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as made me feel a bit angry defiant too in most cases however my anger has been channeled into something positive my anger defiance has led me to feel strongly about injustices in our world which then leads me to advocate for others and change the way people see these injustices it is this feeling of insignificance that makes me notice the little things in our fragile world and then paint them in important noticeable and unusual ways this breakthrough may indeed be the very essence of my mission as an artist but for now i am concerned about what this means for our common humanity bottom line please stop and think before saying something that may hurt another person it s not that hard just walk a mile in someone else s shoes before you verbalize that thought that just flashed across your mind and then ask yourself how would i feel if someone said this to me while i was feeling vulnerable no matter what makes us unique i believe that we are all created in the image and likeness of god then god said let us make human beings in our image after our likeness gen 1 26 and my favorite i praise you god because i am wonderfully made ps 139 14 pretty much sums it all up for me tagged name calling painful insults peace perspective short people society leave a comment examen 2016 posted on december 31 2016 by mariagstudios on this last day of 2016 i find myself truly wanting to reflect on this past year with an eye toward growing in love in the coming year i don t usually make new year resolutions if i find something that needs to be resolved in april or september i certainly am not going to wait until january 1st to take action but today i ve encountered the jesuit practice of examen of consciousness twice in the last hour there must be something to this that demands my attention throughout this year the daily meditations from fr richard rohr at the center for action and contemplation have focused on a single theme love as a sample here is yesterday s reflection i especially like the last 2 paragraphs although it sounds simple enough this theme of love is the foundation of christianity and all major religions and it is hard to put love into practice in a world full of violence hatred fear ego and injustice i must admit to more than one occasion where i purposefully avoided reading rohr s reflections because i just couldn t love anymore my own ego and sense of righteousness got in the way of my ability to see god in the faces of others i was in effect wallowing in a kind of adolescent selfishness during the advent and christmas seasons i ve also been getting daily reflections from loyola press and ignatian spirituality here the author vinita hampton wright shares the 5 step practice of the examen i like rohr s simplified version from today s meditative practice too practice examen of consciousness st ignatius of loyola 1491 1556 founder of the society of jesus or jesuits proposed a daily exercise which he called the examen of consciousness or the daily examen a simple exercise in discernment rather than focusing on what went right or wrong how you failed or succeeded throughout the day this exercise encourages you to reflect on moments when you were aware of god when you were present to love and those times when you were forgetful or distracted center yourself in silence and an awareness of god s presence recall the day or on this new year s eve the entire past year with an open spirit notice the emotions sensations and thoughts that arise as you review recent events let your attention settle on one of these instances and look for god s presence within it whether you were aware at the time or not pray from this memory and within this present moment release the day or year with gratitude and rest in god s love if i am truly honest in my necessary examen of 2016 i think i may need all of january 2017 to reflect on this past year in order to make a plan for the new year hopefully i ll learn new habits that will allow me to love others more fully more readily and more joyfully happy new year may we all find ways to love ourselves and others as god loves 1 cor 13 tagged contemplation fr richard rohr ignatius of loyola love new year the examen leave a comment reflection a las posadas communion posted on december 20 2016 by mariagstudios last year i did not attend any of the las posadas nights here at st francis mostly i think i was too stressed and withdrawn to want to be around happy people my sprained ankle was a good excuse this year is different i m different although the stress of this missionary work is still high my attitude and approach to it has changed my center and focus have begun to stabilize and i am experiencing the serenity from having turned things out of my control over to god it is difficult to let go let god but oh the freedom and peace that follow for those of you unfamiliar with las posadas it is a nine day prayer and celebration beginning on december 16th and ending on christmas eve click here for more detailed information las posadas is celebrated throughout mexico and here in the american southwest for at least 10 years i ve been reading tomie depaola s book the night of las posadas to my first graders in florida introducing them to this hispanic christmas tradition we would then make little construction paper donkeys with fan folded legs paper clips on the hooves and a string to make it go clip clop across the tile floor i brought this art lesson with me out here and the kids loved making their little donkeys but never did i imagine i would ever get to participate in the beautiful tradition of las posadas unlike the book here in the middle of nowhere we cannot walk from house to house knocking on doors every night for nine nights we d freeze before getting to the first door and the total distance travelled over the nine nights would be greater than the 80 90 miles mary joseph initially travelled to get to bethlehem so this community has improvised their las posadas as it improvises with just about everything here nine nights nine homes each night members of this small parish gather at someone s home and the prayer begins a small group gathers outside the front door reciting the words of the holy couple let us in my wife is weary and cannot walk i request lodging from you the group inside responds with no this is no inn and you might be a crook this back and forth continues for several verses all sung in spanish when those inside recognize the holy couple their tune changes and mary joseph are welcomed into the home once inside the host family chooses christmas carols to sing grace is said and everyone begins to eat what the host family has prepared the building of community happens at celebrations like this i have always said that holidays and traditions have two common factors in every culture food and people and of both factors it is understood the more the merrier as a catholic i was brought up to believe that when we receive the eucharist at mass we are partaking in the body of christ and we as a faith community become one flesh in christ nourished to do the good works of faith we are called to do ccc 1331 i participated in two nights of las posadas and i am feeling blessed humbled and nourished for the experience the consecrated eucharist is sacred and treated with great reverence in our churches and cathedrals sharing the prayers and songs of las posadas with the members of this community is also sacred these last two nights have been for me a communion in the body of christ that is just as sacred to me as the communion received during sunday mass communion renews strengthens and deepens this incorporation into the church already achieved by baptism ccc 1396 i certainly feel renewed strengthened and deeply incorporated into this part of christ s church i met new people shared faith laughter good food and great joy a real sense of communion in the body of christ this experience will certainly sustain me throughout this advent and christmas season thanks st francis parishioners last year perhaps i did not feel worthy to enter under your roof but your love and hospitality have healed me merry christmas and may peace blessings be with you and your community tagged christmas communion las posadas prayer 3 comments post election depression finding the courage to seek common ground posted on december 3 2016 by mariagstudios i did not vote for trump and is there anyone out there who truly knows me and is still somehow surprised that i did not vote for him and his brand of hatred and white privilege i won t say who i voted for as keeping my vote private is something i do whenever i find the options limited and opinions on all sides highly volatile suffice it to say i did not vote for trump for many reasons and all of them have to do with the division racism bigotry and hate speech he has brought to this campaign and no doubt will bring to his presidency sorry i will pray for him and his conversion but i won t hold my breath i work with apache and hispanic children my own children are part black part white and part cherokee i ve worked with migrant workers in florida i ve been friends with and have worked with many undocumented workers some of whom are trying to gain citizenship through legal channels while others i know are prevented from applying i have many friends who identify as lbgt who continue to work for equal rights and simple respect i also have family members and friends with disabilities all of these groups have been verbally and viciously attacked by trump s insensitive and hateful rhetoric i understand the concerns of white americans who struggle to find work and struggle to put food on the table for their families but so do many american people on the margins hunger poverty and unemployment affect all americans but people of color and people with disabilities are still hit harder than white americans it s a fact our nation has taken some very courageous steps in the last 60 70 years to create a safe place for all i truly see the election of donald trump as a huge step backwards i also see his election as a serious threat to the very liberties freedoms and protections we all claim to hold so dear even as i write this trump is busy filling administrative positions with ultra conservative white men who are known for their racist sexist and homophobic views in an effort to sort through my own emotions over the future of our nation and remain true to my faith and my integrity i ve been quietly reading and contemplating on the many wise and thoughtful post election reflections of some of my favorite teachers teachers i respect for always shedding light on darkened places always opening hidden doors to a better way of being and always bringing the issues back to a christ centered love centered whole fr richard rohr cynthia bourgeault james finley sr jamie phelps christena cleveland and other wise and mystic voices from the past mostly they all say the same thing we need to find common ground and we need to be inclusive not exclusive as rohr says everything belongs while this is true when dealing with political realms there is only dualistic thinking at play so how do we hold both yet continue to move forward i think those of us who have expressed our fatigue with the hate speech the us vs them mentality the negative social media posts and the news media bias must make a deliberate and conscious effort to eliminate these things from our own speech attitude and postings i also think we have a responsibility to lovingly point it out when we see the fear anger and hatred being perpetrated by our friends and family this isn t easy but then jesus never said it would be he was put to death the worst that could happen to me i think is that i could be unfriended or unfollowed that s what tissues and hugs from real friends are for my ex husband is fond of reminding me that we met while i was out with my college poli sci friends and we were all engaged in a heated conversation about politics we always laughed at the irony of my later declaration i hate politics it s true i do but it is really the game playing and the dualistic nature of politics that i hate like it or not we all have to be engaged in politics if we want to affect change in our world now more than ever we must stay on top of what goes on in washington and in our state and local governments our planet our water our air our freedoms and our very lives are at stake we can no longer afford to just relax and let others do the dirty work for us we all need to snap out of our post election depression and seek common ground get involved stay informed make our voices heard hold elected officials accountable and work hard for justice for all not just a select few tagged 2016 election activism christena cleveland civil rights contemplation cynthia bourgeault donald trump fr richard rohr human rights james finley leave a comment post navigation older posts follow blog via email enter 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