How often the chimes sing out, “Listen, listen, listen.” What do you hear?
Listen: a theme of the week
Last week I shared the opening words of The Rule of St Benedict, “Listen carefully, …” Through his words and the example of Anne Hutchinson we were invited to listen. This Sunday (2/10/2013) we heard the account of the Transfiguration as shared by Luke. The voice from the cloud picked up the theme of the previous week and sets on a course for this week:
Then from the cloud came a voice that said, “This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!”
Luke 9:35 NRSV
Let us practice listening to the Chosen One this week.
Grace is freely given. Grace sings of expansive love. Grace sings of inclusive love. The chimes are singing of Grace today. What do you hear?
Anne Hutchinson would have liked Jimmy Carter
We’ll walk one more day with Anne Hutchinson. See the Wind Chimes for February 7 and February 8, 2013. Anne was at odds with the male leaders of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. She courageously was true to her heart. Though she spoke well and presented a well-reasoned description of what she believed, in 1638 Anne Hutchinson was both excommunicated and banished from the Colony. Nearly 400 years later, in 2000, Jimmy Carter parted ways with the Southern Baptist Convention. I believe Anne would have liked Jimmy Carter.
As the US Congress once again decides whether (and how) to renew the Violence Against Women Act Anne’s witness and Jimmy Carter’s words and witness are reminders of a foundational Christian belief (shared by other world religions as well): “God saw that [all of creation and every part of creation and all that was and would be created by God] was very good.”
The truth is that male religious leaders have had – and still have – an option to interpret holy teachings either to exalt or subjugate women. They have, for their own selfish ends, overwhelmingly chosen the latter. Their continuing choice provides the foundation or justification for much of the pervasive persecution and abuse of women throughout the world. This is in clear violation not just of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights but also the teachings of Jesus Christ, the Apostle Paul, Moses and the prophets, Muhammad, and founders of other great religions – all of whom have called for proper and equitable treatment of all the children of God. It is time we had the courage to challenge these views. —Jimmy Carter
“Listen carefully to my instructions …
With the good gifts which are in us,
we must obey God.”
From the Prologue in the Rule of St. Benedict and quoted in The Monastery of the Heart:
An Invitation to a Meaningful Life (p. 3) by Joan Chittister
The chimes invite us to listen today. Pause and listen. What do you hear?
Walking another day with Anne Hutchinson
As I do understand it, laws, commands, rules and edicts are for those who have not the light which makes plain the pathway. He who has God’s grace in his heart cannot go astray.
Anne Hutchinson as quoted in Little Journeys to the Homes of Great Reformers (1907) by Elbert Hubbard (“Anne Hutchinson” on Wikiquote)
As shared yesterday: on February 6, 2013, in the “Spiritual Day Hike” (which wanders far and wide in the world without actually leaving St. Margaret’s in Palm Desert, CA) we walked with Anne Hutchinson for a time. Anne is now remembered by The Episcopal Church annually on February 5th.
Born and raised in the faith of the Church of England Anne accepted the teachings of the Puritans and added her own touch.
As you read the excerpt from the Prologue in the Rule of St. Benedict you can easily understand that Anne would have been right at home in the Rule of St. Benedict. Her ‘touch’ added to her Puritan faith was to listen with the “ear of her heart” for the voice and the wisdom of God.
Confident that God was constantly in dialogue with her, confident that she could hear and understand God within her own heart, Anne chose to follow the One who called to her, spoke to her, and led her in Love. She continues to offer her witness to us—listen, listen carefully, trust what you hear in your heart: “You are my beloved child. Always. Everywhere. In every circumstance. Beloved.”
Anne has left quite a legacy. Allow yourself to be amazed by her courage and her confidence in God as you read her story:
You must be holy in every aspect of your lives,
just as the one who called you is holy.
It is written, “You will be holy, because I am holy.”
1 Peter 1:15-16 which quotes Leviticus 19:2 CEB
The chimes seem to be sounding a song of joy and freedom. What do you hear?
The grace of God
As I do understand it, laws, commands, rules and edicts are for those who have not the light which makes plain the pathway. He who has God’s grace in his heart cannot go astray.
Anne Hutchinson as quoted in Little Journeys to the Homes of Great Reformers (1907) by Elbert Hubbard (“Anne Hutchinson” on Wikiquote)
In the “Spiritual Day Hike” (which wanders far and wide in the world without actually leaving St. Margaret’s in Palm Desert, CA) on February 6, 2013 we walked with Anne Hutchinson for a time. Anne is now remembered by The Episcopal Church annually on February 5th.
Some 450 years after her death she continues to have a profound impact on us as we listen for the Spirit within our hearts. Our group, as we walked with Anne, was affirmed in actively forming and following a conscience illumined by the light of Christ and emboldened by the Holy Spirit. Anne has left quite a legacy. Allow yourself to be amazed by her courage and her confidence in God as you read her story:
Adoration of the Kings Apse mosaic, 1296, window level:3 Santa Maria Maggiore, Rome TORRITI, Jacopo (active c. 1270-1300) Click image for more information.
In Jacopo Torriti’s Adoration of the Kings, Mary is sitting on a throne with the baby Jesus on her lap. Rays of an inconspicuous star (to the left of the top of the throne) are pointing directly to the head of Jesus. Three Magi with their crowns and splendid robes have arrived and are offering their gifts as they kneel. As the first Magus presents his gift, Jesus reaches out like a curious child. The other two Magi are kneeling in a similar position and create a sense of progression toward Jesus. Variations among them are introduced through differences in their crowns, the color of their beards and hair, and the color of their robes. In the large pictorial space above them, an angel hovers. The angel’s active shape and large spreading wings fill the space and balance visually the stable and compact shapes of the Magi below. All aspects—gestures, gazes, and leanings—of the wise men lead the viewer toward the infant Jesus. As the Magi kneel, the angel above them looks at Jesus, extends an arm, and gestures, “Behold”
In the year 1261, sculptor Nicola Pisano completed a large and much-admired baptistery pulpit for the cathedral of Pisa. Among the scenes carved in relief was the visit of the Magi. Pisano’s kneeling Magi is likely the basis for the kneeling wise men in Torriti’s Adoration of the Kings.
In the Gospel of Matthew, an account is given of wise men from the East being guided by a star as they traveled to Bethlehem to see the infant Jesus (Matthew 2:1-12). It is believed these gift-bearing visitors were Magi from Persia. Magi were known to be scholars who studied science, mathematics, philosophy, and the stars. Matthew’s account does not indicate how many men journeyed to Bethlehem but because three gifts were brought, the assumption and tradition has been that there were three.
When Herod learned of the Magi’s visit, he was frightened and wanted to know the time Jesus was born “so [purportedly] that I may also go and pay him homage.” Herod’s evil intent was made known to the Magi in a dream and after they found Jesus and brought gifts, they did not return to Herod. Instead they took another route as they returned home.
During the twelfth and thirteenth century there was an extraordinary growth in veneration of Mary and many churches honored her name. In France, cathedrals were named Notre Dame (Holy Virgin) and in Rome alone, twenty-five churches were given her name. The largest of these churches—known as Santa Maria Maggiore (Saint Mary Major)—was expanded numerous times and during the late thirteenth century the entire choir area was rebuilt. Jacopo Torriti was commissioned to design the mosaic for its new apse. By this time, Mary had been exalted to the status of royalty and in art she was often seated on a throne. Torriti’s theme for the apse was the coronation of the virgin and its centerpiece was a large medallion depicting Christ placing a crown on the head of Mary. Adoration of the Kings below the medallion is one of the scenes depicting the life of Mary.
Note
Artists before the Renaissance had difficulties when they tried to create a convincing likeness of a child. The face of Torriti’s infant Jesus has the facial features of his mother and a receding hairline. His proportions are like that of an adult’s body reduced in size.
A mosaic is an image created by cementing small pieces (called tesserae) of various hard colored materials – usually of uniform size – to a base such as a wall, floor or ceiling. Materials such as marble, glazed clay and glass have been used traditionally for tesserae and they continue to be used today.
Hear what the Spirit is saying 