|
Grace and peace,
Recently, I have noticed several recurring themes found in multiple unconnected sources. The commonality makes me notice, but it is also a sign to listen to what is being said. After all, if repetition in Scripture is used for emphasis, and if we believe that God is alive and at work in the world, why would repetition not also occur in our lives for emphasis and attention? God is still speaking.
From various essays, poems, and books, the themes of community, empathy, and scaling our world on a human level keep rising to the surface.
In The Book of Joy that the Forum group is reading, His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu consistently remind us that our default mode is joy and compassion. Compassion brings us joy, joy brings us more compassion, which brings us even more joy, which is an ever-expanding cycle. This is our default mode, however, when we focus on the wrong things, the cycle is broken. For example, our materialistic culture often results in our “friendships” becoming transactional; we are intended to be in community, connected with each other, just as the Holy Trinity is community; we are not built for a transactional world, thus we experience stress and discontent.
Our Forum discussions led us to a discussion of the educational system in Denmark, where empathy is part of the ethos of the teaching. Building community and understanding the feelings and needs of others, peers learning how to address the feelings of each other in a compassionate manner are all part of the fabric of the schools in Denmark. As one educator suggests, when you create a safe and nurturing environment, learning comes easily. Test scores, rankings, and awards are not a part of their system; rather, cooperative learning, not competition, is at the core. Like The Book of Joy, this system rejects individualism and replaces it with community and empathy; the results of this focus are impressive; the Danish educational system builds a sense of community, cooperation, and empathy, while also ranking #1 in the world (the US ranks #31).
I do believe that God is still speaking, the Gospels are still being written (a teaser for our formation theme coming in September), and we need to keep listening; listening to God, and to each other.
There is insight to be gained from the questions and comments that we each offer. This is a part of what makes learning in community so valuable. We have two opportunities for learning in community this summer, both begin on Sunday 5 July – but you need to prepare now.
Cinema-Theology is our discussion of movies at 9:15am on Sundays this summer. This is an opportunity to rewatch favorites, and see new films, then gather in community to discuss the themes and insights found in the films. The list of films is below and these are available on various streaming services. We encourage you to hold watch parties so that you can watch, and also discuss, the movies in community.
The other opportunity for community learning and discussion is our summer reading; we will be discussing the four-book series The Giver. The first discussion is also Sunday 5 July at noon; the books in the series are available at the library and from the normal booksellers.
We hope that you will enjoy these opportunities for community, fellowship, and learning. We are at our best in community – we were created in community, just like the Holy Trinity.
Peace,
Fr. Henry+
| 
