I am enjoying a quiet morning, putting together bits for a retreat on Hildegard I’m giving. But mostly I am enjoying the relative quiet as every news source in our area is heralding the emergence of the cicadas. The smallest tree in the courtyard at work is wrapped. The trees wrapped in tulle look so ephemeral, it is easy to forget why they need that as protection.
It reminds me of the many people who exist in a similar state - who wrap them selves with humor, quirkiness, beauty, edginess - all to protect themselves. To some extent, I think we all do. Perhaps as we see these trees carefully wrapped we can remember that just as others protect the trees, so we too can be careful, loving, and mindful around each other this summer.
Peace,
Jenn
Questions? Comments? Interested in contributing? Contact Jenn at jennifer@wisdomsdwelling.com.
Commitment to Collective Liberation
By Josie Diebold
This zero-sum is everywhere. It can be seen as we turn on the news, scroll social media, listen to politicians and decision makers, or peek behind the veil of institutions. But the zero-sum is a lie. The zero-sum is the fast track to collective demise and destruction – not liberation.
Read more from Josie’s great piece on the Gospel and community organizing here.
Roots
By Alli Bobzien
Growing up I found this passage of the gospel concerning the vines and the branches to be fairly straightforward. Then I began researching the various translations of the passage, specifically of verse 2, and realized that our understanding is heavily influenced by both the translation of Greek word “airo” and our understanding of viticulture.
Continue reading the post from Alli that reminds us of the power of this well known Gospel passage and the importance of understanding the history and culture around scriptures.
Sunday Reflection
You are My Friend, You’re Special to Me
By Jocelyn E. Collen
F-R-I-E-N-D. We all know what that spells. Friends are the best gift we can have. Friendship can get us through any sorrow, hardship, illness, or failure. Friendship can also accompany us as we celebrate birthdays, accomplishments, promotions, relationships, ordinations, holidays, or just the weekend! Can you imagine a party that does not have any guests besides ourselves? Our friends make the party into a party!
I learned how to spell the word friend from Mister Rogers. In his 1987 song, “You Are Special,” he spells out the word friend for us like this:
“F-R-I-E-N-D special
You are my friend,
You’re special to me.
There’s only one in this wonderful world
You are special.”
What a profoundly incredible, beautiful statement. Mister Rogers was one of my first teachers and continues to be one of my spiritual guides. How could anything in the world top being special, being reminded of our uniqueness, our individuality, and how loved we are? Mister Rogers preaches this love, and this love is from God. God loves us in such a profound way, just like this friendship Mister Rogers describes. God thinks we are so special. God likes us exactly as we are. No matter what. This profound love, that Mister Rogers teaches in this song, and our friend Jesus teaches us in the Gospel today, is so incredible that we must share it with one another through loving our friends.
We all want to feel special. We all need to feel special. God thinks we are special. We need to be reminded of our unique, profound likeability and special place in the world. Friendship can help mirror for us the love that God has for each of us. When we love one another, we reflect God’s love into each other’s lives. Nothing is more beautiful.
Our world today is so good at talking about romantic love and the love between parents and children. These are special kinds of love that are also essential to creating and sustaining human life. BUT they are far from the only important love. Friendship is a deep kind of love that is also essential. Friendship is a free gift that we choose to give, and we choose to receive. Friendship is a commitment that is not obligatory, and is really a generous gift that is given out of love. Friendship can be valuable and life saving. Jesus loved his friends, healed his friends, forgave his friends, carried his friends, and taught his friends, even when they betrayed him, didn’t tell him the whole story, left him, or stopped believing in him. Jesus was always there for his friends.
Loving our friends and loving one another is rooted in the deep knowledge that God loves us immensely. This gift of this love is what we share with one another when we love one another. God loves us more than we can ever imagine or dream. Sharing God’s love, and therefore our love, with our friends is important, and is the invitation we hear from Jesus today.
The English language doesn’t have enough words for love. We need more words for love. We need to be able to tell our best friends how much we love them with a different word than we use to tell our parents/partners/children that we love them. The love of friendship is deep and can help us soar. In the classic Christmas movie, It’s a Wonderful Life, friendship is summarized perfectly: “No [wo/]man is a failure who has friends.”
Classifieds
Here you will find information from our contributors - their sites, publications, shops, and more. If you enjoy their periodic posts, you’ll love all these additional resources!
Retreat Opportunity - Missives from Bingen: a journey with Hildegard
Jennifer Delvaux offers a retreat May 11 on the often unknown aspects of St. Hildegard of Bingen - her letters and homilies. This is a retreat open to anyone, in person (Chicago area) or online. Click the link above to find out more and register.
Wonder and Awe
A free monthly newsletter on finding God in words, images, sounds, and spaces by Catherine Sullivan.
The Pondering Heart
A monthly substack where I explore the intersection of spirituality, theology, and everyday life by Alli Bobzien.
Prayers of Lament and Hope for LGBTQ+ People
A blog that gives a list of petitions that can be prayed at mass specifically for LGBTQ+ persons. Email jane.aseltyne@gmail.com or follow me on insta @justonejane.
madisonchastain.com
A hub for writing about the body, faith, and culture, my author website contains links to all my published work as well as access to my Shop where I sell zines filled with exclusive writing, art, and photos.
Kelly Sankowski's Website
Kelly’s website is a hub for her past journalistic writing and spiritual reflections, as well as the place to sign up for her monthly(ish) newsletter. In both her published writing and her newsletter, she focuses on themes of bodily spirituality, women in the Church, and motherhood.
Katie Davis-Crowder's Website
Discover Katie's offerings (spiritual direction, retreats, music, presentations), read her writing, find event information, and get in touch!