Psalm of Lament

For my Psalms class, we have to write our own psalms, following the basic rules for the different types of psalms. This week, we had to write a psalm of lament. Here is mine, that I wrote right after having seen a play about child soldiers in Uganda.

PSALM OF LAMENT
(after seeing "Butterflies of Uganda")

We've heard it said
You are righteous and You are just.
We've heard it said, You are committed to us,
You hear the cry of the oppressed,
And You don't break promises.
Our Mothers and Fathers
Our Teachers and Pastors
They spoke of Your faithfulness.

But today, we do not see justice.
We do not see righteousness.
Today, we do not see faithfulness.

I see our families being ripped apart.
I hear gunshots;
The cries of our mothers being raped.
The cries of our fathers being maimed.
I smell the smoke from our charred homes,
I feel the hot breath of the rebels on our necks,
I hear their shrill voices ordering us
To kill.

I've heard of Moses, how You parted the Red Sea,
I've heard of Paul, how You delivered him from prison,
I've heard of the blind man, You gave him sight.
Oh God,
Have You heard of us?

We are the child soldiers,
Will you deliver us?

What have we done, Lord?
We were blameless.
We were children.
We played, we laughed, we sang to You.

Tonight it is cold, it is dark, it is haunting.
We plead;
Act on our behalf.
Hear our cry.
We trust, as much as we know how.
We want to believe in the power of your miracles.
Give us a reason for our hope,
For Your name's sake.
For us.
So we can join our Mothers, our Fathers,
Our teachers, our Pastors,
In telling of Your faithfulness.
Make haste, Lord,
Make haste to save us.
Amen.

I "randomly" fell upon an old Robbie Seay song I used to play all the time. As I listened to it again today, after something like two years, I was reminded about how much this song still who I want to be. it's simple, not academic, not particulary poetic, but to me, it's profound.

all i want

all i want is my frustation to be replaced with signs of spring
all i want is confirmation that You're gonna see me through this thing

all i want,
all i want,
all i want is You.

all i want is just a window to let me know there's light outside
all i want is confirmation that what i'm feeling isn't right.

all i want is that You'd find me and i'd have nothing more to say.
all i want is pure reflection of the One who's standing right in front of me.

"A perilous proposition […] asserts that Christianity, by its very nature, is concerned exclusively with the relation of the soul to eternity, that the essential realization religion should provide is the worthlessness of human expectations of a better life on earth. It insists that the son of God took our flesh not to relieve our sufferings but to forgive our sins, and so the Church’s function is to focus not on violations of social justice but on the undying hardness of human hearts.
This thesis does violence to Scripture. Those who read in the biblical text a sheerly personal, individualistic morality have not understood the Torah, have not sung the Psalms, have not been burned by the prophets, have not perceived the implications and the very burden of Jesus’ message, and must inevitably play fast and loose with St Paul. "

- Burghardt.

why is there more in the news about the collapsed minnesotan bridge where 9 people died than there is about the floods in south asia, where millions of people are awaiting relief?

The End of Another Quarter

This time around, being done with papers feels much like the end of the Bac. I handed in my papers and a sense of giddiness/laughter/"grande joie" entered my stomach, making its way up to my face.
And since then, it's been one good thing after the other: Leffe Blonde, Soccer, Margaritas.
Oh, student life. How I love it.

Musings.

I am not one to speak up in class very often. But if there's something that really grabs me, then I'll discuss it (often to the death) until I gain some increased understanding. In my Anthropology class about folk beliefs and practices, the questions abound. I speak up way too often, it seems.
This week, I was struggling with the understanding and expression of my own beliefs and practices. I seem to tend towards a more monastic spirituality, I want to stay away from formulas and treating Jesus merely like "my best buddy" or someone I can bargain with. My spirituality is usually more concerned with the philosophical and the mystical than it is with the immediate, than with the efficiency of my prayers. [although I do appreciate that God is involved in the latter too.]
The question for me is how does my spirituality, that is somewhat other-worldly and sort of abstract, connect with cultures where people are concerned with what works right now and with what best answers their immediate needs?

I left class feeling like the most important thing - and this is basic - is to let myself be transformed by Christ. Persevere in the disciplines. Seek His presence all the time and do so with intentionality. Be open to the guiding of the Spirit, whatever that looks like. Let my transformed life be enough of a witness. I can't rely on my own smart anthropological insights to communicate Christ to people - I can only be in touch with the Source and let Him communicate through me...

So help me God to be Your faithful instrument.

Hermosa Beach Church Retreat

Good times!
Especially late nights in the lobby.
What?