You, Rev. Timble, see through the eyes of the heart. Your words go deeper and encourage me to pause when the daily feed of ugly news can lead me close to rage. Instead that pause helps me find the still point within, that realm where Divine Grace enables me to pray in the words of St. Francis of Assisi: "Make me an instrument of your peace, where there is hatred let me sow love..."
In that space I am able to send out to the universe peace energy to dispel the darkness of hate. Thank you. I find your meditations and prayer spot on.
Thank you for so articulately sharing from the deep gift of your wisdom, Cameron. Although I do not always succeed in being gracious when the need presents, I’ve tried to keep these words from the Ephesian letter (4:29, NRSVUE) in heart and mind when I feel conflict arise within myself: “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths but only what is good for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.” Your words succeed. Thank you. Peace abide…
Amen, it is a slippery slope into othering another, remembering that what we want for ourselves, we must want for those who disagree with us. May Love, respect and courage guide us all.
What helps you stay grounded when strong emotions begin to take over? You do Cameron and your thoughtful and inspiring meditations and prayers almost daily. With deep gratitude, Maureen
Coffee/Tea. This where we need to start. And even 'elevenses' for those who know what that means. To sit down and think a minute; talk it over; work it out.
In Acts 15 is an example of how the early church dealt with this. Yes, it is male-centric. And it also points out traditions, cultural ways of doing life and assumptions that flow along the lines of 'it must be right, we have always done it this way.' Not so.
Cameron is right in pointing out that we need to look at the bigger picture and the background that is driving it. To simply assume the mantle of chaos agent is not to make it a badge of honour. Our God is so much bigger. Our prayers will include one of thanksgiving that this event did not have a much worse outcome. And yes, we need to hear God calling us out into so much more. Rev. Scott Brown, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
While I am not a fan of her, What do you make of how Melania was not really protected in the existing after the shooting? Seems a sign of the growing culture of misogyny!
So much is " crouching at our door" at this chronos/kairos moment that the challenge to stay spiritually-humanly grounded deepens daily. Short of "jumping off the grid" ( is that possible or even wise in its extreme?) of our media-saturated lives, we are all swimming in the same dysfunctional pool. It takes tremendous attentiveness and energy to resist the almost hidden " shaping" going on. It is exhausting to resist normalizing any of this. Your " spiritual work" today is helpful grounding for resisting in a way that opposes the inhumanity without letting it shape us in its image. It is so tempting to fight fire with fire-- but then we all burn up!
Thank you so much for being a clarifying voice for our souls.
Your analysis of an increasingly violent culture whose members shared sense of right and wrong has broken is spot on. Your conclusion that the “real question now is not just how we respond but who we are becoming” is much needed. However, I am unable to reconcile my response without factoring in humankind’s last horrific mass breakdown (Nazi Germany, Hitler and Holocaust). What about Dietrich Bonhoeffer?
This is so true! And it's what we talk about almost every time an action of violence occurs, that it's the political climate that creates an environment where these ideas are generated and people are motivated to take violent action in response.
Thank you for your thoughtful piece. What about mental illness? The gunman in this situation was more than very angry, he is mentally unwell. Society needs to destigmatize and have supports for those with mental illness. They also need our prayers.
It’s so difficult not to respond in kind to the hateful words and cruel actions that are consistently used by Trump, this administration and, at times, his supporters to attempt to destroy us and everyone and everything we value. I try to redirect my anger into street protest, letter writing, organizing, community building, but when Trump reveals over and over again that he has no conscience it is easy to understand why one might believe, like Bonhoeffer, that we have a responsibility to try to remove the source of the violence.
In today’s world, that will be hard for many to see and understand. The world is moving on but America is falling further into the abyss, the tunnel is getting darker…
You, Rev. Timble, see through the eyes of the heart. Your words go deeper and encourage me to pause when the daily feed of ugly news can lead me close to rage. Instead that pause helps me find the still point within, that realm where Divine Grace enables me to pray in the words of St. Francis of Assisi: "Make me an instrument of your peace, where there is hatred let me sow love..."
In that space I am able to send out to the universe peace energy to dispel the darkness of hate. Thank you. I find your meditations and prayer spot on.
Thank you for so articulately sharing from the deep gift of your wisdom, Cameron. Although I do not always succeed in being gracious when the need presents, I’ve tried to keep these words from the Ephesian letter (4:29, NRSVUE) in heart and mind when I feel conflict arise within myself: “Let no evil talk come out of your mouths but only what is good for building up, as there is need, so that your words may give grace to those who hear.” Your words succeed. Thank you. Peace abide…
Thank you. I so appreciate your perspective, your wise words, how beautifully you articulate them and the spiritual direction they offer. 🕊️🙏🕊️
Amen, it is a slippery slope into othering another, remembering that what we want for ourselves, we must want for those who disagree with us. May Love, respect and courage guide us all.
What helps you stay grounded when strong emotions begin to take over? You do Cameron and your thoughtful and inspiring meditations and prayers almost daily. With deep gratitude, Maureen
Coffee/Tea. This where we need to start. And even 'elevenses' for those who know what that means. To sit down and think a minute; talk it over; work it out.
In Acts 15 is an example of how the early church dealt with this. Yes, it is male-centric. And it also points out traditions, cultural ways of doing life and assumptions that flow along the lines of 'it must be right, we have always done it this way.' Not so.
Cameron is right in pointing out that we need to look at the bigger picture and the background that is driving it. To simply assume the mantle of chaos agent is not to make it a badge of honour. Our God is so much bigger. Our prayers will include one of thanksgiving that this event did not have a much worse outcome. And yes, we need to hear God calling us out into so much more. Rev. Scott Brown, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
While I am not a fan of her, What do you make of how Melania was not really protected in the existing after the shooting? Seems a sign of the growing culture of misogyny!
So much is " crouching at our door" at this chronos/kairos moment that the challenge to stay spiritually-humanly grounded deepens daily. Short of "jumping off the grid" ( is that possible or even wise in its extreme?) of our media-saturated lives, we are all swimming in the same dysfunctional pool. It takes tremendous attentiveness and energy to resist the almost hidden " shaping" going on. It is exhausting to resist normalizing any of this. Your " spiritual work" today is helpful grounding for resisting in a way that opposes the inhumanity without letting it shape us in its image. It is so tempting to fight fire with fire-- but then we all burn up!
Thank you so much for being a clarifying voice for our souls.
Your analysis of an increasingly violent culture whose members shared sense of right and wrong has broken is spot on. Your conclusion that the “real question now is not just how we respond but who we are becoming” is much needed. However, I am unable to reconcile my response without factoring in humankind’s last horrific mass breakdown (Nazi Germany, Hitler and Holocaust). What about Dietrich Bonhoeffer?
This is so true! And it's what we talk about almost every time an action of violence occurs, that it's the political climate that creates an environment where these ideas are generated and people are motivated to take violent action in response.
Thank you for your thoughtful piece. What about mental illness? The gunman in this situation was more than very angry, he is mentally unwell. Society needs to destigmatize and have supports for those with mental illness. They also need our prayers.
It’s so difficult not to respond in kind to the hateful words and cruel actions that are consistently used by Trump, this administration and, at times, his supporters to attempt to destroy us and everyone and everything we value. I try to redirect my anger into street protest, letter writing, organizing, community building, but when Trump reveals over and over again that he has no conscience it is easy to understand why one might believe, like Bonhoeffer, that we have a responsibility to try to remove the source of the violence.
In today’s world, that will be hard for many to see and understand. The world is moving on but America is falling further into the abyss, the tunnel is getting darker…