was their obligation to see that the children learned their prayers and prayed at appropriate times. What was the best way of doing that?

Transcription

1 GOD? There have been many concepts of Gods in the history of the world. Their popularity waxed and waned. For example, Ares, the Olympian God of war and discord, doesn t have much of a following these days. So as far as Ares is concerned, I am an atheist. I don t believe in him. I don t try to pacify him, or worship him. In some sense, we are all atheists. I mean, we all do not believe in somebody else s particular concept of God. When you get right down to it what does God mean anyway?

2 Bede Griffiths ( ) a Catholic-Benedictine monk, wanted to take the word God out of its traditional box. Father Bede was active in Christian ashrams in South India where he was known as Swami Dayananda. Here is the question he continually asked himself and others, Is what Jews-Christians-Muslims call God a person? Or could it be thought of impersonally, like the Hindu Brahma? Or could it be simply a state, as the Buddhist Nirvana? Bede seemed to want his soul to dwell in a temple in which Christ was a significant corner. But did he ever find a definitive answer to the God question? Not as far as I know. Have you? Sister Marti liked God being what was described in Martin Buber s ( ) phrase, Going to meet that which is coming to meet me. Paul Tillich s ( ) definition of God as the Ground of Being resonates with many friends. If forced to, I sort of go along with the psychiatrist Karl Jaspers ( ) idea that we can t make God into an object: The God of faith is the distant God, the hidden God, the indemonstrable God. OK, but do I talk to God sometimes? Yep. I did last night. Isn t that inconsistent? Probably. But a lot depends on what s going on. Last night a friend was hurting and I felt helpless. I sort of took deep breaths and reached out into the unknown for help. Spiritually things seem to be changing quickly, When I was growing up, a long time ago, most people went to church. There were public prayers that we were all expected to memorize. Western religions relied heavily on words. For some people kneeling in the pew with me, these words had deep meaning, but for most of us, they eventually became just something we did. Parents felt that it

3 was their obligation to see that the children learned their prayers and prayed at appropriate times. What was the best way of doing that? In 1983 a Catholic publishing house brought out a book of mine Guiding God's Children: The Foundation for Spiritual Growth in the Home. In that book I suggested that the best way to help a child make a connection with the sacred element in their lives was to invite her or him to participate in the prayer-life of the parent. But times have radically changed in the past 30 years! To begin with, most parents do not take their family to religious weekly services. Occasions for public prayer have become much fewer. For a variety of reasons, it is difficult for an older generation stepping out of, and often away from a mainline Judeo- Christian heritage to share their spiritual life. There's a lot of ambiguity. How do you convey that without confusing a child? In fact, there is often a reversal happening. Today s young people often feel a lack of connection to a spiritual compass. They are shopping around on Google, among friends, and in weekend meditation sessions with names that most of us have trouble even pronouncing correctly. But it is still a good idea for families or important circles of relationships to share their spiritual journey. The difference is that younger people are often guiding us older ones. Want an example? What we call the Lord's Prayer or the Our Father pops up rather regularly in services here. A couple of younger people, whose central spiritual practice is some form of meditation, wanted to be more comfortable when they joined with us older ones. So, they suggested rewriting the Our Father! You can imagine what emotions that set off in me, who memorized this prayer about 80 years ago and have been comfortably using it every since. Nonetheless, this turned into a remarkable sharing of spiritual paths. The process was amazing for me. It was much more important than the product which I have not yet been able to

4 memorize and perhaps that's a good thing. As the form began to emerge, I had the strong feeling that Jesus would have encouraged what was going on. I have since found out this is a process in many present spiritual circles! Well, what we composed here may never be on my prayer autopilot but I never use it without feeling an encounter with what I understand as God. Some of you will want to know what came out. I'll put it down below but it's not nearly as significant as one that your family or circle of friends could create. Loving God, in whom is heaven, may your name be honored everywhere. May your peaceable kingdom come. May your desire of your heart for the world be done, in us, by us and through us. Give us each day the nourishment we need. Forgive us our transgressions and enable us to forgive others. Keep us from anxiety and fear and guide us to live rightly. Amen. Most of us end with Amen. Some also whisper Namaste meaning, I recognize the Divine Spark in you, in me, in Life! To my surprise, I have started doing that too. WelI, the fact is I do recognize the Divine Spark in you, in me, in Life! Brother Toby Donations are greatly appreciated and enable us to continue our work here at Starcross. Click on this link to donate: Starcross Monastic Community, community@starcross.org, Please to your Safe Senders List to ensure that they are not sent to your spam/junk folder.

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