Contemplations
by Rev. Bridgette Siepker
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“That we be those who confess Him”
Through the Easter mysteries of Death, Resurrection and Ascension we are left with having received many blessings and having encountered much joy. If we truly contemplate all that we have been given then we are left with a full and grateful heart. The natural state of the soul would be one in which praise and thanksgiving live in abundance. Out of these feelings of being especially blessed we hear the words of the Ascension Inserted Prayer echo in our hearts: “That we be those who confess Him.” What does this really mean - to confess? To confess means to acknowledge a truth, to own it for oneself. It means to admit to what has been spoken or witnessed. It means to profess or to proclaim, to confirm. “That we be those that confess Him” entails all these aspects of the word. |
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But what does it mean for us and how do we put this into practice in our daily lives? How do we confess and still leave others free? How do we show our gratitude for all that we have received? How can I be “One that confesses Him”? What exactly am I confessing?
We may live with these questions our whole life and they may develop and evolve as we find answers and new questions.
One aspect we may like to consider is that confessing in this sense, need not only be through words, but possibly our actions and attitude that we take with us into life say much more about who we are and what we are about. That I confess with my whole being is a challenging thought. We may like to become a little more conscious of this fact and consider a few examples form the Easter gospels that could help us understand how we might deepen our relationship to confessing Christ.
In the days between the Resurrection and Ascension Christ encountered his disciples. These encounters left the disciples feeling fulfilled and empowered. They were ready to go out and declare what they had experienced, to confess what had been revealed to them. In looking at each of these stories we might find aspects of confessing that we could apply to our own lives.
In John’s account of Easter morning Mary Magdalene is one of the first to have an encounter with the risen Lord.
She does not recognise him at first and mistakes him for the gardener. Christ calls her name and only then is she able to recognise and acknowledge him. She can only confess once she has recognised Christ.
In order for me to be one who confesses I must learn to be attentive to Christ’s presence around me, to him calling my name. I must learn to hear his voice in the quiet moments. Only then will I be able to begin to confess him.
In Matthew’s description of Easter morning Christ encounters Mary and the other women - they meet him on the road. They recognise him and in doing so bow down before him and worship him, holding his feet. What a powerful image.
Worship is a beautiful activity where we are freely able to acknowledge aspects of Christ and his deed. This worship is an act of confessing that comes from the heart. If I practice this activity then I am also involved in confessing.
Another wonderful encounter that Christ has with two of his disciples as described in Luke’s Gospel is the encounter on the road to Emmaus. While the disciples are walking they discuss their experiences of the past days in which Christ suffered and died and then rose from the dead.
They as Mary, they did not recognise Christ as he approaches them but they listen intently to the way he is able to reveal the scriptures to them. They invite him to share a meal with them. They recognise Christ in the sharing of the meal, in the breaking of the bread. This is where they realise that Christ had been with them all along, that he was the one teaching them. It was only through the meal that they were able to recognise him and to confess him. It is through communion that we are able to confess Christ. This communion may be what we receive as part of our participation in the Act of Consecration of Man or it may be in our focusing on the words of Christ from the gospels and allowing ourselves to be fed by his word. In whatever way we choose to draw close to God and long for communion with him we participate in confessing him.
In a further encounter with his disciples in John’s Gospel, Christ appears to them in the upper room and shows them his wounds. He breathes on them and gives them his gift of peace. Those disciples present accepted the gift that was bestowed on them. They received the grace of peace that was given to them. This enabled them to become “those who confess him".
In order for me to be able to confess Christ I might like to examine how much of this grace that is bestowed on all of us do I acknowledge and accept. If I practice living out of this peace then I am living out of a specific power within me that enables me to become ever more “one who confesses”.
Further to this encounter it was Thomas who was missing. He refused to believe what the others had confessed had happened until he could see for himself. Christ appears to the group again and gently invites Thomas to gather the evidence he needs. Christ says, “Blessed are they who believe and have not yet seen”. Blessed are those who have and practice faith. When we do this we are blessed. This blessing empowers us. In actively living out of faith we become one of those that confess Christ.
At the end of John’s gospel Christ meets his disciples on the beach. He helps them to haul in a great load of fish and has breakfast with them. He then asks Peter about Peters love for him and here Christ directs his disciples to another way that they can confess him. He tasks Peter with tending and feeding his lambs and his sheep. We may like to understand this command as an invitation to take up the task of tending, feeding our community. Nurturing those who are part of your community. Building up and serving community.
This is echoed in the last encounter Christ has with his disciples as recorded in Mathew’s gospel where the disciples are sent out into the world, out into the community to confess the Christ and to baptise in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
In these encounters, Christ and his disciples show us what it takes to be able to be those who confess him. We may like to consider and practice some of these aspects and in so doing deepen our sense and experience of becoming “One who confesses Christ”
Do I actively listen to Christ calling out to me?
Do praise and thanksgiving live as part of my soul expression?
Do I actively seek out time to commune with God, to experience true communion with the Divine?
Am I inclined to acknowledge all the blessings and graces that I receive and to live out of them in faith?
Have I found a way to make myself available to my family, friends or community? Am I actively engaged in small acts of service and care concerning those around me?
The more conscious we become of the opportunities that we have to confess Christ the more we become able to participate in the baptising of all people and the bringing about of the kingdom of heaven here on earth.
We may live with these questions our whole life and they may develop and evolve as we find answers and new questions.
One aspect we may like to consider is that confessing in this sense, need not only be through words, but possibly our actions and attitude that we take with us into life say much more about who we are and what we are about. That I confess with my whole being is a challenging thought. We may like to become a little more conscious of this fact and consider a few examples form the Easter gospels that could help us understand how we might deepen our relationship to confessing Christ.
In the days between the Resurrection and Ascension Christ encountered his disciples. These encounters left the disciples feeling fulfilled and empowered. They were ready to go out and declare what they had experienced, to confess what had been revealed to them. In looking at each of these stories we might find aspects of confessing that we could apply to our own lives.
In John’s account of Easter morning Mary Magdalene is one of the first to have an encounter with the risen Lord.
She does not recognise him at first and mistakes him for the gardener. Christ calls her name and only then is she able to recognise and acknowledge him. She can only confess once she has recognised Christ.
In order for me to be one who confesses I must learn to be attentive to Christ’s presence around me, to him calling my name. I must learn to hear his voice in the quiet moments. Only then will I be able to begin to confess him.
In Matthew’s description of Easter morning Christ encounters Mary and the other women - they meet him on the road. They recognise him and in doing so bow down before him and worship him, holding his feet. What a powerful image.
Worship is a beautiful activity where we are freely able to acknowledge aspects of Christ and his deed. This worship is an act of confessing that comes from the heart. If I practice this activity then I am also involved in confessing.
Another wonderful encounter that Christ has with two of his disciples as described in Luke’s Gospel is the encounter on the road to Emmaus. While the disciples are walking they discuss their experiences of the past days in which Christ suffered and died and then rose from the dead.
They as Mary, they did not recognise Christ as he approaches them but they listen intently to the way he is able to reveal the scriptures to them. They invite him to share a meal with them. They recognise Christ in the sharing of the meal, in the breaking of the bread. This is where they realise that Christ had been with them all along, that he was the one teaching them. It was only through the meal that they were able to recognise him and to confess him. It is through communion that we are able to confess Christ. This communion may be what we receive as part of our participation in the Act of Consecration of Man or it may be in our focusing on the words of Christ from the gospels and allowing ourselves to be fed by his word. In whatever way we choose to draw close to God and long for communion with him we participate in confessing him.
In a further encounter with his disciples in John’s Gospel, Christ appears to them in the upper room and shows them his wounds. He breathes on them and gives them his gift of peace. Those disciples present accepted the gift that was bestowed on them. They received the grace of peace that was given to them. This enabled them to become “those who confess him".
In order for me to be able to confess Christ I might like to examine how much of this grace that is bestowed on all of us do I acknowledge and accept. If I practice living out of this peace then I am living out of a specific power within me that enables me to become ever more “one who confesses”.
Further to this encounter it was Thomas who was missing. He refused to believe what the others had confessed had happened until he could see for himself. Christ appears to the group again and gently invites Thomas to gather the evidence he needs. Christ says, “Blessed are they who believe and have not yet seen”. Blessed are those who have and practice faith. When we do this we are blessed. This blessing empowers us. In actively living out of faith we become one of those that confess Christ.
At the end of John’s gospel Christ meets his disciples on the beach. He helps them to haul in a great load of fish and has breakfast with them. He then asks Peter about Peters love for him and here Christ directs his disciples to another way that they can confess him. He tasks Peter with tending and feeding his lambs and his sheep. We may like to understand this command as an invitation to take up the task of tending, feeding our community. Nurturing those who are part of your community. Building up and serving community.
This is echoed in the last encounter Christ has with his disciples as recorded in Mathew’s gospel where the disciples are sent out into the world, out into the community to confess the Christ and to baptise in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
In these encounters, Christ and his disciples show us what it takes to be able to be those who confess him. We may like to consider and practice some of these aspects and in so doing deepen our sense and experience of becoming “One who confesses Christ”
Do I actively listen to Christ calling out to me?
Do praise and thanksgiving live as part of my soul expression?
Do I actively seek out time to commune with God, to experience true communion with the Divine?
Am I inclined to acknowledge all the blessings and graces that I receive and to live out of them in faith?
Have I found a way to make myself available to my family, friends or community? Am I actively engaged in small acts of service and care concerning those around me?
The more conscious we become of the opportunities that we have to confess Christ the more we become able to participate in the baptising of all people and the bringing about of the kingdom of heaven here on earth.
by Rev. Reingard Knausenberger
In the Old Testament, when Moses asked God for a self-description, the only answer he received was “I AM the I AM”. This is the ultimate power word.
The words I AM express all the creative power in the universe.
It is no coincidence that Jesus only began to use the words ‘I AM’ when describing himself after the experience in the wilderness, after being tested by the adversaries, after the baptism in the Jordan, after the power of the Son of God united with him.
Seven times Jesus speaks these words in the Gospel of John, every time in a different form. And every time the Christ in him reveals another facet of His power.
The words: ‘I AM the bread of life’ make clear how through His power the human organism is re-formed (the double sense of the word) right into its innermost being-ness. In the Lord’s Prayer we also hear the word of bread, which indicates the physical foundation upon which alone our human existence can unfold. ‘I AM the light of the world’ makes apparent how the soul-penetrated life process becomes radiant with light when Christ lives in these.
‘I AM the door’ points to the soul, which opens itself to the spirit of God whenever Christ enters into it. ‘I AM the good shepherd’ shows the mission and responsibility of the human ‘I’, when it begins to feel connected with other human beings in the world. “I AM the resurrection and the life’ expresses that rebirth out of the spirit can happen through Christ, and how then new life unfolds. In this new life the Wholeness of the human Spirit-Being reveals itself. This is apparent in the words: ‘I AM the Way, the Truth and the Life.’ And finally, the words: ‘I AM the true vine’ say that humankind can find the connection to its original source of creation, to the Father God, again through Christ.
After Easter Sunday, the disciples experience this Christ-power manifesting again in different forms, individually, archetypally. The Gospels describe this in the seven-fold appearances of the Risen One. They mirror the progression of the individual soul uniting with the universal power of the I AM. The Ascension experience is then truly: ‘I Am with you always until the end of time’. This expansion, which is all-inclusive, ignites the flame of Whitsun: out of the central sun of I AM, the individual flames of Love. Every year, as we engage with this process, we set our inner bearings a little more clearly and deeply towards this purpose of our human journey. May it continue to rise up from unconsciousness to the clarity of full consciousness.
The words I AM express all the creative power in the universe.
It is no coincidence that Jesus only began to use the words ‘I AM’ when describing himself after the experience in the wilderness, after being tested by the adversaries, after the baptism in the Jordan, after the power of the Son of God united with him.
Seven times Jesus speaks these words in the Gospel of John, every time in a different form. And every time the Christ in him reveals another facet of His power.
The words: ‘I AM the bread of life’ make clear how through His power the human organism is re-formed (the double sense of the word) right into its innermost being-ness. In the Lord’s Prayer we also hear the word of bread, which indicates the physical foundation upon which alone our human existence can unfold. ‘I AM the light of the world’ makes apparent how the soul-penetrated life process becomes radiant with light when Christ lives in these.
‘I AM the door’ points to the soul, which opens itself to the spirit of God whenever Christ enters into it. ‘I AM the good shepherd’ shows the mission and responsibility of the human ‘I’, when it begins to feel connected with other human beings in the world. “I AM the resurrection and the life’ expresses that rebirth out of the spirit can happen through Christ, and how then new life unfolds. In this new life the Wholeness of the human Spirit-Being reveals itself. This is apparent in the words: ‘I AM the Way, the Truth and the Life.’ And finally, the words: ‘I AM the true vine’ say that humankind can find the connection to its original source of creation, to the Father God, again through Christ.
After Easter Sunday, the disciples experience this Christ-power manifesting again in different forms, individually, archetypally. The Gospels describe this in the seven-fold appearances of the Risen One. They mirror the progression of the individual soul uniting with the universal power of the I AM. The Ascension experience is then truly: ‘I Am with you always until the end of time’. This expansion, which is all-inclusive, ignites the flame of Whitsun: out of the central sun of I AM, the individual flames of Love. Every year, as we engage with this process, we set our inner bearings a little more clearly and deeply towards this purpose of our human journey. May it continue to rise up from unconsciousness to the clarity of full consciousness.
by Rev. Bridgette Siepker
During this Easter time, we who live in the Southern Hemisphere get to live more with the forces of darkness and death than with the forces of light and new life. We have already begun to experience the process of contraction and of the beginning of our journey inward. We have started the deep breath of inhalation, whereas those in the north may begin to feel the pull of expansion and of opening up to the light and the warmth. They have begun their great breath of exhalation.
How wonderful it is to ponder these two realities alive and effective at the same time.
We may feel that one set of conditions is more appropriate to the Easter festival than that of the other, and certainly tradition and the material marketing of the season would tell us that Spring speaks directly to the Easter theme of resurrection and new life.
In the interest of holding polarities within us and of being able to open ourselves to more than one reality at a time, we would do well to explore what the Autumn season brings alongside that of the Spring as a reflection of the Easter season. We may have to work a little harder to cultivate the feelings of new life and light when the world directly around us reflects those qualities of death and dying, but when we look a little closer we may see that Autumn herself has a few worthwhile and powerful gifts to share.
If one looks to the Autumn one is reminded and can fully appreciate the process or road to death. The slow and gentle change of colours, the turning, the shedding, the making space for what is to come, the letting go of the old and the waiting for the new, the anticipation, the expectation. What beautiful qualities on which to meditate and to ponder. What worthwhile images to fill our souls with.
Instead of the egg that brings new life in Spring, we may contemplate the myriad of seeds that are slowly ripening. The new life and the potential that each of these seeds holds, the promise and the hope. We may fill our souls with these pictures that can unite with the picture of resurrection and of new life.
We may get to appreciate the warmth of the sun in a different way to how we experience it in the Summer times - a little gentler, a little less harsh. We are able to enjoy more and more of its warming power and how it can enliven and enrich instead of overpower and dominate.
Early morning and early evening light is particularly beautiful in this Easter time. A special quality of light fills the atmosphere, and it is wonderful to become conscious of and to experience it.
Ageing leaves become somewhat translucent as their days in the light become numbered. We can easily be reminded of the light of resurrection in these special moments of the day.
An extra blessing or Easter gift we have on the highveld is the beauty of the cosmos - the Easter Flower. It is always in full bloom at this time of the year even when Easter appears a little later or earlier than the previous year. In touch with the rhythm of nature, in touch with the whereabouts of the moon, connected with the forces at play at this time of the year one has the feeling these flowers have earned their name - the continued opening of buds amidst the Autumn decline, the bourgeoning new life of the flowers, bright colourful and new, ethereal in appearance, butterfly like in petal. And after they have flowered the wealth of seed lays the foundation for the year to come.
How wonderful it is to ponder these two realities alive and effective at the same time.
We may feel that one set of conditions is more appropriate to the Easter festival than that of the other, and certainly tradition and the material marketing of the season would tell us that Spring speaks directly to the Easter theme of resurrection and new life.
In the interest of holding polarities within us and of being able to open ourselves to more than one reality at a time, we would do well to explore what the Autumn season brings alongside that of the Spring as a reflection of the Easter season. We may have to work a little harder to cultivate the feelings of new life and light when the world directly around us reflects those qualities of death and dying, but when we look a little closer we may see that Autumn herself has a few worthwhile and powerful gifts to share.
If one looks to the Autumn one is reminded and can fully appreciate the process or road to death. The slow and gentle change of colours, the turning, the shedding, the making space for what is to come, the letting go of the old and the waiting for the new, the anticipation, the expectation. What beautiful qualities on which to meditate and to ponder. What worthwhile images to fill our souls with.
Instead of the egg that brings new life in Spring, we may contemplate the myriad of seeds that are slowly ripening. The new life and the potential that each of these seeds holds, the promise and the hope. We may fill our souls with these pictures that can unite with the picture of resurrection and of new life.
We may get to appreciate the warmth of the sun in a different way to how we experience it in the Summer times - a little gentler, a little less harsh. We are able to enjoy more and more of its warming power and how it can enliven and enrich instead of overpower and dominate.
Early morning and early evening light is particularly beautiful in this Easter time. A special quality of light fills the atmosphere, and it is wonderful to become conscious of and to experience it.
Ageing leaves become somewhat translucent as their days in the light become numbered. We can easily be reminded of the light of resurrection in these special moments of the day.
An extra blessing or Easter gift we have on the highveld is the beauty of the cosmos - the Easter Flower. It is always in full bloom at this time of the year even when Easter appears a little later or earlier than the previous year. In touch with the rhythm of nature, in touch with the whereabouts of the moon, connected with the forces at play at this time of the year one has the feeling these flowers have earned their name - the continued opening of buds amidst the Autumn decline, the bourgeoning new life of the flowers, bright colourful and new, ethereal in appearance, butterfly like in petal. And after they have flowered the wealth of seed lays the foundation for the year to come.
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We are not alone in the darkness. There is still much life to be enjoyed, colour, scent, beauty and abundance. This is the promise of what is to come in the Easter weeks following Easter Sunday.
Ageing leaves become somewhat translucent as their days in the light become numbered. We can easily be reminded of the light of resurrection in these special moments of the day. An extra blessing or Easter gift we have on the highveld is the beauty of the cosmos - the Easter Flower. It is always in full bloom at this time of the year even when Easter appears a little later or earlier than the previous year. In touch with the rhythm of nature, in touch with the whereabouts of the moon, connected with the forces at play at this time of the year one has the feeling these flowers have earned their name - the continued opening of buds amidst the Autumn decline, the bourgeoning new life of the flowers, bright colourful and new, ethereal in appearance, butterfly like in petal. And after they have flowered the wealth of seed lays the foundation for the year to come. We are not alone in the darkness. There is still much life to be enjoyed, colour, scent, beauty and abundance. This is the promise of what is to come in the Easter weeks following Easter Sunday. |
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by Rev. Reingard Knausenberge
“There is a scene in the movie version of Carl Sagan’s book Contact where the main character, an astronomer who has detected the first radio signal from an alien civilisation, is being considered for the role of humanity’s representative to meet the aliens. The international panel interviewing her asks, ‘If you could ask [the aliens] just one question, what would it be?’ Her reply is: ‘I’d ask them, “How did you do it? How did you evolve, how did you survive this technological adolescence without destroying yourself?’ When I think about where humanity is now with Artificial Intelligence (AI) – about what we’re on the cusp of – my mind keeps going back to that scene, because the question is so apt for our current situation, and I wish we had the aliens’ answer to guide us. I believe we are entering a rite of passage, both turbulent and inevitable, which will test who we are as a species. Humanity is about to be handed almost unimaginable power, and it is deeply unclear whether our social, political, and technological systems possess the maturity to wield it.” (Dario Amodei: The Adolescence of Technology)
How do we evolve into a higher sovereign quality of existence? Is this not our core human question?
Christianity has this question as its ‘creed’ – while knowing ‘whom to ask’. In a certain sense, we could apply the term ‘alien’ to the appearance of Christ on earth through Jesus, the human being. Christ lived and led by example. He showed ‘how to do it’. In Holy Week the answer is given in Deeds, unfolding clearly step by step. He becomes the guide and example we can choose to follow. By initiating choice and freedom, we can now follow, or not, and take responsibility for the consequences. This is unique spiritual new ground!
The ultimate subject is learning and integrating a new ability: Love.
Palm Sunday: General love, an appreciation for life itself and your entire world in its every detail. This includes your body, which gifts us with self-awareness and feeling alive. It carries us through all transformative experiences.
Holy Monday: Discerning Love, the ability to say ‘yes-yes/no-no’. To keep what is sacred protected and discard what hinders, distracts and weighs down.
Holy Tuesday: Courageous Love, to stand up for truth and moral responsibility. To commit to thinking clearly and believing by understanding.
Holy Wednesday: Conscious Love, as we learn to love ourselves, we become sensitive to how unique each person is. Love then comes alive and spreads as healing power.
Maundy Thursday: Unconditional Love, the greatest of all loves. It is Divine Love with no hint of selfishness; requires no action to be taken or rules to be followed, is given without restrictions. The art of loving unconditionally requires a continual devotion to learning. It is love which will not inhibit or possess you. It will carry you through the valley of darkness and death.
Good Friday: Loving yourself unconditionally, you as a spiritual being on a human journey of learning and growing are now able to spread your arms wide and embrace all creation as an expression of yourself.
Silent Saturday: Love as the seed of eternal Life, all renewing, the only power that overcomes, transubstantiates, matter into spirit.
Easter Sunday: Agape LOVE, a completely new original creation of Spirit Power, the only power that can die AND overcome death; the Risen One leads into new dimensions of higher spiritual evolving, if we choose to.
—How do we do it?
“…and even if I walk in the depth of the abyss of death, no fear of evil shall assault me: for You are with me. Your staff supports and consoles me…yes, overflowing Grace: it carries me through all my life.” (Psalm 23)
How do we evolve into a higher sovereign quality of existence? Is this not our core human question?
Christianity has this question as its ‘creed’ – while knowing ‘whom to ask’. In a certain sense, we could apply the term ‘alien’ to the appearance of Christ on earth through Jesus, the human being. Christ lived and led by example. He showed ‘how to do it’. In Holy Week the answer is given in Deeds, unfolding clearly step by step. He becomes the guide and example we can choose to follow. By initiating choice and freedom, we can now follow, or not, and take responsibility for the consequences. This is unique spiritual new ground!
The ultimate subject is learning and integrating a new ability: Love.
Palm Sunday: General love, an appreciation for life itself and your entire world in its every detail. This includes your body, which gifts us with self-awareness and feeling alive. It carries us through all transformative experiences.
Holy Monday: Discerning Love, the ability to say ‘yes-yes/no-no’. To keep what is sacred protected and discard what hinders, distracts and weighs down.
Holy Tuesday: Courageous Love, to stand up for truth and moral responsibility. To commit to thinking clearly and believing by understanding.
Holy Wednesday: Conscious Love, as we learn to love ourselves, we become sensitive to how unique each person is. Love then comes alive and spreads as healing power.
Maundy Thursday: Unconditional Love, the greatest of all loves. It is Divine Love with no hint of selfishness; requires no action to be taken or rules to be followed, is given without restrictions. The art of loving unconditionally requires a continual devotion to learning. It is love which will not inhibit or possess you. It will carry you through the valley of darkness and death.
Good Friday: Loving yourself unconditionally, you as a spiritual being on a human journey of learning and growing are now able to spread your arms wide and embrace all creation as an expression of yourself.
Silent Saturday: Love as the seed of eternal Life, all renewing, the only power that overcomes, transubstantiates, matter into spirit.
Easter Sunday: Agape LOVE, a completely new original creation of Spirit Power, the only power that can die AND overcome death; the Risen One leads into new dimensions of higher spiritual evolving, if we choose to.
—How do we do it?
“…and even if I walk in the depth of the abyss of death, no fear of evil shall assault me: for You are with me. Your staff supports and consoles me…yes, overflowing Grace: it carries me through all my life.” (Psalm 23)
by Rev. Reingard Knausenberger
It is always a special, festive moment to receive a gift, wrapped with care and beautifully presented. The good wishes and loving thoughts and effort that it expresses are already an essential part of what makes it a true gift.
The Act of Consecration of Man is such a true gift. When we receive it at Christmas time, it comes to us from a carefully prepared beautiful altar. Then it becomes apparent: this is only the ‘wrapping’. Even as the year progresses, this ‘gift wrapping’ will change, or rather, show many different colourful layers; like many nuances of love ̶̶ from The Giver.
As with any gift, though, the wrapping is only the beginning. To unpack it with anticipation, interested to see what will reveal itself, is part of the experience.
The joy of discovery is also part of The Act of Consecration.
Then comes the actual content, the real gift, what all the packaging was about. Now what? Sometimes, what reveals itself is not what we expected; sometimes, we don’t immediately recognize what the gift can mean for us. It requires involvement to understand, to work it out and how to integrate it into one’s life. Sometimes, it just needs time to get used to it and discover in daily life, how it can be an enhancement. One thing is certain: what happens with the gift once it is given lies entirely in the freedom of the receiver.
The Act of Consecration of Man is a precious gift. With great care and love, The Giver ‘wraps’ everything into it our heart could wish, hope and strive for, Sunday after Sunday, day after day, so that it may lead us to discoveries of deep, reverent joy.
The Act of Consecration of Man is such a true gift. When we receive it at Christmas time, it comes to us from a carefully prepared beautiful altar. Then it becomes apparent: this is only the ‘wrapping’. Even as the year progresses, this ‘gift wrapping’ will change, or rather, show many different colourful layers; like many nuances of love ̶̶ from The Giver.
As with any gift, though, the wrapping is only the beginning. To unpack it with anticipation, interested to see what will reveal itself, is part of the experience.
The joy of discovery is also part of The Act of Consecration.
Then comes the actual content, the real gift, what all the packaging was about. Now what? Sometimes, what reveals itself is not what we expected; sometimes, we don’t immediately recognize what the gift can mean for us. It requires involvement to understand, to work it out and how to integrate it into one’s life. Sometimes, it just needs time to get used to it and discover in daily life, how it can be an enhancement. One thing is certain: what happens with the gift once it is given lies entirely in the freedom of the receiver.
The Act of Consecration of Man is a precious gift. With great care and love, The Giver ‘wraps’ everything into it our heart could wish, hope and strive for, Sunday after Sunday, day after day, so that it may lead us to discoveries of deep, reverent joy.
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