Mr. Shiver’s Story I met him in late September around St. Robert’s Day, 1997. He was with his siblings in a tall fenced-in enclosure on a very cold day. My friend Glenn in Baltimore had these puppies and said, “Hey, Bob, come get one.” This little guy wandered over to my toes on the other side of the fence. He was shivering. And that’s how he got his name. Humankind forever ask the question: Is this all there is? The transformation of a caterpillar to a butterfly is a natural symbol of the resurrection. Read this reflection and ponder the question anew for yourself. It begins with a charming story about two dastardly caterpillars named Joe and Pete eating up Mrs. Murphy's award-winning garden in East Oshgosh, Wisconsin and I take up from there. Enjoy and have a Happy Easter -- even if it's the day after New Year's! Communicating in the Style of Jesus ~ Part 7 Our society teaches us that "might makes right." That force must be met with counter force. Jesus' journey led him to enter Jerusalem triumphantly -- not with a military escort but on a donkey -- a humble beast of burden. And a few days later, he met his enemies, not with the power of a mighty army of heavenly hosts, but with open hands and a peaceful heart. The way of Jesus is once and for all the way of nonviolence. That is the central message of the Cross and, therefore the whole of Christianity. Why? Why don't we get it? You may want to use this when you do the exercises. The Emergence of the True Self In order to come to wholeness, we must find our true, authentic self. Each one of us has to do our own inner work to struggle with the dualisms which tear us apart inside. We need to put our inner life in order and become master of our soul and become the author of our language that "programs" our mind and our relationship with our world and other people and with God. You will need this "Some feeling words sheet" to assist you. Communicating in the Style of Jesus ~ Part 5: Recognizing our Inner Voices We all have harsh voices that inhabit our head from the past or the present that influence our behavior and our speech. We can learn to recognize them and seal off their influence upon us so the voice of our own True Self will emerge and take charge. This reflection has an exercise to help you recognize whose voices those are and how you can change the influence they have over you. You will need this "Some feeling words sheet" to assist you. Arise December 2010 - Our God becomes Flesh What's the meaning of the Incarnation ~ the Christmas story? Jesus came among to show us that accepting the poverty of our human condition is the only way that we can become like God, like Him. In other words, To get to heaven we have to get down and dirty first! We have to become poor in order to become rich. Interesting isn’t it? Advent hope for us and our country May we reflect on how these traditional Advent themes speak to the present crisis in our country: Being prepared and vigilant for whatever might come; always remaining hopeful that God will bring us out of our darkness into his wonderful light. Blest is she who trusted (and we who trust) I’d like to share with you my reflection on St. Luke's story of the Annunciation (1:26-46) that uncovered for me some astonishing insights about Mary’s process of discernment. It has profoundly influenced my life. A very, very long time ago, in the beginning, there was night. Only night. No song to be heard, no music; a Word to be spoken, but no world to be spoken to. But there were some who longed for a new Word to be spoken. Then one starry night... "This is a reprint of a wonderful story about my dog Shivvy while I was in Baltimore in 2004. Shivvy was eight years old at the time. Enjoy." And then there's THE OWL AND THE LION ~ a Christmas story for Children of all Ages.
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We Have Met The Enemy And He Is Us -- Arise October/November 2010 Remember Pogo and his creator, Walt Kelly? We need a little Walt Kelly’s arse-kickin’, humor. (He’s kickin you and me very firmly in the lower regions of our posteriors as he declare to ALL of us that "WE HAVE MET THE ENEMY AND HE IS US!" Subsuming Pogo's phrase I take his prophecy seriously and invite us (but also warn us) to move forward toward unity, civility and prayer in this tense election season. There are ominous clouds on the horizon, if we do not find a way to heal our wounds and heal our nation before the gathering storm that already rumbles. How could we have gotten it all so wrong? -- Arise September 2010 About a year ago I began thinking about how broken my life had become. But that was just the beginning. In this, the 67th year of my life, somehow, someway, something, Someone changed me. All of this has led to a new perspective on my life, on my faith and my church: We need to know how loved we are by God so we can live OUT OF acceptance and not FOR acceptance.
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