12/30
Hoy es el seis dia de navidad. Y yo creo que es importante a celebrar todos de los doce dias de NAvidad, en el camino a el dia de los tres magos.
Hoy tenemos la historia de Jesus y sus padres. La sola historia de Jesus como un nino en las escrituras. Despues celebrando el pascua en Jerusalen, ellos van en el camino a Nazaret. Cuando despues un dia, no pueden encontrar Jesus, con mucho angostia ellos regresan a Jerusalen a buscarlo. Cuando lo encontran, se tengan enfado.
Al momento estoy pensando no de Jesus pero de sus padres. Que les piensen. Y les sienten. Y yo pienso de otros padres:
+ Caal Cruz....padre de Jakelin qiuien murio en el costodio de la migra despues su camino largo de Guatemala.
+Ali Hassan ...padre del pequeno Abdullah, de dos anos...y muriendo. Y sus madre en Yemen sin permiso a visitar su hijo.
+ Jazmine Headley, su bebé arrancado de sus brazos por el NYPD.
Es natural estar preocupado de sus ninos.
Tengo tres pensamientos:
1. Nosotros todos son ninos de dios.. Nuestro padre en el cielo nos ama.
2. Alguna vez, como Jesus, estar fiel necesita escuchando al autoridad mas alta.
3. Como ninos de Dios, tnemos responsobilidad para todos los ninos de diosy la politica que les afecta.
Nosotros estamos en la puerta del nuevo ano...como Jesus dejenos mejorar en sabudaria...y usar la oportunidad por un nueva comienza.....
Lucas 2:41-52 La Biblia de las Américas (LBLA)
El niño Jesús discute con los maestros
41 Sus padres acostumbraban ir a Jerusalén todos los años a la fiesta de la Pascua. 42 Y cuando cumplió doce años, subieron allá conforme a la costumbre de la fiesta; 43 y al regresar ellos, después de haber pasado todos los días de la fiesta, el niño Jesús se quedó en Jerusalén sin que lo supieran sus padres, 44 y suponiendo que iba en la caravana, anduvieron camino de un día, y comenzaron a buscarle entre los familiares y conocidos. 45 Al no hallarle, volvieron a Jerusalén buscándole. 46 Y aconteció que después de tres días le hallaron en el templo, sentado en medio de los maestros, escuchándolos y haciéndoles preguntas. 47 Y todos los que le oían estaban asombrados de su entendimiento y de sus respuestas. 48 Cuando sus padres le vieron, se quedaron maravillados; y su madre le dijo: Hijo, ¿por qué nos has tratado de esta manera? Mira, tu padre y yo te hemos estado buscando[a] llenos de angustia. 49 Entonces El les dijo: ¿Por qué me buscabais? ¿Acaso no sabíais que me era necesario estar en la casa[b] de mi Padre? 50 Pero ellos no entendieron las palabras que El les había dicho. 51 Y descendió con ellos y vino a Nazaret, y continuó sujeto a ellos. Y su madre atesoraba todas estas cosas[c] en su corazón. 52 Y Jesús crecía en sabiduría, en estatura[d] y en gracia para con Dios y los hombres.
Footnotes:
Lucas 2:48 Lit., te buscamos
Lucas 2:49 O, los negocios; lit., las cosas
Lucas 2:51 Lit., las palabras
Lucas 2:52 O, edad
Monday, December 31, 2018
On the Sixth Day of Christmas: with Ecclesia
12/30
The congregation for Ecclesia in Marcus Garvey Park has been smaller each week, Clyde tells me. Seems the NYPD has been doubling down on the drug business, pushing dealers into the park and then harassing anyone they find here. Busting people for minor infractions like feet on benches or open container. Feels like broken windows redux. (The Giuliani era policy of strict enforcement of minor infractions in order to prevent major crimes. As in Fix the first "broken window" or they'll all get broken...) Anyways, people have been staying away.
Lucy, a long time volunteer at the Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen Clyde used to run is in town for the holidays and has come looking for Clyde and Ecclesia.
Others will arrive one by one.
When it comes time for my homily, here is what I share:
Welcome to the 6th day of Christmas....we're halfway through....six more days to go..since the secular world has been in holiday mode since the day after Halloween, they're ready to be done. All the more reason for us to hold on to the religious/spiritual celebration all 12 days.
(On the 3rd day of Christmas, there was no star but the sky turned blue over Queens. Some thought it was aliens. Other terrorists. Some thought Jesus was coming back and tried to break into a locked church. And when Con Ed announced it was a transformer issue, some believed that changeling warrior robots were walking the streets. And so it is...)
Our gospel today takes us out of the Christmas narrative and into the only scriptural account of anything in Jesus childhood. His parents go to Jerusalem for a festival, head for home, after a day, figure out he's not with them, panic, go back to the Temple and find him engaged in dialogue with the Bible scholars. His parents are obviously upset. And his response is that he's in his father's house. (Sorry Joseph)
Usually when we read this story, our attention is on Jesus. (Naturally) At his wisdom. And self awareness of his mission. But this time I want to look elsewhere. And that's his parents. Let's leave aside for the moment why they would assume he was with relatives and not worry about his whereabouts for a day.
Let's think about how they feel when they can't find him.
So I'm thinking about other parents .(Thanks to Jill Duffield for this...)
+ Caal Cruz....29 year old father whose daughter Jakelin died in the custody of the Border Patrol after they had travelled from Guatemala and crossed into the US.
+Ali Hassan ...father of 2 year old Abdullah who is terminally ill whose mother, after having twice been denied a visa because she is from Yemen, has finally been allowed in, thanks to public pressure and Save the Children
and + Jazmine Headley, who we all saw have her toddler torn from her arms by the NYPD when she sat down after hours of waiting.
Parents worry about their children.
Well, Ok, not all parents. Some children are tragically left on their own. But no matter where we are, parents worry about us.
And so it is with Mary and Joseph. Jesus may be the son of God, but to them he is a vulnerable child they have been entrusted with for care and nurture. No wonder they are angry when he turns up...it's a sign of their care. Anger. And relief.
This story suggests several things to me.
1. We are all children of God. Even if our own parents left us or we left them or communications have broken off, our heavenly father (or mother) cares about us and worries about us, wants the best for us...loves us.
2. Like Jesus, sometimes being faithful may mean having to listen to a higher authority. And that is not always understood. (HInt: that's why communities are helpful...to help us figure that out...)
3. As God's children, we have a responsibility for ALL God's children. We are responsible for the Caals, the Hassans, the Jazmines....and the policies that affect their lives and their children's lives and put them into jeopardy....we are responsible to work to change those realities..
The Gospel tells us after this he went home and was an obedient child. And like a good mother, Mary keeps these things in her heart. And it tells us that :
And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.
We're also poised on the edge of a New Year. Another opportunity for a fresh start....yours if you want it ...and I don't say that casually...
In this new year, let us increase in wisdom and so may it be for us.
We share prayers together. For the two community members who lost their long running struggle to survive this year. For a man seeking stability and connection with his daughter. For other concerns. And we share Eucharist together.
And as always, we share a meal after. This week provided by Broadway Presbyterian. Lucy laughs when I say It's colder than it seems. Basically meaning we won't be hanging around much longer today. We're poised at the moment between the year almost finished and the one not yet begun.
Gospel Luke 2:41-52
41Now every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. 42And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival. 43When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. 44Assuming that he was in the group of travelers, they went a day's journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends. 45When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. 46After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, "Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety." 49He said to them, "Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" 50But they did not understand what he said to them. 51Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart.
52And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.
 |
| preparing to share |
The congregation for Ecclesia in Marcus Garvey Park has been smaller each week, Clyde tells me. Seems the NYPD has been doubling down on the drug business, pushing dealers into the park and then harassing anyone they find here. Busting people for minor infractions like feet on benches or open container. Feels like broken windows redux. (The Giuliani era policy of strict enforcement of minor infractions in order to prevent major crimes. As in Fix the first "broken window" or they'll all get broken...) Anyways, people have been staying away.
Lucy, a long time volunteer at the Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen Clyde used to run is in town for the holidays and has come looking for Clyde and Ecclesia.
 |
| Lucy and Clyde |
When it comes time for my homily, here is what I share:
Welcome to the 6th day of Christmas....we're halfway through....six more days to go..since the secular world has been in holiday mode since the day after Halloween, they're ready to be done. All the more reason for us to hold on to the religious/spiritual celebration all 12 days.
(On the 3rd day of Christmas, there was no star but the sky turned blue over Queens. Some thought it was aliens. Other terrorists. Some thought Jesus was coming back and tried to break into a locked church. And when Con Ed announced it was a transformer issue, some believed that changeling warrior robots were walking the streets. And so it is...)
Our gospel today takes us out of the Christmas narrative and into the only scriptural account of anything in Jesus childhood. His parents go to Jerusalem for a festival, head for home, after a day, figure out he's not with them, panic, go back to the Temple and find him engaged in dialogue with the Bible scholars. His parents are obviously upset. And his response is that he's in his father's house. (Sorry Joseph)
Usually when we read this story, our attention is on Jesus. (Naturally) At his wisdom. And self awareness of his mission. But this time I want to look elsewhere. And that's his parents. Let's leave aside for the moment why they would assume he was with relatives and not worry about his whereabouts for a day.
Let's think about how they feel when they can't find him.
So I'm thinking about other parents .(Thanks to Jill Duffield for this...)
+ Caal Cruz....29 year old father whose daughter Jakelin died in the custody of the Border Patrol after they had travelled from Guatemala and crossed into the US.
+Ali Hassan ...father of 2 year old Abdullah who is terminally ill whose mother, after having twice been denied a visa because she is from Yemen, has finally been allowed in, thanks to public pressure and Save the Children
and + Jazmine Headley, who we all saw have her toddler torn from her arms by the NYPD when she sat down after hours of waiting.
Parents worry about their children.
Well, Ok, not all parents. Some children are tragically left on their own. But no matter where we are, parents worry about us.
And so it is with Mary and Joseph. Jesus may be the son of God, but to them he is a vulnerable child they have been entrusted with for care and nurture. No wonder they are angry when he turns up...it's a sign of their care. Anger. And relief.
This story suggests several things to me.
1. We are all children of God. Even if our own parents left us or we left them or communications have broken off, our heavenly father (or mother) cares about us and worries about us, wants the best for us...loves us.
2. Like Jesus, sometimes being faithful may mean having to listen to a higher authority. And that is not always understood. (HInt: that's why communities are helpful...to help us figure that out...)
3. As God's children, we have a responsibility for ALL God's children. We are responsible for the Caals, the Hassans, the Jazmines....and the policies that affect their lives and their children's lives and put them into jeopardy....we are responsible to work to change those realities..
The Gospel tells us after this he went home and was an obedient child. And like a good mother, Mary keeps these things in her heart. And it tells us that :
And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.
We're also poised on the edge of a New Year. Another opportunity for a fresh start....yours if you want it ...and I don't say that casually...
In this new year, let us increase in wisdom and so may it be for us.
 |
| at Marcus Garvey PArk |
We share prayers together. For the two community members who lost their long running struggle to survive this year. For a man seeking stability and connection with his daughter. For other concerns. And we share Eucharist together.
And as always, we share a meal after. This week provided by Broadway Presbyterian. Lucy laughs when I say It's colder than it seems. Basically meaning we won't be hanging around much longer today. We're poised at the moment between the year almost finished and the one not yet begun.
Gospel Luke 2:41-52
41Now every year his parents went to Jerusalem for the festival of the Passover. 42And when he was twelve years old, they went up as usual for the festival. 43When the festival was ended and they started to return, the boy Jesus stayed behind in Jerusalem, but his parents did not know it. 44Assuming that he was in the group of travelers, they went a day's journey. Then they started to look for him among their relatives and friends. 45When they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem to search for him. 46After three days they found him in the temple, sitting among the teachers, listening to them and asking them questions. 47And all who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. 48When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, "Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety." 49He said to them, "Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house?" 50But they did not understand what he said to them. 51Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart.
52And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.
Thursday, December 27, 2018
Christmas Eve 2018 at West Park Church
12/24
It's a real honor to be invited back to West-Park church to lead the Christmas service again. After a year's absence. And service at West Park. I arrive to find the church beautifully decorated thanks to Dion, Marsha and Leila.
Every pew candle (electric) lit. A beautiful tree center stage.
Food is being laid out for the post-service pot luck. Martin has brought a case of wine to ad to the festivities. Dion has brought a pan of shepherds'pie from St.James Gate. More is on the way.
John Roggie, who was our last accompanist before I retired, has com back for the evening. As I rehearse the two songs I will sing with my homily, I see my old friend Andre
walking down the aisle and my heart skips a beat, so many memories, so good to see him. He agrees to sing for us. As we finish rehearsals, it's almost time to begin.
I look out and feel overwhelmed. There are clergy colleagues. Musicians. Members of the Center Board. Church members. Families. Friends. People who attracted by the luminaria on the steps have been drawn inside. Community people. Homeless. So many faces from so many relationships. It is profoundly moving.
Just before my homily, I sing "Christmas in the Trenches" about the World War I Christmas truce. And then shared these words:
So it's here. Again. After 4 weeks of Advent...and after over 7 weeks of shop decorations ....finally Christmas is here.
It's good for me to be back here again. So many memories...On this night I've seen the sanctuary nearly filled....and I've seen it with only me and my boys and 2 or 3 homeless people...and of course the year we gathered outside on the steps with the gates barring the doors and we lit candles and sang carols just to show we were still alive....and still here...and then returning and celebrating Christmas with no heat ...and no restrooms..yes, we have had Christmases....
And so we come to this Christmas....truly organized by the people....and we will celebrate together....
Look again at these scriptures:
Isaiah 9:2 King James Version (KJV)
2 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
John 1:5 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
That's why we are here...
I don't have to tell you, it's been a rough year...
We learned we live in a country that will separate parents from children and put children into cages and detention camps.
A country that turns tear gas on asylum seekers
And we're not exactly sure what to do about it.
There are more people in motion in the world today than ever before and borders are closing down...tens of thousands are stranded on islands in the Mediterranean ...and more continue risking their lives at sea or in the Sonora desert....
Do we remember that in our story there was no room at the inn? or that shortly after Christmas the Holy Family had to flee into Egypt as undocumented persons seeking asylum?
Our brother Hugo's country faces repression and persecution and tens of thousands are in exile...and former solidarity friends stand by...
In our own city, the homeless population has reached a record 68000 in this global center...nearly 115000 of our public school children are homeless....and we have to work to press a "progressive" mayor to live up to his promise of 10% of new units for homeless...
We could each add out own words to the litany of lament and intercession...
BUT part of the point of Christmas is that so it always is....Christmas is about incarnation... God in human form...or God in the very midst of humanity...God dwelling in the midst of humanity... in each generation...
(we recalled earlier the miracle of 1917, when soldiers on both sides of the trenches created a Christmas truce. As John Lennon said, "War is over, if you want it.."...)
In our traditions, light is important...
At this time of year, the Buddhists fill their ritual space with light passed one to another as they welcome the coming of the light...I've celebrated this with my brother TK in a Riverside Church filled with monks and lotus blossom lights..
Jews celebrate Hannukah..a struggle for cultural autonomy and freedom of religion...and the light grows day by day and candle by candle because the light must always grow...
And we too in our Advent season of waiting add a candle each week...because the light must always grow...
We are hereto be light for one another....
Hear this...
Isaiah 9:2 King James Version (KJV)
2 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
John 1:5 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
The darkness has not overcome it ...and the darkness WILL not overcome it....that is why we are here...let the people say, Alleluia! Amen!
Lo How a Rose E'er Blooming
The Rose
And I closed my reflection by singing . Lo How a Rose E'er Blooming and the Rose..flowing in to each other..
I spoke of memory...of our ceramic Advent wreath made by a Latvian potter in Pittsburgh....my stole of sheep's wool and natural dyes from the weavers of Chimayo, New Mexico. The unavoidableness of Christmas memories. And the importance of sharing our gifts. And Andre sang "In the bleak midwinter.."
"In the Bleak Midwinter"
Candles. Sharing the light. I reminded the congregation that it wasn't like the world was dark and then Jesus came and prestochangeo, light. How the light has been there since creation. Sometimes obscured. or hard to see. But always, always there. And it's our responsibility to share it and help it grow, And so the light passes, person to person as the sanctuary fills with candlelight as we sing Silent Night.
We sing "Joy to the World" and the service has ended but the night just begun. Several people tell me they had been moved to tears. Many warm hugs.
Our shared meal has Kazakh dumplings and Texas empanadas and a delicious banana pudding. And more. A reflection of who we are.
Then follows a kind of open mic. Another sharing of gifts. My good friend (and Rabbi) Steve Blane opens and then accompanies me on one of my songs. And there are performers from Ireland
and Central Asia and China and Africa and the Bronx and Queens and...yes, a comedian or two including Dion, our host, and James who shares that he is an Orthodox Jew.
And of course there's a woman who keeps yelling "Hallelujah! Hallelujah" louder and louder. As she responded to Kosi's "Hallelujah," Kosi said "You remind me of the entirety of my mother's family..." Of course, we ultimately have to escort he rout. And this brings back so many memories...
We go on well past 11. I am profoundly moved. A year and a half after my retirement, this dedicated and determined band of folks with no help from Presbytery or anyone else continues to have the capacity to create a night like this that truly reveals the incarnation, truly God in the midst of humanity. And out of this diverse, even motley collection, create community. For this I give thanks. And I love them.
Merry Christmas
 |
| Christmas Eve at West Park (thanks Russ!) |
It's a real honor to be invited back to West-Park church to lead the Christmas service again. After a year's absence. And service at West Park. I arrive to find the church beautifully decorated thanks to Dion, Marsha and Leila.
 |
| Marsha, Pat and Martin |
 |
| Dion and Leila |
Food is being laid out for the post-service pot luck. Martin has brought a case of wine to ad to the festivities. Dion has brought a pan of shepherds'pie from St.James Gate. More is on the way.
John Roggie, who was our last accompanist before I retired, has com back for the evening. As I rehearse the two songs I will sing with my homily, I see my old friend Andre
 |
| Pastor Bob, Andre and Steve |
I look out and feel overwhelmed. There are clergy colleagues. Musicians. Members of the Center Board. Church members. Families. Friends. People who attracted by the luminaria on the steps have been drawn inside. Community people. Homeless. So many faces from so many relationships. It is profoundly moving.
 |
| Soledad, Luli and Martin |
Christmas in the Trenches
So it's here. Again. After 4 weeks of Advent...and after over 7 weeks of shop decorations ....finally Christmas is here.
It's good for me to be back here again. So many memories...On this night I've seen the sanctuary nearly filled....and I've seen it with only me and my boys and 2 or 3 homeless people...and of course the year we gathered outside on the steps with the gates barring the doors and we lit candles and sang carols just to show we were still alive....and still here...and then returning and celebrating Christmas with no heat ...and no restrooms..yes, we have had Christmases....
And so we come to this Christmas....truly organized by the people....and we will celebrate together....
Look again at these scriptures:
Isaiah 9:2 King James Version (KJV)
2 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
John 1:5 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
That's why we are here...
I don't have to tell you, it's been a rough year...
We learned we live in a country that will separate parents from children and put children into cages and detention camps.
A country that turns tear gas on asylum seekers
And we're not exactly sure what to do about it.
There are more people in motion in the world today than ever before and borders are closing down...tens of thousands are stranded on islands in the Mediterranean ...and more continue risking their lives at sea or in the Sonora desert....
Do we remember that in our story there was no room at the inn? or that shortly after Christmas the Holy Family had to flee into Egypt as undocumented persons seeking asylum?
Our brother Hugo's country faces repression and persecution and tens of thousands are in exile...and former solidarity friends stand by...
In our own city, the homeless population has reached a record 68000 in this global center...nearly 115000 of our public school children are homeless....and we have to work to press a "progressive" mayor to live up to his promise of 10% of new units for homeless...
We could each add out own words to the litany of lament and intercession...
BUT part of the point of Christmas is that so it always is....Christmas is about incarnation... God in human form...or God in the very midst of humanity...God dwelling in the midst of humanity... in each generation...
(we recalled earlier the miracle of 1917, when soldiers on both sides of the trenches created a Christmas truce. As John Lennon said, "War is over, if you want it.."...)
In our traditions, light is important...
At this time of year, the Buddhists fill their ritual space with light passed one to another as they welcome the coming of the light...I've celebrated this with my brother TK in a Riverside Church filled with monks and lotus blossom lights..
Jews celebrate Hannukah..a struggle for cultural autonomy and freedom of religion...and the light grows day by day and candle by candle because the light must always grow...
And we too in our Advent season of waiting add a candle each week...because the light must always grow...
We are hereto be light for one another....
Hear this...
Isaiah 9:2 King James Version (KJV)
2 The people that walked in darkness have seen a great light: they that dwell in the land of the shadow of death, upon them hath the light shined.
John 1:5 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
The darkness has not overcome it ...and the darkness WILL not overcome it....that is why we are here...let the people say, Alleluia! Amen!
And I closed my reflection by singing . Lo How a Rose E'er Blooming and the Rose..flowing in to each other..
I spoke of memory...of our ceramic Advent wreath made by a Latvian potter in Pittsburgh....my stole of sheep's wool and natural dyes from the weavers of Chimayo, New Mexico. The unavoidableness of Christmas memories. And the importance of sharing our gifts. And Andre sang "In the bleak midwinter.."
Candles. Sharing the light. I reminded the congregation that it wasn't like the world was dark and then Jesus came and prestochangeo, light. How the light has been there since creation. Sometimes obscured. or hard to see. But always, always there. And it's our responsibility to share it and help it grow, And so the light passes, person to person as the sanctuary fills with candlelight as we sing Silent Night.
We sing "Joy to the World" and the service has ended but the night just begun. Several people tell me they had been moved to tears. Many warm hugs.
 |
| Steve Phelps family |
Our shared meal has Kazakh dumplings and Texas empanadas and a delicious banana pudding. And more. A reflection of who we are.
Then follows a kind of open mic. Another sharing of gifts. My good friend (and Rabbi) Steve Blane opens and then accompanies me on one of my songs. And there are performers from Ireland
 |
| With Pat O'Connell |
And of course there's a woman who keeps yelling "Hallelujah! Hallelujah" louder and louder. As she responded to Kosi's "Hallelujah," Kosi said "You remind me of the entirety of my mother's family..." Of course, we ultimately have to escort he rout. And this brings back so many memories...
 |
| Our hoat Dion closes the night |
We go on well past 11. I am profoundly moved. A year and a half after my retirement, this dedicated and determined band of folks with no help from Presbytery or anyone else continues to have the capacity to create a night like this that truly reveals the incarnation, truly God in the midst of humanity. And out of this diverse, even motley collection, create community. For this I give thanks. And I love them.
Merry Christmas
Friday, December 14, 2018
Una oracion para Nicaragua
12/8
 |
| Una oracion para Nicaragua |
Here is the prayer I delivered before the concert by los hermanos Mejia....
Nuestro dios...En este noche quando celebramos la purisima de nuestra madre, nuestra hermana Maria...Te pedimos que esta noche puede llevar la espiritu de la gente nicaraguense y que el dia de la paz y justicia puede venir pronto...Tu bendiciones estan en estos musicos y el poder de sus musica. Oremos en el nombre del padre, el creador, y el humano Jesu Cristo, quien camina con nosotros como hermano, amigo, companero y salvador...y elpoder sotenando del espiritu santo, en paz y poder, Amen.
Nicaragua reflections....
12/14
Last week was a truly memorable night when los hermanos Mejia performed at St. Paul and St.Andrews Church in New York City in what could be their last concert here. That alone would have been enough to have drawn the hundreds of Nicaraguans to filled the church to hear--and sing along with-- these national icons, the expression of the soul and dream of los nicaraguenses.
But something more critical was at stake, the country's current crisis and descent into authoritarian oppression. The new songs of Luis Enrique, Canciones de Abril, lifting up the events that catalyzed this current moment. The uprisings that have resulted in hundreds dead, others disappeared or imprisioned, 50-60000 in exile in Costa Rica and more in Honduras, itself a country of emigration. Meanwhile the population is terrorized by paramilitarios and violent turbas. It is for this los hermanos sing.
As I listen and watch, I have two reflections. The first has to do with nationalism. We all reject with revulsion President Trump's declaration that he is a "nationalist." Most of us are by ideology internationalists, which is why we are here. Still the optics are moving.
The flowing blue and white flags and banners. The women dancing, pride and defiance in their eyes as they wrap themselves in and dance with the flag. What is the difference? Can it be as simple as love of the people as opposed to jingoistic exceptionalism? Certainly, revolutions are often expressed in terms of movements of national liberation.
Perhaps the words of Finlandia: Song of Peace express it best:
This is my song
Oh gods of all the nations
A song of peace for lands so far away
This is my home, a country where my heart is
Here grew my hopes and dreams for all mankind
But other hearts in other lands are beating
With hopes and dreams as true and high as mine
My country's skies are bluer than the ocean
And sunlight shines on clover leaf and pine
But other lands have sunlight too and clover
And skies are everywhere as blue as mine
Oh hear my prayer, o gods of all the nations
A song of peace for their lands and for mine
It's the love expressed in songs like Carlos' "Nicaragua, Nicaraguita":
Oh Nicaragua Nicaraguita
Most beautiful flower of my love
Fertilized with the blessed blood of Diriangen
Oh Nicaragua you are even sweeter
Than the honey from Tamagas
But now that you are free
Nicaraguita
I love you much more
But now that you are free
Nicaraguita
I love you much more
A love that sustains a people in exile. That sustains until we return. And it connects us to all peoples....we learn the universal through the particular.
But I have another more disturbing concern. I look around and with a handful of exceptions, the crowd is totally nicaraguense. In the 80's, there would, have been many cadres of internacionalistas and companeros de solidaridad. Not today. What's going on?
Let's face it, the struggle to overthrow right wing fascist regimes is romantic, even sexy. We get to live out our own Spanish Civil War fantasy. Our own Hemmingway or Abraham Lincoln Brigade experience. In the 80's we even had the evocative graffitti, no pasaran. Nicaragua was the perfect mix of socialism and liberationist Christianity with cool peasant art work as a bonus.
But not now. Nothjng sexy about seeking to remove a corrupt former leftist oligarch and his self absorbed power hoarding partner. That's just hard work. And if that caudillito is a former revolutionary icon, sorry guys you're on your own.
The former companions in solidarity are today the biggest roadblock to developing support for the movement to restore democracy to Nicaragua. This despite the fact that every major Sandinista figure—has spoken out against the duo: Ernesto Cardenal, Sergio Ramírez, Dora María Téllez, Carlos Fernando Chamorro, Gioconda Belli and Daisy Zamora. Ortega has lost the singers of revolution like los Mejia and Katia Cardenal who can no longer return home after their current concert tours. At SPSA was the young student who had gone cara a cara with Daniel.
For those of us for whom solidarity with Nicaragua was such an important part of their life, the time is now to move beyond romance to reality in the name of the suffering Nicaraguan people. What's at stake is much more important than ideology, it is the very real lives of very real people.
 |
| Los Hermanos Mejia |
Last week was a truly memorable night when los hermanos Mejia performed at St. Paul and St.Andrews Church in New York City in what could be their last concert here. That alone would have been enough to have drawn the hundreds of Nicaraguans to filled the church to hear--and sing along with-- these national icons, the expression of the soul and dream of los nicaraguenses.
But something more critical was at stake, the country's current crisis and descent into authoritarian oppression. The new songs of Luis Enrique, Canciones de Abril, lifting up the events that catalyzed this current moment. The uprisings that have resulted in hundreds dead, others disappeared or imprisioned, 50-60000 in exile in Costa Rica and more in Honduras, itself a country of emigration. Meanwhile the population is terrorized by paramilitarios and violent turbas. It is for this los hermanos sing.
As I listen and watch, I have two reflections. The first has to do with nationalism. We all reject with revulsion President Trump's declaration that he is a "nationalist." Most of us are by ideology internationalists, which is why we are here. Still the optics are moving.
The flowing blue and white flags and banners. The women dancing, pride and defiance in their eyes as they wrap themselves in and dance with the flag. What is the difference? Can it be as simple as love of the people as opposed to jingoistic exceptionalism? Certainly, revolutions are often expressed in terms of movements of national liberation.
Perhaps the words of Finlandia: Song of Peace express it best:
This is my song
Oh gods of all the nations
A song of peace for lands so far away
This is my home, a country where my heart is
Here grew my hopes and dreams for all mankind
But other hearts in other lands are beating
With hopes and dreams as true and high as mine
My country's skies are bluer than the ocean
And sunlight shines on clover leaf and pine
But other lands have sunlight too and clover
And skies are everywhere as blue as mine
Oh hear my prayer, o gods of all the nations
A song of peace for their lands and for mine
It's the love expressed in songs like Carlos' "Nicaragua, Nicaraguita":
Oh Nicaragua Nicaraguita
Most beautiful flower of my love
Fertilized with the blessed blood of Diriangen
Oh Nicaragua you are even sweeter
Than the honey from Tamagas
But now that you are free
Nicaraguita
I love you much more
But now that you are free
Nicaraguita
I love you much more
A love that sustains a people in exile. That sustains until we return. And it connects us to all peoples....we learn the universal through the particular.
But I have another more disturbing concern. I look around and with a handful of exceptions, the crowd is totally nicaraguense. In the 80's, there would, have been many cadres of internacionalistas and companeros de solidaridad. Not today. What's going on?
Let's face it, the struggle to overthrow right wing fascist regimes is romantic, even sexy. We get to live out our own Spanish Civil War fantasy. Our own Hemmingway or Abraham Lincoln Brigade experience. In the 80's we even had the evocative graffitti, no pasaran. Nicaragua was the perfect mix of socialism and liberationist Christianity with cool peasant art work as a bonus.
But not now. Nothjng sexy about seeking to remove a corrupt former leftist oligarch and his self absorbed power hoarding partner. That's just hard work. And if that caudillito is a former revolutionary icon, sorry guys you're on your own.
The former companions in solidarity are today the biggest roadblock to developing support for the movement to restore democracy to Nicaragua. This despite the fact that every major Sandinista figure—has spoken out against the duo: Ernesto Cardenal, Sergio Ramírez, Dora María Téllez, Carlos Fernando Chamorro, Gioconda Belli and Daisy Zamora. Ortega has lost the singers of revolution like los Mejia and Katia Cardenal who can no longer return home after their current concert tours. At SPSA was the young student who had gone cara a cara with Daniel.
 |
| He stood up to Daniel |
For those of us for whom solidarity with Nicaragua was such an important part of their life, the time is now to move beyond romance to reality in the name of the suffering Nicaraguan people. What's at stake is much more important than ideology, it is the very real lives of very real people.
 |
| Luis Enrique, Robert, Carlos and Russ |
Monday, December 10, 2018
Advent 2: Getting Ready
12/9
I arrived at Good Shepherd Faith on the Second Sunday of Advent to find the place all a sparkle and glowing. (In large part thanks to Elder Neil..) After lighting the candles,
prayers, hymns and scripture, here was the reflection I shared with the church...
So I'd made a big mistake yesterday. I went downtown to do some Christmas shopping at Macy's. I had forgotten it was that one day when the very image of a Santa suit strikes terror into the hearts of even the most hardened and hardy New Yorkers. Santacon Saturday.....
One of my best New York memories was the year when a surging wave of Black Lives Matter marchers crossed paths with a wavering surge of drunk Santas. For a few blocks we had drunk guys in Santa suits chanting "Black lives matter." and a few had to be helped back to their original path. That's12/9
I arrived at Good Shepherd Faith on the Second Sunday of Advent to find the place all a sparkle and glowing. (In large part thanks t Elder Neil..) After lighting the candles, prayers, hymns and scripture, here was the reflection I shared with them....
So I'd made a big mistake yesterday. I went downtown to do some Christmas shopping at Macy's. I had forgotten it was that one day when the very image of a Santa suit strikes terror into the hearts of even the most hardened and hardy New Yorkers.
One of my best New York memories was the year when a surging wave of Black Lives Matter marchers crossed paths with a wavering surge of drunk Santas. For a few blocks we had drunk guys in Santa suits chanting "Black lives matter." and a few had to be helped back to their original path. Like they sing in the the Radio City Music Hall spectacular sequence, that's "Christmas in New York."
Getting ready. I was out to get ready. That's what we're up to these days.
Like Paul Simon sings:
From early in November to the last week of December
I got money matters weighing me down
Oh the music may be merry, but it's only temporary
I know Santa Claus is coming to town
In the days I work my day job, in the nights I work my night
But it all comes down to working man's pay
Getting ready, I'm getting ready, ready for Christmas Day
And that's what our gospel is about today...I always look forward to this day because it's John the Baptist coming back again. He's such an interesting character. Especially as a cousin to Jesus. We don't often think about the fact that his father was a priest in the temple. I mean the temple. He was, in essence, the son of what we call a tall steeple preacher. You couldn't be more establishment. He's like one of those rich kids who turn hippy or ran away and joined Occupy Wall Street. And he's out there in the desert in animal skins and a raw nature diet preparing the way for his poor cousin Jesus. Straight from the prophet Isaiah (and you can almost here Handel:
"The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
'Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight.
5Every valley shall be filled,
and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall be made straight,
and the rough ways made smooth;
6and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'"
(For what it's worth, Isaiah was a court prophet as opposed to street prophets like Micah and Amos...)
One thing I want you to see is how specific Luke is about timing:
1In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, 2during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness.
He wants to put all this in a very specific socio- historio- political context. To tell this story about a specific time and place. Because that's how God breaks into our world...it always takes the particular to reveal the universal. Jesus comes to us in the second year of Trump's Presidency when Cuomo was governor of New York and Di Blasio mayor of the city and Egan Cardinal of the city...you get the idea...
And by implication, God comes to us, the incarnation comes to us, Jesus comes to us, in the specific context of our lives. And let me tell you...the specific context of our lives, right now, today, is not easy...
My son last week at my birthday brunch asked me if I remembered a time in my life that was "so weird"...and I said, "Yeah, 1968...a sitting President decides not to run, Martin Luther King, Jr assassinated, leading Democrat candidate Bobby Kennedy assasinated, Democratic convention descends into chaos, mired deep in Vietnam and we wind up with Nixon as President...yeah, that was a rough year..."
(By the way, my band is doing a production of a 1968 album...of 12 people onstage, only 3 were alive i 1968. One who was 4, one who was 11...and me...)
So how do we respond, prepare in our day? How many here remember "Amahl and the Night Visitors"? It was an annual event for my family growing up. I saw a production last week that profoundly moved me. Onsite Opera staged it at Holy Apostles Soup kitchen. Right after a meal. The lead roles were all opera professionals but the chorus was made up mainly of current (and formerly) homeless people. (Once again, breaking our stereotypes..) Amahl's mother starts off wiping the tables and the opera emerges from the heart of the kitchen, which is actually the sanctuary of the church. OSO has partnered with "Breaking Ground," an organization that works to move homeless people from shelters to permanent affordable housing.(see http://west-parkpress.blogspot.com/2018/12/amahl-and-night-visitors-from-soup.html )
That to me is a wonderful example of how an arts organization seeks to, as my Jewish friends say, "heal the world,""..preparing the way.."
A friend of mine in Ottawa, a former Occupier and tattoo artist, is working with others to fill backpacks with clothes and necessities, including hand knit scarves and mittens, for that city's homeless.
Years ago this church helped me create an annual concert for the homeless. It moved on to be on its own, but nevertheless was a creative cooperative effort.
We do what we can. In the ways that are appropriate to us.
I'll finish with these words of Paul Simon:
If I could tell my Mom and Dad that the things we never had
Never mattered we were always okay
Getting ready, oh ready, ready for Christmas Day
Ready, getting ready
For the power and the glory and the story of the
Christmas Day
And so I ask you? How are you getting ready for Christmas Day? What are your stories?
I get various answers. One man's wife has just lost her mother. Wondering how to celebrate Christmas a time of grief. i recalled the Christmas my grandmother died. The importance of family being together. Others of the importance as a place of quiet during a time bustling with activity. A single mother speaks one speaks of the importance of the Radio City Music Hall Spectacular to her daughter. And a young man is continuing to do his annual project of answering the letter to Santa of children from a housing project even though he is unemployed this year. We do what we can.
A time for coffee and cake and then back into the cold. Getting ready for Christmas....
l
 |
| Ready for Christmas at Good Shepherd Faith |
I arrived at Good Shepherd Faith on the Second Sunday of Advent to find the place all a sparkle and glowing. (In large part thanks to Elder Neil..) After lighting the candles,
 |
| Lighting the Advent candles |
So I'd made a big mistake yesterday. I went downtown to do some Christmas shopping at Macy's. I had forgotten it was that one day when the very image of a Santa suit strikes terror into the hearts of even the most hardened and hardy New Yorkers. Santacon Saturday.....
One of my best New York memories was the year when a surging wave of Black Lives Matter marchers crossed paths with a wavering surge of drunk Santas. For a few blocks we had drunk guys in Santa suits chanting "Black lives matter." and a few had to be helped back to their original path. That's12/9
I arrived at Good Shepherd Faith on the Second Sunday of Advent to find the place all a sparkle and glowing. (In large part thanks t Elder Neil..) After lighting the candles, prayers, hymns and scripture, here was the reflection I shared with them....
So I'd made a big mistake yesterday. I went downtown to do some Christmas shopping at Macy's. I had forgotten it was that one day when the very image of a Santa suit strikes terror into the hearts of even the most hardened and hardy New Yorkers.
One of my best New York memories was the year when a surging wave of Black Lives Matter marchers crossed paths with a wavering surge of drunk Santas. For a few blocks we had drunk guys in Santa suits chanting "Black lives matter." and a few had to be helped back to their original path. Like they sing in the the Radio City Music Hall spectacular sequence, that's "Christmas in New York."
Getting ready. I was out to get ready. That's what we're up to these days.
Like Paul Simon sings:
From early in November to the last week of December
I got money matters weighing me down
Oh the music may be merry, but it's only temporary
I know Santa Claus is coming to town
In the days I work my day job, in the nights I work my night
But it all comes down to working man's pay
Getting ready, I'm getting ready, ready for Christmas Day
And that's what our gospel is about today...I always look forward to this day because it's John the Baptist coming back again. He's such an interesting character. Especially as a cousin to Jesus. We don't often think about the fact that his father was a priest in the temple. I mean the temple. He was, in essence, the son of what we call a tall steeple preacher. You couldn't be more establishment. He's like one of those rich kids who turn hippy or ran away and joined Occupy Wall Street. And he's out there in the desert in animal skins and a raw nature diet preparing the way for his poor cousin Jesus. Straight from the prophet Isaiah (and you can almost here Handel:
"The voice of one crying out in the wilderness:
'Prepare the way of the Lord,
make his paths straight.
5Every valley shall be filled,
and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall be made straight,
and the rough ways made smooth;
6and all flesh shall see the salvation of God.'"
(For what it's worth, Isaiah was a court prophet as opposed to street prophets like Micah and Amos...)
One thing I want you to see is how specific Luke is about timing:
1In the fifteenth year of the reign of Emperor Tiberius, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was ruler of Galilee, and his brother Philip ruler of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias ruler of Abilene, 2during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John son of Zechariah in the wilderness.
He wants to put all this in a very specific socio- historio- political context. To tell this story about a specific time and place. Because that's how God breaks into our world...it always takes the particular to reveal the universal. Jesus comes to us in the second year of Trump's Presidency when Cuomo was governor of New York and Di Blasio mayor of the city and Egan Cardinal of the city...you get the idea...
And by implication, God comes to us, the incarnation comes to us, Jesus comes to us, in the specific context of our lives. And let me tell you...the specific context of our lives, right now, today, is not easy...
My son last week at my birthday brunch asked me if I remembered a time in my life that was "so weird"...and I said, "Yeah, 1968...a sitting President decides not to run, Martin Luther King, Jr assassinated, leading Democrat candidate Bobby Kennedy assasinated, Democratic convention descends into chaos, mired deep in Vietnam and we wind up with Nixon as President...yeah, that was a rough year..."
(By the way, my band is doing a production of a 1968 album...of 12 people onstage, only 3 were alive i 1968. One who was 4, one who was 11...and me...)
So how do we respond, prepare in our day? How many here remember "Amahl and the Night Visitors"? It was an annual event for my family growing up. I saw a production last week that profoundly moved me. Onsite Opera staged it at Holy Apostles Soup kitchen. Right after a meal. The lead roles were all opera professionals but the chorus was made up mainly of current (and formerly) homeless people. (Once again, breaking our stereotypes..) Amahl's mother starts off wiping the tables and the opera emerges from the heart of the kitchen, which is actually the sanctuary of the church. OSO has partnered with "Breaking Ground," an organization that works to move homeless people from shelters to permanent affordable housing.(see http://west-parkpress.blogspot.com/2018/12/amahl-and-night-visitors-from-soup.html )
That to me is a wonderful example of how an arts organization seeks to, as my Jewish friends say, "heal the world,""..preparing the way.."
A friend of mine in Ottawa, a former Occupier and tattoo artist, is working with others to fill backpacks with clothes and necessities, including hand knit scarves and mittens, for that city's homeless.
Years ago this church helped me create an annual concert for the homeless. It moved on to be on its own, but nevertheless was a creative cooperative effort.
We do what we can. In the ways that are appropriate to us.
I'll finish with these words of Paul Simon:
If I could tell my Mom and Dad that the things we never had
Never mattered we were always okay
Getting ready, oh ready, ready for Christmas Day
Ready, getting ready
For the power and the glory and the story of the
Christmas Day
And so I ask you? How are you getting ready for Christmas Day? What are your stories?
I get various answers. One man's wife has just lost her mother. Wondering how to celebrate Christmas a time of grief. i recalled the Christmas my grandmother died. The importance of family being together. Others of the importance as a place of quiet during a time bustling with activity. A single mother speaks one speaks of the importance of the Radio City Music Hall Spectacular to her daughter. And a young man is continuing to do his annual project of answering the letter to Santa of children from a housing project even though he is unemployed this year. We do what we can.
A time for coffee and cake and then back into the cold. Getting ready for Christmas....
l
Thursday, December 6, 2018
Amahl and the Night Visitors from the Soup Kitchen
12/4
Throughout my childhood, one of the most important moments in my family's annual Advent liturgy was the yearly NBC broadcast of Amahl and the Night Visitors. From the time I was two years old to the time I was 17, I waited in anticipation for this production every year. My family owned the original cast recording with the Bosh "Adoration" on the cover and accompanying libretto which I had pretty well memorized by age 10.
Finally, when I was now a college student, a dispute between Menotti and NBC meant there was no broadcast.
I barely noticed that it was gone, but I eventually caught on. It made a one-time reappearance in 1978, but the annual event was over. During those years, the narrative of the Menotti opera had become for me (almost) as much a part of the canon as Matthew and Luke.
Thus I was very excited when I learned that On Site Opera would be doing a production of "Amahl"...The more I learned the more impressedI was. The production would be done in conjunction with Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen and in partnership with "Breaking Ground," an organization dedicated to getting homeless people into permanent affordable housing. While opera professionals would take the leads, the chorus would be made up of current and formerly homeless people.
OSO kept faith with all my expectations. As you enter the church, you are aware that you are in a church that has opened up its worship space as a soup kitchen. Tables throughout the sanctuary give the impression of a meal just served. Amahl's mother is cleaning up after that meal and is interacting with the security guard. A simple child's toy on the floor helps set the stage and the narrative will emerge from this context.
From the first orchestral notes I was relieved that they were played with sharpness, precision and expression. (The last time I saw a community Amahl, the strings just about did me in. And the first sung notes took me back through over half a century to emotionally connect in ways that took me by surprise. And not the only edge of tears moment.
The cast was truly stellar throughout starting with Devin Zamir Coleman as Ahmal, alternating with Luciano Pantano, Aundi Marie Moore, Jospeh Gaines, Daniel Belcher, Musa Nkungqwana and Jonathan Green as Amahl's mother, the kings and the Page are equally effective in their roles.
For the most part the framing device works, although at times it stretches and strains to contain the narrative. I liked the kings as characters one encounters on the street...with shopping cart, wagon, baby carriage and outlandish garb. I've met them all. The chorus arises out of the gathered communuty. Having the security guard be the "page" who calls out the theft was well played. As was coming back to the toy at the end. When it becomes difficult to manage the narrative within the frame its best to just take in the collective sense and feeling of the moment.
Amahl emerged in a different US. One that was still in a glow of post war optimism that hoped to provide opportunity as a basic right. Networks like NBC commissioned new works of classical music and made them available to the public as Bernstein passionately believed that music belonged to the people.
It's a different day. Culture is increasingly restricted to the privileged class. We have few collective shared experiences on media. And poverty is perceived as being just desserts. In such a time, the question before the artistic and creative community is what then is our responsibility in such an age? Onsite Opera is clearly seeking to answer that question creatively and responsibly. The fact that the opera was presented as part of a free opera program makes it all the more powerful a witness.
Onsite opera is now one of the resident companies of the Center at West Park, a place that has as part of its mission exploring the intersection of ethics and esthetics, beauty and justice. Seems like a good fit.....
https://osopera.org/
https://www.centeratwestpark.org/
 |
| On Site Opera's "Amahl.... |
Throughout my childhood, one of the most important moments in my family's annual Advent liturgy was the yearly NBC broadcast of Amahl and the Night Visitors. From the time I was two years old to the time I was 17, I waited in anticipation for this production every year. My family owned the original cast recording with the Bosh "Adoration" on the cover and accompanying libretto which I had pretty well memorized by age 10.
 |
| Bosch "Adoration of the Magi" |
I barely noticed that it was gone, but I eventually caught on. It made a one-time reappearance in 1978, but the annual event was over. During those years, the narrative of the Menotti opera had become for me (almost) as much a part of the canon as Matthew and Luke.
Thus I was very excited when I learned that On Site Opera would be doing a production of "Amahl"...The more I learned the more impressedI was. The production would be done in conjunction with Holy Apostles Soup Kitchen and in partnership with "Breaking Ground," an organization dedicated to getting homeless people into permanent affordable housing. While opera professionals would take the leads, the chorus would be made up of current and formerly homeless people.
OSO kept faith with all my expectations. As you enter the church, you are aware that you are in a church that has opened up its worship space as a soup kitchen. Tables throughout the sanctuary give the impression of a meal just served. Amahl's mother is cleaning up after that meal and is interacting with the security guard. A simple child's toy on the floor helps set the stage and the narrative will emerge from this context.
From the first orchestral notes I was relieved that they were played with sharpness, precision and expression. (The last time I saw a community Amahl, the strings just about did me in. And the first sung notes took me back through over half a century to emotionally connect in ways that took me by surprise. And not the only edge of tears moment.
The cast was truly stellar throughout starting with Devin Zamir Coleman as Ahmal, alternating with Luciano Pantano, Aundi Marie Moore, Jospeh Gaines, Daniel Belcher, Musa Nkungqwana and Jonathan Green as Amahl's mother, the kings and the Page are equally effective in their roles.
For the most part the framing device works, although at times it stretches and strains to contain the narrative. I liked the kings as characters one encounters on the street...with shopping cart, wagon, baby carriage and outlandish garb. I've met them all. The chorus arises out of the gathered communuty. Having the security guard be the "page" who calls out the theft was well played. As was coming back to the toy at the end. When it becomes difficult to manage the narrative within the frame its best to just take in the collective sense and feeling of the moment.
Amahl emerged in a different US. One that was still in a glow of post war optimism that hoped to provide opportunity as a basic right. Networks like NBC commissioned new works of classical music and made them available to the public as Bernstein passionately believed that music belonged to the people.
It's a different day. Culture is increasingly restricted to the privileged class. We have few collective shared experiences on media. And poverty is perceived as being just desserts. In such a time, the question before the artistic and creative community is what then is our responsibility in such an age? Onsite Opera is clearly seeking to answer that question creatively and responsibly. The fact that the opera was presented as part of a free opera program makes it all the more powerful a witness.
Onsite opera is now one of the resident companies of the Center at West Park, a place that has as part of its mission exploring the intersection of ethics and esthetics, beauty and justice. Seems like a good fit.....
https://osopera.org/
https://www.centeratwestpark.org/
Wednesday, December 5, 2018
Advent 1: Waking Up
12/2
It's the first Sunday of Advent. It's a cold rainy day as I walk up Beverley Road under my umbrella. I notice a sign welcoming refugees.
When I get to the church, there's a sense of excitement. A baptism will tae place! The first in a long time....
Here is my reflection for the day...
There's a word the kids use to describe a certain sense, a certain awareness of reality. It's "woke"....which kind of means that something was going on and you weren't quite aware of it, but now you are and from here on out you are responsible. ( The first words of Spike Lee's "Do the Right Thing" were WAKE UP!) That's what we're up to on this first Sunday of Advent.
Of course in any given Advent we are experiencing 3 advent simultaneously...the word means to come....so what are we waiting for? what is to come?
First, there is the celebration fo the first Advent, when God came to be present with us in human form in the person of Jesus. Then there is this Christmas, the one that's coming right at us like an onrushing train whether we're ready for it not or not. (And in our minds of course, the memories of all the Christmases that have come before...) And finally the ultimate Advent, the expectation of Jesus' return. That's where "woke" comes in. There's this heavy apocalyptic feel to this moment.
Luke is filled with signs....earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves......certainly climate phenomena seem all the more violent...storms lash vulnerable communities...Puerto Rico has yet to recover....
California wildfires rage out of control....Berlin "suffers" with beautiful weather because there has been no rain for months ...and the Spree gets lower all the time..
And there are more people on the move than ever before. Thousands of Africans trapped in Sicily because other EU countries won't let them in. New right wing government in Italy criminalizing aid to refugees. More than half a million Venezuelans fled to Ecuador. 50000 Nicaraguans have fled to Costa Rica. And the "caravan" from lawless Honduras edges closer to our border. And we fire tear gas canisters at mothers and babies across the border. While thousands of children separated from their parents are in a detention camp in the desert. Taking all these things in...that's what "woke"means.
It would be easy to read these signs as filled with apocalyptic meaning. And of course at some level, every age can be demonstrably apocalyptic, at least for some people. Carefully detailed scenarios come and go in every generation. Remember, Jesus said, Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place.....and since then, 66 generations have passed away....but more importantly.. 33Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.....
Jesus wants us to be AWAKE to what's going on around us and NOT worried about end times...but to begin living as if redemption is near, or better, as if we are already redeemed....
Think about this..."Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day catch you unexpectedly, 35like a trap.
...okay, the drunkenness and dissipation is pretty clear....but also notice ....."the worries of this life...." worrying is right up there with drunkenness...it robs life of tis richness, fills our heads, makes us pre-occupied. Like a parking lot with no empty spaces or the subway just about any day these days. I used to find Bobby McFerrin's "Don't worry be happy" annoying but I've begun to feel it's profound. Worry can be a substitute for actually doing something about it.
When I was in Berlin, I got to experience one of the greatest joys anyone can have, the arrival of my second grandchild, my granddaughter Karla. Today we are blessed with the opportunity to celebrate perhaps the most joyous moment in church life, a baptism. Today the baptism of Dwight Stephens.
Every child is a vote in favor of life.
Every child is a new statement of hope.
And every child is a new opportunity.
So while we begin our journey to the celebration of the Christ Child, let us rejoice in the opportunity to celebrate the life of THIS child. In our tradition, Baptism is a community sacrament. We all share in responsibility for this child's understanding of Christian community. May we embrace this call as the gift it is....
We share in communion. Then it's time for Dwight's baptism. An extended family is gathered. Dwight is more toddler than baby and is suspicious when I bring the water it his head, but baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit he is.
The people are ready to continue the celebration. I am off to celebrate my birthday with my family back in Manhattan. Advent has begun.
Gospel Luke 21:25-36
25"There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. 26People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27Then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in a cloud' with power and great glory. 28Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
29Then he told them a parable: "Look at the fig tree and all the trees; 30as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near. 31So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. 33Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
34"Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day catch you unexpectedly, 35like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. 36Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man."
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| Congratulations Dwight! |
It's the first Sunday of Advent. It's a cold rainy day as I walk up Beverley Road under my umbrella. I notice a sign welcoming refugees.
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| a welcome on Beverly Road |
Here is my reflection for the day...
There's a word the kids use to describe a certain sense, a certain awareness of reality. It's "woke"....which kind of means that something was going on and you weren't quite aware of it, but now you are and from here on out you are responsible. ( The first words of Spike Lee's "Do the Right Thing" were WAKE UP!) That's what we're up to on this first Sunday of Advent.
Of course in any given Advent we are experiencing 3 advent simultaneously...the word means to come....so what are we waiting for? what is to come?
First, there is the celebration fo the first Advent, when God came to be present with us in human form in the person of Jesus. Then there is this Christmas, the one that's coming right at us like an onrushing train whether we're ready for it not or not. (And in our minds of course, the memories of all the Christmases that have come before...) And finally the ultimate Advent, the expectation of Jesus' return. That's where "woke" comes in. There's this heavy apocalyptic feel to this moment.
Luke is filled with signs....earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves......certainly climate phenomena seem all the more violent...storms lash vulnerable communities...Puerto Rico has yet to recover....
California wildfires rage out of control....Berlin "suffers" with beautiful weather because there has been no rain for months ...and the Spree gets lower all the time..
And there are more people on the move than ever before. Thousands of Africans trapped in Sicily because other EU countries won't let them in. New right wing government in Italy criminalizing aid to refugees. More than half a million Venezuelans fled to Ecuador. 50000 Nicaraguans have fled to Costa Rica. And the "caravan" from lawless Honduras edges closer to our border. And we fire tear gas canisters at mothers and babies across the border. While thousands of children separated from their parents are in a detention camp in the desert. Taking all these things in...that's what "woke"means.
It would be easy to read these signs as filled with apocalyptic meaning. And of course at some level, every age can be demonstrably apocalyptic, at least for some people. Carefully detailed scenarios come and go in every generation. Remember, Jesus said, Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place.....and since then, 66 generations have passed away....but more importantly.. 33Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.....
Jesus wants us to be AWAKE to what's going on around us and NOT worried about end times...but to begin living as if redemption is near, or better, as if we are already redeemed....
Think about this..."Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day catch you unexpectedly, 35like a trap.
When I was in Berlin, I got to experience one of the greatest joys anyone can have, the arrival of my second grandchild, my granddaughter Karla. Today we are blessed with the opportunity to celebrate perhaps the most joyous moment in church life, a baptism. Today the baptism of Dwight Stephens.
Every child is a vote in favor of life.
Every child is a new statement of hope.
And every child is a new opportunity.
So while we begin our journey to the celebration of the Christ Child, let us rejoice in the opportunity to celebrate the life of THIS child. In our tradition, Baptism is a community sacrament. We all share in responsibility for this child's understanding of Christian community. May we embrace this call as the gift it is....
We share in communion. Then it's time for Dwight's baptism. An extended family is gathered. Dwight is more toddler than baby and is suspicious when I bring the water it his head, but baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit he is.
The people are ready to continue the celebration. I am off to celebrate my birthday with my family back in Manhattan. Advent has begun.
Gospel Luke 21:25-36
25"There will be signs in the sun, the moon, and the stars, and on the earth distress among nations confused by the roaring of the sea and the waves. 26People will faint from fear and foreboding of what is coming upon the world, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken. 27Then they will see 'the Son of Man coming in a cloud' with power and great glory. 28Now when these things begin to take place, stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near."
29Then he told them a parable: "Look at the fig tree and all the trees; 30as soon as they sprout leaves you can see for yourselves and know that summer is already near. 31So also, when you see these things taking place, you know that the kingdom of God is near. 32Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all things have taken place. 33Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away.
34"Be on guard so that your hearts are not weighed down with dissipation and drunkenness and the worries of this life, and that day catch you unexpectedly, 35like a trap. For it will come upon all who live on the face of the whole earth. 36Be alert at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that will take place, and to stand before the Son of Man."
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