As we look to Holy Week and the Easter joy that awaits us, may we trust that the God of Love goes with us. And as we look to the future and imagine all that can be, may we know that love is at the center of all to which God calls us.
Below I’m leaving you with a writing by Teilhard de Chardin that I shared with the staff recently. We all agreed that patience and trust in God are good things to practice. We also acknowledged that we often find it difficult to trust and be patient. Reading the words of Teilhard de Chardin aloud to one another, we noted the words and phrases that resonated with us–“stages of instability”, “we like to skip the intermediate stages”, and “feeling incomplete.” There is no shame in feeling these things. It’s not a mark of a shallow spiritual life. It’s a reminder that we are human. This Sunday we observe Palm Sunday and begin our journey through Holy Week. It is a time when we recall the humanity of Jesus. I imagine he had moments where his patience was wearing thin. I am sure he even had moments where his trust in God was shaky at best. Upon the cross, the scriptures tell us that Jesus cried out, “My God, My God, why have you forsaken me?” Pain and agony–our own and the world’s–are perhaps among the reasons we find waiting and trust so difficult. Yet even in the seasons when it seems as if our faith is full of doubt and our spiritual life is dry, the God of the universe is at work in ways we cannot see to bring life, wholeness, and joy.
Dear ones, I am not sure what you are having to wait for this day. I won’t tell you to be patient. I won’t tell you to trust–or “Just have faith.” To do so sounds like an accusation. Instead, know that I hold you close. And whenever the joy of Easter feels out of reach, may love guide us anyway.
What a joy to be your pastor!
Teresa
