Sometimes the day just doesn't turn out the way you thought ...

"As for me, I am already being poured out as a libation, and the time of my departure has come.  I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.  From now on there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will give me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have longed for his appearing." 2 Timothy 4:6-8 

We are all in shock. Rob was such a remarkable man and truly a gift to so many. We will miss him, but none more than you his family. I pray that God will be close to you in your grief. God is great! And we look forward to the day when we will all be together again, Rob cheering the boys on--and a big Happy Gram is posted on the pearly gates of Heaven.

Sincerely, The Young's--Linda, Chris, Chris and Ben

     This was what I wrote Saturday on the Care Pages site for my son's teacher/coach who died that day: losing an 8 month battle with cancer. The teacher, Rob, was a great guy. I don't think I have ever heard a complaint about him. He was a gym teacher in the elementary school and I remember my son Chris coming home in first grade waiving above his head a colorful piece of paper that said Happy Gram. All the kids in the class eventually got one--but he gave them on a day a particular kid really needed a boost, or on a day that a kid tried super hard. They, and he, meant the world to my sons. Without a doubt their favorite teacher; ever.

   So, how do you talk to your 11 and 13 year old about the death of a man who is the same age as their Dad; younger than me? How do you talk to two rather anxious boys about the separation of death when they have trouble being in the basement alone? Sure, they have both experienced the death of their cat, their grandfather and grandmother--but they were old, and had lived full lives--okay, we're not sure about the cat but it was a relief to not have him throwing up fur balls all day.

     I'm not sure how to talk to myself about it. I believe in a resurrection of the dead--but so many times we turn this into a denial of death. Things and people end--even good things and good people. We need to mourn and feel sad. Denial never solves anything. I guess I'll have to pray about this for a while. I don't have any easy answers. Aren't clergy supposed to have the answers in these types of situations?

     I don't. Its painful, senseless and we all have a barrage of feelings. And the truth is, we clergy are nothing if we're not human.

   The best we can do is what Rob was a clear example of :  hold tight to family, pray, cling to God and live life to the fullest knowing someday we all will follow the way of death.

"Eternal rest grant on to him oh Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him. May he rest in peace. May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace. Amen."

Baptism over Skype

      The baptism this past Sunday at St. Philip Parish in Northside, Cincinnati, featured the ancient symbols of water and anointing combined with the modern technology of Skype. Two parishioners were baptized but the Godparents of little Xavion were not able to be there in person due to some medical issues that had come up the week before. Not letting a little thing like distance get in the way of welcoming new members to the Christian community, the Vicar Rev. Debbie Gamble asked her tech savvy daughter Lindy to see if she could come up with a solution. The answer was Skype, an application that allows voice and video calls over the internet for free. The application was already set up at the Godparent's house, since they had been using it to talk to and see relatives in Europe, and Lindy was already using Skype with her friends, so it was simple to put together. Sunday morning found them with a few minor glitches, like not having audio from the Godparents, but with a little help from some visitors, all was fixed and we could all see and hear each other just fine.

  

 We all listened and watched in person at the parish, which meets at the Churches Active in Northside (CAIN) site, and Sally and Karl (the Godparents) could hear everything over the internet and see it on their computer screen "live". When their moment came, we all heard clearly as they said, "I will, with God's help." It was a 21^st Century way of saying that nothing can stand between God's love and all of God's children. Water and oil on one end of the line; pixels and clicks on the other, and two new members were brought into God's family.

One Prayer Service Down ... And we danced.

     Inspiration hit me in the shower as it usually does and the prayer service came together for the retreat. But as usually happens, the retreatants are the ones that really run with it and make it have a life of its own. Today was the story of outsiders and God's invitation to all to come to the feast.We shared rice cakes, pretty purple yogurt and berry rice cakes, and remembered those who were outsiders in our society today; and those we knew who needed an invitation to come and be a part of God's banquet.

     I think we tend to forget that everyone is an outsider in some way. None of us are perfect, none of us really deserve all the bounteous gifts that our God bestows on us. It is God who loves us so generously. What else can we do when we are so loved, but love in return. And who should we love--well, who does our lover love? Everyone."We are all held in that same precious love..." as Julian of Norwich says.
    Matt 22 says, in the inclusive language translation, that the good and the bad came in to the feast. Loving the good and the bad--wow, that's a tall order.
   Oh, yeah, we danced ... What else can you do at a wedding feast but dance. At least that's what they did when I was growing up ...come to think of it that was the best part of Chris' and my wedding: lots of people danced, and we did too. And today we closed our prayer with the hymn "Lord of the Dance" and every one of us held hands and danced around the circle. (Now this was no "River Dance". Some folks could barely walk, but they did their best to dance, and they did pretty well.)
     That's how I image God these days. (While trying to hold together being a mother, preacher, retreat leader and seminarian. Some days I'm clicking along and other days I wake up needing a nap.) I image God dancing ...with me ...and God reaches for me ...  and I hold on ...and try to dance....and not step on God's feet ... too much!