Nov 3, 2013
When the Spiritual Formation and Growth Vision Group last met, one goal we identified was to suggest a month-long series of teachings on Spiritual Formation and growth. So during November, you will hear from four folks on this theme. I'm giving the introduction, setting the stage. Next week, we'll hear from Nat Reid, the Retreat Director at Dayspring on the need for and practice of silence and retreat. Kate Lasso will share with us on "call", what it is and why it's important in our spiritual life. Last, Mike Brown will talk with on the practice of contemplation.
When I started to think about how to introduce the topic of Spiritual Formation and Growth, I started by asking myself four questions:
1. What is spiritual growth?
2. Why do we/I want to grow spiritually?
3. What prepares us to grow spiritually, to deepen?
4. How do we/I know that we/I are growing spiritually? Where do we find evidence of spiritual growth in ourselves and in our community?
One of the reasons I think our spiritual disciplines/practices are critical is that they compel, they push us to look at our hearts, to commit to the critical contemplation of our lives and the life of our community as 8th Day's founder Elizabeth O'Conner wrote. These practices also present us with the need to understand as did Jesus the power that we each have to learn, to grow, to become the loving, persistent, resilient, courageous, compassionate, gifted, peace and justice-seeking individuals and communities that Jesus knew we could be.
Why, I ask, did we get a story of his hanging out with a group of common folk who were sometimes very dense, resistant, wounded and stressed folks? I'm not totally sure why, but I sense that Jesus knew and believed the story of his faith tradition. It was the faithful and creative and sometimes seditious and very imperfect people who moved God's plan forward. So, here were the early disciples and followers who somehow out of their experience with Jesus and their depths of yearning to live out the Kingdom Jesus pointed them to forge a movement that continues to impact millions after well over two thousand years? Jesus' followers were mostly, but not always, at the bottom rungs of the Empire.
So, I want to turn to the image of Jesus' journey as a model for our spiritual growth and formation as individuals and as a community. Jesus' foundation was rich: a strong and resilient tradition that had faced rebellion, loss, pain, adversity, redemption and joy and jubilation sometimes. And, they had survived and come through. But Jesus grew powerfully and creatively beyond his tradition, interpreting it for the needs and realities of his time, socially, politically and spiritually.
This is our challenge, too. I love that Jesus was human. Regardless of how gifted he was, he stayed rooted in the pressing concerns and issues of his day. Those always included tending to individuals and communities who were excluded and hard pressed. And, he stayed open to learning and growing as a person. Do you, do I, do we? In our gospel stories, it seems that Jesus never stayed stuck for long, but I know that being human, he was probably stuck at times. That's why he needed to return to his Godly roots, to dealing with God's business of creativity and formation, to prayer and solitude. So, as a starting point today, I want to focus on a few scripture passages in Luke and Mark, starting with Jesus' youthful experience in the Temple. It's a rich story of spiritual formation if we look at it closely. And, next I want to mention a few subsequent stories that I think illustrate Jesus' formation and growth and our markers for our journeys, too.
Jesus' Childhood (Luke 2:40-52)
After the infant Jesus' presentation at the Temple, the family returned to Nazareth and "the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom and the favor of God was upon him". (Lk: 2:39-40)
Luke then jumps twelve years in the future. Jesus' family has been in Jerusalem for Passover celebration amidst large crowds of people. When the celebration ends, the family leaves, likely thinking that Jesus is somewhere in the group of travelers exiting the city. After a day of traveling and then searching among the crowd, they discover that Jesus is not with them. They return to Jerusalem and spend 3 days looking for him. So, four days have passed before they find Jesus
"in the temple, sitting among the teachers. listening to them and asking them questions. All who heard him were amazed at his understanding and his answers. When his parents saw him they were astonished; and his mother said to him, 'Child, why have you treated us like this? Look, your father and I have been searching for you in great anxiety'. Jesus said to them, 'Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father's house'." (Didn't you know that I had to be here, dealing with the things of my Father?" in another version.)
"Why were you searching for me?"are the first words that Jesus speaks in Luke's gospel. At age 12, on the cusp of adulthood, he seems focused on doing God's work. Perhaps his dawning awareness of his identity and call is becoming clearer. In our text, Jesus does say, "I must . . .", and it seems to me that he is reflecting on how he might be bound to a unique relationship with God. He was, we assume, brought up within the customs of Judaism and thus has accepted for himself the implication of his dedication to God.
So, what were you about at age 12? At age 12, I completed the confirmation class, was baptized and joined the community. Always a doer, I volunteered. I also began to think deeply about my future and started to set goals. I thought a lot about how to live my faith and started to entertain the question of what God wanted me to do with my particular life.
Mary, Jesus' mother treasured the experience of Jesus' stay in the temple. Treasuring experience is a model for spiritual growth, I think. Treasuring experiences that are infused with a sacred or deeper presence or importance, can bring insight later and provide a firm foundation of obedient [faithful] discipleship or a platform for deeper questioning.
Here in this story was Jesus who was already seemingly advanced in wisdom and who grew still further in his understanding. He was a child who was both human and infused with the divine or sacred. He was shaped by the experience of the grace of others and the grace of God. So, what do we have in this story? Here was Jesus who was already seemingly advanced in wisdom, who grew still further in his understanding. He was a child who was both human and infused with the divine or sacred and was shaped by the experience of the grace of others and the grace of God. The story begins and ends with travel notices, common in Luke, and important as a concept for spiritual growth. We can choose to travel but sometimes we travel regardless. This scripture ends with the statement similar to that at the beginning, that Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor." (Luke 2:52)
Revelation: Who and whose are you?
Eighteen years later and at about age 30, Luke picks up Jesus' story. We know nothing of Jesus' life in Nazareth with his family from age 12 to 30. But, the village life of Nazareth must have had a powerful effect on Jesus. There is no biblical evidence that Jesus was unhappy, incompetent or unreliable in his work or life. He probably spent these years helping to support his family and carrying out his responsibilities. However, it's likely that growing up in Galilee that Jesus knew how suspicious Jerusalem and its authorities were of the political resistance and upstarts that were part of the Galilean landscape. This was not an easy environment in which to live or grow up.
So, think about your life from age 12 to age 30?
When Jesus is about 30, Luke puts John the Baptist on front stage in chapter 3 of his Gospel. John is preaching repentance and forgiveness of sins and inviting people to a baptism, a cleansing. Jesus shows up, perhaps restless with his lifeand on a deeper search for God and God's purpose for him. Do you wonder why? I do. He must have had one or several experiences that unsettled him, left him searching. So, he submitted to John's call. Repent! Why? For what did Jesus have to repent? The English word "repent comes from Latin poena, meaning pain. To repent would be to feel the pain of one's actions again. I can imagine Jesus bringing his pain to God for healing. Luke reports that at Jesus' baptism "the heaven was opened and the Holy Spirit descended upon him like a dove. And a voice came down from heaven, [saying] "You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased." Do you think that the stirrings in Jesus now took a more definite shape that called him to leave his home and work with the implications of this experience? I do.
For me, the sense of being beloved, beyond just my mother's strong love and support, came from Luella Stanton, a small, smart, and loving early member of the C of S. She threw her arms around me the first time I walked into 2025, and I "fell in love with her"and with her infectious spirit and attention to drawing me out and inviting me to use my gifts. When I asked her to be sponsor into membership in 1973 I didn't know she was dying from cancer, but she took me on. We met for conversations at the Howard University Hospital. She was ever the gentle task master, asking me to deal with my fear of speaking up and using my gifts. I was on retreat the weekend of her memorial service, but a week later I was surprised by a party my then mission group held for me into covenant membership. It was planned down to the detail by Luella, and I was overwhelmed by her love and trust in me. I know that this was of God.
Time of Testing and Temptations (Luke 4:1-13)
After Jesus' affirmation of his call and baptism, he moves on to a time of testing in the desert, a dry place with life that is present but hidden. It's here that Jesus' will get clear about his mission: what he was up against, both internally and externally. He deals with three challenges from the Adversary, the voice or forcethat goes up against the person:
"If you are the son of God, command this stone to become a loaf of bread. Jesus answered him, 'It is written that One does not live by bread alone'."
"This is the challenge of turning stones into bread: not because it's wrong to feed people but because this is not adequate or sufficient. Jesus is not just about feeding hunger; he's about responding to a deeper hunger. What is that hunger? What do you and we hunger for?
"And the devil said to him, 'To you I will give [all the kingdoms of the world] their glory and all this authority; for it has been given over to me, and I give it to anyone I please. If you, then, will worship me, it will all be yours."
This is the challenge of commanding the world's kingdoms: Jesus is responding to the most basic commandment, the first (No other gods before me; I am the one who has brought you out of slavery.). Have the Romans or any other rulers who have forced their rules on people brought about God's reign? Jesus answers no. "Do not put God to the test." How do we/I try to force others or create a kingdom where we have force?
"Then the devil took him to Jerusalem and placed him on the pinnacle of the temple, saying to him, 'If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here, for it is written, 'He will command his angels concerning you toprotect you . . ." Jesus tells the Adversary, "Do not put God to the test." Was this the purpose of Jesus's life or his gift, to glorify himself as the Son of God and use power and force for his own ends? Jesus says, "Do not put God to the test." This also seems the challenge of dealing with public relations stunts: these want to assure that you will come out on top, that God will protect you.
Jesus' temptations seem dramatic, but they also point to the temptations we all deal with throughout our lives. Years ago, after almost 5 years of teaching in the public schools, I was living with a heaviness and lack of joy that did not lift despite prayer and reflection. At a spring retreat my last year of teaching, I sat journaling, yearning for direction. A challenge came: "Quit your job; trust that something new can come." No, way I said. How will I live, pay my bills; this is just not possible. Why was I given this message? For five months I argued with myself, stewed and set up questions: if I quit, how will I survive with only $500 in savings? Who will protect me, care for me if I fail? How do I know that this message to quit is God's voice? Will I come out on top if I do this? I want to succeed but I'm torn. Why God are you are testing me like this? I can't live without a secure income, can't live without knowing the next step.
In Luke's story of the testing, Jesus finishes his time in the desert filled with the power of the Spirit. He is now clear about his next steps
The power of the Spirit came to me through my mother who had agonized and prayed over my heaviness and depression. "Return to teaching and find joy," she said. "But if you cannot do this, leave. Then you will be free to find the path of joy that God wants for you." I quit, and that decision gave me my vocation.
Faced with testings of our calls and attempts to live spiritually-driven lives, we are faced with hard questions and temptations just as Jesus was, not just once but over and over again. We have to choose and take risks, and if we choose to be on a spiritual path, our choices tend to narrow as we grow and discern how to act or whether to act.
Openness to Learning and Mindfulness (Mark 7:24-30; Matthew 15:21-28)
"Jesus set out and went away to the region of Tyre. He entered a house and did not want anyone to know he was there. Yet he could not escape notice. A woman whose little daughter had an unclean spirit immediately heard about him, and she came and bowed down at his feet. Now the woman was a Gentile of Syrophoenician origin. She begged him to cast the demon out of her daughter. Jesus said to her, 'Let the children be fed first, for it is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs'. But she answered him, 'Sir, even the dogs under the table eat the children's crumbs'. Then, Jesus said to her, 'for saying that you may go; the demon has left your daughter'. So she went home and found the child lying on the bed, and the demon gone."
As an educator, I love this story. I imagine Jesus being taken aback, then really attending to what the woman had said and takingsome moments to open himself to this new thought, this learning. His consciousness expands as does his understanding of his mission. For me, Jesus is a model for the need for openness to learning in spiritual growth and development. And, that openness can serve us well as we develop spiritually and in other ways, too. The points these stories raise for me are ones that surfaced as the Banyan Tree Mission Group reflected on the four questions I previously mentioned:
1. What is spiritual growth?
2. Why do we/I want to grow spiritually?
3. What prepares us to grow spiritually, to deepen?
4. How do we/I know that we/I are growing spiritually? Where do we find evidence of spiritual growth in ourselves and in our community?
Several weeks ago, the Banyan Tree Mission Group spent its study time responding to these questions and reflecting on the role of disciplines or spiritual practices in our lives. I'll return to the questions so just keep them in before you.
What is spiritual growth?
When we are talking about the spirit, whose spirit are we talking about? Look at Jesus: what did he want to live out and teach? What was spiritual growth for Jesus?
Define spirit and ask what you are growing into. Why do we want to grow spiritually?
To have life and have it more abundantly? (John 10:10) There was tremendous abundance in Jesus' life; life is not about getting material goods. I want to grow spiritually to save myself from my own self-centeredness, flatness, self-conviction, violence.
What prepares us to grow spiritually, to deepen?
Ask ourselves, what are we deepening into?
What sets the stage for growth?
What is our foundation? At some point we have to buy into something, some goal or purpose. Know that everyone has value and there are opportunities for fulfillment and a rich life for each person.
How do we know that we are growing spiritually? Where do see or find evidence of spiritual growth?
Ask ourselves and our community: Is life more fulfilling? Are we meeting our objective to love?Do we see tangible evidence of this? We know in part by not being satisfied with where we are. Spiritual reports help us keep track of where we are. Are we asking questions, listening, living in the moment? Are we open to feedback and response from others? How can I/we continue to make a different.
I want to wrap up this teaching by mentioning an October 12thinterview I read in The Washington Post with Malcolm Gladwell, the author of The Tipping Point, Blink, Outliers and most recently. Gladwellwho has roots in the Mennonite community in southern Ontario Province in Canada.talked about his most recent book, David and Goliath: Underdogs, Misfits, and Art of Battling Giants.
Interviewer: David and Goliath are quite famous. What about Jesus? Where does he fit in in your narrative?
"He does fit, Here is one of the most revolutionary figures in history. He comes from the humblest of beginnings. He never held elected office. He never had an army at his disposal. He never got rich: he had nothing that we would associate with power and advantage. Nonetheless, what does he accomplish? An unfathomable amount. He is almost the perfect illustration of this idea that you have to look in the heart to know what someone's capable of. "
Perhaps one critical way that we grow spiritually is by consistently looking in the heart of ourselves and others. Isn't this what Jesus did and what he called his followers to do?