Butterflies Are Free

     

Many of you know that the butterfly is one of my favorite references as a spiritual symbol. I have used the butterfly story countless times in funeral homilies, Easter sermons, and in a number of other settings. I suppose you could say that it has in some ways become a kind of signature piece of my ministry. That’s true to the extent that through the years people have given me posters, cards and stained glass window ornaments. Many times when I’m about to officiate at a funeral service I say to myself, “I won’t tell the butterfly story today because so many people have already heard it.” And, with or without my permission, the words come streaming out of my mouth.

     I first told it as a seminarian at a funeral service I did for a young family who lost their husband and father. The widow called me the next day and very excitedly told me that they had gone out to the cemetery to visit her husband’s grave. While they were standing there, holding hands and hugging one another, all of a sudden a butterfly emerged from the flowers and circled around them and flew off. She said that she believed that that was a sign from her husband that he was fine and that he was saying goodbye to them. She thanked me profusely for telling the story. It’s been with me ever since.

     So one day we were touring the ancient ruins of Rome. I was deeply touched by the experience and as we stood on the ancient road, I thought of the likes of the Apostle Paul, passing through the Forum on those very same stones perhaps and from prison writing the book of Romans to inspire people to not lose faith. It was a deep spiritual moment for me.

     Two days later we were at the Vatican standing in a portico of St. Peter’s Square. We were listening to Pope Francis give mass to literally thousands of people gathered there. One of the readers read from the book of Romans in English. Then I suddenly noticed that Chris was taking my picture, but I didn’t particularly know why until she showed me. At that moment a butterfly had landed on the bill of my hat. And yes, you could say that that wasn’t unusual except for the fact that there was nothing to attract a butterfly in that entire area of the Square—no flowers, no foliage—just thousands of people.

     Bottom line: I’m still thinking about that, although I guess the truth of it is that butterflies are free to be wherever they choose to be.

Marvelous World!

Well, we're back, safe and sound from 17 days in Italy. It was a great trip that will ne'er be forgotten. The following is a summary, if you're interested:

Rome for three days, stayed at the home of Mario Bova, retired Italian Ambassador to Japan and Albania, along with his spouse, Katerina. Wonderful home!
Toured ancient ruins of Rome, including the Colosseum and Pantheon.

Toured the Vatican Gardens, the Sistine Chapel, and heard Pope Francis in St. Peter's Square (there's more to that to be told yet)

Puglia  Stayed at the home of Mario's brother, John Franco and his spouse, Juliana. Participated in the "maiden voyage" of a new business of touring in Italian classic cars throughout the countrysides of southern regions of Italy. Road in Fiats, Alfa Romeos, and some others I can't remember at the moment.

Amalfi Coast for four days. Absolutely Beautiful! Stayed in a flat overlooking the Mediterranean, in a residence recently vacated by Kevin Kostner (He left the rooms in great shape and by the way, the owner didn't charge us a thing!)

Took a boat out to Capri, had lunch, Chris, Tim and Ellie swam in the blue Mediterranean waters.

Venice Two nights...It was okay, but not our cup of tea. However, went to a great concert of Vivaldi's Four Seasons at St. Stefano Church. Spent time in St. Marc's Square, toured St. Marc's Basilica, and had some great food.

Verano Move on to the wonderful city of Verano for one night on our way to Alps. This was one of our favorite cities...clean, friendly and again, great food.
While here we went to Juliette's castle and courtyard. Did you know that Shakespeare's play was loosely based on history? There's a balcony that is regarded as Juliette's but,again, who knows?

The Dolemites (the Italian Alps) Stayed in the Alps just above the quaint Italian village of Luserna. (More also to be shared about that). The place we stayed was Compo Malga, a lodge that mostly hosts cross-country skiers and bicyclists. We hiked and enjoyed magnificent scenery! 

More will be shard about all of this. We're glad to be back but sure had a great time!

GOD BLESS EVERYONE--NO EXCEPTIONS

My sermon this morning was called "God Bless Everyone--No Exceptions." That's not how it appeared in the bulletin due to some kind of  a mix-up. But this is an excerpt from my manuscript should you care to read it. It's quite a bit longer than my usual blog postings, so I won't be disappointed or hurt if you aren't interested (but on the other hand, I won't know anyway, will I?). 
     Some of you don’t know that I was part of the folk song generation growing up.I was also part of the rock and roll era early on, but my interest quickly shifted to folk songs when Peter, Paul, and Mary, the Kingston Trio, Pete Seeger and a whole lot of other people showed up on the music scene. I sang in a few coffee houses, played in a blue grass band, and provided music at the Music Pier in Ocean City on youth weekends. From that, of course, there was a natural transition into the music of John Denver and James Taylor and others of their genre. And I’ve pretty much stayed with that, although for my listening enjoyment these days I also tune in to jazz and classical music on National Public Radio, which is really the only radio station I ever listen to.

     It shouldn’t be too surprising for you then to learn that patriotic songs for me were the likes of “This Land Is Your Land” and “Where Have All the Flowers Gone.” That’s where I came from musically, my friends. Don’t hold it against me.I don’t deny my past because I’m still pretty much in that place now. And that’s the way it is for all of us. We’re born into a particular flow of life based on the era into which we entered this world, and in the midst of it, get into step with whatever resonates most with the rhythm of our innermost being.That’s how it happens—not just in America—but all around the world. People in other countries on other continents are born into a lifestyle so different from ours that there is almost no way we can relate to it.And quite honestly, we often tend to think that theirs is inferior to ours.

     But even just sticking to our country, there is a multitude of differences of opinions, styles of life, preferences of place to live and move and have our being, chosen religious affiliations and beliefs, favorite food, music, and things to do. Yet here’s the thing—and it is an undeniable truth: none of us has had a thing to do with where in the world we were born and into which family we were born and whether we came into the world rich or poor,athletic or clumsy, musical or “can’t carry a tune in a bucket,” as they say.None of those things are either to our credit or are our fault. It’s just the way life is.

     Each member of the human family is born into the particular conditions of the time and place in which they entered the world.We come out of our mother’s womb curiously looking at the faces that are staring back at us, trying to get our bearings as to what just happened to us and where we are. And eventually we find our place in this little blue planet and come to terms with its peculiarities and quirks, and discover what we think we believe, and what we like, and sometimes what we want to do with our lives.

     My father used to say to me, “Son, you’ll never regret the experience.” He said that to me even when I was drafted into the army. I can’t say that I agreed with him when I was doing KP or going through basic training or standing at attention during inspections while someone was especially interested in being able to see his face in my shoes. But when the army experience was finally over, it turned out that my father was right--I didn't regret it.

     The point is that each of us have our own stories that are being written in the annals of human history. It’s true for us on the soil of this great country in which we live and it’s true for the people all over this planet who consider their country great.And all of us in the human family are in this thing called life together. But, of course, we have no choice, do we? There's nowhere else for us to go.We are all on this tiny globe in space somewhere in the vastness of the universe.
     One day when Jesus was asked what are the most important commandments he said, that the first is to "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind. Then he said the second commandment is to "Love your neighbor as yourself." In another place he said, "You have heard that it was said,'You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you."

     In other words, as a bumper sticker I saw one day driving through Princeton said, “God bless everyone—no exceptions.” Now when I say that, I imagine some of you saying to yourself, "Everyone?" And my response to that is, "Yes--everyone--no exceptions." But I also want to make clear exactly what is meant by God's blessing. It doesn't mean that God blesses everyone, whether good or evil, as in an approving Divine gesture. Instead God's blessing gives to each just what is needed to empower us with goodness. God's blessing is filled with the power for healing, changing, renewal, as well as peace, love, joy, and hope. And that's something that everyone needs.
     So to ask for God's blessing for everyone--no exceptions--is to ask that all humankind receive what is needed to bring about a world that is energized by love and goodwill for everyone--a planet of harmony and peace, including the transformation of those with evil intent into people of good intent. As Paul wrote to the Church in Rome, "Overcome evil with good." It's a pretty powerful concept. If we could only all sing the "one song." The word "universe" can be divided into "uni" meaning one and "verse" meaning song.

Generous Hearts

We have been gifted a trip to Italy! That's the second time in our marriage that the generosity of other people has sent us to places we never expected to go. The first was a wonderful trip to Ireland for our honeymoon. Our usual vacations are either camping, renting a house on LBI, or day trips. We're very excited, of course, along with a little apprehensive regarding our travel skills for Europe, but we won't be traveling alone. Our son, Tim, and his girlfriend (who grew up in Rome, just three blocks from the Vatican) will be our tour guides. 

But the thing that's mostly on my mind in the writing of this, is the generosity of the human spirit. 

We live in a world that easily causes people to feel insecure, fearful, greedy, distrusting, and angry. Society has created a sense of life that in some ways feels threatening to our well-being. And, of course, there is a truth to the fact that people do get hurt in hundreds of ways in making their way through life's journey.


But generosity in its deepest and most meaningful sense is the calling of everyone who would earnestly seek to make this a better and more congenial world for the whole human family.  When I say "human family" I mean everybody regardless of age and background, how much money you have in the bank, how many degrees you have hanging on the wall, and regardless of your religious affiliation. (Religion, by the way, is irrelevant if it is merely a way of practicing some form of ritual for the sake of having completed a spiritual obligation and/or represents a form of elitism and doesn't create a generous heart.)

A truly generous heart doesn't require the spending of money.It is completely free for those who choose to express it. It merely involves being loving, open, compassionate, forgiving, sympathetic, empathetic, kind, inclusive, nonjudgemental and sensitive to the feelings of others. 

Sound trite? I don't apologize for that. For those of us who claim the Christian faith, that is the Way of Christ--nothing less. But beyond that, for anyone who would seek to make the world a better place--even in simplest way--having a generous heart is the greatest contribution any of us can make toward that end.

ODE TO HENRIETTA

You may recognize my friend in the picture above if you are one who regularly reads my blog. That's Henrietta sitting with me in the adirondack chair. Last weekend she died at the ripe old age of 5 (that's elderly for a chicken, by the way). This is the photograph that the Wellness Center at Whole Foods Market in Princeton used to use for advertising my upcoming talks there.

She used to hang out on the front porch with our dog and cat and often greeted people when they arrived. She was part of the original flock of six we came to the farm with almost 5 years ago now--two others died off of natural causes a couple of years ago and three were dragged away by coyotes within the first year. 

I'm not sure that Henrietta knew that she was a chicken or cared much about labeling one's identity anyway. Some people thought that she would have been a prize-winning entry at the 4-H Fair at Howell Living History Farm. They're probably right, but not being a member of the 4-H and plus not wanting to expose her to the pitfalls of sudden fame, it never happened.

She didn't particularly approve of the newer chicks when they arrived on the scene two seasons ago. Maybe it had to do with some kind of prejudice against the ideas of the younger generation of fowl these days. As a result, I created a kind of geriatric apartment for her in the garage. She seemed fine with that as long as she had her food and water and was still able to wander the yard at her leisure.

I will say this, though, never underestimate the intelligence or life force of any creature on this planet--even chickens (although it might not be a bad thing to question the intelligence of humans once in awhile). When people ask us if we ever eat our chickens when they are done laying, we tell them that we couldn't emotionally do that. 

However, one of my childhood memories is watching my dad chop the head off a chicken when we were low on money and we needed a Sunday dinner. We would go down to my aunt and uncles, and Dad would go into the chicken yard and select a hen he thought was worthy of being roasted. The sight of a chicken running around headless is etched deeply in my brain--thus the old saying of "running around like a chicken with its head cut off" was based on a very real life scenario.

Well, the era of Henrietta is over, but she will always remain a symbol of an important transition in my life--the movement from a full-time career to the era of semi-retirement. That being said, I tip my hat to her and wish her well in that great chicken yard in the sky, hoping that she is reunited with her fowl-feathered siblings, sipping tea in the afternoons in a chair labeled "Henrietta: She could have been a contender."

                                                                        Thanks for listening~
                                                                                  Jack                  
"Tha-tha-tha-that's all there is" for this post.

...all the time in the world"

"Do everything as if you have all the time in the world." That's a quote from my cardiologist after my mini-stroke last April. And I have tried my very best to adhere to his advice, although at times I confess I get swept along with the pseudo-urgent demands of our world (but luckily not very often). 

At lunch with a group of my clergy colleagues many years ago, we were discussing stress versus being relaxed and at ease, and I said that I had just taken up a regular practice of meditation. They told me that if I got any more at ease than I already appeared to be, they would have to start carrying me into meetings.

It's true that in general I am a pretty lay-back person and my doctor's advice hasn't been that hard to follow. I suppose it has something to do with my metabolism, but also in a large part to do with my view of life. 

No one can help but notice the extremely tense people in the stress-laden world in which we live. Amount of wealth or poverty has nothing to do with it--although I suspect that those who have a lot of money are always on edge for fearing of losing it. And those, of course, who live in poverty fear not having enough to meet the day's needs.  Life is just as important on all levels of the socio-economic mix.

Stress often manifests itself as anger, irritability, impatience, loss of sleep, floor-pacing anxiety and even manic eating, among other things.

The thing is, I believe that we have some control over our emotional states (I say that, preaching to myself as much as to anyone). However I also believe that our control gets overshadowed by how we go about evaluating our lives. St. Paul said, "by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of yourself more highly than you ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned."

I suppose that, in part at least, Paul was saying your life is in God's hands. Don't get carried away with all the details and circumstances that seem so very important in light of the world's standards..."each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned." Then he might quote Jesus from the 14th Chapter of John when he says, "My peace I give to you ; yet not as the world gives." 

By the way, this has come from just being in traffic with some very tense people, after being in a grocery store with some very tense people. 

Peace to you, my friends.