Day 2 Day radishes

September 11/ Celtic prayers

I have recently ordered from Amazon, Celtic Prayers from Iona. It contains prayers for morning, and evening from Monday through Saturday. These prayers are for Catholics and Protestants. The Scottish island of Iona is where in 563 St. Columbia came from Ireland to start the Abby, and it was from his Abby that much of Paganism in Scotland and England was converted to Christianity.

It is hard to get started again on daily prayers and readings. Usually I start out being good, and I can maybe go for months , but then I fall away, lapsing into indifference and sluggishness, or maybe depression. But life seems to go better or me when I spend a little time daily with God. When I feel God working through me, I am much more focused, and more caring of others. So I am going to spend some time with this book.

The calligraphy is beautiful, and the prayers universal, and assessable. They were meant for fishermen at sea, when crops failed, illness and hardships of the treatment from other religions groups, and maybe even for you when your computer breaks down.

Prayers for those who suffered from 9/11.

March 10/ A day for reflection for Martha

Although my participation in Lent varies from year to year, this year Lent has mainly been a word . A few years I did not participate at all, as it came late in the year and the weather was so dark that all I can do to keep my head above water. But usually I participate. I do not always deny myself, one year I wrote a notes every day to someone. As I have said before, I got so desperate at the end, I wrote to Martha Stewart.

But yesterday I attended a revival. In fact it could not have been further from the revivals of old, the revivals of fire and brimstone. This was a workshop (funny how the word can change from year to year. Other years it might have been called a retreat) on a Passionate Pilgrimage to God. The featured leader was an actress from Austin, Texas who talked about finding our voice in life and with God. She did portrayals of Ruth and Mary Magdalene and their conversations with God: Ruth following her mother in law, Naomi, back to Naomi’s tribe of Judah. The plain words of Ruth are some of the most endearing in all literature.

“Where you go, I will go;

Where you lodge, I will lodge;

Your people shall be my people,

And your God my God”

With Naomi, Ruth had found “home.” She loved Naomi’s kind God, she was an outcast in her own tribe as her husband was now dead. She had no meaning or place where she came from, and she would have no meaning or place where she was going, but she would have Naomi, and Naomi’s God. The story has a happy ending which you should read. It is good bedtime reading. Ruth became the great grandmother of King David.

There are different ways of looking at Bible readings, one of which is taking a part in the readings, and being the person in the story. This is something I have rather blown off. But yesterday showed me the possibilities for guidance by participating. This is a good tool to have in your back pocket. All the angst and questions, the denial, anger and fear these Biblical people likely had, are the angst, questions, denial, anger and fear that we have. Ruth had to have been angry her husband died. Such a jerk leaving her rejected by all in the Moab tribe. What fear to have to walk across the Jordon and around Lake Capernaum to meet a new tribe, who happened not to like her tribe. Her desire pushed her on, and she did what she had to do to follow Naomi’s kind God. So what if Naomi was a little bossy. Naomi’s God was loving, she could tell because of Naomi, and Naomi‘s ways .

I am finishing off this entry a day after I started it. And I have forgotten just where this was going. I am not much of a feminist except when it comes to the Bible. I tried to explain to Mr. Radish why the women in the Bible are treasures, some "little jewels". The good and the bad. It mattered not to him that the women were so few and far between. For him it is a matter of history. There were all those wars to write about, no wonder they had to leave the women out.

Yesterday the actress portrayed  Martha. Dear Martha, Martha with all her foibles and flaws, such a worker, so busy, so like us. In closing I would like to suggest that you read the Book of Ruth. Put your self in her shoes.

February 11/ Lent

Ash Wednesday started on the 5^th. It is especially early this year. It is so early this year that St. Patrick’s Day is in Holy Week. The Radishes make an attempt to give up alcohol and excessive living during Lent. Because our name is Calligan, we bargain with God and give ourselves dispensation for St. Patrick’s Day. But Holy week? We further bargain with God over Valentine’s. Valentine’s dinner without wine is like a day without sunshine.

I believe God is a loving God.

January 3/ Nets for Africa

https://www.servicenetwork.com/Olg/ERD/Donate.asp

Still being in the Christmas season, I include the above link. It is the Episcopal relief effort to send mosquito nets to Africa. As I child my mother was always bringing up the starving children in Africa. This is why I ate my peas.

Then as I grew older, I wanted to help the children of Africa, but what to do. I once bought my husband for Christmas, a goat, maybe half a goat from World Vision, because he would not tell me what he wanted for a Christmas gift.

Malaria and food are Africa’s problem. When the United States ceased to manufacture DDT, Africa’s problem multiplied with the lack of mosquito control. I like this Nets project. I believe the money goes to where we think it is going. Nets are affordable. And we are pretty sure that they are beneficial. And I guess I can stop eating peas if I want to. 

December 29/Hope

“Hope is not the same as joy that things are going well, or a willingness to invest in enterprises . . .obviously headed for success, but rather an ability to work for something because it is good, not because it has a chance to succeed.” perhaps by Czechoslovakian Klavel Hevel.

December 4/ Sin at Advent

My daughter in her last comment mentioned perhaps pride is my sin. Hum. The week of sin is over, but the class has moved on to. . . will we be ready to meet God, and how will he feel about us when we show up. This seems to me more to the point. Still sin is lingering. Sin being defined as that which separates you from God. For a while the class thought it was, did we murder someone today, or did we have a 7000 calorie lunch, or did we smack our kids around, when we should have given them a peanut butter sandwich and told them to put on their rain coats and go outside and play. Sin can be pretty subtle, i.e. do you continue to skulk around your husband for the next few days, or do you just come out and ask, what is pissing him off. Naturally I know the answer, not the least of which is “Christmas”. But do I give him the opportunity to speak? Lovingly request the answer. Hard choice. I am pretty comfortable harrumphing around. But I think I am , in the spirit of Advent, going to ask.

November 28/Siiiiiiin

I have, what I am hoping, is a new friend. By friend, I mean someone you sort of keep in touch with, you would be willing to do something for, have lunch with, and in general, thinks the way you think, with enough difference make you think in new creative ways. This friend also attends my liberal Episcopal Church. 

Here at home, I am in the middle of the St. Ignatius project and we are embedded in sin. I had forgotten why I am a Protestant, and not a Catholic. I have a lot of trouble getting down there with sin. I think it does not apply to me.  I sin, but I am not taking on all of poverty, racism, war. I have trouble taking on sins of collective responsibility. To me, political points of view and solutions so vary, that even thinking one way, or another can be called sin. But I do believe in evil.

Meanwhile my friend who is wintering in Arizona is going to a country/western Methodist church in Arizona. She says they have great bands. This week she is studying intercessory prayer. She says her lesson is , that not to pray for others, is a sin. This, I can get a handle on.

A  daughter has just called in making a few corrections in the above.  Isn't that nice. 

November 15/ The next person you hear could be an angel

I am feeling pres…sured .  Here at the house, I am only doing my husband’s birthday party.  No Thanksgiving, except for taking pies.  No Christmas at my house, only support dishes.  But now I am traveling with my conscience, or “God speak”, which now I have  to follow through.  My St. Ignatius group is going forward, first we examined ourselves, but now we are coming to the “pay attention to God” part.  I seriously am very worried about the upcoming sacrificing part.

Hearing God speak, I signed up for writing to solders. It was Veteran’s Day, what can I say.  Fortunately, I do not have my instructions yet, so I have not had to do anything, although I did buy a GET WELL card which cost $4.00, I saw that when I went to the check-out counter.  I am supposed to send five cards a week.  I think I will have to come up with some card alternative. 

But I have also signed up to make pies for the Women’s bake sale.  Could be fun if I do take squirrel. 

And I am creating a project for my family for Christmas.  Today I got a email saying if it was completed by November 22, I would get free shipping. Put the pressure on! I just got started, and I am gone for the weekend. 

But what I am trying to say here, is that if I was not trying to hear “God speak”,  I would not be participating in these projects. God knows how anxious I become, when I try to do too much, or multi task.  I am hoping he is willing to help me out with my nerves, and time management.  Now here is a real test of faith. 

November 6/ What we do

I do not know any teenagers, except one granddaughter at the moment.  But, I am told, we have a culture of young people wanting to be famous. They are starting their websites on My Space and others, and putting their videos on Youtube. They want to make their mark. I confess that over the years perhaps I also did want to be famous, or at least recognized.  Folly. I write this blog telling you about me, and how I feel, and you should feel.  But I do now know I will not be famous.  Still if I touch a heart, or brighten a day, it is okay. 

Particularly women, feel they should be becoming more than they are.  I say particularly women, when maybe in my mind, I am thinking of women who are, and have stayed at home women.  I know women into their seventies and their eighties who are still searching for what to be or do.  But this  is nonsense. One woman told me that she prayed for the women in Afghanistan. Both she and I are sick that there is a return to fighting in Afghanistan. We had hoped for a continuation of much improved woman’s rights. But she believed her praying for the women to be of insignificant value. I say what a ministry! What a gift!  (I don’t hear much about the women’s movement is doing anything for the women in Afghanistan.)  This is not fame, but it is quietly going about your, and God’s, work in the world, and what could be more important. 

November 4/ Talk about fools

In this what will be a brief, in the overall scheme of things, period of religiosity, and piety.  I was in church today and Michael and I are ushers.  One of the deals about being an usher is to signal to people in the pews when it is time to go up for communion.  In a huge leap of faith  I let Michael take the "big"side, or the side with most people . He does not realize that he must let people out  of the pews before the rail is empty.  His only problem is timing.  People were pouring out  behind him and aside him likre a dam let loose.

I am watching this, and laughing, when suddenly I remembered that I had just gone up to get my birthday blessing, not withstanding  I had also done it two weeks before.  Hum.

This of course is only a story.