28:16-20), perhaps to over 500 people, as referenced by Paul (1 Corinthians 15:6). Jesus was later seen by his brother James (1 Corinthians 15:7). Jesus’ final appearance was the Great Commission after the disciples returned to Jerusalem and were led out to Bethany at the Mount of Olives. (Luke 24:50-52, Acts 1:9-11). Then we know that Paul also encountered Jesus a few years later on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:5, 1 Corinthians 15:8).1

The fact that people have difficulty recognizing Jesus tells us at least two things. First, the resurrection is so overwhelming that it is almost impossible initially to believe. Second, Jesus looks different in the resurrection. 

May we, in turn, learn from these stories the different resurrection life in this life and the next.

1Msgr. Charles Pope, Blog, April 9, 2012, blog.adw.org

From his Native American heritage, Bishop Steven Charleston constantly reminds us that we got through the pandemic and racial and social unrest with the help of those who love us in the resurrection in the next life. Through them, God prays, walks beside us, and nudges us to care for ourselves and others.

ivanov yav hrista mari

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