heading home, leaving home, and thankfully praying the journey would be both.

Every house where love abides
And friendship is a guest,
Is surely home, and home sweet home
For there the heart can rest.

Henry Van Dyke

Cain, Abel, the beginning and the end

I appreciate the public proclamation of theology and scripture immensely as it is expressed on the side of this building in the lower ninth ward in New Orleans. And the image above captures a pain that is unknowable for someone who has not lived in one of the most violent cities in the United States. But in fairness to the scripture, it needs to be noted that there are two chapters of Genesis that proceed the story of Cain and Abel. Two chapters of scripture that tell us that what God created was 'good' and 'very good' before the distrusting actions of Adam and Eve in chapter 3 and the murder over religion that we find in chapter 4.

And on the last page of most Bibles, just before we reach the final 'amen' at the conclusion of the the book of Revelation, we are again brought back to a garden-like vision of goodness and light where a river of life flows clear and clean and the leaves on the tree of life are for the healing of the peoples.

In a world living in the now and the not yet, where killing over religion, ethnicity, and disrespect seems to be out of control; in a world where the waters rage killing hundreds of thousands through a single tsunami, millions through its dirtiness that brings disease, and hundreds via breeched levees...

we keep our eyes on the beginning and the end

and we live our lives as those shaped by the one who calls us to action

in the middle

of

it

all

choosing our better history

" Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many.

They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met. On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom."

Every generation has its shared defining moments in history that we personally tag and remember where we were and what we were doing as particular monumental events unfolded. My parents talk about remembering where they were when they heard about Pearl Harbor being bombed and the assassination of JFK. I remember where I was when I heard about the space shuttle Challenger disaster and the tragic events of 9/11.

As I heard the words above spoken by new president Barack Obama as part of his inauguration speech, I was sitting in a 15 passenger van with a handful of folks preparing to get to work in the lower ninth ward of New Orleans 40 months post Katrina.

The degree of devastation that remains here is almost beyond belief.

But the hope... it will not die among those who live and labor here.

Out of suffering, an enduring spirit continues to choose hope over fear and walk a long and rugged path that defines us as a nation.

words of wisdom for the wayfaring

Thought I would share a poem that a friend wrote recently that I found to be inpsiring as we move into the new year.

anger aggravates, accommodates, advocates abuse.
authenticity awakens action.
beatitudes bear burdens with bold, brave, beautiful belief.
condemnation consumes, confines, confuses, cancels, quenches.
charity cheerfully choses changeless truthful chance.
desolate isolation destructs, depresses, represses.
darkness doubts and disguises.
dissatisfaction deters, destroys, defiles, defies, denies.
Daddy's divine detox and definite decisions define- directing daily dancing destiny.
eternally expressive encouragement enables courage.
foolishness and fraud ferment & fester, fool, fail & frustrate.
forgiven fearless freedom flows from firmaments' faithful, founding Father.
faith followers find friendship, family and favor.
humanity hoards and harbors hate, humiliating humility.
hurting, hungry hearts hide.
holy happiness harbors holistically healthy harmony.
ill, illegitimate, irreverent, irrelevant impermanence interrupts.
eternal, ingenious, insightful, innovative intelligence inspires.
jubilance joins justice, joyfully judging junk jurisdiction.
kindred kindness kindles and cultivates compassionate community.
love listens and laments.
life liberates.
mankind misunderstands and miscommunicates.
miracles & mercy mend mistakes.
neighborliness nurtures.
honest opportunity overrules ostracizing oppression.
plentiful plans pervade, persuade personal pursuits.
Prince of permanent peace paves, preserves, prepares, protects, provides perfect paths.
purity portrays passionate potential.
patience perseveres.
quiet confidence confides, communicating candidly.
rage ravages with revengeful rampant regret.
real, righteous wisdom refreshes, reflects, respects, requests right, relevant routes.
spiritual sickness soils saliva.
stubborn, stained sentiments send sharp shattering signals.
sweet, simple, soulful sincerity shares.
tongues torture.
truth trusts.
understanding observes.
wise warmth restores, redirects waywardness, reawakening wild, refreshing, reflective wonder.


Thanks Arli for a beautiful bit of bold purposeful prose!