The second gathering of FaithJustice & Fellowship took place on 10/14/09. Again the evening started with a wonderful soup & salad, courtesy of friend and CFJ board member, Mary Vanderhoof. We then moved into the Chapel for Evening Prayer with our prayer leader, Martha Dudich. Our prayer started with this introduction and reading:
"In these last weeks of the liturgical year, we hear scripture readings that speak of endings and for me that always implies and invites new beginnings. Autumn paints this idea outside our windows as leaves offer a final burst of flaming crimson, orange and gold before ending the cycle that will begin anew in spring. It seems quite fitting that on the Jewish calendar, Rosh Hashanah – marking the beginning of the New Year – and Yom Kippur – the Day of Atonement – are observed at this time of year, bringing with them the hope for transformation, for possibility, for beginning again in love.
The holy writings of ancient Hebrews and early Christians celebrate this wisdom in blessed partnership."
"Hear now the Word of God.
Hear my voice, O God. Be attentive to my words. If you marked our failings, who could stand? Rather with you there is forgiveness. My soul waits for you, more than the watchman waits for daybreak. With you there is loving kindness and abundant mercy.
The younger son said to his father, “I have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.” But the father said to his servants, “Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Prepare the fattened calf. Let us feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.
Seek, while God may be found. Call, while God is near. Let the wrongdoers abandon their ways. Let them return to God who is merciful and lavish with forgiveness, that they may go out with joy and be led forth in song.
Now if you are offering your gift at the altar and remember that another has something against you, leave your offering there and go; first be reconciled. Then come and present your offering."Martha then offered the following reflection:
"I have never been much for ringing in the New Year, at least the one our cultural and lunar calendar offers us in January. As one who closely follows the liturgical calendar, however, particularly enthusiastic about Advent – all that darkness breaking into light – I have no trouble shifting my revelry to those days, with a holy marking of endings and beginnings. Having said that, I must admit to frequently thinking that the New Year really belongs in the fall.
In our society, so much starts up this time of year as those lazy days of summer fall behind us and we look forward to the crisp cool nights, perhaps even anticipating the holidays ahead. (I still treat myself to back-to-school shoes and sometimes a new box of Crayolas, with the built-in sharpener!) And while I have only occasionally participated in the High Holy Days celebration of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur – also known as the Days of Awe – I have an absolute sense of their rightness, their being right now -ness.
On the Jewish calendar, Rosh Hashanah commemorates the New Year. In ancient Hebrew lore, Rosh Hashanah is the birthday of Adam, the anniversary of the creation of human life. Even though it falls in the seventh month of the Jewish year, for millennia it has been celebrated as the beginning of time and creation.
Yom Kippur, which falls ten days after the first day of Rosh Hashanah, is called the Day of Atonement. It is a complete Sabbath: a day with no work performed, a day of fasting from food and drink. Traditionally there is also no bathing, no intimate relations, no handling of money. People spend the day worshipping with their religious community, examining their lives, asking forgiveness of their wrongdoings, and praying to God to inscribe their names in the book of life – a sign they are accepted once again by their neighbors and their God. On this day, by denying themselves the most basic of human needs, faithful Jews reconnect to a compassion for those who have little, and have their hearts opened to charity.
It is Erev Yom Kippur, the eve of the Day of Atonement, that also holds great meaning for me. While on Yom Kippur one seeks mercy from God, the day before one must ask forgiveness of others. You cannot come before God on the holy day unless you have sought out your sisters and brothers the day before. “First, be reconciled. Then present your offering.” Partnership indeed.
As a Catholic who deeply values other religious traditions and seeks to learn from them how to negotiate my own faith journey, I embrace the Days of Awe as a reminder that each year, even each new day, provides fresh hope, affords another opportunity for reconciliation, acceptance and healing.
I began college out in the farmlands of central PAs Susquehanna Valley and would find needed respite from my studies in a somewhat unusual place, the house turned museum of Joseph Priestly. Priestly is best remembered for his pioneering work in chemistry and in particular for the discovery of oxygen. He was also a prolific theologian, an innovative educator and a liberal political philosopher. As a lover of the egg cream, I am forever grateful that Priestly found a way to produce carbonated water, but it was another breakthrough I hold closer to my heart. He developed a vegetable gum which had the ability to rub out black lead marks. He dubbed the substance “rubber” and while it eventually took 3 additional engineers and another 80 years to refine it and, finally, attach it to the end of a pencil, I thank Joseph Priestly those times it’s been necessary to begin again – in my checkbook, with the crossword puzzle, on my GREs, when I’m searching for the words in a note of condolence or remorse.
I’d invite you to take an eraser now as the bowl is passed among us. Could an object be more of the world yet at the same time so sacred? As we recognize and celebrate our own autumn days of awe, let’s put this eraser where we’ll see it. Whether in a pocket or purse, on a desk or dashboard, kitchen window or bedside table, may it remind us to remove artificial borders and boundaries, even those religious dividing lines Father Ed Hays refers to as “God-zones,” and to wipe out words, opinions, attitudes that deface, separate or confine.
As we go from this place, let us remember that we, like these days, are holy, even awesome. May we accept ourselves – admitting to our mistakes, beginning again – and embrace others, recognizing the common human frailty and the immeasurable Divine compassion we all share."
What a great evening! After prayer, we gathered for coffee and conversation. Please consider joining us next week, Wednesday, October 21st in our new effort to build a community of faith and justice. Dinner is at 6:30 PM, prayer at 7:15 PM. We'd love to have you with us!
