Category Archives: The Weekly Word

Becoming a Giver

At this time of year, the life of the seed slumbers under the ground. The flowers, trees and plants have all blossomed and born fruit in the summer, only to give it away in the fall, giving the seed away into the dark winter earth so that new life can awaken. Thus we can see that the ultimate purpose of the seed is to become a giver.

Within every human heart there is also a giver- an inner seed that longs to culminate its life by giving of its fruit. For like nature, our mission on earth is also to grow, flower and bear fruit for world. And even though there is much of our being that must receive, take and consume in order to live, our true humanity is only fulfilled by what we are able to give.

And yet, so often, we are mostly concerned with having instead of giving. Having enough money for retirement, having security, having our health. These are all important realities, even vital realities, but as Christ followers we must always keep in mind, that becoming fulfilled, not merely surviving, but becoming a true human being is never reached through having, no matter how much we have. We are only truly fulfilled through what we offer- what we sacrifice for new life.

In our Holy Nights gospel (John 21), Christ speaks to Peter of the ultimate purpose the human being. Christ tells Peter that if He loves him, if his soul is filled with love for god, then he will  feed His lambs and tend His sheep. Like the seed, Peter is called by Christ to become a giver – offering himself in love to the world.

So, if we find ourselves feeling unfulfilled even though we have so much, or find ourselves wondering what the purpose of all this living really is; Let us listen deep into our hearts, for He is speaking to each one of us, asking ever so gently; do you love me?

Because, you see, dear friends, the meaning of life is not a principle, or a spiritual law, it is a gentle question- a question that we are free to answer, a question that we must answer. For learning to love God in and through all of creation is the purpose of mankind.

This contemplation by Rev. Evans was inspired by the end of the whole gospel, John 21.

The Word in Us

“In the beginning was the Word.”

As humans beings, words may well be our most important means. Ideas become words, words translate into deeds and our deeds form the world around us.

Once the words leave our mouths they take on a life of their own. Unseen and unnoticed by us they swirl around us and form the air. They impact the souls and hearts of the people they reach. It is of great importance how the words that come from our lips are spoken. Do we speak truth? Do we believe in what we say? Do we speak with affection and love?

Our words are merely human and not divine. If they were divine they would have an even greater power. The divine word creates. It assumes reality once it is spoke – it becomes flesh.

“In the beginning was the word […] and the word became flesh.”

Through the Christ-Child, born in the dark of the Christmas night the divine word speaks to us. It is a word of creation, a word of truth, a word of love and it sinks deep into our souls. In us it turns into light and through us it assumes form and changes the world around us.

This contemplation by Rev. Contreras is inspired by the John Chapter 1

The True Christmas Gift- The Birth of the Light in the Darkness.

Our modern culture mainly associates Christmas with giving and receiving gifts. Even if it does not look like it at first glance there is indeed a deep truth in this. We do receive an invaluable gift on this day – it is the birth of the light in the darkness.

During the second half of the year the days grow ever shorter. The darkness grows. Imagine a world where in the end there would be no light left, where the days would be spent in eternal darkness – a situation that is a reality north of the polar circle during some of the winter months.

Life, in the long run, cannot sustain itself in darkness. Eventually all growth and evolution will cease, destruction will set in. There will be an eternal stillness. We go through this time of growing darkness but we are allowed to call it ‘Advent’. Something will come. The darkness foretells it. A promise out of the spiritual worlds has been given to us. The light will return – and with it a new creation and the love of the Beings of Spirit that watch over us.

This is our Christmas present from the higher worlds – the birth of the light in the darkness. It speaks of the spiritual world’s commitment and love for us human beings on earth.

Who can match that love?

In the Gospel today (John 21), we hear how Simon Peter himself cannot match it. He speaks of how dear Jesus Christ is to him while Jesus speaks of love.

With the birth of the Christ-light in the darkness of the earth a flame of love is put into our hearts. It will grow and become our present for the worlds of spirit. One day it will transform our earth into the cosmos of love – into a shining star.

This contemplation is by Rev. Contreras given on Christmas day.

Awakening the Inner Shepherd

Into earth-night, Into sense-darkness…the Shepherds walked into the unknown. Each one was guided to the stable by his reverence for the message of the Lord’s Angel, each one was led to the holy child, not because of their special knowledge or brilliance; but the shepherds were led to the holy child because of humble devotion.

Within each one of us there is also a humble shepherd, wandering in the night, inwardly seeking the True Light of the world. And just like the shepherds that found the holy child in the stable, this inner shepherd in our hearts is that part of us that can feel deep reverence, the one in us who can fall to our knees in humble devotion, the one in us that longs to praise and worship God.

And yet, in our world and in our hearts, there is so much that would hinder humble devotion, hinder our inner shepherd from seeking the child. Cynicism suffocates devotion. The inability to feel something or someone greater than ourselves shuts out humility. Or perhaps the most difficult hindrance of all to awaking the inner shepherd is forgetting how to bend down and give praise, to inwardly kneel in the presence of what is holy.

For the shepherds familiar journey is much more than a childhood story; it reveals to us how the inner heart finds Christ. And it is always and forever will be reverent humility that opens the door to God.

Therefore, dear friends, at this midnight hour, let us all become simple shepherds. Let us inwardly fall on our knees, and give the gift of our hearts, in humble devotion to HIM.

 

This contemplation by Rev. Evans was inspired by Luke 2 and the Shepherds.

Finding Peace-Filled Silence

Coming to Canada has taught me many things, but particularly about the wonders of snow. And anyone who has experienced snow knows, after snowfall there is a deep, peaceful silence that permeates everything.

Deep within each human soul there is also a silence, an inner peace-filled silence that wants to awaken in our hearts. But just like the silence that comes only after the snow, this inner peace comes only after we surrender to whatever falls down to us from above. Like the earth receiving snow, inner peace is given us only after we embrace whatever comes into our lives.

And yet there is so much that would hinder this embrace, this surrender to what is. The desire to have and consume more and more, hinders surrender. Or the temptation to think that what has come down to me into my life is unacceptable, that I’m entitled to something different, this too hinders peace. Or perhaps the most difficult hindrance of all to receiving peace is our deep need to justify ourselves, to blame others, avoiding responsibility, depriving ourselves of surrender and silence in the face of our weaknesses.

Therefore, dear friends, Let us become like the Canadian earth in winter and surrender ourselves to what falls to us from the sky, or like Mary who receives her will from above, and be content with whatever garment the heavens sends down to us, trusting that what we receive now is meant for us. Then, just like after snowfall, we will be ready for the Christmas gift, peace-filled silence that Christ bestows on our hearts.

This contemplation is by Rev. Evans and inspired by Luke 1, The Annunciation.

Finding the Christ Child in Us

During the Advent time we can look at the wonderful pictures of the annunciation that have been painted throughout the ages. They depict the angel, approaching Mary, holding a white lily, announcing to her that she will bear a child. Christ will be born – in her, and ultimately in us, in the world.

Strangely though, for all the joy that the message carries, for all its vital importance for life on earth, the first words that the angel speaks after the initial greeting are:

“Have no fear, Mary.”

And Mary’s reaction to the wonderful but for human ears incomprehensible news that the angel brings:

“How will this be…?”

How often do we stand uncomprehending and with fear before the things life has to offer. Often it does not even matter if this offering is perceived as good or bad, negative or positive. It means change and it fills us with apprehension. How often do we stand, like Mary, before the powers that lead our destinies, thinking:

“How can this be?” or “How will this be?”

We have to admit that we don’t understand the twists and turns of our destinies. We don’t understand how the grand picture of all our lives can be put together. We don’t even truly understand ourselves. Where do we come from and where are we going? We may stand helpless and powerless before our human destinies.

And still, we find our way into the future if we find in us the strength to go through to what lies beyond. Much like someone who was underwater, disoriented and unable to breathe breaks through to the surface.

In finding that strength we find, in us, the strength of HIM whom the angel announces to us. In finding in us the power to break through, to overcome, we find in us the Christ.

This is who he is – the light in the darkness – the overcomer of death – the resurrected one in each and every one of us.

This contemplation is by Rev. Contreras and inspired by Luke 2, The Annunciation.

Walking into the Dark

One of the most beautiful things about this time of year is watching the children walk the Advent spiral. They receive their little candlewick from the angel, and then with courage, begin to walk. All that they have for the journey is the trust that light can be found in the heart of the darkness.

For the Advent spiral is Advent. And like our children, it is a journey that each one of us is called to take. For within each of our hearts there is also a candle, a wick that longs to receive the true flame. This wick is our spirit that is given us by our angel. And the task of human souls is to walk into the spiraling darkness of our lives, trusting that within the dark night there lives light.

And yet, there is so much that would hinder us from finding the flame in the depths; Doubting that light can be found in dark. Or the fear of the consequences of actually finding the light and how that will change our lives. Or perhaps the most difficult hindrance of all for today is the belief that I am already the light, already perfect, and need not spiral into the unknown in order to receive the true light.

Dear Friends, to celebrate Advent means to learn to walk the spiral-
– This means to cultivate deep trust that there is light in the depths and darkness of our struggles,
– It means to find the courage to carry our spirits into what is unknown,
– And it means to have the self-knowledge to know that I am not the light, but must, like the children, prepare my wick to receive the true flame.

For the real secret is that becoming human is a grace, a Christmas gift that we are all called to receive again and again into our spirits. May trust, courage and self-knowledge prepare us!

This contemplation is by Rev. Evans and inspired by Luke 21 and the Advent Spiral.

Stand Upright and Raise your Head!

Mankind has always faced adversity.
As humans we can enjoy the good times that are given to us – the times of contentment, of joy and laughter, of love. But being human also means and has always meant dealing with challenges and difficulties, even, as it becomes obvious when we look out into the world, with tragedy and war. All the challenges that we are faced with are part of our journey as humans, they are part of our evolution.

In dealing with and fighting against adversity, in hoping for good and peaceful outcomes to our struggles and in realizing our own growth as humans throughout those struggles, we may come to realize that we cannot make adversity disappear. We cannot get rid of the challenge that life poses. What really counts is how we deal with what is given to us – how we stand up to adversity. If we can’t control what happens to us at least we can try to control how we respond to it. And in standing up to adversity, to the things that are out of our control, we can acquire the trust and the faith that through all those trials something higher wants to reveal itself:

“Then the son of man will appear to seeing souls in the clouds of the sphere of life, borne up by the might of the world powers, radiant with the glory of revelation. And when all this begins to happen, straighten yourselves, stand upright and raise your head, for then your redemption is drawing near.” (Lk 21)

This contemplation is by Rev. Inken Contreras and inspired by Luke 21.

Loving the Hideous Blemish

Thomas Aquinas once wrote,

“I said to God, ‘Let me love you.’ And He replied, ‘Which part?’ ‘All of you, all of you,’ I said. ‘My dear,’ God spoke, ‘you are as a mouse wanting to impregnate a tiger who is not even in heat. It is a feat way beyond your courage and strength. You would run from me if I removed my mask.’ I said to God again, ‘Beloved, I need to love you – every aspect, every pore.’ And this time God said, ‘There is a hideous blemish on my body, though it is such an infinitesimal part of my Being – could you kiss that if it were revealed?’ ‘I will try, Lord, I will try.’ And then God said, ‘That blemish on my body is all the hatred, evil and cruelty in this world.’

The New Jerusalem, the spiritualized, supersensible world of which we here in our gospel this week is actually being built now by this kind of love. It is being built by the faith, hope, patience, long suffering, endurance, courage and peace of heart that it takes to love God, fully in every aspect, even into the darkness of evil. For God is in all and with all and can be known only insofar as He is loved.

May our practice at the altar, may our practice of communing with Him who is love, give us true strength, true power – that even when we are betrayed, hated, falsely accused, or in some way come face to face with evil, we find a way to see through the mask. For the truly human task in not to eradicate darkness, but to redeem it by loving God in and through this night.

This contemplation is by Rev. Jonah Evans and is inspired by Apocalypse 22, the New Jerusalem.

 

Finding the Inner hearth in the Cold

All around us, the wind is swirling, the air is freezing, the clouds are dark. And the snow and ice are here. And yet, as soon as we step inside, the wind stops, the harsh cold is left behind; we are kept alive by coming home to the warmth and peace of the hearth.

Within every human soul there is also a hearth- an inner hearth. This is the place in our hearts where we can connect to Christ, where there is peace, where there is inner warmth. And even though outside in the world, harshness and chaos reign supreme, we stay inwardly alive by practicing returning again and again to our inner home.

For like winter, this world is actually meant to be harsh, cold, challenging. This is because this is the home of the dragon, the adversary of mankind. Our world is designed to be a place of tribulation and struggle; And we only make it more difficult for ourselves when we expect that this world will someday satisfy our desires, that this world will become true and righteous.

And yet, at the same time, Christ has made this world of egotism and strife his home by entering it through the hearth of our inner hearts. He is now working with us, not to perfect this world, but to give birth to a new humanity, a totally new spiritual earth out of the darkness.

The Christian path is not to expect this world to be good; the Christ way is to find the warm hearth in the cold, to continually enliven our hearts by kindling love for god and human beings, even while all around us, the freezing rain falls, the lies and betrayals weave.

This is what it means to overcome. And this love is the seed for our true and future home. The ‘overcomers’ are the ones of whom our gospel speaks today- the ones ‘coming through the great suffering. The ones washing their garments white with the blood of the lamb.’

May our practice of communion enliven the flame of our inner hearth.

This contemplation is by Rev. Jonah Evans and inspired by Revelation 7