New Year's Day 2021, The Middle of the Beginning

New Year's Day

John 1:1-18
 
In the beginning, was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a God.
He was in the beginning with God.

Friedrich Ogilvie, In the Beginning

All things came into being through him, and without him was not anything made that was made.
In him was life, and the life was the light of human beings.
And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness comprehended it not [has not overcome it].
There was a man sent from God, whose name was John.
The same came for [or, as] a witness, to bear witness to the light, that through him all might believe.
He was not the light but a witness of the light; for the true light that enlightens everyone was to come into the world.
He was in the world, and the world came into being through him, and the world knew him not.
He came to humans as individuals, but individuals received him not.        
But those who received him could reveal themselves as children of God.
Those who trusted in his name were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of human will, but of God.
And the Word became flesh and dwelled among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory (as) of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
John bore witness of Him and proclaimed clearly: this was he of whom I said: He will come after me who was before me, for he was the first.
For out of his fullness have we all received grace upon grace.
For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth have come through Jesus Christ.
Hitherto no one has beheld God with their eyes. The only begotten Son (God) who was within the Father Ground of the World has become the leader of human beings into this seeing.
 
New Year's Day
January 1, 2021
Cynthia Hindes
 

An apple tree follows the seasons. It blossoms in spring, fruits in the fall, rests in the winter. But citrus trees are different. On citrus trees, you will find blossoms among the fruit hanging in winter. The tree starts anew before the old is finished. As if to ensure continuity, new fruit is set before the old falls away.
 
The world of the angels is similar. They bring their new impulses for the future before the old is finished. We find the beginnings of things not at the end when things are winding down, but already amid the greatest activity.
 
Today, New Years' Day, is the 8^th day in the cycle of the twelve days of Christmas. It is the middle, the time for new beginnings to blossom. It is time for new impulses to set fruit. It is time for new inspirations.
 
In the beginning, was the Word. He was in the middle of God. He issued forth as an impulse to live. His will is to shine, step forth into the darkness, enlighten, enkindle, and enliven the dark.
 
And he was seen, perceived, witnessed by a human being—John; two Johns in fact: John the Baptist and John the Evangelist. They were like a pair of eyes that beheld the light of the Son God's life, He who came to earth in the middle of time.
 
Coming to earth at the midpoint in time, the Son God brought a new beginning. He brought the possibility that God could be seen with human eyes. The light of the Son God opened our eyes so that we could see not only Him but also the Great Father of All out of which He—and we—have come. It was a new beginning for all of humanity.
 
During the Holy Nights, he has come again. The Word is speaking. We, and time, blossom again. We have become gravid with possibility. Now at this high hour, we can see and become aware, discern that:
 
The hour is striking so close above me,
So clear and sharp
That all my senses ring with it.
I feel it now: there's a power in me
To grasp and give shape to my world.
 
I know that nothing has ever been real
Without my beholding it.
All becoming has needed me.
My looking ripens things
And they come toward me to meet and be met.*
 
May we see and discern the beginning we are in the midst of. May we greet it in devotion, in faith, and love. May we bring it to birth and ripen it.
 
*Rilke, The Book of Hours, Macy and Barrows, page 47
www.thechristiancommunity.org

New Year 2020, Everything You Do

Holy Nights

John 1: 1-18 (translation by Craig Wiggins)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a God.

This was in the beginning with God.

Everything came into being through the Word, and without it was not anything made that was made.

In the Word was life, and the life was the light of humankind.

And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

There was a man sent from God whose name was John.

He came as a witness, to bear witness to the light, so that through him all may find faith. He was not the light, but a witness to the light, for the true light that enlightens every human being was coming into the world. It was in the world, and the world came into being through it, but the world had not recognized it.

Into those who had recognized it the light had come, but those individuals did not take it in. But all who did take it in received authority to become children of God. Those who trusted in its name are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of the human beings, but are born of God.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among (in) us.

And we beheld its revelation, the revelation of the only begotten son of the Father, full of grace and truth.

John bore witness to Him and cried out, saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘After me comes one who was before me, for he is the very first’.” For out of his fullness, we have received grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth have come about through Jesus Christ.

Until now human senses never beheld God. The only begotten Son, who was within the Father, has become the guide to this beholding.

January 1, 2020

John 1: 1-18

In the beginning, God created a living radiance. This radiance took form in sun moon and stars. In the beginning, God created the human being, giving us eyes with which to see the light.

In the beginning, God shepherded us with the Law, with specific codes of conduct, designed to mold and shape our souls and spirits rightly toward God and toward our fellow human beings.

He Qi

And then He began again. He sent His beloved Son, whose very essence and being is Love. Seeing God’s Son, the way He talked, the way He healed, the way His actions were connected back to His Father, human beings can also experience the light, the life, the love of the Father Himself. Through the Son, we are given eyes of the soul, opened by love, with which to see God.

Seeing the Son is grace; taking His essence into our hearts lets us experience the truth of our own being: that love in us is a living, radiant creative force. In the words of Hafiz,

Now is the time to understand

That all your ideas of right and wrong

Were just a child’s training wheels

To be laid aside

When you can finally live

with veracity and love.

Now is the time for the world to know

That every thought and action is sacred.

That this is the time

For you to compute the impossibility

that there is anything

But Grace.

Now is the season to know

That everything you do

Is Sacred.*

---

*Hafiz, “Now is the Time”, in The Gift, versions of Hafiz, by Daniel Ladinsky

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New Year's Day 2019, Unbearable Light

Holy Nights

John 1: 1-18 (after a translation by Craig Wiggins)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a God.

This was in the beginning with God.

Everything came into being through the Word, and without it was not anything made that was made.

In the Word was life, and the life was the light of humankind.

And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.

There was a man sent from God whose name was John.

He came as a witness, to bear witness to the light, so that through him all may find faith. He was not the light, but a witness to the light, for the true light that enlightens every human being was coming into the world. It was in the world, and the world came into being through it, but the world had not recognized it.

Into those who had recognized it the light had come, but those individuals did not take it in. But all who did take it in received authority to become children of God. Those who trusted in its name are born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of the human beings, but are born of God.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among (in) us.

And we beheld its revelation, the revelation of the only begotten son of the Father, full of grace and truth.

John bore witness to Him and cried out, saying, “This was he of whom I said, ‘After me comes one who was before me, for he is the very first’.” For out of his fullness, we have received grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth have come about through Jesus Christ.

Until now human senses never beheld God. The only begotten Son, who was within the Father, has become the guide to this beholding.

Holy Nights

January 1, 2012

John 1: 1-18

Words contain a great mystery. They are handed down to us by our parents. Words are a legacy. They are the memory of how the world is structured, structured with things, with beings, with actions, with qualities. Words are also the garments of thoughts. Thoughts not only reflect the past; they can also create the future.

This creating power of the Word manifested in the ancient past as the creation of the world. The Word’s first creation: Let there be light. And the Word became light.

The creative Word is still resounding as a sounding power, creating the future. Now it says: ‘Let there be love’. But unlike the first creation, this resounding of the Word requires our human cooperation. Human beings must hear it; human beings must take its creative power into themselves.

Roland Tiller

Christ Jesus is the prototype of the human being who takes into Himself the divine force of creating love and shines it forth as a revelation. Through Christ, through Christ living in us, working in us, God’s grace shines forth into the world. Through Christ living and working in us, the truth of human creation reveals itself, as it says in Psalm 82: ‘I have said you are ‘gods’. The poet David Whyte expresses it thus:

You were there in the beginning

you heard the story, you heard the merciless

and tender words telling you where you had to go.

….

you couldn't live

so close to the live flame of that compassion

you had to go out in the world and make it your own

so you could come back with

that flame in your voice, saying listen...

this warmth, this unbearable light, this fearful love...

It is all here, it is all here.**

---

*John 10:34-37 Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I have said you are “gods”’?  If he called them ‘gods,’ to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be set aside—what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’?

Jesus’ reference is to Psalm 82: ‘God presides in the great assembly; he renders judgment among the “gods”…. “I said, ‘You are “gods”; you are all sons of the Most High.’

 **David Whyte “In the Beginning” in Fire in the Earth

Holy Nights 2017, New Year, January 1, 2017

New Year's Day

January 1, 2017

The Gospel of John, 1:1-18

(translation by Adam Bittleston)

In the very beginning was the Word,

And the Word was with God,

And the Word was God.

He was with God in the very beginning.

All things came into being through Him,

And without Him came into being nothing

That has come into being.

In him was Life,

And the Life was the Light of mankind.

The Light shines in the Darkness,

And the Darkness did not grasp it.

There came to be a man, sent from God,

His name Ioannes.

John Baptizes Jesus, Gerard David, Wiki Commons

He came for testimony,

That he should testify of the Light,

That all might have faith through him.

He was not the Light,

But came to testify of the Light.

For the Light that in truth endures,

That illumines every man,

Was coming into the World.

He was in the World,

And the World came into being through Him

Yet the World did not know Him.

He came to the separate,

Yet the separate men did not receive Him.

But those who received Him—

To them, He gave full power

To become children of God,

Those who have faith in His name.

They have their being

Not from the bloodsteams,

Not from the will of the flesh,

Not from the will of a man,

But from God.

And the Word became flesh,

And made his dwelling among us,

And we saw His glory,

Glory of one born from the Father alone,

With abundance of grace and truth.

Ioannes testified of Him, proclaiming,

That is He of whom I said:

He Who comes after me

Takes His place above me

Because He was before me.

From the abundance of His Being

We have all received

Grace upon grace.

The Law was given through Moses;

Grace and truth came into being

Through Jesus Christ.

God no-one has beheld ever;

The son Who is born of Him alone

And Who has His Being

At the Father’s breast,

Has come to lead our seeing.

New Year's Day

January 1, 2017

The Gospel of John, 1:1-18

We stand before a time of beginnings. Most notably, of course, this is the beginning of a New Year, which this year starts under the signature of the first day of the week, a Sunday, the day of the Resurrection. What will this new year bring?

Our own lives present us with possibilities to begin anew. Every new day, new month, new year are filled with possibilities, with choices. What will we choose?

Christ's coming sets in motion events that give all of humankind the possibility of creating something new. He is the ancestor of a new people, the Christ-folk. Those whom destiny or choice have led to Him can help create a new stream of humankind. Whoever receives Him are themselves born anew, out of grace and truth. They can choose to love out of the light of wisdom and freedom.

Christ says that He stands radiating peace in His relationship to the world. He can give us His peace. We are free, minute by minute, to choose the path of love, of wisdom and grace, with His peace. The possibility is there – what will we choose? In the words of Fra Giovanni Giocondo (1386-1456):

No heaven can come to us unless our hearts find
rest in today. Take heaven!

No peace lies in the future which is not hidden in

Salvatore Mundi, Andrea Previtale

this present little instant. Take peace!

The gloom of the world is but a shadow. Behind it,
yet within our reach is joy. There is radiance and
glory in the darkness could we but see - and to see
we have only to look. I beseech you to look!

Life is so generous a giver, but we, judging its
gifts by the covering, cast them away as ugly,
or heavy or hard. Remove the covering and you
will find beneath it a living splendor, woven of
love, by wisdom, with power.

Welcome it, grasp it, touch the angel's hand that
brings it to you. Everything we call a trial, a
sorrow, or a duty, believe me, that angel's hand
is there, the gift is there, and the wonder of an
overshadowing presence. …
Courage, then, to claim it …..

And so, I greet you… with the prayer that for you now and forever,
the day breaks, and the shadows flee away.

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