Advent Reflections, Just Before Christmas

Just the other night, I was playing with some of my favorite kiddos, and at one point, a child grabbed a fake weapon, pointed it at me, and I pretended to fall to the ground, wounded. When I was lying down, fear started to overcome me. My body began to believe I was in this real life situation. Several times this happened.

The pain, anguish, and anger of my experience came washing over my shoulders during tonight's Advent Meditation service. The violence, the fear, the disunity of our nation and our world rushed at me. I wondered if anyone else felt this way for our human community. I became angry at the perpetrators, manipulators, the cheats, those who abuse their power, passive leaders who look the other way. And the irony of the advent hymns during meditation were not lost on me. "New advent of the love of Christ, shall we again refuse thee, till in the night of hate and war we perish as we lose thee?", "Chains shall he break, for the slave is our brother! And in his name all oppression shall cease", "O come, desire of nations, bind in one the hearts of humankind; bid thou our sad divisions cease, and be thyself our king of peace".

Bid thou our sad divisions cease. The image of an us vs. them society played in the back of my head.

And again, I became saddened. Heavy shoulders sagged.

The best and worst part came just after this moment. I was gently and humbly reminded of something so key to my being, to all of humanity:

I have been the victim, the weak, the oppressed, yes, but I, too, have perpetrated, manipulated, been the oppressor, abused my power, and have passively watched as a fellow brother or sister was oppressed or slandered and I did little to stop it.

It is easy, especially in campaign season and in a year of increasing violence, to split into "us vs. them" thinking.

It is harder to think about the times we have done the exact thing we despise.

This Christmas week, remember, we have, too, been the oppressor. The abuser. The silent, passive person.

This is not to make you feel guilty. Not so you are filled with shame and self-hatred because this, too, gets us nowhere. But to remind us we are not so different than "they". And as a way that divisions may cease and that we may recognize in all of us, our  humanity.  That humility, peace, and love may reign instead of bitterness, apathy, and fear.

Peace and Love be with you this season,
Katy

Advent Reflections, Week 1

I’m having a hard time putting thoughts into words. Because I have so many.

Maybe this is the problem.

Too many words.

Too many voices talking, no, shouting over one another to be heard. 

Let my words be brief so I am one less voice adding to the chaos of your season.

May we see and feel another’s (or your own?) hopelessness for a moment.

So that we are humbled.

And grounded. 

And reminded we need one another. Desperately in need. Of connection, of hope …that we are seen, heard, loved by others.

Reminded that we are but one or two split decisions from being like those we subconsciously and discriminately judge. And that yes, we need them, to learn from them.

For the pain in our hopelessness will ignite our need for one another. To connect and hear the “me too”s and “this won’t be forever” and “I have been there and come through”.

May we find this interpersonal hope. The kind that does not answer all our questions. Does not solve all problems. But that can bring peace…Among religions, ethnicities, cultures, countries.

Salaam, Shanti, Shalom,

Katy