2nd Michaelmas 2008, Light Without Deception

2^nd 3^rd or 4^th Michaelmas

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19

What it comes to in the end is this: grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and in the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength.

Put on the power of God as one puts on full armor, so that you may stand against the well-aimed attacks of the adversary. For our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but against

Michael, Roland Tiller

spirit beings mighty in the stream of time,

against spirit beings powerful in the molding of earth substance,

against cosmic powers whose darkness rules the present time,

against spirits who carry evil into the realms of the spiritual world.

Therefore take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand your ground on the day when evil unfolds its greatest strength, and victoriously withstand it.

Stand firm, then, girded with the truth, like a warrior firmly girded. Connect yourself with all in the world as is justified in the spiritual world, and this connection with the spirit will protect you like a strong breastplate.

And may Peace stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels.

In all your deeds have trust in God. This trust will be like a mighty shield; with it you can quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Take into your thinking the certainty of Christ’s healing deed. It will protect your head like a helmet.

And the spirit, which has become living in you, you shall grasp as one grasps a sharp sword. The sword of the spirit is the working of the Word of God.

May this armor clothe you in all your prayers and supplications, so that in the right moment you raise yourself in prayer to the spirit, and at the same time practice wakefulness in inner loyalty.

Feel yourself united in prayer with all other bearers of the spirit—also with me, Paul, so that the power of the word will be given to me when I am to courageously bring the knowledge of that holy mystery which lives in the message of the gospel.

2^nd Michaelmas Sunday

October 12, 2008

Paul’s letter to the Ephesians, 6:10 – 19

How timely the Gospel reading in this year! Our great spiritual enemies, spiritual beings who would shoot our souls full of fear and despair, are on the attack. Paul encourages us to fight a spiritual battle. It is not a battle of aggression, for it is not our task (it is not even possible) to destroy our eternal enemy. Rather we are to arm ourselves for our own souls’ self-defense, so that we can resist the fear and remain inwardly upright.

We shield ourselves from these attacks of fear by remaining in trust and truth. This truth we acquire by remaining in the current moment, the Now, which is ruled by the Christ. For the truth is that fear often causes us to project a false picture into the future, which, in a vicious cycle, then inspires more fear. The truth is that the future is constantly changing, moment by moment, day by day, based on what human beings do in those moments and days. We are all involved in the process of creating the future, day by day, moment by moment. Any fixed picture of the future, hammered hard by constant discussion and steeped in worry generated by fear, is premature.

“Do not worry about tomorrow,” says Christ, “for tomorrow can worry about itself. Each day has enough challenge of its own.” Matthew 6:34  We act, we trust, we pray, one day, one moment at a time.

We must not underestimate the power of the light-filled energy that is generated by our prayers and sacraments, even when only an apparent few participate on earth. Behind each one of us stand all those who have died, who still take an active interest in their loved ones on earth. Mingling with them are those about to be born into the world, with their ideals and hopes. And above them all stands the angelic world. Deeds of prayer and sacrament generate a healing light, a bright energy. Given into the hands of the angels, this energy can work as a positive force in world karma, helping shape the future.  Michael and his host of angels beckon us toward the courage and trust that arises in our awareness of this truth.

Roland Tiller

A second century mystic wrote:

If you would pray in truth, you will

suspect a deeper sense of curious confidence.

And a host of angels will walk beside you

Showing you the purpose of created things.

When the angel of the Lord arrives,

he scatters by his word alone

every force that acts against us,

and brings to our spirits that light

that shines without deception.[1]

---

[1] Evagrios of Pontos, (345 – 399) “Effusions on Prayer,” in Love’s Immensity, Mystics on the Endless Light,  Scott Cairns, p. 56

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2nd Michaelmas 2009, Keep Your Presence Aflame

2^nd 3^rd or 4^th Michaelmas

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19

 What it comes to in the end is this: grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and in the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength.

Put on the power of God as one puts on full armor, so that you may stand against the well-aimed attacks of the adversary. For our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but against

spirit beings mighty in the stream of time,

against spirit beings powerful in the molding of earth substance,

against cosmic powers whose darkness rules the present time,

against spirits who carry evil into the realms of the spiritual world.

Therefore take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand your ground on the day when evil unfolds its greatest strength, and victoriously withstand it.

Stand firm, then, girded with the truth, like a warrior firmly girded. Connect yourself with all in the world as is justified in the spiritual world, and this connection with the spirit will protect you like a strong breastplate.

And may Peace stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels.

In all your deeds have trust in God. This trust will be like a mighty shield; with it you can quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Take into your thinking the certainty of Christ’s healing deed. It will protect your head like a helmet.

And the spirit, which has become living in you, you shall grasp as one grasps a sharp sword. The sword of the spirit is the working of the Word of God.

May this armor clothe you in all your prayers and supplications, so that in the right moment you raise yourself in prayer to the spirit, and at the same time practice wakefulness in inner loyalty.

Feel yourself united in prayer with all other bearers of the spirit—also with me, Paul, so that the power of the word will be given to me when I am to courageously bring the knowledge of that holy mystery which lives in the message of the gospel.

2^nd Michaelmas

October 11, 2009

Ephesians 6: 10 -19

  

Sunscreen protects us from the sun’s burning rays. Umbrellas protect us from the rain, coats from the cold.

Today’s reading recommends that we clothe ourselves appropriately also for the spiritual atmosphere in which we find ourselves. Paul suggests that we clothe ourselves in the power of God. What is this power? It is the power of divine love. This love accompanies our awareness of a truth; the truth that we all have come from a world of spirit; that we have come wrapped in God’s unshakeable love and faith in us. We have been sent to earth to learn how to pass on this kind and quality of love to others.

Michael, Roland Tiller

Self-inflating hubris, self-defeating despair, and contempt for others are some of the well-aimed attacks of the spiritual adversaries, who mean to separate us from this divine power of love. Knowing that God loves us unconditionally, we stand in peace; we shield ourselves with the trust that, within everything that happens, even within adversities and tragedies, there is a seed kernel of the good, implanted in these events by divine love. This seed of the good is growing and evolving toward the future. And this evolving good is moving toward healing the rift between us human beings, and between humankind and the divine spiritual beings.

In the words of John O’Donohue:

Awaken to the mystery of being here and enter the quiet immensity of your own presence.

Have joy and peace in the temple of your senses.

Receive encouragement when new frontiers beckon….

May warmth of heart keep your presence aflame.

May anxiety never linger about you.

May your outer dignity mirror an inner dignity of soul….

May you experience each day as a sacred gift woven around the heart of wonder.[1]

---

[1] John O’Donohue, “For Presence”, in To Bless the Space Between Us, p. 42.

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2nd Michaelmas 2010, Puzzle Pieces

2^nd 3^rd or 4^th Michaelmas

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19

 What it comes to in the end is this: grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and in the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength.

Put on the power of God as one puts on full armor, so that you may stand against the well-aimed attacks of the adversary. For our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but against

spirit beings mighty in the stream of time,

against spirit beings powerful in the molding of earth substance,

against cosmic powers whose darkness rules the present time,

against spirits who carry evil into the realms of the spiritual world.

Therefore take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand your ground on the day when evil unfolds its greatest strength, and victoriously withstand it.

Stand firm, then, girded with the truth, like a warrior firmly girded. Connect yourself with all in the world as is justified in the spiritual world, and this connection with the spirit will protect you like a strong breastplate.

And may Peace stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels.

In all your deeds have trust in God. This trust will be like a mighty shield; with it you can quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Take into your thinking the certainty of Christ’s healing deed. It will protect your head like a helmet.

And the spirit, which has become living in you, you shall grasp as one grasps a sharp sword. The sword of the spirit is the working of the Word of God.

May this armor clothe you in all your prayers and supplications, so that in the right moment you raise yourself in prayer to the spirit, and at the same time practice wakefulness in inner loyalty.

Feel yourself united in prayer with all other bearers of the spirit—also with me, Paul, so that the power of the word will be given to me when I am to courageously bring the knowledge of that holy mystery which lives in the message of the gospel.

2^nd Michaelmas

October 10, 2010

Ephesians 6: 10-19

An interesting, and challenging activity is solving picture puzzles with hundreds of pieces. Many pieces are similar, and yet each is unique. And each contributes to the larger picture. Imagine the frustration of a puzzle made of random and unrelated pieces.

Truth is like a picture puzzle made of many pieces. Some pieces are jagged, some smooth. Some pieces fit easily and obviously into the whole picture. Others are mysterious—it is difficult to figure out where they fit in. We may have to set them aside for a while until we figure out where they belong. But we can trust that they have a place in the larger picture, the picture of the truth that we are building.  We know that if we are patient and persevere, we will find where they fit. It is often just these mystery pieces that create the sense of the final picture falling into place.

The adversaries are trying to create their own picture of the universe, out of pieces of despair, of loss, of meaninglessness. They may throw pieces at us that are dark, that don’t seem to fit. But we can trust that there is a bigger, truer picture. Perhaps those dark pieces do indeed have a place somewhere, in some corner. Or perhaps we need to turn the piece over. Trusting in the truth of the bigger picture is our armor against meaninglessness. For there is always a bigger picture.

The key pieces, the mysterious pieces in the great puzzle of life, are held by Christ. When we find the place for His pieces in the picture of our lives, the meaning of things begins to appear. We begin to find the relative places for the darker pieces of the puzzle. We find the places for suffering and death, because the bigger picture is framed in resurrection. Because of Christ, some pieces can be turned right side up. What seemed meaningless and unrelated is integrated into the larger whole. The bigger picture is a revelation. It is a picture of how space is ordered; it is a picture of what direction the evolving stream of time is flowing. For, as we heard at Easter—Christ is risen to us as the meaning of the earth.

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2nd Michaelmas 2011, God Pours Light

2^nd 3^rd or 4^th Michaelmas

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19

What it comes to in the end is this: grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and in the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength.

Put on the power of God as one puts on full armor, so that you may stand against the well-aimed attacks of the adversary. For our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but against

after an icon of the Archangel Michael by Rubliev

spirit beings mighty in the stream of time,

against spirit beings powerful in the molding of earth substance,

against cosmic powers whose darkness rules the present time,

against spirits who carry evil into the realms of the spiritual world.

Therefore take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand your ground on the day when evil unfolds its greatest strength, and victoriously withstand it.

Stand firm, then, girded with the truth, like a warrior firmly girded. Connect yourself with all in the world as is justified in the spiritual world, and this connection with the spirit will protect you like a strong breastplate.

And may Peace stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels.

In all your deeds have trust in God. This trust will be like a mighty shield; with it you can quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Take into your thinking the certainty of Christ’s healing deed. It will protect your head like a helmet.

And the spirit, which has become living in you, you shall grasp as one grasps a sharp sword. The sword of the spirit is the working of the Word of God.

May this armor clothe you in all your prayers and supplications, so that in the right moment you raise yourself in prayer to the spirit, and at the same time practice wakefulness in inner loyalty.

Feel yourself united in prayer with all other bearers of the spirit—also with me, Paul, so that the power of the word will be given to me when I am to courageously bring the knowledge of that holy mystery which lives in the message of the gospel.

2^nd Michaelmas

October 9, 2011

Ephesians 6: 10-19

As the days grow shorter, the power of the sun seems to be declining. The sun itself, however, has not lessened. It is as though the earth, and we retreat from it a little, creating a space. And in that space of the diminished outer working of the sun, we are being encouraged to resurrect the sun’s power, its warmth and its light, within our own souls.

The reading encourages us to take hold of the experience of Christ working within the soul. What is that experience? It is the power of a Self permeated and radiant with a quiet love. It is a power like the sun—always there, always sustaining, even as it changes; always giving of light and warmth, shining on all alike.

This is the power that allows us to stand fast, to withstand the attacks of those spiritual beings who would imprison our souls, cloud us with fear, darken us with hatred and weaken us with doubt.

Christ’s sun-like power in our souls lights up both our inner and our outer landscape. It helps us to stand firm, in trust and in certainty. Though we may be tempted to abandon our place, we may be sure that Christ is and always will be with us. For as the poet says:

God

pours light

into every cup,

quenching darkness.[1]

---

[1]  Hafiz, Interpretive version of Ghazal 11 by Jose Orez.

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2nd Michaelmas 2012, Battle of Defense

2^nd 3^rd or 4^th Michaelmas

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19

What it comes to in the end is this: grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and in the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength. 

Put on the power of God as one puts on full armor, so that you may stand against the well-aimed attacks of the adversary. For our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but 

       

Michael, Arild Rosenkrantz

against spirit beings mighty in the stream of time,

against spirit beings powerful in the molding of earth substance,

against cosmic powers whose darkness rules the present time,

against spirits who carry evil into the realms of the spiritual world.

Therefore take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand your ground on the day when evil unfolds its greatest strength, and victoriously withstand it.

Stand firm, then, girded with the truth, like a warrior firmly girded. Connect yourself with all in the world as is justified in the spiritual world, and this connection with the spirit will protect you like a strong breastplate.

And may Peace stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels.

In all your deeds have trust in God. This trust will be like a mighty shield; with it you can quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Take into your thinking the certainty of Christ’s healing deed. It will protect your head like a helmet.

And the spirit, which has become living in you, you shall grasp as one grasps a sharp sword. The sword of the spirit is the working of the Word of God.

May this armor clothe you in all your prayers and supplications, so that in the right moment you raise yourself in prayer to the spirit, and at the same time practice wakefulness in inner loyalty.

Feel yourself united in prayer with all other bearers of the spirit—also with me, Paul, so that the power of the word will be given to me when I am to courageously bring the knowledge of that holy mystery which lives in the message of the gospel.

2^nd Michaelmas

October 7, 2012

Ephesians 6:10-19

This is a time of struggle. Here in the US, we are in the midst of the debates of our presidential candidates. They play like a battle; but behind the campaigns of ideologies, there also stand spiritual beings and spiritual forces at work, both positive and negative.

As the reading today says: our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but against mighty and powerful spiritual beings. For us as individuals, ours is not a battle of aggression, but a battle of defense against negative spiritual forces attacking our hearts and thoughts.

We are to stand firm by grasping and clothing ourselves with the power that streams to us from Christ. We are to trust that no matter what appears to happen outwardly, He is the Way, the path that our human evolution is to take. He is the Truth—the very Being of Truth itself, a firm foundation for all we see and do. Clothing ourselves in His truth, our thinking is clear, and our hearts stream peace; our words can illuminate darkness and evil.

It is a season of growing darkness. Our task is to remain inwardly upright and awake. We are the soldiers who keep watch, the witnesses, those who activate the Christ force in the world. As Adam Bittleston says:

We need in the strife of our day

The eternal Peace of the Word of God.

Seeking this Peace with our whole being

On the path which leads from the nightmare

Of endless chaos,

Into the order of heaven
And to the Father of all things—

We shall meet Michael

Who reveals how Christ

Awakens Man

That he may serve God. [1]

---

[1] “Michaelmas II”, Adam Bittleston, in Meditative Prayers for Today. Available at http://www.steinerbooks.org/detail.html?id=9780863153075

www.thechristiancommunity.org

2nd Michaelmas 2013, Sword of Light

2^nd 3^rd or 4^th Michaelmas

Paul’s Letter to the Ephesians, 6:10-19

What it comes to in the end is this: grasp the power that streams to you in the experience of Christ in the soul and in the powerful regency of his pure spiritual strength.

Put on the power of God as one puts on full armor, so that you may stand against the well-aimed attacks of the adversary. For our struggle is not to fight against powers of flesh and blood, but against

spirit beings mighty in the stream of time,

against spirit beings powerful in the molding of earth substance,

against cosmic powers whose darkness rules the present time,

against spirits who carry evil into the realms of the spiritual world.

Therefore take up the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand your ground on the day when evil unfolds its greatest strength, and victoriously withstand it.

Stand firm, then, girded with the truth, like a warrior firmly girded. Connect yourself with all in the world as is justified in the spiritual world, and this connection with the spirit will protect you like a strong breastplate.

And may Peace stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels.

In all your deeds have trust in God. This trust will be like a mighty shield; with it you can quench all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

Take into your thinking the certainty of Christ’s healing deed. It will protect your head like a helmet.

And the spirit, which has become living in you, you shall grasp as one grasps a sharp sword. The sword of the spirit is the working of the Word of God.

May this armor clothe you in all your prayers and supplications, so that in the right moment you raise yourself in prayer to the spirit, and at the same time practice wakefulness in inner loyalty.

Feel yourself united in prayer with all other bearers of the spirit—also with me, Paul, so that the power of the word will be given to me when I am to courageously bring the knowledge of that holy mystery which lives in the message of the gospel.

  

2^nd Michaelmas

October 6, 2013

Ephesians 6: 10-19

There are two types of lines that every young child learns about. One is the curve – a line that continuously changes direction. Its classic form is the circle – enclosing, harboring. The other line is the straight line that starts at a particular point and travels unerringly in one direction, towards infinity. These two basic gestures, the circle and the line, come together in every child’s drawing – in the circle and rays of the sun.

The sword is an archetype that partakes of the straight line – like the rays of the sun. Although we typically think of a sword as an instrument of destruction, raised in victory, it is a symbol of peace. And pointed downward it forms a cross.  

In artistic depictions, the Archangel Michael holds a light-sword that rays out the light of the sun. Sometimes the sword is pictured pointed downward.  There it illuminates the depths, holding a dark dragon at bay. Sometimes the sword of light points upward, as if to indicate where we are to send our thoughts, where we are to direct our attention.

Today’s reading says that we are to grasp the living spirit working in us the same way that we grasp a sword of light. What the living spirit is, indeed, is light; it is the light of consciousness, the light of awareness. With Michael’s spirit sword of awareness we can direct our attention into the heights. With Michael’s light sword of awareness we can illuminate the darkness of our own inner depths.

Arild Rosenkrantz

For in the depths there is a great secret: the dark dragon in the cave sits on a measureless treasure. In the depths of the soul, hidden in the darkness, is Christ. He is the treasure the dragon would hide. Christ sends his powers of trust, of confidence and peace from the depths up into our hearts. When we illuminate the depths and hold at bay the dragons of fear, doubt and hatred, we will win access to the treasure, the Pearl of great price. And then will we hear the Word of God, speaking to us:  My peace will be with you; my peace will stream through you, down to your feet, so that on your path you may spread peace, as the message that comes from the realm of the angels.  (Ephesians 6:15)

1st Michaelmas 2007, Crossing

1^st Michaelmas

Matthew 22, 1-14

And Jesus continued to speak in parables to them:

The kingdom of the heavens arising in human hearts is like a man, a king, who prepared a marriage feast for his son. And he sent out his servants to call the guests who had been invited to the marriage, but they would not come.

Then he again sent out other servants, and said , “Say to those who have been invited, ‘Think, I have prepared my best for the banquet, the sacrificial oxen and fattened cattle have been slaughtered; everything is ready. Come quickly to the wedding.”

But they were not interested and went off, one going to his field to be his own master, another falling into the hectic pace of his own business. The rest however took hold of the servants, mistreated them and killed them.

Then the king grew angry; he sent out his army, brought the murderers to their destruction and burned their city. Then he said to his servants, “Although the marriage feast is prepared, the invited guests have proved themselves unworthy. Go out therefore to the crossroads of destiny and invite to the wedding whoever you can find.”

And the servants went into the streets and gathered together all whom they found, both bad and good. And the wedding hall was filled with guests.

Then the king came in to see the guests, and among them he noticed a man who was not dressed in the wedding garment  which was offered to him. And he said to him, “My friend, you are sharing the meal; how is it you came in here without putting on the wedding garment that was offered to you?”

But the man was speechless.

Then the king said to the servants, “Bind him hand and foot and cast him out into the darkness, where human beings wail and gnash their teeth. For the call goes out to many, yet only a few make themselves bearers of the higher life.”

Crossing, Sanz-Cardona

1^st Michaelmas

September 30, 2007

Matthew 22: 1-14

Sometimes there are doors we have to open. We may fear opening them and meeting what we think is on the other side. Especially if we imagine it is something awful.

Usually the reading for the Sunday before Michaelmas brings us right up to the threshold of death. The young man of Nain, who walked through the dreaded door, was wakened to life. We ourselves have now opened a door in a threshold of the year. We have passed through the equinox, and from now on, the outer darkness will increase. 

Yet today’s reading reveals a surprise. We are crossing, not into something fearsome; we are entering the banquet hall of a wedding. We have all been invited to a feast celebrating, not death and extinction, but rather celebrating our joining the Bridegroom of the Soul. We are crossing into a region that wants to celebrate new life, the life beyond the threshold of death.

True, some things in the soul we must destroy before we are fit for the wedding hall: things such as over-concern with earthly cares that prevent us from responding to the call from beyond. Or, like the man who refused to put on the wedding garment, we can simply be too satisfied with ourselves as we are, or too lazy to make the changes that will outfit us for the bridegroom.

But for those who respond to the invitation with courage and humility, who show up with some minimal preparation, clothed in grace, there is a feast among the angels. The King and His Son greet us joyfully. And we may hear:

Turn your back on those

Tintoretto, The Wedding Feast

Who would imprison your wondrous spirit

With deceit and lies.

Come, join the honest company

Of the King’s beggars –

Those gamblers, scoundrels, and divine clowns…

Who need Divine Love….

Come, join the courageous

Who have no choice

But to bet their entire world

That indeed

Indeed, God is Real.[1]

---

[1] Hafiz, “A Golden Compass”, in I Heard God Laughing, Renderings of Hafiz, by Daniel Ladinsky, p. 45.

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