So much sound and fury….
Harvey,
Irma,
Jose,
Katia,
Maria.
Earthquakes.
Nuclear saber-rattling.
Refugee migrations and suffering around the world….and so much more….
How to respond, what to do?
Be quiet, pay attention to spirit.
Fast from the whirlwind of words and images around and within.
Step away from the demands of schedules and tasks.
Withdraw from the anxiety of so much to resist and to assist.
Be pilgrims on a journey to purify our hearts, rather than to speak our piece. (1)
Tend the fire of the Spirit in us, so that we have warmth to offer those in need. (2)
Be in solitude
be still
be.
Only then, speak
with the power of “a word that comes out of silence.” (3)
Only then, act
with the strength of a deed that comes out for serving.
Then will beauty and life shine in and through us.
S-h-h-h….
not in a great and mighty wind,
not in an earthquake,
not in a wildfire—
rather, in a “soft, murmuring sound” (4)
did Elijah meet G-d.
“Another world is not only possible, she’s on her way. Maybe many of us won’t be here to greet her, but on a quiet day, if I listen very carefully, I can hear her breathing.” (5)
(1) based on Henri J.M. Nouwen, The Way of the Heart
(2) Henri J.M. Nouwen, The Way of the Heart
(3) Ibid.
(4) I Kings 19:12, The Jewish Study Bible
(5) Arundhati Roy, “Come September”, in The Impossible Will Take a Little While (Paul Rogat Loeb, editor)