 Photo by Susan Fish Our November gathering invited us into Lament. Chip read Romans 8:22-28 from the First Nations Version of the Bible, which includes these words: "It is plain to see that all creation is still groaning in pain like a mother giving birth. And even we who have first tasted of the Spirit are groaning on the inside... Spirit helps us in our weakness, for our prayers are often empty words, but Creator’s own Spirit groans deep within us, without words..." Wendy shared a quoted from Hillarie Maddox, from her substack Black Girl Country Living, Oct. 16, titled "Feeling the Earth in Our Bodies" and sent us into our wandering time with this invitation: As we wander today, I invite you to pay attention and tune in to signs of distress, woundedness, loss, or stress the Earth is exhibiting here in this place. Tune in, as well, to similar things you are feeling or suppressing in your body. What do the earth, your body, and the Spirit want you to know today? We ended with Chip leading us in a ritual of symbolically dropping our 'wordless prayers or groans' into the creek.
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Ephemeral art to mark the autumn equinox - light and dark, blooms and seeds, transitioning from life to death. Life is not static, it is a flow of change that sometimes feels fast, and sometimes goes slowly. Today on this equinox day, we celebrate the balance that invites us to embrace it all. Take time sometime this week or this month to create your own nature mandala to celebrate the transitions of the seasons, and reflect on transitions happening in your own life.
Thanks be to our Creator, thanks be to our solar system, thanks be to the plants who shared their beauty in this art! Here in Southern Ontario, October is a month of abundance - gardens, farmers markets, and orchards overflow with vegetables, fruits, and herbs.
In John 10:10 Jesus said these words - “I came so everyone would have life, and have it abundantly.” This kind of abundant life isn’t measured by productivity and success, achievement, wealth and power. This abundance looks more like shalom - fertility of the land and the wellbeing of all inhabitants - human and more-than-human alike. This kind of abundance is characterized by peace, gladness, and joy in having enough to share. To live well, to live abundantly, we must overcome division and isolation and recognize that our own flourishing depends on the flourishing of all in the community of creation, of neighbours near and far. In the closing lines of Wendell Berry’s poem, The Wild Geese, are these words of wisdom: Geese appear high over us, pass, and the sky closes. Abandon, as in love or sleep, holds them to their way, clear, in the ancient faith: what we need is here. And we pray, not for new earth or heaven, but to be quiet in heart, and in eye clear. What we need is here. Take time to wander, and to reflect on what is here. Where do you see abundance? How are you experiencing abundance in your life? What wisdom is this season offering you today? We remember that sometimes there is an abundance of pain, sorrow, heartache, injustice, and that, too, needs to be named and honoured. Our September worship gathering was cancelled due to a thunder storm.
Our theme would have been Gelassenheit - a German word used over the centuries by Christian mystics, Anabaptists, and now eco-theologians and environmental ethicists. It is often translated as yieldedness, though some other words might be composure, tranquility, serenity, unhurried, calm, easy-going, and laid-back. Gelassenheit is a form of releasing ourselves from our egos or from anthropocentrism, and opening to mystery and connection with the world around us, with the divine among us. As I was thinking about the turning of the seasons, this idea of yielding came to mind. Summer yields to Autumn; the lighter half of the year yields to the darker half of the year; flowers yield to seeds, leaves yield to the earth, growth yields to dormancy. This kind of yielding is happening all around us. “The idea of “waiting” in Gelassenheit is distinguishably different from our normal idea of waiting for something that is named, and is more about waiting upon, which has the feel of a gift being bestowed. … What Gelassenheit offers is the opportunity to look at another way of being… By letting that which is apart from us come to us on its own terms rather than on ours, we are in a listening mode whereby objectification ceases. An experience reaches us from beyond. … In silence and listening things come out to meet us.” (Sharon Harvey) Set aside some time to go outside and open yourself to what is happening around you - wait upon creation, wait upon God's wisdom, and see what happens. “Be still and know that I am God.” - Psalm 46:10 All around us, we see summer yielding to autumn. What lessons might we learn from adopting a similar posture? Today I was stopped in my tracks by the sweet earthy smell of rotting leaves. Heaven on earth! A tree's offering to the soil. This scent tells the curious truth: death can be achingly, exquisitely, lovely. Death is not a final ending, it is a transformation, a continuum, an outpouring of love. - Wendy Janzen  A million thanks, Eternal One,
for all the gifts of life. For each element, each life form, that intersects with mine, I offer my deep gratitude. For the sun, air, and clouds, the tamaracks, maples, and willows, thank you! For the blue jays, crows, and geese, the bunnies, squirrels, and fox, thank you! For the moths, bees, and spiders, the asters, sunflowers, and goldenrod, thank you! For the apples, squash, and carrots, the grains, seeds, and nuts, thank you! For ponds, creeks, and rain, the rocks, soil, and compost, thank you! For neighbours, friends, and strangers, and all microscopic life I cannot see, thank you! For this community, ecosystem, home, for this place of belonging and connection, and for a million other ways you bless my life and all lives, I am truly thankful to you, the Ground of our being, Creator of all that was, and is, and ever shall be. Amen. - Wendy Janzen God of the Cosmos,
who created the circle of life, we give thanks and praise for this most beautiful, complex, and wise planet we live on. We recognize the brokenness around us and within us, and offer you our deep grief and prayers for our planet. In the brownness of this season of decay, we know that you are present. We pray for all the griefs we carry - for loved ones we have lost, for our loss of connection with the earth, for disenfranchised peoples, for species under threat, for drained ancient lakes, for dammed rivers, for strange weather patterns, for the lack of will to ban coal, for short sighted leaders, for urban sprawl and new highways, for unwanted pipelines, for rising temperatures. Hear our cries, and have mercy on us, O God. Hold and honour our grief, reminding us that the depth of our grief reflects the depth of our love and concern. Grant us your deep peace, beyond our understanding. May the light of this single candle be a beacon of hope, a light in the darkness, a guiding force into a new way of living in step and in balance with the needs of all life. We place our trust in your great love for the world, and that we have a future with hope. Amen. - Wendy Janzen May November be a time
to lay to rest that which no longer brings life. May the cool days invite you out to wander and pay attention. May you embrace the mysteries of life and find the blessings of God everywhere. May the laments of the Earth touch your heart and transform your living. May your soul recognize kinship with all that exists. May your prayers for the Earth be heard. - Wendy Janzen We give you honour and thanks, Creator of all, for the good gifts of this season - crystal blue skies, misty mornings, wild grapes, mushrooms, vibrant colours, longer nights, abundant harvests...
We give you honour and thanks, Creator of all, for the good gifts of life - air to breathe, fresh water, fruits of the earth, a place to call home, a circle of friends, animals who provide companionship, family, time for play and rest… We give you honour and thanks, Creator of all, for the mysteries of our world that inspire wonder - mycelium, galaxies, atoms, aurora borealis, whale migrations, lichen, star dust, metamorphosis... We give you honour and thanks, Creator of all, for those parts of creation we may not be so fond of - rats, snakes, mosquitos, blind weed, skunks, starlings, dandelions, spiders... We give you honour and thanks, Creator of all, for wise and compassionate ones - for prophets, activists, artists, poets, mentors, peace-builders, edge-walkers, earth-keepers, truth-tellers, change-makers, love-bearers… We give you honour and thanks, Creator of all, for sacred spaces - for communities of faith, prayer, holy ground, burning bushes, epiphanies, soulfulness, mystery, longing, renewal, hope, new life… For all this and so much more may we be truly grateful. Amen. - Wendy Janzen Blessed are you, autumn,
season of unavoidable endings. You show us how letting go can be a glorious, joyful practice with your spectacular colours. You model how to hold paradoxes with grace - the balance of living and dying, relinquishing and receiving, gathering and sharing. You know that death is not and ending, but a passage, a transformation into new life. May we learn these lessons well: to celebrated with abandon to practice reverence to surrender completely to embrace tenderly to love without regret. - Wendy Janzen |
AuthorReflections, poetry, prayers, photos, and resources written by Wendy Janzen unless otherwise noted. Archives
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