Psalm 24 - A deeper look at the first verse

and the fullness of each human person

Psalms are the religious songs of ancient Israel. They were composed in Hebrew and have been translated into every language. In English alone there are dozens of translations, each using a variety of words to evoke the feeling or poetic sense the psalms contain.

There are 150 psalms in the Hebrew Scriptures, (aka the Old Testament) and on this blog we periodically consider them spiritually. Sunday's (10/29) post pondered Psalm 24. I'd like to share an additional thought or two about the first verse alone - using what is known as the Grail translation. 

The Lord's is the earth, and its fullness, 

the world and all its peoples. 

Psalm 24:1

The Grail translation uses the word 'fullness.' The world is full or filled with everything we need to live and grow and to be happy. The world's fullness which is its plants: the great forests that cool and oxygenate our planet, and the dandelion which grows up through a crack in the cement. The animal world which is our domestic pets and the enormous migrating herds which struggle to exist against great odds. The ocean world of huge whales and its plankton blanket .

There is also the fullness of the world which is the human inhabitants in all our variety: our colors, facial features, voices, nationalities and cultures. Some people don't like this particular aspect of God's creative imagination; they want everyone to be just like them. What a boring world that would be.

But the earth's fullness might also refer to the fullness which is within each person and which bestows on each a great dignity. Each person is a miniature world. The fullness, which is our inner person, Catholics call the soul. The fullness is our psychology, our personal story, knowledge, relationships, sensibilities and creative gifts or capacities. All of this belongs to God as well. The personal fullness is there for us to use to God's glory and the building up of God's planet-gift. 

It seems to me that religion (especially a religion based on the great reality of God becoming one of us in Christ) ought then to be really good at identifying the dignity of each person: pondering it, respecting and advancing it. Is this what Hindus are doing when, as they greet people, they place their folded hands before their hearts, make eye contact and bow a bit? This is soul recogniton - each person a spark of divinity. This shouldn't be strange to us - God having breathed God's own divine breath into us at creation. (Genesis 2:7). Can you imagine if the Christians really felt this way!

We bow to tabernacles, altars, icons....what if we bowed to each other, at least interiorly!?

The Lord's is the earth, and its fullness, 

the world and all its peoples. 

Psalm 24:1

Psalm 24 ~ The Earth is the Lord's

Verse 1: This psalm invites us to consider, not heaven, but the earth! God's earth. Everything created belongs to God - there is nothing inferior about the earth warranting negative theology or spirituality. The world isn't evil, to be hated, despised or despaired of. Indeed, in Hebrew, world is a poetic word meaning an alive, green, hospitable place prepared for us. 

The psalmist tells us that not only does the earth belong to God but also everything that is in it: its marvels, beauty, variety, mysteries, depths, rhythms and balance. We are to contemplate these things. This is the heart-work which religion is supposed to evoke and encourage. Without heart-work, religion is reduced to theatre and disciplines. 

Verse 2: The world is founded upon the seas. This is the psalmist's cosmology or world-view - that the earth floats on water. But there is more, all the rivers, streams, lakes and seas are expressions of God's providing for all we need. When encountering a person who has anticipated needs, we might say, "You've thought of absolutely everything." We can make that our prayer throughout the day!

Verses 3 and 4: The psalmist asks, Who can ascend to the top of Mount Zion and enter God's temple there? Notice the answer comes back without the use of rubrical, legal or dogmatic words, but heart-words signifying truth, honesty, humility and love. These words describe not just the individual but what makes a nation great. Religion isn't my personal "trip." How do we miss this, making religion into something else?

Verse 5: And just in case we think, "Oh, how can anyone ever achieve such a level of honesty and goodness?" the psalm tells us that God provides the blessings needed. A Catholic might call it grace, which is not a commodity, like a storehouse of goods to draw on when supplies run short, but the unfailing, generous sharing of God's own gifts and energies.

Verse 6: "Such is the generation of those who seek him...who seek God's face." This verse is like a tree's buds set in the fall, anticipating the leafing out or the flowering in Spring - because the ancients could only imagine God's face, but we're the ones who have seen God's face in Jesus Christ.  I want to feel the deep desire to contemplate that face, which is not a sentiment, but the stirring up of love within me: mercy, compassion, justice, goodness. 

Verses 7-10: Here in these final three verses we hear two antiphonal choirs. Antiphonal means they sing in a dialogue, back and forth, each answering the other. We can imagine the drama and emotional charge of hearing it. The Ark of the Covenant, containing the stone tablets of the law given to Moses by God at Sinai, this ark is being carried on poles into the great temple in Jerusalem. Lift up the gates, lift up the gates even higher, so that God - the King of Glory may enter!  The Christian understands that it is the gates or doors of my heart that need to be lifted up - opened up - wider and higher! The cry in the Book of Revelation 22:20 is, Maranatha, "Come Lord, Jesus!"

A final thought. Notice in the sung dialogue there are two exchanges: "The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle." Then the second time calling God more simply, "The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory." "Mighty in battle" has been dropped. Perhaps it is an indication of ancient Israel abandoning the notion of a warrior-God. If so, there are more than a few Christians who might take the hint, and stop applying to God a feature or character trait which even God has dropped.

Intercessions ~ Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time

There are one hundred and thirty million girls in the world who are not in school./ They are lost in arranged child-marriages,/ working/ or living in the chaos of war./ We pray for them/ and for anyone who would obstruct their growth as full human persons./ We pray to the Lord.

Our country talks a great deal about money./ We pray for the world's children/ who need food,/ shelter,/ medicine and education./ And that we would not senselessly worship money./ We pray to the Lord.

In goodness,/ God calls us his own dear children./ As a new week begins,/ may we remain far from anything that would grieve or offend the truth of this relationship./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for the eight-hundred thousand people living in refugee camps in Bangladesh and Myanmar,/ many thousands of whom are children./ We ask a new heart for our world./ We pray to the lord.

May we remain awake and attentive this week,/ and eager to help any who are troubled,/ needy,/ weak or suffering./ We pray to the Lord.

The devil is busy these days:/ the prince of lies,/ sadness and bitter divisions./ We ask to be kept safe,/ trusting of God/ and clean of heart./ We pray to the Lord.

We place before God/ our families,/ friendships and all our relationships,/ and as God sees fit,/ we ask for the healing of wounds and growth in goodness./ We pray to the Lord.

Take A Minute Meditation

For you shall go out in joy

and be led forth in peace; 

the mountains and hills before you

shall break forth into singing,

and all the trees of the field

shall clap their hands.

Isaiah 55:12

It's not really about the coin

A number of Pharisees and men of Herod's party were sent to trap Jesus with a question. They came and said, 'Master, we know that you are an honest man, that you are not afraid of anyone, because human rank means nothing to you, and that you teach the way of God in all honesty. Are we or are we not permitted to pay taxes to the Roman Emperor? Shall we pay or not?' He saw how crafty their question was, and said, 'Why are you trying to catch me out? Fetch me a silver piece, and let me look at it.' They brought one, and he said to them, 'Whose portrait is this? Whose title?' 'Caesar's', they replied. Then Jesus said, 'Pay Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and pay God what belongs to God.' And they were amazed at him. Mark 12: 13-17

The Bible is often used by people to defend their own likes and dislikes. Sometimes people ignore biblical scholarship because it might steal away from them some treasured belief. It might deny them their "right" to be angry or even hateful. This Gospel account is an example of that. There are Christians who think Jesus is teaching us to pay our taxes. Still others say that Jesus is teaching Christians about tithing to their church. It's not that at all.

"Pay Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and pay God what belongs to God." The real question is: What belongs to God?" I do. I belong to God. I bear God's image. And Jesus is insisting here that God have what belongs to God. 

And what might we look like if we understood this about ourselves AND about every other person on  this planet? For starts:

• All the arguing would stop, because God doesn't argue.
• The planet destruction would stop, because God is a creator.
• The disrespect would stop, because God has breathed God's life into us.
• Justice and the common good would really matter to us because we are all God's dear children.
• We would be spiritually wide awake, because God doesn't sleep.
• And the child-killing wars, war-preparations and weapon-sales would stop, because even though in the Old Testament (Hebrew Scriptures) God can be a buster, wiping out whole cities and armies, God changed that MO in Christ who heals, blesses, forgives, embraces, feeds, consoles, lifts up, restores...

The little coin belongs to Caesar because it bears his image. And I belong to God (and you, and you, and you, and you) because we bear God's image.

Intercessions ~ Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Give purpose,/ joy and comfort to those who are despairing,/ or who feel no purpose in their lives,/ who may even be thinking of suicide./ We pray to the Lord.

Bless Pope Francis as he seeks to teach the world/ that holiness is the brightness of God's love,/ and that love is never idle/ but must accomplish wonderful things./ We pray to the Lord.

Bring to sobriety and clarity/ any who suffer from mental illness/ or who feel their lives have been claimed by darkness./ We pray to the Lord.

Guard the children being raised in unbelief./ Bless parents and guardians with gifts of patience,/ wisdom,/ light-heartedness and strength./ We pray to the Lord.

Offer heaven's light to politicians,/ where they have forgotten the common good,/ where they have placed party over country,/ where they take bribes,/ blame,/ lie or pander,/ where their votes leave people anxious and pained./ We pray to the Lord.

Again we pray for those suffering from the violence in Las Vegas,/ or in states afflicted by hurricanes and fires./ And may we never forget that in other countries/ this kind of loss and sorrow is felt everyday./ We pray to the Lord.

O Jesus, I Have Promised

The text for this lovely hymn was written by John E. Bode (1816-1874). The tune was composed by William H. Ferguson (1874-1950) to celebrate the Confirmation of his son and daughter in 1866. The hymn is described as a "warm and personal expression of Christian commitment giving musical expression to St. John's Gospel 12:15-26 where Jesus says, "If anyone serve me, let him follow me, and where I am, there shall also my servant be."

One critic writes that the hymn is too personal, failing to mention  our membership in a larger Christian community and that the verses do not reflect that God has known us long before we have known God. But I would say it is unfair to expect a hymn, or poem, or book to say everything.

Let's contemplate these faces of Jesus as we listen carefully, and enjoy the gifts which poet and composer have shared with us. Oh, that our hearts would be changed for knowing and following Christ.

O Jesus, I have promised

To serve thee to the end:

Be thou forever near me,

My Master and my friend; 

I shall not fear the battle,

If thou art by my side,

Nor wander from the pathway, 

If thou wilt be my guide.

O let me hear thee speaking

In accents clear and still,

Above the storms of passion,

The murmurs of self will;

O speak to reassure me,

To hasten or control;

O speak, and make me listen,

Thou guardian of my soul.

O Jesus, thou hast promised 

To all who follow thee,

That where thou art in glory

There shall thy servant be;

And, Jesus, I have promised

To serve thee to the end;

O give me grace to follow,

My Master and my friend.

Byzantine Prayer of Thanksgiving After Holy Communion

Byzantine priest at Communion

Here is a very beautiful prayer that can be prayed after receiving Holy Communion - beseeching the God of our personal and communal transformation. Notice the words fire and burn appear a couple of times: "You are fire and burn the unworthy," and "Burn up the thorns of my sins."  There are more than a few Christians who love this kind of talk. They have in mind a fiery God who is perpetually in a bad mood and angry with a world he regrets having made. They imagine God reserving his blue flames for those who are not like them. How tiresome. To be sure, God is fiery, but God's only fire is love. I didn't make that up.

"Come Holy Spirit, 

fill the hearts of your faithful

 and kindle in them the fire of your love..."

Here's the Post Communion Prayer:

O You who give me willingly Your flesh for food, You who are fire and burn the unworthy, consume me not, O my Maker, but rather pass through me for the integration of my members, into all  my joints, my affections, and my heart. Burn up the thorns of all my sins. Purify my soul, sanctify my mind; strengthen my knees and bones. Enlighten my five senses. Establish me wholly in your Love.

And what would we look like if our five senses were enlightened  by the fire of God's love? And what would we look like if God's fire of love got into even our joints?

Intercessions ~ Twenty Eighth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Monday is World Food Day./ The world is on the move because of conflicts,/ political unrest,/ changing weather and food shortages./ We pray not only for the hungry world,/ but for the world of plenty./ May we be the creators of  that justice which leaves no one without food and potable water./ We pray to the Lord.

At Mass today/ St. Paul writes to the Philippians,/ "I am able to do all things in him who strengthens me."/ That we would be spiritually awake,/ and sufficiently still within ourselves,/ to know what it is God asks of us each day,/ and the willingness and generosity to do it./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for the babies who will be born this week/ may they be welcomed and loved./ For the children who are born already addicted,/ or born into poverty or chaos./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for the grace to change our minds about someone this week./ For gifts of perseverance,/ patience,/ and a teachable spirit./ We pray to the Lord.

For the state of California where vast and destructive fires are burning./ For the strengthening and protection of the brave people who fight fires./ We pray for those who have lost everything./ We pray to the Lord.

We remember in our prayer those who are ill,/ in chronic or debilitating pain./ For those who struggle daily with permanent handicaps,/ and those for whom there is no cure./ We pray to the Lord.

Elder Joseph ~ Thoughts on Love and Intercession for the World

Elder Joseph (1897-1959) was a Greek monk and spiritual father to the small monastic community of Little Saint Anne's, Mount Athos. There are many books about his life and spiritual teaching, but here is a reflection he offered about intercessory prayer for the world and its power to call forth love. Perhaps you feel powerless before the many troubles and dangers of the world. Every Thursday the post here offers intercessions that may be used in anticipation of Sunday Mass. Of course, they may be prayed any time.

Elder Joseph used to tell us that the experience of love for one's neighbor is revealed to the person who prays in truth, and more specifically, "When grace is operative in the soul to someone who is praying, then he is flooded with the love of God, so that he can no longer bear what he experiences. Afterwards, this love turns towards the world and humankind, whom he comes to love so much that he seeks to take upon himself the whole of human pain and misfortune so that everyone else might be freed from it. In general, he suffers with every grief and misery, and even for the animals, so that he weeps when he thinks that they are suffering. These are properties of love, but it is prayer that activates them and calls them forth. This is why those who are advanced in prayer do not cease to pray for the world. To them belongs even the continuation of life, however strange and audacious this may seem. And you should know that, if such people disappear, then the end of this world will come." Recollection of Elder Joseph of Vatopedi Monastery 

In the world today it wouldn't be surprising to hear someone object, even among Catholics: "Oh, this monk is just too much; so extreme - taking upon himself the whole of human pain and misfortune, suffering with every grief and misery even for animals, keeping the world in existence if intercession disappeared." But I would add, the whole world is a place of extremes.

• An individual might be extremely rude, dishonest or unkind.
• The Weather Channel talks about extreme weather.
• We see extremes in sexy entertainment. Too much!
• There are athletes, executive or "stars" who are paid extremely    high salaries.
• We might say that an out-of-control persona is extreme.
• We might think taxes or a workman's bid to be extreme.
• Maybe we know someone who is extremely funny.

But why are all these extremes acceptable or "just the way it is," but a monk's insights about the depth of love intercessory prayer can elicit from a human heart - that's naive, unrealistic, extreme?

Psalm 77 ~ Remembering God's Favors

The psalmist seems to be all over the place here in Psalm 77. As we pray through the verses, notice the great shifts in energy or mood. In a heartbeat he transitions from sleepless worrying and lament to proclaiming God's wonderful deeds. This kind of tension is seen in many psalms, but we'll notice that no matter how deep the psalmist's despair may be, the psalm always ends with a tender reaffirmation of faith and hope in God's goodness and care.

Verses 1 and 2:  Right from the start we feel the psalmist's tension. We can relate. The first verse is in the future tense, "I will cry aloud," "God will hear me."  Then in the second verse he quickly shifts to the past tense, "I sought the Lord," "my hands were stretched out." The psalmist is also something of an insomniac - anguishing through the night. Maybe his troubles press on him so deeply he doesn't even want to hear a word that might help to make things better. 

Verses 3 and 4:  This fellow is in a bad way. He tells God he is feeling restless. We can imagine him in the night with his eyes wide open. He feels as if he's fainting inside. Words don't even adequately express what he's feeling. Ever experienced anything like that? Ugh!

Verses 5 and 6: What beautiful words he uses to describe his inner life: consider, remember, commune, ponder, search. These are soul-words. And with the psalmist, I can consider the "days of old and the years long past." What has upheld me and brought me to today? Maybe I can tell of something wonderful having happened to me over the years that I could never have dreamed of - something I might consider a great blessing and a sign of God's closeness through the worst of it.

Verses 7, 8 and 9: These verses feel like what's called a dark night of the soul. All consolations have left him. He can't see the light at the end of the tunnel. In the present moment he feels abandoned by God. He knows that God grants favors, is full of loving-kindness, and compassion, but now he worries that God might even be angry with him. Poor fellow. We might know this place or someone close who suffers this way. 

Verses 10 and 11: In these verses the psalmist is having a real heart-to-heart with himself. What a struggle! He says to God, "Maybe you're not omnipotent after all." Then he shifts again, remembering all God has done for him and his people. He's very fair with God: calling to mind God's wonders of old and meditating on God's mighty past deeds. 

Verse 13: "Who is so great a god as our God?" Notice he says "our God." He recognizes he's not alone but is part of a larger community. We might shout-out confidence that God will see the Church through difficult times, where there is scandal, indifference, persecution, divisions and closures. I'm remembering that as a boy, one of the first things I learned about God came off of television: God is good; God is great... That was the way the Romper Room Gace Before a Snack began.  I never want to forget that.

Verses 14 and 15: This fellow seems to acknowledge that there are other gods, but only his God works wonders. Of course there are other gods; we create them all the time. Anything that we think is really supreme or first or matters the most. Remember the monk who went into one of the well-known stores with the million products for sale: "The THINGDOM come" he called it.

Verses 16-19: Here he celebrates the manifestations of God through the power of nature: the ground being shaken, the torrential rains, the turbulent sea, the crashing thunder, the whirlwind. We've largely lost this sense, living in climate controlled spaces, never touching the soil, observing the remaining wild places only through a calendar page, magazine, TV documentary or movie. I'm wondering, if the "ground being shaken" might be a poetic reference to our own personal inner ground being shaken - a personal upheaval, where some person or event shakes us to the core, after which everything is changed for us. God can be there.

Verse 20: And then, after all the inner grief, tension and struggle to believe, the psalmist falls into the hands of God who he likens to a shepherd, so gentle, aware, sensitive and protective. The Christian sees an anticipation of Jesus who knows the sheep by name. Let's run to read where Jesus tells us about these things: John 10:1-21!

Intercessions ~ Twenty Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time

Wednesday is the feast of Saint Pope John XXIII who said,/ "The true and solid peace of nations consists not in equality of arms, but in mutual trust alone."/ May the leaders of the nations understand./ We pray to the Lord.

We ask blessings for the heroes and Good Samaritans of this past week in Las Vegas,/ the first responder teams and rescuers,/ hospital staff,/ blood donors,/ grief counselors and helpers./ We pray for the healing of the many injured and those who mourn the loss of loved ones./ We pray to the Lord.

May our nation go beyond, condolences, "thoughts and prayers"/ and be brave enough to address the serious questions concerning mental health care/ and the epidemic of gun violence afflicting us./ We pray to the Lord.

We pray for anyone in pain./ For those awaiting a diagnosis or an operation,/ who are nervous,/ worried or afraid of the future./ For those who feel they can no longer cope./ We pray to the Lord.

Take from us the unteachable spirit which will not learn,/ the ungrateful spirit which does not think to offer thanks,/ the unhappy spirit,/ unsettled and complaining./ We pray to the Lord.

For those who died this week,/ who await your compassionate word of forgiveness/ and the joy of heaven's welcome./ We pray to the Lord.

It is the Feast of Saint Francis

El Greco ~ St. Francis Before the Crucifix

Today is the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi who died in 1226. The prayer below is usually attributed to Francis, and even if he didn't really compose it, the thoughts are surely his. It is a good prayer to pray at the start of each day.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, let me sow pardon;
where there is discord, let me sow unity;
where there is doubt, let me sow faith;
where there is despair, let me sow hope;
where there is darkness, let me sow light;
where there is sadness, let me sow joy.

O divine master,
grant that I may not so much 
seek to be consoled as to console; 
to be understood as to understand;
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are 
  born to eternal life. Amen

Could I add a little nuance to the phrase, "That I may not so much seek to be loved as to love." There's nothing wrong with hoping to be loved. Many people in the world are loved by no one; their pain is very deep. Conversely, there are some people who love themselves so much. It can be very unattractive. But everything must be kept in balance. Wherever we experience the love of others - we pray to be deeply grateful and humbled. To be loved is a very great gift and a wonderful sign of God's love for us, as we are God's own dear children.

Mother of God ~ Joy Of All Who Sorrow

This is the chapel of the Mother of God ~ Joy of All Who Grieve, or Joy of All Who Sorrow. The chapel was built to house an icon with the same title and to memorialize the tragedy of 1972, Svetlogorsk, Russia, when a military plane crashed into a kindergarten school. We live on a dangerous planet; grieving is all around us. To grieve is to feel a deep sadness over loss. Grief is to suffer heart-ache - a broken heart.

But look, the chapel door is open! We are invited to enter, to approach the icon with our heart-concerns, our awareness of and sharing in the grief of others.

Look carefully at the six scenes depicted to left and right. There is an endangered ship, a whole community behind brambles or wires, (are they martyrs?), the wounded, the elderly, even a soldier with a cane (is this a wounded veteran?), an angel escorting a procession of small children wandering in wilderness, and mothers carrying lifeless infants.

Then yesterday, the tragedy of Las Vegas, and I thought of George Harrison's 1973 post Beatles song, Give Me Love (Give me peace on earth). The song is a pleading prayer, asking for divine help.

Give me love
Give me love
Give me peace on earth
Give me light
Give me life
Keep me free from birth
Give me hope
Help me cope, with this heavy load
Trying to, touch and reach you with,
heart and soul.

O my Lord
Please take hold of my hand, that
I might understand you

Won't you please
Oh won't you

Give me love
Give me love
Give me peace on earth
Give me light
Give me life
Keep me from from birth
Give me hope
Help me cope, with this heavy load
Trying to, touch and reach you with,
heart and soul.

The Feodorovskaya Mother of God ~ In the Thicket

The story goes that on August 16, 1239, Prince Vasily was hunting alone in the forest when he came across an icon of the Mother of God standing upright in the thicket. When he reached out to touch the image, it disappeared. Awestruck, he told the people of the city of his discovery and they returned with him to the exact spot in the forest where they found the icon as he had. Overjoyed, (who wouldn't be) they transported the icon to the Cathedral of the Assumption. The icon is still revered even to today.

These legends surrounding the discoveries of icons all begin to sound alike after you've read three or four of them. That doesn't matter, in each there is some word or phrase that seems to jump out to offer us some spiritual insight. 

The prince found the icon in the thicket. A thicket is a dense growth of bushes or trees, thorns and brambles. Small animals hide in the thicket or like the ram in the story of Abraham getting ready to sacrifice son-Isaac, we can get caught in the thicket. Jeremiah the Prophet (4:7) tells us that danger can lurk in the thicket. 

The lion is up from his thicket
the destroyer of nations is on his way,
he has come from his home
to reduce your land to a desert;
your towns will be in ruins, uninhabited.

Like forest and fog, sometimes the thicket can be an image of our personal or communal inner state. Prince Vasily perhaps reached out to heaven from the thicket of what, we don't know: his vanity, pride, power-quest, anger, selfishness? We can come before the icon of the Feodorovskaya Mother of God here, from the thicket of our own inner emotion, where we might be stuck or hiding. Or perhaps we sense something dark or dangerous lurking within. Pray we know ourselves well enough to identify it. Then our prayer can be real, coming from a felt place.

Mother of God,
appear before me in the thicket of my emotions,
my anxieties,
my exhausting need to control,
my rambling and fruitless thoughts,
my inappropriate attractions
and the desire to possess.

Mother of God,
find me in the thicket
where negative belief lurks -
that comfortable religion of
judging and
demarcating.
criticizing,
pronouncing and 
condemning.
Unleash a love in me
that takes the world into my heart,
wishing only wholeness,
healing, 
salvation and good 
for each.

Father Stephen Morris