The Bishop was our Keynote speaker. He stated, 'Lent is a
serious time, not a somber time'. He told us Lent is a spiritual time to draw nearer to
redemptive life in Christ. Our Journey toward humility is our ROAD to JERUSALEM.
The Road to Jerusalem is life.
We must head for
Jerusalem. The journey is not easy and it is not one we choose for ourselves-we
are placed on the road. It is important to understand that we journey not as tourists but as pilgrims. Pilgrims
intentionally look for something through which to interpret life. We discover
our personal story in the scriptures. As pilgrims we are on a journey to wake
up, but we won’t be fully awake until death. We are not alone on our journey,
because we are part of a larger community. The Road to Jerusalem is common to all people. None of us
will escape pain, rejection, etc. Baptism is the start of our journey.
The second part of the Bishop’s talk centered on how our
journey beyond Jerusalem is toward conquering. It is our ROAD to EMMAUS. On the Emmaus
Road (Luke 24:13-32) we find that emptiness is conquered because “Christ emptied himself…[to
be] filled with the fullness of grace.” When Jesus met the disciples on the
Road to Emmaus, he “opened their minds” to salvation.
The Bishop noted that 'emerging' and 'conservative' church leaders agree that the Church
needs to reflect the story of Scripture in everyday practice. “Non-believers
don’t want a religious version of what they get at the mall.” They are
“searching for the mystery of the ancient Gospel” found in scriptural living.
We need to bring in the Mystery and ask unanswerable
questions, because these are the ultimate questions. The Bible is Life Story
not a Fairy Tale. True evangelism is Truth-centered, individually
person-centered and culturally, actively, life-centered. The Gospel is not
relevant if not in context.
Interestingly 85% of Americans say they believe Jesus was
raised, but they don’t want to be involved in established religion. Ravi
Zacharias was asked by a Hindu: “If the transformation is truly supernatural,
why is it not evident in Christians?”
The Road to Jerusalem is full of barrenness, pain,
brokenness, dying. The Road to Emmaus is new life and awakening to the truth.
It is becoming awakened to the Truth that God is in the midst of all and
despite controversies-we are One in Christ. Teresa of Avila said, “The feeling
remains that God is on a journey with us.”
There are 4 facets on the Road:
1.
We enter when we bottom out
Only when we release our preoccupation with ‘life’ can we discover life in the devastation. We then become conscious of the Truth and can center in Christ, free from matters of the world.
Only when we release our preoccupation with ‘life’ can we discover life in the devastation. We then become conscious of the Truth and can center in Christ, free from matters of the world.
2.
We recognize and trust the inner way of journey
We have to trust that we are made in the image of God and in so doing we re-member ourselves into community. To do this we have to ‘get out of the way’ and let go. This is alms, prayers, etc.
We have to trust that we are made in the image of God and in so doing we re-member ourselves into community. To do this we have to ‘get out of the way’ and let go. This is alms, prayers, etc.
3.
We face and embrace our shadow self
We must accept the ‘dark’, shadow self and know brokenness. Then we can face the dis-function and repent and let it go.
We must accept the ‘dark’, shadow self and know brokenness. Then we can face the dis-function and repent and let it go.
4.
We reenter the past and release its hold on us.
When we forgive the past and unfinished business, it loses its hold. We learn that forgiveness is ‘divine forgetting’ and move forward on the road to Emmaus.
When we forgive the past and unfinished business, it loses its hold. We learn that forgiveness is ‘divine forgetting’ and move forward on the road to Emmaus.
We have to take the risk of a leap of faith to become more
real, more in tune with the Truth. To work toward this goal, across the
Diocese, small groups will be encouraged to share their Road to Emmaus stories
with the aid of cards that will provide questions for discussion and focus.
Over the next couple weeks, there will be more information about the retreat and follow up discussions here on this blog. We also heard from Susan Hutchins about her ministry of Las Palomas and the Rev. Shannon Collis gave us some inspirational ways to 'pray outside the box'. In the works is a Google group for the women of the DRG where we can share thoughts and study across the distances. Watch for how to sign onto that soon.