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Stories Seldom Heard

150th Edition
January 2012

Welcome to Stories Seldom Heard.  I would especially like to welcome the women of St. Monica’s Parish, Moraga, CA.  As we begin this new year and the sweetness of Christmas is still on our lips and hearts, we continue to celebrate God’s wondrous deeds.  With this in mind, Psalm 96 is an appropriate New Year’s psalm.  In fact, it is a psalm that we could pray before we begin each day of this coming year because as Meister Eckhart, the great Dominican saint and mystic, reminds us, all prayer begins with gratitude.

Psalm 96 is filled with words of praise and thanksgiving.  It suggests a great procession with leader and people exuberantly singing God’s praises.  As we pray this psalm we can almost hear the trumpets and tambourines in the background:  “sing…cry out…bless…tell… proclaim.”  Proclaim what?  “God is great.”

This psalm indicates a cosmic jubilation.  The skies are glad, the earth rejoices, the sea thunders, the fields exult and the woodland trees cry out with joy. All people are able to rejoice because no matter who we are or where we humans live we can see God’s presence in the majesty and mystery of creation.  God’s sanctuary is not confined to a building, a temple,  a mosque or a church.  It is not possessed by any one nation.  “Families of people”, “all nations”, are to pay tribute and give glory to God.

Hopefully, these images stir up in us a deep sense of gratitude and wonder.   They might evoke memories of a cold diamond-studded night sky, a foggy or wind-streaked ocean walk, a muddy hike in the foothills or rugged mountains that we were privileged to experience over the holidays.  Or if we are not one of those wilderness seekers, the psalm’s animated snapshots of nature can bring back memories of experiences long-passed.  Perhaps this poetry touches into a time when we were younger or living in a different place where we were aware of the whole universe being alive and bursting with God’s graciousness.  No matter who we are, the psalm stirs up in us a sense of wonder.  It carries within it a conviction.  Peace is possible.  In fact, a cosmic peace that encompasses the whole universe is expanding right now as the universe also expands.
As the psalmist looked around his/her world, she/he knew, as we do, that all is not well.  Yet, we trust God’s faithfulness.  We trust in Emmanuel, God with us.  We trust in the Spirit of God who dwells among us and in us.  Because of these truths we can recommit ourselves to words and actions that foster peace.  The feast of Christmas might be over, but the work of Christmas continues all year long.  It is no mystery what this work entails.  “Heaven can only work in the ground of the earth.”  (1)  The work of Christ is ours now to continue: “To find the lost, To heal the broken, To feed the hungry, To release the prisoners, To rebuild the nations, To bring peace among people, To make music in the heart.” (2)

Is there one aspect of this great commandment that especially appeals to you?  If there is, can you think of one way you might respond and make it a daily/monthly practice for this new year?   Sometimes there are so many ways to respond to Jesus’ command of loving and caring for one another, we can without malice, “kick the can down the road” – delay our decision.  This was true for the early church and perhaps it is true for us too.  The commandment of love is great in depth and breadth.  In fact, St. John the Apostle who presided over the local church of Ephesus where he served his last days was sorely criticized by his community.  He always preached the same sermon no matter what the occasion.  “Brothers and sisters, love one another.”  To his critics John responded, “When you have mastered this lesson we can move on to another.”

The psalm calls us to “sing a new song,” but not a new message.  The song is to be a hymn that praises and gives glory to God.  However, Psalm 96 doesn’t tell us what new words we are to sing.  It only gives us a three-fold command.  “Pay tribute to God…pay tribute to the God of glory and power, pay tribute to God.”  It would be hard to miss these directions.  The psalmist, of course, is not talking about paying monetary tribute even though finances are important.  To pay tribute to God, in the psalmist mind, is much more personal.  God wants us to be her/his witness to the gospel.  “Heaven can only work in the ground of earth”!

During the Christmas season many of us volunteered at shelters, served dinners at hospitality houses, bought socks and coats for those who had none, gave money for food programs and offered ourselves in countless other ways.  We paid tribute to God by paying attention to those who are in need.  But the Psalm also invites us to step back and rethink our usual patterns.

It is not only the beginning of a new year, but according to the psalmist we are to sing new words in our hymn of praise.  So what are the words we are to sing?  How will they pay tribute to God?  In what ways will our words witness to our love of God?  In what ways will these words sing of God’s faithfulness to us?  For each of us, the song will be different because it must reflect the truth of our experience.  For some of us it might be the first time we will face the new year by ourselves because of a divorce or the death of a spouse, a long time companion or a dear friend.  In this case our song might sound more like a lament.  For another person the new song might be filled with words of joy: excitement about a new job, a renewed relationship or a long-time hope fulfilled.  The words of each song will have a unique tone and pace, but the psalmist reminds us that there will be some commonalities - one of which will be the word “hope.”   Why?  Because God is faithful to God’s promises.  God is “present in power” and truth.  God’s coming is daily, not held off for some distant time.

It’s a new year and Psalm 96 reminds us how important it is to stop, take a breath and reflect on our lives before the pace of life picks up.  How does God want to work a miracle in our lives?  If we take some time now to articulate our experiences of this past year and find the new words for this year’s song, we might be able to recognize the miracle when it comes.  It will also be important to continue to make silence a part of our daily routine so we can hear God’s words to us, so we can be reminded that God’s power is multiplied as we become the change we want to see in the world.  Silence also gives us the space to reflect on the inspiring works of others so that together we can sing God’s praises in God’s “sacred court” throughout the year.

May you be blessed with the eyes and heart of a mystic.

1.  Meister Eckhart, O.P.

2.  Howard Thurman, “The Work Of Christmas”

 

Special thanks to Mary Ellen Green and Maria Hetherton 
who have helped in editing this article.

"Stories Seldom Heard" is a monthly article written by Sister Patricia Bruno, O.P. Sister is a Dominican Sister of San Rafael, California. This service is offered to the Christian community to enrich one's personal and spiritual life. The articles can be used for individual or group reflection. If you would like "Stories Seldom Heard" sent to a friend, please send a note to purple115@juno.com. Thank you.