News & Notes: January 12, 2010
January 12, 2010 by admin
Filed under Worth Reading
Dear Parents,
God’s peace!
“The great lesson from the true mystics…is that the sacred is in the ordinary, that it is to be found in one’s daily life, in one’s neighbors, friends, and family, in one’s backyard.”
Abraham Maslow, The Farther Reaches of Human Nature
The new year has begun…perhaps resolutions have been made…maybe even a few have been cast aside or in some cases, even kept! There is something life-giving in beginning something… a new year… a new job…living somewhere new…There seems to be something about beginnings that calls us to resolve to do something differently… to change the past and move onto something better…to see things in a new light. I was reminded of this when one of my brothers retired recently. I asked him how retirement was treating him and he shared with me his resolution for his new life… “I want to do three things each day… Go to Mass, take a walk, and do something good for someone.” Three very simply things, but in their simplicity…quite challenging. I was impressed, however, not simply because this was my brother (the same brother who could at times make my life “challenging” as we grew up), but because the focus that was shared did not come from an overpaid “guru,” a noted spiritual sage, or a “self-help” book. The source was from a man, my brother, who has lived life for more than 50 years and who has weathered many experiences. I believe that much of what we need to hear comes to us in this way…from ordinary mystics.
Just yesterday a friend who is a preacher in town shared with me that he had just come from a three day revival at which he was blessed to preach. His topic centered on “the best is yet to come!” All day this thought was with me. How true is this statement… No matter what is happening in this moment… no matter how good…how bad…how painful…how joyful… the best IS yet to come! I can enjoy this life… this moment… this experience… but as a Christian I am always destined for more… and that “more” is a life beyond this one… a life of fullness that I cannot even imagine prepared for me by a God who loves me beyond my wildest dreams!
St. Julian of Norwich was one whose wisdom came from a belief that “All Shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of thing shall be well.” This 14th century mystic believed deeply that no matter what presented itself to us in life…that God would be in it… he would bring life from death…good from evil…light from darkness. This belief she would revel in, and at times cling to…
So often the thoughts and words of others impress us… move us… point us in a better direction. We must be better at opening our ears and hearts to the wisdom that surrounds us.
As we continue to walk into the new year, let us spend a few moments pondering some simple thing we can do each day to make our world a better place… let us rejoice in the fact that the best is really yet to come…and that in our present situations there lies a hope that all is in God’s hands.
I promise my prayer as we continue to do God’s work and I humbly ask for yours!
In prayer,
Sr. Maureen
