Well, I've been going to bed at 9:30 and waking up at 3:30. Often, I go back to sleep, but right now it is not happening. So I thought I'd blog.
First, for your visual pleasure: Some Scenes from Padden Lake.
Second, I present to you the sutras on non-violence (ahimsa).
And, third, my favorite benediction.
"Go out into the world in peace. Have courage. Hold on to what is good. Return no one evil for
evil. Strengthen the fainthearted, support the weak, and help the suffering. Honor all people. Love and serve God, rejoicing in the power of the Holy Spirit."
Christina and I were having an election "debrief the debacle" conversation and then we moved onto other topics like her writing group and I asked what she was working on. We then moved on to the topic of "writing prompts." I am of mixed feelings about writing prompts. From the teacher/student perspective: on the one hand, the more you tell people what you want to see in a writing assignment, the more you get what you want. On the other hand, often they tend to generate more questions about every aspect of said prompt, and they can be a hinderance.
On the random occasion, when I am in a situation when I am told to "sit down and write about X for X minutes," I often find it seems forced. But I can write about pretty much anything, so generally it generates some thoughts.
But, the idea of a prompt, a prompt for thinking was on my mind.
and it got me thinking about the benediction and the non-violence sutras. And it struck me that the benediction is a good example of what it means to be "firmly established in non-violence."
I had posted the benediction on the F book a couple of days ago, and as I was thinking about what have always liked about it, is its tangibility. I really do feel like, when I hear it at the end of a First Pres Waco church service, I know what to do. I understand the assignment.
I can "go out into the world in peace." Now, I don't always do this, but I know when I go into a meeting with that attitude rather than a "this is going to be a battle" attitude, things typically go better. It is like Edwin's translation, "enmity is abandoned."
That is up to me. Okay, maybe it is grace that enables me to do it, but I feel that it is a choice I make.
"hold onto what is good."
That is also a choice. Hard work, but still a choice. There's still a lot of good in the world. It mitigates the violence in my own mind. For example, when I think about Milo, no longer present in time, but still present in my mind. He was good and he made me a better person. His good is still there and I can hold onto it. Obviously, there are other examples. But dog is God spelled backwards for a reason.
"return no person evil for evil." That, to me, seems to be a big key to non-violence. Do your part. Another thing I like about this line is that it acknowledges that evil is out there in the world and people do it, but still you have the choice not to engage in it. It can stop with you.
"Strengthen the faint hearted." Try to be positive and uplift others. Help keep the faith.
"Support the weak." Do what you can for others.
The prompt got me thinking about the difference between being faint hearted and being weak. Some times people can't see the good, that is faint hearted. Sometimes people are dealing with whatever adversity they are dealing with and it weakens them. Either way "the assignment" is to strengthen and support.
"honor all people." This also seems to me to be a key to non-violence. I hope we continue to honor all people.
"the love and serve the lord and the holy spirit". Maybe we really can't do this without some glimpse of divinity, maybe we can. We are a secular society after all. Regardless, I don't think a repressive view of God really helps here. So let's hope to avoid Handmaid's Tale scenarios.
I leave you with an awesome Buechner quote. (Both he and Bonhoffer have been on my mind a bit lately)
“There are three things that are important in human life. The first is to be kind. The second is to be kind. The third is to be kind.”
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