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Who is God in Edinburgh?

6/19/2019

As I walk the streets of Edinburg I carry Krish Kandiah’s question in my mind and heart: Who is God?
I ask it as I smile at the statues of Oog Willie placed throughout the city. Who is God for the designers of these hopeful statues celebrating children.

I ask it as I enjoy fish and chips and a beer. Who is God for me, so fortunate to be able to take this trip?

I ask it as I watch waiters and waitresses clear tables. Who is God for people who have steady jobs?

I asked it yesterday as I wandered Inchcolm Island in the Firth of Forth. Who was God for the Augustinian monks who lived here from the 400s to 1450?

   I ask it as I pass homeless men and women on every block of Princes Street, along the Royal Mile, and places in between. Who is God for those whose home is the street?
      I offer no photos, not because I want to avoid the sadness of it all, but in deference to these human beings. I am a tourist but these folks, with their blankets and jars where I can place a coin, are not tourist attractions.
    Who is God for them? Who is God for me as I walk by, sometimes dropping a coin, but usually ‘passing by on the other side’?

Who is God at St. Cuthbert's?

6/16/2019

St. Cuthbert’s Church is located at the west end of the Princes Street Garden. To the south, towering above, is Edinburgh Castle at the end of the Royal Mile in Old Town. To the north is New Town with its Georgian homes and private gardens.
    St. Cuthbert’s represents both the old and the new Edinburgh. History has it that a church has been standing at the site since 850 CE. Today it is an active parish church of the Church of Scotland.
     I love to walk about St. Cuthbert’s graveyard, reading the headstones and wondering, “Who were these people?” Over the years new sections have been added to the graveyard, providing extra intrigue and mystery.
    Yesterday as I was wandering about, I was distracted by a few garbage bag bundles left here and there; then when I looked around a low wall, I was startled to see scattered trash on the ground. Around another corners a man was coming out of tent.
     St. Cuthbert’s has been a sanctuary throughout the centuries and now it is one for homeless people!
     In such situations we are apt to ask, “Where is God?” But Krish Kandiah, in God is Stranger: Finding God in Unexpected Places, suggests we ask, “Who is God?” And so I ponder: Who is God for these homeless people? For the administrative staff of St. Cuthbert’s? For me, a tourist wandering through? (I refrain from taking pictures of homeless people.)

Wanting a "God church"

6/9/2019

I attended the memorial service for a dear friend yesterday at the UU Church in town (the church we attended when raising our children). The service was one of the most heartfelt I have ever experience, and for that I am very grateful.
Gratitude, good memories, and sense of community, however, were not enough as I went out the door. I missed the mystery and the hope inherent in a Christian service. The absence of any God reference brought home, once again, why I had left that church to return to my roots in the UCC church that I can see from my upstairs window.
When asked, I say that I left the UU church because I wanted a “God church”. Amen.

As Christians we....

6/1/2019

A member of our church led the service and gave the sermon the other Sunday. He began by stating, “As Christians we….” Those three words were my biggest takeaway because I have very few friends who acknowledge that out loud (and maybe to themselves). Even at church we (not the pastor) skirt around the topic of being a Christian.
In this political climate those of us church goers in New England are afraid our Christianity will be judged with a conservative veneer; so we don’t say a word. In many circumstances we are probably wise to be cautious about proclaiming our faith, and yet, in being cautious and afraid we will be misunderstood, we may be diminishing our faith in our very own being. There are times when speaking out loud as a Christian is the right thing to do.

In God's prayerful presence

5/28/2019

If you long to be in God’s presence, if you feel called to prayer, accompany someone who has entered that prayerful presence with God.
I am sitting with my 96 year old friend. It is quiet here; she is not speaking and neither am I. We are together in a deep holy place, each in our own solitude. Everything is simple; the only thing to do is be. The window flowers offer hope.

Being on call

5/23/2019

My pastor is on vacation and so I am on call this week; on call for pastoral care and pastoral visits. Since I visit most of the people who might need pastoral care this week, I feel prepared to step into an urgent situation. And yet, being the person has a different quality, putting me into a liminal space between heaven and earth. As I continue to lead my usual life, simultaneously God is holding me up. God has my back in a different way this week.
There is inherent isolation in this role where there is no middle man or woman. It’s just God, me, and the person in need. I don’t mean to imply that I am part of a hierarchy but I am called to help keep clear the channel between God and the person and family in need.

Humble blog posts

5/18/2019

I realize that I haven’t posted in a while, fully aware that in creating this blog I made a commitment to post. If you readers keep appearing only to find that I have disappeared, why would you continue to checking in? I may be quite consistent in offering a Daily Quote and Word and Image every other day, but you can find those throughout the internet, in books, and yes, in the Bible.
I don’t post my thoughts about prayer because I think they are especially worthy or profound. Rather, they are humble offerings, a sharing, because I believe that we learn about God and grow in faith by hearing what others are feeling and experiencing. The writings of theologians and lay people, both ancient and contemporary, are available in book form—just a click away. But what about you and me, each immersed in our particular situation, trying to keep life together? You and me, who feel called to be prayerful and who long to feel God’s presence?
Hearing from others who are also trying to lead a prayerful, God centered life, give me more encouragement and hope than all the religious books on my shelf. That is why I write these prayerdiary ditties.

A beautiful walk in the neighborhood

5/7/2019

An afternoon prayer walk in the neighborhood. I’m very grateful that I live in the historic district among lovely old homes, including mine.

Morning prayer

5/3/2019

I love my morning routine, that first hour of the day. In Florence it includes walking about the city with God, slipping into a bar for a cappuccino, and sitting a café writing. The routine at home involves sipping black American coffee as I pray—expressing gratitudes, praying my prayer book and writing out my Top Ten Prayer List for the day.
I don’t know which scenario I like the best, but I am aware that the home version is the more God centered of the two. To be honest, when I’m wandering about Florence, much of my thought is on where to stop for that first cappuccino.
At home in the morning, sitting here in the Angel Room, my prayer is at its ‘best’, but it drifts away as the day goes on. I want to change that. Reviewing the day with God at the end of the day is another ‘best’ idea, but hard to generated. No coffee or being sleepy is not a good excuse.

Faithfulness

4/24/2019

But you, O Lord, are a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.
Psalm 86:15

As I read this verse from Psalm 86 this morning I thought, “Oh, that’s what I’m supposed to do, that’s what God wants of me: imitate God. It’s a given that I will fall short of the mark, but if I don’t try, then what is the point of reading the Bible, what’s the point of trying to lead a good life.
It’s a tall order: be merciful and gracious to others, even those I deem not worthy: don’t get angry at people in the news: love everyone.
The verse ends with the word faithfulness. The only way I can begin to fulfill this tall order is by being faithful. I have no power on my own, but I can embrace faith by surrendering to God.