Monday, August 20, 2012

Spiritual Sparks

The sun, the rain, even hurricanes are imbued with Spiritual sparks.
Though we may not understand the language, this is how The Spirit "talks."
If every day is a Spiritual gift, no matter what we have to face,
Will we not accept that death and destruction are a way to build new life?

Pain is not punishment or judgement on our actions;
It is simply a stress that can lead to universal growth.
Facing stress with fear locks up the positive power
That can help us feel one with earth's re-birth contractions.

If every day we live our lives as if it is our last day on earth,
Will we not focus on loving instead of on our animal fears?
When we allow The Spirit to guide all our thoughts and actions,
We know that this strength will take us even through our deaths.

The energy we receive in this life does not disappear at death;
In its transformation, it goes on to feed the universe .
The tiniest spark of goodness that you shared with another
Will live on in that person's Spirit, lighting a path to peace.

I am not prone to praying for the storms and pain to pass me by;
I am more prone to praying for strength to accept their affects.
My most useful prayer is in looking for the growth that will come,
Rising from the rubble of my own, my people's, and our planet's pain.

We must let go of earthly attachments in order to grow;
This is most difficult with our children, mates, and families.
It is not easy to say, "I'm ready to let you go or to die."
Given as a gift, not as a sign, of our own apathy.


Sacred Sundays

All week we do for the world at large;
On Sundays we do for each other
The challenges that we've faced alone,
We discuss and look for symmetry.

Often our conversation turns to morals;
We understand each others positions.
We have a shared biblical vocabulary,
But very different action plans.

We were both brought up submersed
In the same version of the same religion.
Our shared values seem to be a product
Of the religion in which we were raised.

He was Jesuit and Franciscan trained;
I, by Dominican Sisters to seek the truth.
And we both had St. Joseph Sisters
In our most formative early years.

It is true that our earliest indoctrination
Bears fruit throughout our full lives.
Could we ever have found peace together
Without the same early training for our souls?

We were children of The Church,
Born to mothers who only bore us
To help the popes continue to build
Their armies of "Soldiers of Christ."

We have both turned away from our religion
Because of the abuses of their power,
But we know that we would not be the same
Without the grounding in our shared faith.

The gratitude we feel for those
Who taught us our religion
Will never be forgotten,
Though our sorrow remains.

Often there have been others
Offering us their own religions,
But we will never be completely
Free from our past spiritual home.