Troubled

Jesus said to his disciples:
“Whoever loves me will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him.
Whoever does not love me does not keep my words;
yet the word you hear is not mine
but that of the Father who sent me.
I have told you this while I am with you.
The Advocate, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you everything
and remind you of all that I told you.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
Not as the world gives do I give it to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.
You heard me tell you,
‘I am going away and I will come back to you.’
If you loved me,
you would rejoice that I am going to the Father;
for the Father is greater than I.
And now I have told you this before it happens,
so that when it happens you may believe.”
—John 14:23-29

“Don't let your hearts be troubled,”
we hear the savior say;
in all our daily struggle
he says, “Be not afraid.”
But where shall we find courage
to do what must be done,
who see the way the world is
and feel that he is gone?

Yet peace he leaves behind him—
not as the world he gives—
and here and now we find him.
Yes, our redeemer lives,
and here he makes his dwelling:
Its doors are open wide.
Come, let us keep his telling!
He welcomes us inside.

The right hand of the Father
still stretches over us;
our savior and our brother
still walks with us in love.
His peace shall not diminish:
In triumph or defeat
his joy is yet within us
to make our joy complete.

Supper at Emmaus by Caravaggio, 1601 – National Gallery, London web site, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=270022

Beatitude

Beatitudes, on the Fourth of July:

O, bless the poor in spirit, Lord,
with kingdoms at their feet,
and bless all who are simply poor:
Lay out for them your feast.

Bless, too, the hands that are not full,
who hunger and who thirst:
For them, let justice' waters roll
and every dam be burst.

And bless all those who mourn and weep:
Pour comforts in their hands.
And bless the humble and the meek:
Give them, at last, the land,

for we have had the rich and great,
and well we know their might,
but now the hour is getting late
and swiftly goes the light.

Give us the kingdom that we need
on earth as 'tis in heav'n.
Help us forgive—O, set us free!—
that we may be forgiv'n.

So teach us to be merciful
that we may mercy know,
to make the kingdom peaceable
and see you ever close. Amen.

Église Saint Aloyse béatitude 1 Photo By Sicarov – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=149373090

Good Shepherd

Jesus said:
“I am the good shepherd.
A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
A hired man, who is not a shepherd
and whose sheep are not his own,
sees a wolf coming and leaves the sheep and runs away,
and the wolf catches and scatters them.
This is because he works for pay and has no concern for the sheep.
I am the good shepherd,
and I know mine and mine know me,
just as the Father knows me and I know the Father;
and I will lay down my life for the sheep.”
—John 10:11-18

O loving shepherd of the flock,
the storm is rising high
and predators who stalk the dark
are circling nearby.

Your voice still sounds, a constant pulse
that rings out low and clear
amid the howling of the wolves
so swiftly drawing near.

O, let us hear you through the storm
and panic-stricken night,
and keep us safely in your fold
'til morning rises bright.

But if we're scattered to the winds,
still you would find us there.
If we are driven by our sins,
we have not left your care.

For you have climbed the farthest hills
and combed the valleys deep,
that even from the darkest vales
you will bring back your sheep.

Not one is lost forever, then,
though we have left the fold;
not one will slip out of your hand,
but you will bring us home.

James Tissot, The Good Shepherd.

What Are You Wearing, Lord My God?

There was a woman afflicted with hemorrhages for twelve years.
She had suffered greatly at the hands of many doctors
and had spent all that she had.
Yet she was not helped but only grew worse.
She had heard about Jesus and came up behind him in the crowd
and touched his cloak.
She said, “If I but touch his clothes, I shall be cured.”
Immediately her flow of blood dried up.
Mark 5:21-43

What are you wearing, Lord my God?
For if I touch your clothes,
you can redeem the stream of blood
that from my sickness flows.

Show me your tassel or your hem,
the sandals on your feet,
and guide my hand to reach for them
if ever we should meet.

And if you wear the form of bread,
come still into my hand;
or in wine's robes of flowing red,
yet show me where you stand.

If in the faces you have made,
the neighbor or the poor,
you walk the restless world today,
through their touch make me pure.

Give me the faith that reaches out
because it knows your pow'r,
that clings to you in every doubt
and trusts you every hour.

Give me the mercy, saving Lord,
that sets the bound heart free,
that walks amid the thronging crowd
to heal and nurture me.

The Woman with an Issue of Blood (L’hémoroïsse) By James Tissot – Online Collection of Brooklyn Museum; Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 2008, 00.159.111_PS2.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10957392

I Want to Calm

Another one from Sunday’s readings:

I want to calm the raging storm
and bid the wilding waves be still;
to wrest the chaos into form
all by the strength of my own will.

To fight the terrors of the deep
and roll the dark night into dawn,
and let you, on your cushion, sleep,
and steer the boat still on and on.

But I cannot.  I have no pow'r
and precious little of my faith.
Wake up, Lord, in this fearsome hour,
before we perish in the waves!

You still the waves and calm the winds,
then cast your weary eyes on me
to teach the lesson once again
that you are with me on the seas,

that none but you can calm the storm,
nor do you ask me to be you.
And so, a different faith is born
as once again you make all new:

Not that you'll drive the storms away,
but that you feel the waves crash down.
That if I perish here today,
you still are with me as I drown.