That Is Not Love's Way

March 17, 2019

| Anne C. Williamson |

We’ve spent the last six weeks exploring prayer and Sabbath. The intention has been to learn and listen for, when it comes to prayer and Sabbath, what makes sense to you – in terms of how you understand these practices – and what works for you – that is, offers you c/Connection, peace, growth, joy.

I did not “set out” this round to spend so much time here; but, it makes sense. If we are wanderers on the way of love but do not practice being still (internally), do not practice making space for rest and reconnection, do not practice listening and being glad and going to g/God – however we understand g/God – by any means, then we will still love, of course; but, my experience has been other active emotions – like resentment, fatigue, shame, anger, cynicism, pride – will join us on the journey and begin to crowd out love.

We've read, watched, listened to many ideas over these weeks; in part, this was to remind us that people understand and approach prayer and Sabbath in many ways. In this remembrance, there may have been ideas you’d like to try again or for the first time; wonderful! Mostly, though, I hoped it would give you permission; permission to practice prayer and Sabbath in whatever ways are most c/Connective and restoring for you; permission to figure it out and then change your mind again and again.

I also hoped…

MR. ROGERS, MY ETHICS PROFESSOR, AND PRAYER

March 10, 2019

| Anne C. Williamson | Originally posted February 15, 2015. Edited March 2019.

I remember my Ethics professor in seminary saying, "The worst thing Mr. Rogers did for you kids is convince you of your specialness." Intentionally provocative, he also believed it. In an academic field that plays so often in absolutes and the consequences of conduct, catering to the individual can be a dangerous game.

I understand this perspective. Too often in our society, the world, we over emphasize the unique, special individual. This leads to myopic points of view. I fail to see - or choose to ignore - how my choices impact others and the Earth, and consequently, they suffer. It also leads to some nauseatingly terrible commercials: two words, perfumes and cars.

We can also under emphasize our specialness, though. I’ve been listening to Layla Saad’s “Good Ancestor Podcast” recently and many of her womanist guests speak to how black women are not a monolith and need to stop being represented as such. In fact, much of what white supremacy and patriarchy does is try and convince people of color and women that they, that we, are created to be this one way, instead of the boundless and dynamic “multiverse” within us. Problematic, indeed.

So, can there exist a happy middle ground? Can we be both special and One? …

An Honest Response to a Human Life

February 17, 2019

| Anne Williamson |

Mine has been a checkered history with prayer. I imagine most of us would say the same. As my understandings of God changed, the ways I prayed made less and less sense. So I stopped praying those ways; I felt both relief and grief. I found my way to new forms of prayer – some did not call them prayers at all. I stopped caring what they called them.

But, lately, I have wanted to pray in old ways again. I find myself wanting to lament and petition and intercede and thank, as well as what I have learned to do so much better: listen, be silent and still, receptive. I am struggling with this a little (mostly, why these prayers again, when I don’t believe in a Super Being God on the other end) but only a little, for I think I understand why. ...

DO I STILL SAY "DEAR GOD"?

February 10, 2019

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

I had been in seminary a year when I found myself in an hotel room, alone, and feeling incredibly sad. It was the start of vacation, no papers were due, nothing to distract. So, I had to listen, listen to a truth I'd been pushing down for months: my beliefs about God did not make sense to me anymore. There, I'd said it. And the truth kept rolling: maybe they had always not made sense to me. Maybe this is why I went to seminary.

It felt like a kind of death. The God I knew was no more. And, I was sad. Sad and worried: what would become of my faith? A grief, and its process, that I realized then had already begun months earlier, swept over me. I let myself cry.

I also remember, though, experiencing a kind of lightening of the air around me. I think now I'd call it hope. I hoped in that moment there would be another way to imagine God. I chose to continue trusting the spirit-filled reality I knew, even though I now no longer had words to explain it.

In the years that followed, words came. I was introduced to new images, metaphors, ideas, theologies. They made sense to me. I found God again without abandoning myself.

Interestingly, translating these new images into my daily, personal relationship with God was much harder. Intellectually things made sense but my ability to be present with God suffered. I could think and talk about God all day long, but ask me to practice the presence of God, to pray, and nothing. I would sit there like a novice trying desperately to repeat a necessary technique she'd only ever lucked into the first time.

The problem, of course, was my understanding of prayer hadn't yet caught up to my new ideas about God. What was prayer to look like now? How should I begin? Do I still say "Dear God"? Or, "Dear Sacred Spirit, Energy, the One Who is Both Us and Greater Than Us"? Doesn't exactly roll off the tongue. How did prayer work now? Does God still intervene? Does prayer work at all?

These are the questions we'll be wondering about together in group this week. Consider adding your voice. If not, read on and LEARN : LISTEN : LOVE.

PRAY WITHOUT CEASING. REALLY?

February 3, 2019

| Anne C. Williamson | Originally posted January 27, 2015. Edited 2019.

Pray without ceasing. That's what the Bible says. I used to interpret this as some sort of pious challenge reserved for monks, nuns and those kids who memorized Bible verses. (Okay, I was one of those kids, but only briefly, and secretly.) It was impractical. How many "now I lay me"s and "dear god"s can one say in a day and get anything else done?

Because, of course, that's what prayer was: talking to God. Talking to God with rules. Do be honest, but not if your issue is with God. It's strange to bow but perfectly normal to close your eyes and clasp your hands. Before making any requests, praise and give thanks. For a long while, despite all these rules, prayer as talking to God worked well for me; I loved sharing my heart.

Eventually, things changed. I got angry, and God was not exempt. I saw hundreds of people bow in unison and found it beautiful. My image of God changed, and with it, I found more peace and movement in silence than praise. I could not pray the way I once did, and honestly, I felt both relief and a deep ache.

I remember when I read theologian Kent Ira Groff’s definition of prayer: "to practice the presence, to go to God by any means, by any means to let God come to you." I was in seminary and reading this was like a welcomed fissure in a dam. The new waters knocked me down occasionally but before, my spirit was parched.

Pray without ceasing. I came to realize it wasn't a challenge; it was permission. Permission to practice the presence and by any means; this is the only way we can possibly do it without ceasing.

Of course, it still isn't easy. For me, it's a way of being that feels very far away some days. But, I hope in it, and I practice. I walk and breathe. I meditate. I’m here. I lean into being here a little more. I pay attention. I consider my actions as well as my stories; I consider their many ripples. I forget or willfully ignore. I forgive myself. I listen and try again. And, I talk; sometimes I do still talk to God.

An Honest Response to a Human Life

April 8, 2018

| Anne Williamson |

PRAY WITHOUT CEASING. REALLY?

September 13, 2015

| Anne Williamson |

Eventually, things changed. ...

MR. ROGERS, MY ETHICS PROFESSOR, AND PRAYER

February 15, 2015

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

I understand this perspective. Too often in our society, the world, we over emphasize the unique, special individual. This leads to myopic points of view. I fail to see - or choose to ignore - how my choices impact others, and consequently, others suffer. It also leads to some nauseatingly terrible commercials. Two words: perfumes, cars.

We can also under emphasize our specialness, though. Religions have certainly stumbled here. Whether extinguished in the non-dualism of eastern religions or contained in the rulebooks of western religions, the individual personality has often been denigrated.

Can there exist a happy middle ground? Can we be both special and One? I hope so. I think so. LEARN. LISTEN. LOVE.

DO I STILL SAY "DEAR GOD"?

February 1, 2015

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

In the years that followed, words came. I was introduced to new images, metaphors, ideas, theologies. They made sense to me. I found God again without abandoning myself.

These are the questions we'll be wondering about together in group this week. Consider adding your voice. If not, read on and LEARN : LISTEN : LOVE.

PRAY WITHOUT CEASING. REALLY?

January 27, 2015

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

Theologian Kent Ira Groff says prayer is "... to practice the presence, to go to God by any means, by any means to let God come to you." Reading this definition was like a welcomed fissure in a dam. The new waters knock me down occasionally but before, my spirit was parched.

Pray without ceasing. I realize now it wasn't a challenge. It was permission. Permission to practice the presence and by any means; because, this is the only way we could possibly do it without ceasing.

Of course, this still isn't easy. For me, it's a way of being that feels very far away some days. But, I hope in it, and I practice. I walk and breathe. I fall and get up. I meditate. I’m here. I open myself up to new ways of practicing, of prayer. I listen. Oh, and I talk. I still talk to God.

RESPONDING TO THE WORLD'S PAIN

July 22, 2014

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

The truth of this world is sad and unjust situations are happening all the time, every second. Sometimes I feel very removed from them - and honestly, it is necessary to; we cannot sit in pain perpetually - but sometimes, I feel them deeply. Whether Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, the ground offensive in Gaza, immigrant children suffering on the U.S. border, a Facebook post of both mother and child fighting cancer, our broken prison system, or a close friend in pain, this has been a week for feeling it.

When this happens, what do we do? How are we to respond? LEARN, LOVE, LISTEN...

HONESTY

April 30, 2014

| ANNE WILLIAMSON |

I am increasingly convinced honesty sits at the heart of all good things. Want to uncover your passion? Get honest about answering the question, "What would I do if I weren't afraid?" Looking for deeper connections? Be honest about who you are - where you struggle and find joy. Want to laugh really hard? Just wait for the next honestly human and hilarious moment. Frustrated about your relationship with food? Find the courage (and support) to explore why and how you really use it. Wondering why your prayers feel flat? Ditch the pretense and try a little raw truth: "God, I don't trust you" or "I guess I really don't want to forgive. I'm afraid of what forgiving means: forgetting, me being 'okay'..." or "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" or...

Honesty isn't particularly easy, especially when we're unaccustomed to it. It can even be painful... but only at first. Then, it becomes the key to our freedom, joy, reconciliation, you name it. LISTEN, LEARN, LOVE. What do you hear, honestly?

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