Silent Sermon Sunday

Life transpires in the gray places

between the absolutes of black and white.

If you seek certainty,

give love.

If you wish peace,

find it in the conversation, the communion,

with the God/Goddess of your understanding.

And remember that you are the Face of God in the 

misty gray.  

So smile often and kindly.

Namaste' Till Next Time,

Holly

Image from the Internet: Stotebury, WV~ St. John the Baptist Church by Victoria Bowden

Silent Sermon Sunday

"Yahweh, the God of Israel, there is no God like you..."

~ 1 Kings 8:23

Again, I'll break with the Silent Sermon tradition to add a few words.  This picture is one I took while sitting in the corner of the White Synagogue  in Capernaum, the town on the northern shore of the Galilee, the home of Jesus and Simon Peter, Andrew, and Matthew. 

The sun was glaring and the day desert hot.  I listened from the small corner of shade to our guide explain that we were standing in a synagogue that was built in 4th Century A.D.  Imagine!!!!  Sitting in the shade of a spot so old.  And yet, this White Synagogue was built on the exact spot of the Synagogue that was there in the time of Jesus.  The place of worship for the Son of Man.  Once again, my mind reeled trying to take in the ancientness of this part of the world.  All I could do was shake my head as I attempted to breathe it in and be grateful for the opportunity to be in such a place.  I felt as if I had been there before, a feeling I experienced several times throughout our pilgrimage.

As I listened to the murmur of people and the words of our guide, felt the deep heat and shaded myself in a small corner against the glare, I casually snapped a picture over my head of the few standing columns...these are nearest to the the alter and where the Torah would have been housed.  And when I looked at the picture, the remarkable streaks of light were there, magickally confirming that I sat, a small spec of humanity, in a very holy place.  A place that has held and witnessed the prayers, wishes, secret longings and thoughts of countless people.

This world of ours...this amazingly complex, ancient world of ours.  It is harsh and difficult.  Mean and cruel.  And yet, there are rare moments of grace when you realize how blessed you are to be a part of it all.  A day like one spent in Capernaum, where The Christ lived and worked along side his friends.  And went to Synagogue to talk with his God.

May your week give you a moment of Grace.

Namaste' Till Next Time,
Holly

Silent Sermon Sunday

Solomon's Wall

by:

Jean-Leon Gerome

For this one Sunday, I'm breaking with the "Silent Sermon" part.  Because I want to let you know that in a few days, My Lion and I will be departing for Jerusalem.  I will have lots to share with you when I return here.

Israel, I admit, has never been on my list of world places I've longed to see.  But, it is at the very top of Michael's short list of places he's always wanted to visit.  I am beyond thrilled for him to have this wish answered.  I know I will be more than delighted by all the history and sights I will encounter over the eight days.

How can one not be fascinated to stand in a part of our world that has such ancient energy and humanity?

So, to that end, I make you an offer.  If you have a special intention, or you have a special prayer that you would like me to include at my time standing at The Wall, please let me know.

I promise you that it will be included in the small paper I leave in a crack of The Wall....it will join the millions of prayers that have now become part of that sacred place.  Carrying it for you will be an honor.

The ancient cry of the Jews is always the hopeful, "Next year in Jerusalem!"  Somehow, I feel especially fortunate to live in a world that means world travel is so easy to actualize.  Somehow, I know I am especially  blessed to be able to say, "This year in Jerusalem!"  And, I am especially blessed to have wonderful people like you, with whom to share this Mitzvah.

Namaste' Till Next Time,

Holly