The Heartbeat of God

I spent the weekend at a Yoga & Drumming Retreat in Baltimore, MD ffered by the Shalem Institute.  I went because I've been intrigued these last few years about the connection between rhythm and spirituality.  We've done some drumming at St. Stephen's and it has been a good community builder.  It's also been a lot of fun, but I don't have the sense that it has caught fire in anyone's gut ... even my own ... and yet I couldn't get the idea drumming out of my head.  What was missing for me was the simple God connection and how to make that an intentional focus of the playing.  How do you make it a prayer?  


Bush Mango has a great drumming program, and you can go there to become an accomplished drummer.  That's not what I want.  I don't need to play amazing beats or learn different African rhythms.  I want to drum because it feels like something that could draw me deeper into myself and into God.  So I went to this retreat hoping that I might experience a little of what I've been intuiting.


No one who attended the retreat had much experience with drumming, but each of us felt drawn to explore it, to give it try.  Our faciliatator was amazing.  She helped us learn to feel the beat together, and to pay attention to one another and the heartbeat of God that is always vibrating in the world.  We didn't do anything difficult or complicated on the drum ... but it felt deep and solid and enduring.  It helped to quiet my mind and ground my spirit.  Drumming isn't something I plan to do on my own, because the community piece feels so important.  


I have ideas for integrating some drumming into our worship.  I will also be leading some prayerful drumming as part of our Tending the Soul series that starts on February 9th.  It gives me a chance to share some of what I learned.  I'm no great drummer but I am a faithful seeker.  I will be trusting in God's help as we begin.  That should be enough to get us started.  Don't you think?

Turning the Other Cheek

Last week at EfM, our check in question asked us to think of a time when we or someone we knew had "turned the other cheek". As I listened, it occurred to me that many of us were telling stories that ended up allowing hurtful behavior to continue while people we saw as virtuous endured discomfort, hurt or pain unnecessarily - my own story included.

Why did that happen? Do we really believe that "turning the other cheek" is about allowing ourselves to be doormats for someone else's misbehavior? I don't think it is, any more than forgiveness is to invite someone else to repeat hurtful behavior over and over again. When Jesus said that we are no longer to follow the custom of an "eye for an eye" and a "tooth for a tooth", I think he meant that we were not to seek retribution for the harm we endured. That doesn't mean that we should expect, invite or endure repetitive instances of inappropriate, disrespectful or harmful behavior. Jesus meant that we are not to respond to violence with violence. We respond with compassion and mercy. In some cases mercy being that we don't hit back. We don't hit, but we do address the hurt. We do confront the one who has hurt us. We do set healthy boundaries. We do communicate reasonable expectations. We do talk about the hurt that was (or is) being caused. We do seek to set the relationship right by speaking the truth we know.

Fishing for People

Sermon preached at St. Stephen's Episcopal Church

3^rd Sunday after the Epiphany, Yr. B; January 22, 2012

Jonah 3:1-5, 10; Psalm 62:6-14; 1 Corinthians 7:29-31; Mark 1:14-20

            I’ve been watching with interest the Republican primaries going on these last few weeks.  As I was listening to NPR on Thursday, they were talking about the call for various candidates to reveal their income tax returns.  Gingrich had already released his, and they were all talking about the $3 million dollars he and his wife made in 2011.  Mitt Romney wasn’t going to release his until after the South Carolina primary.  He didn’t want people to judge him harshly because of his success.  Clearly both candidates had made a lot of money, more than many Americans could expect to make in their lifetime.  At my current salary, it would take me more than 60 years to make as much as Mr. Gingrich did in just one year.  That’s a little overwhelming.