The Sacred and the Holy
“Something very deep and mysterious, very holy and sacred, is taking place in our lives right where we are, and the more attentive we become the more we will begin to see and hear it. The more our spiritual sensitivities come to the surface of our daily lives, the more we will discover—uncover—a new presence in our lives.” —Henri J.M. Nouwen
The above quote is one I believe and one I also find hard to believe at times. It’s a “both/and.” I’m okay with that ambiguity. Holding that tension keeps me aware of the reality of the good, the bad, and the ugly of life, as well as the possibilities of each new day.
As I mentioned in last week’s blog, our world and her peoples are in transition—a transformative period of challenge and change. This is a pivotal point in history: we’re making decisions that will fundamentally impact our lives going forward and the lives of future generations. How we—corporately and individually—respond to the challenges and opportunities before us will be important. We are in a liminal space.
“The word liminal comes from the Latin root, limen, which means ‘threshold.’ A liminal space is a ‘crossing over’ space—a space where you have left something behind, yet you are not yet fully in something else. It’s a transition space.” (transformationalpresence.org, “The Liminal Space: Embracing the Mystery and Power of Transition from What Has Been to What Will Be”)
Letting go of the familiar (and often worn-out) patterns and habits of life in order to embrace change is difficult. “Being present” is easier said than done. Most of us are creatures of habit who need a sense of control over our lives. We’re planners. We desire to know where we’ll be and what we’ll be doing a year or ten years from now. Yet, the events of the past few years have caused many of us pause that planning. We’ve lost our bearings. We’re struggling with the unknown. We’re craving certainty.
The older I get, the more I embrace mystery. Oh, sure, I want to know my plans as I age. It’s certainly helpful, especially when the planning includes Plans B, C, and D, just in case A doesn’t work out. But what if we approach each day as ‘holy and sacred,’ as Nouwen says, even amid the uncertainty? What if we intentionally tune our spiritual sensitivities to seek the deep, mysterious wonder of the sacred in our everyday existence? What if we claim the curiosity of a young child when we get out of bed each morning, asking God, “What are we going to explore, learn, do today?” What if we see with eyes of love for rather than fear of the unknown?
Having eyes of love and a heart open to sacred possibilities takes work. It involves seeing reality in new ways yet not through rose-colored glasses. It takes courage to see through the reality of pain, injustice, and suffering to reveal the possibilities of hope, restoration, and mercy.
I close with this bit of wisdom from Blaise Pascal, 17th century mathematician, physicist, inventor, writer, and philosopher: “Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known.”
Blessings,
Donna
Rev. Dr. Donna Patterson serves as Anam Cara Chaplain in Residence for Scarritt Bennett Center and directs the Center’s Soul Work program.