Journal of Sacred Work

Days 116-120 - Women, Men & God

   "Girls are better than boys," Jill said. "No! Boys are better," I replied.

   The argument took place when I was the same age the picture, suited up (left) in war gear with my older pal Stuart.

   With Jill, I delivered my coups de gras: "Jesus was a man."

   But Jill, being Jewish, was unfazed by my silly argument. 

   Seven decades & many wars later what has changed is my support for Jill. Girls are better. The fact that the Old & New Testaments were written by men raises questions about the content of both. 

   One line of argument conquers all others. Violence. Wanna guess the percent of mass shooting committed by males versus females?

   The answer is 98%! And the majority of killers are white males. 

   We can blame it on testosterone, of course. But that belies the question of personal responsibility.

   If physical strength matters, maybe men win. If spiritual strength counts, especially in a religious context, women triumph. 

   Rev.Dr. Clay Stauffer writes, "...women are much more open to faith, church and tending to spiritual matters. Men find church boring and can't pay attention because they are thinking of what's coming up later that day."

   Typical of males, I am engaging competitive argument. The wiser path is to recognize the teaching of all the major faiths. Peace comes through surrender. Men, including me, find that teaching excruciatingly difficult to practice, especially if I think of surrender as losing. 

   Once again, the issues of male dominance of religion appears. Islam, Christianity & Judaism are so male-controlled that "God" is cast as male. If there is one "being" I have trouble surrendering to it is another male.

   Obviously, this male-female dichotomy is false. The core issues is energy, not gender. Female energy, whether in a male or female body, is nurturing. 

   That is why making God female loosens my opposition. After all. Women are kind, comforting, compassionate. As Jill said, "Girls are better than boys."

Reverend Erie Chapman   

Days 114-115 Everything is Holy Ground

 

“Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect.” Chief Seattle

Earth Day, 4/22/2021 and every day, is a good time to reflect upon the indigenous people of this country and the sacred relationship they have cultivated with Mother Earth.  As visionaries their spirituality was, and continues to be, deeply connected with nature as they understand the interconnectedness of all life.  

“There I was standing on the highest mountain of them all, and round about beneath me was the whole hoop of the world. And while I stood there, I saw more than I can tell and I understood more than I saw; for I was seeing in a sacred manner the shapes of all things in the spirit, and the shape of all shapes as they must live together like one being. And I say the sacred hoop of my people was one of the many hoops that made one circle, wide as daylight and as starlight, and in the center grew one mighty flowering tree to shelter all the children of one mother and one father. And I saw that it was holy... But anywhere is the center of the world. “ ~Black Elk    

How far we have strayed from this truth and how close we have come to creating irreversible damage to this beautiful blue orb.  Yet, we have no time to fall into despair, instead we need to act. Pope Francis offers this wise counsel, “Let us seek out others and embrace the world as it is without fear of pain or a sense of inadequacy, because there we will discover all the good that God has planted in human hearts. Difficulties that seem overwhelming are opportunities for growth”.

It is so heartening to see how many people coming together to develop and implement creative solutions. Let’s join in our own way and commit to one thing we can change today that will help. Even the smallest gesture matters. I imagine there are things you are already doing. What else can you/we do? I’ve discovered that there are many products on the market that can help us eliminate plastic use. Detergent strips rather than big plastic containers, refillable glass soap dispensers, bar shampoo. Composting, recycling, re-usable bottles, dietary changes, shopping local at the farmers market, there are endless ways to help.

No need to go it alone, there are so many passionate people young and old who support and motivate change.  Every living creature, every child deserves clean air to breathe and clean drinking water. All creatures of the sea should be able to swim in water that is not toxic, to swim free and flourish. 

“The time of the lone wolf is over. Gather yourselves! Banish the word ’struggle’ from your attitude and your vocabulary. All that we do now must be done in a sacred manner and in celebration. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. “--Hopi Elders' Prophecy, June 8, 2000

 As we celebrate our love for Mother Earth, I leave you to enjoy Sara Thomsen’s beautiful message.

Days 109-113 - When Water Falls

  We began life in Water's womb. Her waves, or lakes, her streams are poems. Especially when water falls. 

    The link below takes you to a brief meditation on waterfalls including a poem that I wrote & narrated in the hope it would bring some serenity to your life. 

   May you enjoy the peace that a marriage to the water can bring. 

   Click on the link below:

https://youtu.be/MJZx5eNThng

-Erie Chapman

Photograph by Erie from "When Water Falls" includes image of me with my mother.

Days 107-108 Caregiver Renewal

Note: Guest reflection by the high spirited and kind-hearted Terry Chapman!

Now that we see light ahead of us in this tunneling virus, and feel somewhat better about our collective futures--what next?  How can we focus on positive, productive life outcomes and share this optimism with those we serve? Do we refill our caring reservoirs by enjoying hobbies, travel, and scheduled quiet time for ourselves? How long has it been since you did something you have never done, or taken a trip to a new spot you have wanted to visit? Or could you finally put together that family photo scrapbook of loved ones, ancestors and descendants? I find sustenance and spiritual refreshment in researching my ancestors online and sharing what I discover with my extended family. I  exercise daily and fly fish and golf both alone and with others. What is your “go to” activity which pleases you?

First, ask yourself, have you cared for yourself first so that you are a healthy and cared for person?  Next, are there changes you could make to improve your caring, such as cutting back on the number you serve, getting additional training or schooling? Should you consider changing vocation, perhaps from professional to being a community volunteer?  Or would a real vacation of several weeks replenish your caring vigor? No human being can serve others for an extended period of time without feeling tired, unrecognized, or needy themselves.

Fully effective caregiving requires at a minimum: a healthy caregiver, authentic caring for others; continuing professional training and accreditation for doctors, nurses, and all those who give help in their vocational life or who give care at home or in voluntary service in their communities.  To accomplish high quality caring, the caregiver must project a vision of good things ahead! Additionally, they must also assist in the complex web of details to make it happen. Nothing less will achieve our overall goal: improved living conditions for all of us, local, regional, national, and throughout our planet Earth. Set your renewal today!

Terry Chapman PhD

Days 102-106 Beauty Unexpected

No one can see that the two children decorated by the gorgeous strips of light are profoundly poor. My daughter photographed them as part of a story on poverty in The Hartford Courant. 

Amid all the suffering on our earth, & sometimes even in the middle of it, Beauty’s face shines.

Beauty resided in the eyes of your mother as she labored to birth you, in the heart of Joan of Arc as the fires rose around her, in the sigh from your coworker who continued giving loving care to a patient who shouted at her, in the arthritic hands of Monet as he fought to make one last painting of those lilies floating on the ponds at Giverny.

Beauty rises not just from looking at the baby born but in noticing the skills of the caregiver who has seen all this before & is still thrilled to show an anxious new mother how to nurse her newborn.

Beauty glowed not only in the face of a dying Joan of Arc but in the eyes of onlookers who recognized God’s presence in the girl engulfed in flames.

At this moment, Beauty gleams from the sweat of a child who manages to laugh while laboring in diamond mines for riches he will never enjoy.

She is heard in the song hummed by a housekeeper mopping the operating room after the nurses & doctors have finished their work.

It lives in the sighs of the home care social worker in Anaheim who has departed the house of a patient whose memory was stolen by dementia & will not recall the caregiver who brought her moments of joy before heading home to care for her own disabled mother.

Beauty resides everywhere & often shines most powerfully in the places least noticed & most unexpected.

Beauty, although evanescent, is the gift Love gives all who pause to see her face & allow their souls to smile back in gratitude.

-Erie Chapman

Photograph by Tia Ann Chapman

Days 100-101 What Can I Offer?

As I reflected on this question, what can I offer?

I thought about Easter, new life, transformation… National Poetry month…. Earth Day is in April… I thought about care of creation...

I thought about springtime… and all these ideas pointed to the unique ways we give expression to our spirituality and the opportunity we have to bring our whole selves to our experiences. Spirituality is a broad concept with room for many perspectives. 

A "Spirituality is the whole of our lives because it is not about doing but about being. So that whatever we ‘do’ – we do it as the person we are, our personhood (mind, emotions, body, spirit, will) is an integrated whole. This is our being – the same person going to work, cooking a meal, reading, mowing the lawn, bathing the kids, saying our prayers, watching TV, laughing or sad, whatever – spirituality touches and influences every part of our lives and every part of our lives touches and influences our spirituality." (Trevor Miller)

I would like to share a little about my spiritual journey. I have great memories of growing up in a family of eight with six of us kids. My mom was Irish Catholic, and we were raised in the Catholic faith tradition. My father was not religious, but his spirituality centered around a generous hospitality and a love of people. He was happiest with a house full of people and our home was a neighborhood gathering place for barbeques and all kinds of celebrations.

It was not until years later that I realized what a gift my parents bestowed, as I learned to see the world through the lens of a “both and” perspective, rather than an “either or”- “us versus them” mentality.

I remember an experience over 20 years ago, while visiting my family in Vermont. My mom and I went to an old used bookstore that we liked to frequent. There was something almost magical about the place. It was as if a book you were supposed to read practically jumped off the shelf and into your hands. As I perused the shelves, I came across a book by Carl Jung and as I thumbed the pages, I was taken in by colorful pictures of mandalas that his patients had drawn. They were steeped in symbolism and meaning, and he used them as a tool for assisting patients in the healing process.

At that moment, I experienced this inner knowing that I was going to draw mandalas for the rest of my life. It has been a spiritual journey and a means in which I can express my love, in times of deep grief and on festive occasions, as well. This is one I made for my mom after my father died. I discovered how drawing  mandalas aided my grieving process and to express love in a way that is healing.

To me, the circle represents God or an all-inclusive Love where there is no beginning and no end. The cardinal points represent the polarities in life, such as light and darkness, fall and spring, love, and fear, life and death. The center represents pure spiritual light and union with the divine (where there is no death, only love). We all venture out in life with many different paths, but they all lead us back to our one source: of unconditional, unifying LOVE.

So, we have come full circle to my opening inquiry:

What can I offer?

                    What can we offer?

                                                    Love

These words from Mother Teresa offer encouragement, “I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.”

I thank you all for the beautiful ripples of Love that you create, which will continue to ripple out in miraculous ways for generations to come.

 

Liz Sorensen Wessel
Photo taken in Burlington Vermont

Days 95-99 - A Near-Death Experience

   Drowning reached for me at four. My father's muscle was no match for the Pacific wave that tore me from his grasp.

   I thrashed, gasped & struggled until suddenly, as if realizing the power of the sea against a child, I surrendered. In that moment, a preternatural Peace overcame me.

   Approaching unconsciousness my dad's hand, God in the Sistine Chapel painting, reached down & returned me to life.

   "You're okay," he reassured. "Yes," I sputtered.

   But, I was better than okay. I had not yet seen the white light that near-death survivors describe but came close enough to sense this truth: We find peace by letting go. We only experience God through surrender. 

  Naturally, I forget that wisdom repeatedly during struggles for success. 

  As my body moves from near-death to actual, that childhood experience looms. Click on the link for a meditation created to suggest those moments & to bring you peace. (1946 footage of dad & me by my mother.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fnIHcNufeLI

-Erie Chapman

Photoart: "Peaceful Sea" by erie 2016

Days 92-93 Beginning to Sing

 

Let's not get swept away and lose sight of sweet delights. Spring is here. Mother Earth is giving birth to Iris, Buttercup, Rose and Jasmine. Are we going to visit these little bundles of joy?

These exquisite miracles of creation, or will we lose out on the precious moments of their new lives. We can’t hit the rewind button, puff... it's gone.

So, get outside, explore the magic, breathe, lighten up, relax, enjoy, offer gratitude. Even if in little snippets, come rest in Love.

“Each hour that you take your rest today, a tired mind is suddenly made glad, a bird with broken wings begins to sing, a stream long dry begins to flow again. The world is born again each time you rest, and hourly remember that you came to bring the peace of God into the world, that it might take its rest along with you.” An Excerpt from A Course in Miracles, Lesson 109

Fairy Garden by Liz