Greetings from Matthew

by Pastor Matthew Eagan

The key to my sabbatical was my week at Our Lady of Guadelupe Trappist Abbey in Lafayette, Oregon, just a few miles from McMinnville where I live. Although so close to home, the Abbey was a place set apart from work, home, and all that would fill my life. The guest room I stayed in was comfortable, about twelve feet square and it included a small closet, a single bed, a desk, a chair, and a rocking chair and lamp for reading and for just sitting. My attention often turned to a cross that hung on the wall above my bed.

In the desk drawer, I found a piece of paper with instructions, typed from an old fashioned typewriter, on how to have a successful retreat. It said, “When we ‘go apart’ for a spiritual retreat, we are seeking to make ourselves available so God can work in us and speak to us. God is not able to do so if we keep ourselves continually occupied and busy with things that WE think will make for a successful retreat. We need to be quiet. We need to convince ourselves that it is perfectly all right to be quiet during our retreat, that quietude is not a copout but a state of receptivity.” It took about a day to allow myself such quietude. Of course, that didn’t mean I had to sit still and do nothing. The pattern of silent meditation, the Hours in which the monks chanted the liturgies and psalms, free time, meals and work times, created a healthy rhythm to my day. It was good for me to have structure to my day within which I found great freedom. I could choose the activities that were most helpful for my spiritual healing and well being.

I woke up at 2:40 every morning, joined the monks in sitting meditation until 4:00, went to the chapel for Vigils at 4:15. There was about a half hour break, and then more sitting meditation and then Lauds at 7:15. There was breakfast, then Community Mass at 9:15.   I would walk in the woods, during free times, read, write, just sit still by the pond, and I also volunteered to do a little bit of work on the grounds. I wanted to practice the Benedictine pattern of work rest and prayer that fostered a balanced and healthy life, body, mind, soul and spirit. It should be noted that work includes both manual labor and such things as reading, writing and studying. Sometimes I took walks to the far edge of the forest grounds where no one could hear me, and I practiced the Recorder.

There was Angelus, or Day Hour, prayers at 12:50 p.m., a shorter service than the rest of the hours. These prayers reminded us to pause in the midst of our daily work and remember God’s presence and love. If the workers were in the fields, they would pray the Day Hour wherever they were, and then continue working. At 5:30 I went to Vespers. Supper was at 6:00. This was the only time in which we were allowed to talk. The other meals were silent. This made for some amusing communication. I signaled a fellow guest for the bread, and she passed me the milk.   The silence may seem difficult, but I craved silence. In my work which is so much about listening and talking, to sit in silence, and to not have to talk was a great relief. Finally, there was the Compline service at 7:30, and then, since the day began so early, very soon after Compline I went to bed and fell quickly to sleep. 2:40 a.m. comes awfully fast.

This pattern of meditation, prayer, work and rest, amidst a community of Christian friendship, and deep awareness of God’s love, in a setting of the natural world all around was deeply restful and healing. As I had hoped, this second week of my sabbatical set the tone for the rest of my summer. Now, back at work, I am consciously creating patterns of prayer, work and rest that will sustain me in spirit for the long haul.

When I arrive at 10:00 in the morning, the staff gathers for the reading of a psalm. Then we go about our work. At noon, we gather for another Psalm. No need for conversation or long prayers, just a quick word from the Benevolent Being beyond ourselves, and in the afternoon before we go our separate ways, we read a Psalm. Perhaps you would like to consider the pattern of your days as well. How can you practice a life of quietude? How can you be receptive to God’s voice amidst an often chaotic world? “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens and I will give you rest.” Jesus said. “Consider the lilies,” Jesus said, “consider the ravens.” Consider the cross. I can see in my mind’s eye the cross on the wall in my guest room at the Trappist Abbey. There is solace there.

Finding Your Own Calcutta with Shane Claiborne     

By Pastor Matthew Eagan

Shane Claiborne, a self-designated “Kentucky Hillbilly,” grew up in Tennessee and set out seeking to follow Jesus with authenticity.  He is the founder of “The Simple Way” a community whose intention is to live life in Christ with integrity and joy.  He is the author of The Irresistible Revolution, Jesus for President and Common Prayer.  With his trademark dreadlock hair, brown bandana, simple clothes, and disarming sense of humor, Shane Claiborne spoke to a full house of Synod Assembly delegates and guests, telling his story of faith and the power of the Good News of Jesus in the world.

As a testimony to his determination to live a life of integrity and of the Oregon Synod’s hospitality, Bishop Dave and the Oregon Synod went to great lengths to offset the “carbon footprint, 1183 lbs of CO2, it took for him to get here from his home in Pennsylvania.  Bishop Dave rode his bicycle from Portland to Eugene, and other synod members made similar gestures of care for Creation.

When Shane was growing up in Tennessee, the heart of the “Bible Belt,” he was saturated with Christianity.  The church would perform morality plays about heaven’s gates and hell’s flames, complete with theatrical pyrotechnics, after which there would be an altar call.  After years of getting born again and again, Shane felt there must be more to Christianity.

He was fascinated with Jesus.  He read the gospels and thought, “does anyone believe Jesus meant this stuff?”  Shane took Jesus’ words and life seriously.  He went to Seminary on a scholarship and studied scripture.  He wanted to study the world the way theologian Karl Barth said, “with a Bible in one hand and a newspaper in the other.”  “Christianity is not just about life after death,” Shane said, and then asked, “Is there life before death?   Jesus did not come just so we could learn how to die.  He came so to teach us how to live.”

Shane and his friends decided to find someone who was living the life Jesus taught and lived, so they called up Mother Teresa.   After many phone calls, they actually got the number, and Shane was surprised when Mother Teresa, herself, answered the phone.  “Hello,” she said in a raspy old voice, “this is Mother Teresa.”  She said, “Come and see,” and when he worried about food and lodging, she said, “God takes care of the lilies and the sparrows.  God will take care of you.”

Working at the orphanage and joining in daily prayers, Shane noticed that Mother Teresa’s feet were deformed.  He learned that when shipments of

donated shoes came for the poor, Mother Teresa would take the worst shoes of the lot so that others might have good shoes.  A life of wearing poor shoes made her feet deformed.  Shane learned from her the kind of self-less giving that is the way of Jesus.  “What would the world be like,” he mused, “if we gave the very best we owned to the poor?   When you give to the poor, you give it to Jesus.”  Shane said “you don’t have to go to Calcutta to go to Calcutta.  Pray that God would give you the eyes to see the untouchables, and the courage to respond.”

Shane went back to Philadelphia, and, along with other Christians, confronted the ugly things happening there.  The city passed laws that essentially made it illegal to be homeless.  It was even illegal for others to distribute food to the poor.  Christians began to throw parties in the parks and to sleep in the parks with the homeless people.  The police were ordered to arrest them.  Standing before the judge, a homeless man, representing the defendants said, “Jesus was homeless,” and he said, “We believe these laws are evil and wrong.”  The Judge agreed, and found the defendants “not guilty” on every count.  “If we take the gospel seriously,” Shane said, “there is a collision.  “’Do not be conformed to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds.”   With many other examples, Shane showed how the gospel prevails amidst violence and evil.  He called us to have imagination and courage in the face of injustice.

The most dramatic event, Shane described, in which the presence of God’s love prevailed amidst the violence of the world happened during the “shock and awe” bombing of Iraq.  Shane and a group of Christians went to Bagdad to be with the people of Iraq amidst the bombing.  Driving out of Bagdad, later, the car with Shane and other Christians in it crashed and some of the passengers were seriously injured.    The people of Iraq took them to a hospital in a village.  The doctors complained that US forces had bombed the children’s wing of the hospital and that they could not treat anyone there.  But they set up a makeshift hospital and performed life-saving surgery on several of the passengers as well as Shane whose injuries were serious but not as severe.  The doctors and villagers showed love for Shane and his friends.  They helped them, out of pure Christian love.  “Tell the church in the USA,” they said, “we are praying for them to be the church.”

People in other parts of the world such as Iraq and India have much to teach us about community and hospitality.  Shane challenged the Assembly audience to live out the radical kind of love that Jesus lived and taught in our own communities.  “The world has seen enough hatred,” Shane said, “and enough sick Christianity. People are hungry for a faith and a love that is real.  Let’s show them a faith they can touch, see and feel.”

What does it mean to be a Lutheran in Oregon in the 21^st Century? 

by Ermine and Susan T, voting members

How can we keep our churches going (paying the light bills) while still meeting the needs of our congregation and community?  How can we reach out to our neighbors and those in need?  Are we who, what and where Jesus wants us to be?

These are some of the questions representatives from all over Oregon wrestled with at the 2011 Oregon Annual Synod Meeting in Eugene earlier this month.  Representatives from the churches met in large sessions to hear reports on the state of the church, to be inspired by guest speaker Shane Claiborne, and to worship together in a jazz vespers Friday evening and traditional worship Sunday morning.  Pastor Matthew was in charge of arranging music for the worship services.  The band “Luther and the Monkey Minds”, whose members are mainly from Calvary, led the jazz vespers. 

We were encouraged to see the many faces of the church at work throughout Oregon.  The OLY (Oregon Lutheran Youth) group was enthusiastic and well-spoken.  They met separately to encourage one another, worship, and plan activities for youth.  I encourage our youth to consider attending one of the OLY gatherings this coming year.

Some congregations are answering the questions by opening their doors to their neighbors by allowing skateboarding on the church grounds, adding non-traditional worship services, and melding with congregations of other denominations. 

The exciting “new thing” introduced at the assembly was Soul Cafe.  Bishop Dave Brauer-Rieke was enthusiastic about the project, which is designed to connect Lutherans throughout the Northwest via internet conversation.  According to the Oregon Synod website, the online community Soul Cafe is now up and running. You can view a video on the Synod website, www.OregonSynod.org, or “you can go straight to www.soulcafe.org and figure it out as you go along.

Soul Cafe will be in beta testing over the summer. That means we'll be ironing out a few bugs, adding additional features and screeching around that old learning curve. We will also be using this time to "seed the community." This means gathering up members, building discussion groups developing the resource library.

Feel free to share Soul Cafe with your friends. However, please remember to start with that this community is a resource for the Pacific Northwest. Once we establish a vibrant, Region 1, community we will look to sharing this fantastic resource.”

People of Calvary are working and worshiping in meaningful ways.  We reach out through our Community Gardens, Family Bridge, Outpost at Shute Park and other activities.  We explore ideas through adult forum, bible studies, book groups and conversations over coffee.  We open our church to several community groups and share our building with Iglesias de Christo.   We work with other churches through Family Bridge, LEM (Lutheran, Episcopal, Methodist) Youth Group and in sharing Vacation Bible School with All Saints Episcopal.  We do many things right.  I think Shane would join the Apostle Paul in exhorting us to check our hearts, and pray that we do these things for the love of Christ.  “We remember before our God and Father your work produced by faith, your labor prompted by love, and your endurance inspired by hope in our Lord Jesus Christ.”  1 Thessalonians 1:3

God’s Peace,

Ermine and Susan T

Calvary’s congregational representatives for Synod Assembly 2011

Last week I suggested that the church reach out to family, friends and neighbors with the good news of God’s love shown most fully through the life, death and resurrection of Jesus.  I also suggested that the church embrace twenty-first century technology, using social networks available on computers and cel. Phones.  This is especially relevant for reaching out to younger generations.  So, this week, I have been busy on my laptop computer playing Angry Birds. 

Angry Birds is a video game you can play on your computer or on the new kind of cel phones such as smartphones, iPhone, Blackberry, and Droid.   I have been avoiding video games like the plague, but I couldn’t avoid Angry Birds.  Everyone was playing Angry Birds and references to Angry Birds were cropping up in TV Commercials, news stories, and comedian’s one liners.  There were reported some 250 million downloads of Angry Birds by June 16.  Well, so I had to check out this new phenomenon.  The first time I played it, I had to giggle.  Angry Birds is silly and fun.  There is a large slingshot stuck in the ground, and a ways away there are some green pigs usually hiding under some kind of wooden or stone structure.  A small round red feathery bird appears in the harness of the slingshot.  With the mouse on your computer, or with your finger on the touch screen of your cel phone, you can aim the slingshot and fire the bird at the green pigs.  If you are a good shot, you can knock down the fortification and destroy the pigs.  And this is a lot of fun.