1. 🤣 Yes, it's a meme. Yes, I have a sense of humor. But...
2. We all have "those" kind of people trying to steal our joy. I'm not saying to sever the relationship, but shaking the dust from your sandals and stepping back a bit is one way to live more healthfully in every way. Enjoy your accomplishment! And...
3. If we're the sardonic (grimly mocking or cynical) person who makes that sort of comment, just biting our tongues allows us to celebrate and uplift others -- and leave the moment happy, before we say something toxic, even if unintentionally. There's so much dysfunction and disease and horror in this world already. Let's buck that trend and step up!
*******
Christy K Robinson is author of these books (click the colored title):
Twelve generations ago, there was an English minister who was educated at Cambridge University, which is to say that he graduated from an institution with a Church of England (Anglican) faculty, about 60 years after the split with Catholicism.
But John Robinson began to preach a Separatist message, similar to what the Puritan sect taught, that the Anglicans hadn’t purified the church enough of its rituals, liturgy, pomp, and “distracting” music and art in churches. Separatists and Puritans wanted highly educated clergy, not social appointments of unqualified priests and bishops.
Robinson (my direct ancestor) associated with other Separatists during the early years of his ministry, and by 1608 was one of the leaders of people who called themselves Pilgrims. The Mayflower Pilgrims. He and the Pilgrims moved first to Amsterdam, then Leiden, and in 1621, scores of them took ship for “Virginia,” but ended up at Massachusetts Bay. John Robinson and his wife Bridget had intended to join the Pilgrims, but between shepherding the remainder of the English flock in Leiden, and then John’s death at age 49, it was left to his children to emigrate to New England.
Below is a paragraph I’ve copied from one of John Robinson’s numerous tracts, booklets, and correspondence, collected into three dense volumes. For those who weren’t raised on King James’ English dialect, I’ll give you a simplified, American-English version first.
John Robinson’s ninth great-granddaughter translates: God has made humans to be in community with others and has allowed us to form families and organizations (religious, political, or community, whether for-profit or nonprofit) where we can unite for the betterment of ourselves and others. But no one is so devoid of abilities or finances that you have nothing with which to help others, or to be helped by others. Like limbs of the body, or the head of the body, we can’t say, “I have no need of a foot or hand or head—I can do this on my own.” If you have health and strength and abilities, and need nothing from others, the more need others have of you and what you possess in abundance.
John Robinson originally wrote:
‘God hath made man a sociable creature; and hath not only ordained several societies, in whichpersons are to unite themselves for their mutual welfare; but withal so dispensed his blessings, as that no man is so barren, but hath something wherewith to profit others: nor any so furnished, but that he stands need of others to supply his wants. "The head cannot say to the foot," much less the foot to the head, "I have no need of thee." And the less need thou, by reason of thine abundance of bodily or spiritual endowments, hast of others, the more need they have of thee and thy plenty.’
How does Robinson’s advice look in the 21st century? We can all find ways to be of service to others.
☑️ Collect new clothes and food for your church or community to distribute ☑️ Cooking and baking for a homeless shelter or refugee center ☑️ Some can donate blood or platelets to save lives or improve quality of life for cancer, dialysis, or surgical patients ☑️ Volunteer at your child’s school, to help teachers or read aloud ☑️ Donate money to your church’s benevolence fund, to help with dental or medical bills, rent, utilities, or groceries ☑️ Help a food bank with distribution (filling bags and boxes, taking the groceries to the waiting cars, etc.) ☑️ Drive people to appointments for chemotherapy or surgery
☑️ Play a musical instrument at a senior center ☑️ Volunteer at a hospital or children’s hospital (this may require a little training, but probably not certification) ☑️ If you know a friend who volunteers, ask if you can come along to observe or help
☑️ Quilt, knit, or crochet an item to be auctioned for charity
☑️ Clean the beach, rescue animals, recycle, or plant trees for a lovelier environment
For 40 years, I’ve been a volunteer in some of the roles listed above. For a good portion of that time, I was a state leader for an organization that had a different purpose, but which participated in volunteering as a social activity where we could serve others but also become closer friends. Even our school-age children helped. I saw people who had been sad or depressed about their own circumstances turn into enthusiastic, fulfilled helpers because they stopped gazing at their own navels and started looking into the eyes of fellow human beings. I saw kindergarten-age children learn foreign words for food so they could serve refugees at the buffet line. I saw bored retirees take on projects that gave them new hope and a new social life. I saw a friend in a power wheelchair become a valued member of a kitchen team that supplied three community feeding programs.
Personally, I think that what God gave me as an unearned gift, I can share with others, be it donating my healthy blood, baking humble corn muffins 16 dozen at a time, or cutting vegetables and buttering bread for a charity that has religious beliefs quite different from my own. When someone is hurting, I can listen. I’ve witnessed miracles that cannot be explained. I’ve seen little children grow up to be kind, compassionate young adults.
On Jan. 4-5, 1993, I spent the entire night in my mom's ICU room, holding her hand and reading the Bible to her as she lay in a coma. My dad had kissed her goodbye and gone home, and my brother was living two hours away, with a young family and a driving route that took him out of town. So it was down to me.
She'd nearly died 10 months before, and recovered. She said she'd heard me reading the Bible to her then, even in her coma, and it was precious to her, so I brought my Bible with me this time and did the same thing.
It was a very intimate time, just mother and daughter at the end of one life before she began another. She saw me take my first breath, and I saw her take her last. I won't describe my thoughts then, but it wasn't the same sort of grief as when my dad died, far away, 19 years later. I still miss my mother, 30 years later, but there's so much of her in me, both in my DNA, and in who I am at my core, that there's been a reconciliation of what was and what is.
There's so much of her in me, both in my DNA,
and in who I am at my core,
that there's been a reconciliation
of what was and what is
Though she still breathed another six hours, I believe her spirit left her a little after 4:00am. Something so profound took place then, that I looked up at her monitors to see if she'd awakened. But nothing had changed physically. Though I continued to hold her hand and watched her take breaths, she was no longer with me. And I was comforted anyway because I knew she was no longer in pain, and was where she wanted to be.
I thought I was alone there, waiting for all signs to cease before I went home and called my dad and brother. But about 7:30, my friend, Dr. Keith Mack, came on duty and learned I was there. He came into the room and wrapped me in his arms. What a dear thing to do. It was no coincidence. God knew what I needed and his timing was flawless.
I remember with love, Judith Anson Robinson, 1937-1993.
*******
Christy K Robinson is author of these books (click the colored title):
It was my second Sunday as pianist at a Baptist church.
I was wished a Happy Mothers Day several times, and presented with a carnation, which I accepted as the mother of rescue pets, the teacher of hundreds, the aunt of three, the cook and server to refugees and their precious children, the supporter of the abused, and various other roles. Some mother's child (young or adult) has my plasma and platelets strengthening them this week.
My point is, men and women who haven't given birth can at times take on needed roles to support others in love.
I've loved James Taylor's music for--yikes--more than 50 years now, and every performance is still fresh. Many of the songs he's written are wise and kind and humorous, and I imagine that they come from the heart of a human who both believes his lyrics, and practices them.
That we live in a world of
have and have-not,
respectful and rude,
those working for justice and those laughing because they have Teflon impunity,
kindness and greed,
mercy and vindictiveness,
desperate people escaping their ancestral homes because of war or narcotics cartels but being met with hatred, violence--and indifference,
selfishness about the "right" not to take the easiest and cost-free vaccines so all people can go back to relative health and safety or even attend religious services,
means that we who identify with being godly (no matter what our religion or denomination is) must not only speak our words of love, justice, hospitality, kindness and mercy, we must put them into action.
If one of you tells him, “Go in peace; stay warm and well fed,” but does not provide for his physical needs, what good is that? So too, faith by itself, if it does not result in action, is dead. But someone will say, “You have faith and I have deeds.” Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. James 2:16-18
"Thoughts and prayers" has become a cliche' because those saying it are substituting a meaningless phrase for meaningful action. Does this 🙏 emoji, repeated numerous times, have meaning?
From ancient prophets, and Buddha, and Jesus, we have learned that doing our beliefs is what's important, not thinking them or discussing them endlessly.
Look at all the action verbs here! Do to others what you would have them do to you. Do justice, love mercy, walk humbly with your God. Love your neighbor as yourself. Visit the imprisoned and sick (care for them, in other words). Feed the hungry and give them a drink. Take care of widows and orphans. Don't disrespect, kill, steal, lie, or cheat others. Treat the alien better than your own family. Work, so you can help others instead of stealing from them. Whoever believes will do the work Jesus is doing.
This is not a religion of works of trying to be perfect, that denies grace. This is "work" that sometimes breaks rules or societal expectations, but brings healing, comfort, joy, relief, safety, and uplift to strangers, along with the unexpected grace of friendship and fun with the other people in your service, outreach, or ministry.
A few days ago, I found a post on social media that was composed to match the tone of the Prayer of St Francis of Assisi ("Lord, make me an instrument of Thy peace..."). This one takes a different, parallel path.
Lord, make me a channel of disturbance.
Where there is apathy, let me provoke;
Where there is compliance, let me bring questioning;
Where there is silence, let me be a voice;
Where there is too much comfort and too little action, grant disruption;
Where there are doors closed and hearts locked, grant the willingness to listen;
When laws dictate and pain is overlooked...
When tradition speaks louder than need...
Grant that I may seek rather to do justice than to talk about it;
Disturb us, o Lord.
To be with, as well as for, the alienated;
To love the unloveable as well as the unlovely;
Lord, make me a channel of disturbance. (author unknown)
Why did I start this article with a James Taylor reference? So you can be reminded of this part of the song:
Just shower the people you love with love Show them the way that you feel Things are gonna work out fine If you only will Do as I say Shower the people you love with love Show them the way that you feel Things are gonna be much better
If you only will
Don't only shower the people you love (though it's a worthy start), but shower people you don't even know. Shower the hungry. Shower the unloveable or the people who have hurt you. Shower the "other." Shower the helpless or the people living out of a shopping cart. Shower the refugee.
Let it rain. Make love reign.
It will come back to you, I promise.
Shower the People (lyrics embedded on video)
*****
Christy K Robinson is author of these books (click a highlighted title):
For hundreds of years, religious art has portrayed the manger, an animal feeding trough, as a wooden structure, a piece of furniture in a stable. They showed the stable as a ramshackle building or a cave. But the place where Mary laid her newborn baby may have been the ground floor of a two-story house, and the manger would probably have been a hollowed-out dip in the ground where animal feed was served. The New Testament uses the word katalouma, or family guest quarters, as opposed to the word for a hotel accommodation, pandocheion, where the Good Samaritan took the beat-up traveler to recuperate.
Excavation team at Tall al-Umayri, Jordan, in 2002, perched on the ancient walls of a four-room house.
When I worked as a volunteer on an archaeological site near Amman, Jordan in 2002, one of the buildings our team had excavated and rebuilt over several seasons was a house. The occupants of the house would have slept on the upper floor. Below them, there was storage for food, and a hearth for cooking. The other part of the ground floor was a stable that opened out to a yard with a fence to keep a few sheep or goats safely inside the enclosure.
When Joseph and Mary entered the town of Bethlehem to take part in the census, Joseph would probably have gone to ask cousins who could house them for the nights and days they had to be there to register--and for Mary to give birth in the township Joseph's clan had lived in for a thousand years. But other cousins had arrived earlier, and the homes were bursting at the seams. It's likely that one of Joseph's relatives told him he could camp in the guest quarters also used as an animals' dwelling under a house. The Middle Eastern hospitality ethic would never have turned away a stranger or a family member. They'd have offered housing and food. Mary would have had women to help her give birth.
Was the house located within the walls of the town of Bethlehem, or was it a farm nearby? If the latter, it would be more accessible to the shepherds who had been told to look for the newborn baby.
And there were shepherds living out in the fields
nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the
Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them,
and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be
afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the
people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he
is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a
baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.”
Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host
appeared with the angel, praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth
peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven,
the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see
this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and
the baby, who was lying in the manger.
Shepherds were the bluest of blue collar workers in the Middle East. The humble. The lowly. The people least likely to be invited to the nursery of the Messiah that had been promised for two thousand years. They were not required to crawl into a palace in the presence of King Herod or the Emperor Augustus. They were told to look in or near the small town of Bethlehem for a newborn baby in the feeding trough of the animals they herded and watched over: sheep and goats. That would have been a relief, after seeing a large group of bright, other-worldly beings! Seeing a helpless baby in a manger would have been an immediate slice of "peace on earth" to the shepherds.
Run, Shepherds, run where Bethl’em blest appears,
We bring the best of news, be not dismayed:
A Saviour there is born, more old than years
Amidst Heaven’s rolling heights this earth who stayed;
In a poor cottage inned, a Virgin Maid,
A weakling did Him bear, who all upbears,
There is He poorly swaddled, in a manger laid
To whom too narrow swaddlings are our spheres:
Run, Shepherds, run, and solemnize His birth.
This is that night−no, day, grown great with bliss,
In which the power of Satan broken is;
In Heaven be glory, peace unto the Earth,
Thus singing through the air the angels swam,
A cope of stars re-echoed the same.
William Drummond
from Flowres of Sion
William Drummond(13 December 1585 – 4 December 1649), called "of Hawthornden", was a Scottish poet.
*****
Christy K Robinson is author of these books (click the colored title):
Early Quakers like Mary Barrett Dyer, John Copeland, Christopher Holder, Humphrey Norton, William Robinson and Marmaduke Stevenson referred to their religious experience of Christ in their hearts as The Light.
They understood the words of Jesus, that while he was in the world, he was “the Light of the world.” (John 9:5)
But Jesus also said, "You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16)
George Fox, the founder of Quakerism, wrote from prison on 13 August 1656, “Now our Friends being come to this light which comes from Christ, and having received power from him by whom all things were created, to whom all power in heaven and earth is given, who is the wisdom of God; we have received wisdom and power from him, by which the Lord does give us to know how to use and order the creatures to the glory of him, the creator of all things.”
Back in America, Mary Dyer wrote to the General Court at Boston in 1659: “Search with the light of Christ in you and it will show you … as it hath done me and many more.”
Fragment from Mary Dyer's letter to the General Court in 1659.
“Turn inward to Christ the light, which shows you the secrets of your hearts, and the deeds that are not good. Therefore, while you have the light, believe in the light, that you may be the children of the light,” wrote Copeland, Holder, and Doudney from the Boston prison in 1657.
“In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it... The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.”(John 1:4, 5, 9 NIV)
Because Mary Dyer and others lived in such dark times of religious persecution even unto death, the Light that was real and tangible to them—was life itself. It was light in their mortal lives, even in prison suffering from whippings and unheated, unlit winter. And it was a light shining from the eternal life that has been promised to the children of God.
The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. For those who lived in a land of deep shadows— light! sunbursts of light! You repopulated the nation, you expanded its joy. Oh, they’re so glad in your presence! Festival joy! The joy of a great celebration, sharing rich gifts and warm greetings. The abuse of oppressors and cruelty of tyrants— all their whips and cudgels and curses— Is gone, done away with, a deliverance as surprising and sudden as Gideon’s old victory over Midian. The boots of all those invading troops, along with their shirts soaked with innocent blood, Will be piled in a heap and burned, a fire that will burn for days! For a child has been born—for us! the gift of a son—for us!(Isaiah 9:6 The Message paraphrase)
Though Quakers, Puritans, Baptists, and other religious groups of the time did not celebrate winter solstice or Christmas, they did treasure the Light in their lives and desired above all things to share that Light.
I hope that you will store these things in your heart, as Mary Dyer and her Friends did, and let God, Yahweh, Jesus, the Universe, or Higher Power—whatever you choose to label it—have a chance with you. Don’t remain in darkness or deep shadows: step out into Light.
May the Light burst forth in your life and bring you peace, kindness, mercy, grace, and compassion.
Happy holy-days!
Christy K Robinson is author of these books (click the colored title):
Most people, if they're not psychologically damaged, understand that our capacity to love stretches and grows. We're not given a fixed amount of love to apportion to partner or child or parent or pets; we add more space in our hearts as we grow into relationships. We love our dad with all our hearts, and we love our partner with all our hearts, and we love our dog or cat with all our hearts. It's not a lie or exaggeration to love a few or love many, with fullness of commitment, emotion, friendship, loyalty, and passion.
Everyone, because of their individual qualities or quirks, can be your "only one" if you're willing to open your heart.
COVID-19 home quarantine isn't for the faint of heart, especially if you live alone. Even more so when you love and miss the fellowship of like-minded people at your house of worship. I play keyboards for several churches, and while those churches are closed to "flatten the curve" of new infections, I miss my colleagues and choir friends, my usual huggers, the people I respect, and the people who are wallflowers and need a kind word and handshake.
I've lost my business in the quarantine: teaching piano students, accompanying the choir or ladies' ensemble, playing the prelude before the service, playing the hymns or offertory. All gone. No income. The services I played for so joyfully for 51 years have become livestream or YouTube videos by the minister, a scripture reader, and the worship leader playing a guitar. The Holy Week cantata we were practicing is canceled, and Easter services will be watched on a computer screen.
As I watch the Facebook posts of my friends, many are lonely and sad that they're isolated in their apartment or house. I noticed that celebrities and pop or country stars have made videos for the fans when concerts were canceled because of crowds and quarantine. I figured I could do the same on my shoestring-budget. I strapped my phone into the tiny desktop tripod, dressed in nice clothes instead of my Apocalypse Nightie (I thought I invented the term, but apparently many people don't bother to get out of their jammies!), and started playing on Facebook Live. I told friends to play the video for themselves, or share with their loved ones.
Then a funny thing happened. People started commenting, while I was still playing, that they were comforted or soothed, that they'd started or ended their day (depending on their time zone around the world) with a blessing, or they'd replayed the piece again and again. Several have requested specific pieces. People who don't participate in organized religion wrote that the music is the only thing they missed about church. One friend sent me a donation through PayPal. Another, whose family members are sick and cannot be visited because of the infection risk, said I made her cry.
His Eye is on the Sparrow Why should I feel discouraged, why should the shadows come, Why should my heart be lonely, and long for heaven and home, When Jesus is my portion? My constant friend is He: His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free, For His eye is on the sparrow, And I know He watches me.
“Let not your heart be troubled,” His tender word I hear, And resting on His goodness, I lose my doubts and fears; Though by the path He leadeth, but one step I may see; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free, For His eye is on the sparrow, And I know He watches me.
Whenever I am tempted, whenever clouds arise, When songs give place to sighing, when hope within me dies, I draw the closer to Him, from care He sets me free; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me; His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches me.
I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free, For His eye is on the sparrow, And I know He watches me. ***** ***** *****
I'm reminded of the President Teddy Roosevelt quotation in this graphic. I have little money, but I can do what I can do. Playing the piano, I can do.
I'm not in business now. God has been faithful and he has provided for me before. He will again. His eye is on this sparrow.
