by Kathy Christianson

During the time of Jesus in Israel, there was great deal of chaos. The Romans demanded strict adherence to their rules and regulations. The people walked on egg shells, hoping not to draw attention to themselves for fear of being arrested. The people were weary and becoming very restless.

Meanwhile, Jesus, a gentle and humble man was quietly preaching throughout the countryside – speaking to many, sharing words of wisdom and love. He wasn’t loud. He wasn’t boastful. He didn’t demand to be worshiped. He didn’t acquire wealth nor live a rich life. His only desire was to be listened to.

Adding to the negativity at that time was the increasing displeasure by the Temple Priests at the words of this simple man, not at all a priest! His popularity was gaining as evidenced by the large crowds that came to hear his words. The priests felt threatened.

The people were longing for the foretold Messiah -someone who would release them of their oppression. Eyes were on Jesus – Is this the man who will save us? Jesus knew that the time had come to publically present himself to the people in support of his message and to try and keep peace. He had nothing to hide and he went to present himself.

In today’s Gospel from Matthew, we hear that Jesus asked for a donkey in which to ride into Jerusalem. Not a great stallion, a symbol of greatness and majesty but a simple donkey, a symbol of humbleness compared to a stallion; but an animal of strength nonetheless as she carries a Jesus on her back.

In keeping with his simple message, Jesus knew that his “crown”, his “greatness”, his “kin-dom” was not for public display for they resided in him, as it resides in us. So he came as he was.

And the people adored him. Went he entered Jerusalem they threw down their palms and cloaks in respect for this man that they had come to love. They shouted “Hosanna! Hosanna! to express their joy and admiration. This is the same as saying Hooray! Hooray! He’s here! He’s here! We love this man!

Jesus comes to us today and every day as his pure, simple self. He approaches us in is his simplicity with advice and guidance on how to live a happy and fulfilling life and how to connect with the people around us. The words are simple. The message is simple.

Love the Lord God with all your heart. Love your neighbor and love yourself.

Please take away today the message that the kin-dom of God is in all of us. In this kin-dom, it’s all about love. Jesus will be happy that you hear this and live our lives by this simple message. I can hear him shouting “Hooray! Hooray!”

by Most Reverend Dianne Sullivan

When Jesus calls your name in your garden can your hear him? Do you know his voice? On that soulful and mysterious morning Mary, known as the Apostle of the Apostles, knew his voice. I suspect that Mary had memorized his voice from countless teachings and gatherings he made during his ministry. She knew the power of his voice and she knew the gentleness of his voice: all the intonations that come with healing work. She knew his sadness, his disappointment, his joy and his humility. So when this strange man, in the garden, called her name that morning, immediately she recognized him as Jesus, the Voice of Love.

In the midst of our own lives, especially after a time of darkness, can we recognize the voice of Love? After such violence, especially in the story of the Passion of Jesus, are we ready to listen? In the midst of our sorrow and emotional upheaval, whether it be the loss of a loved on, loss of our job, loss of our vitality as age creeps into our bones or loss of hope, grieving must run its course; it is due our attention. Mary was mourning holding her grief tightly.

The story of Easter parallels our own lives in many ways. Our experiences are similar.
We are upheld and well thought of: we are loved
We are rejected, accused of some wrongdoing.
We are mocked, embarrassed and sent to a place of disapproval; for some prison, for some death, for some isolation, abandoned and rejected.
We suffer deeply.
And then we are redeemed, brought back into the fold, we are home.

Whether the figure Jesus resonates with you; The Divine; a Higher Power; Buddha; The Prophet Mohammad; The Great Spirit; the story of redemption and coming home is repeated again and again. It is the archetype of the Hero’s journey. No matter what we subscribe to; religion, spirituality, theology, astrology or alchemy, the story is the same: it is the human journey of finding ourselves and finding our purpose.

Through it all love is the balm that makes the journey of death and resurrection doable. It is the only experience that makes sense. We can kick and scream our way through or surrender to life’s movement. We can give ourselves over to vulnerability and love more deeply or we can hold back and pretend we are in control.

The Voice of Love, as it comes to us, is the voice of hope and it will not disappoint.
Love always finds a way.

by Kathy Christianson

Trust is such a big part of faith. To live with a knowing that there is a higher power – something greater, way greater, than ourselves. To know and believe that there is a spirit, a very Holy Spirit, that is with us always. In this trusting, we know that we have a silent partner who guides us, protects us and stays with us, as we make our way back to Home.

We heard in today’s Gospel that the Israelites were very upset with Moses because there was no water. That must have been very difficult. They must have been very scared. But in their need for water they seemed to have verbally attacked Moses. With the Israelites being such a large group that must have been very intimidating.

One thing I noticed in this passage from Exodus is that the people were making demands and asking questions of Moses. I wondered to myself – why weren’t they asking for what they needed from God? After all, God was a partner with them on this journey to the Promised Land. Had they forgotten that God was with them?

In our lives, it is not a hard thing to do – to forget that God is with us. We can get so caught up in ourselves and others, that we forget and turn our attention away from the fact – our belief – our faith – that God is with us.

There is a Cherokee Indian legend that I am fond of and would like to share with you. The author of this legend is not known –

Do you know the legend of the Cherokee Indian youth’s rite of Passage?
His father takes him into the forest, blindfolds him and leaves him alone.
He is required to sit on a stump the whole night and not remove the blindfold until the rays of the morning sun shine through it.
He cannot cry out for help to anyone.
Once he survives the night, he is a MAN. He cannot tell the other boys of this experience, because each lad must come into manhood on his own.
The boy is naturally terrified. He can hear all kinds of noises. Wild beasts must surely be all around him. Maybe even some human might do him harm.
The wind blew the grass and earth, and shook his stump, but he sat stoically, never removing the blindfold. It would be the only way he could become a man!
Finally, after a horrific night the sun appeared and he removed his blindfold. It was then that he discovered his father sitting on the stump next to him. He had been at watch the entire night, protecting his son from harm.
We, too, are never alone. Even when we don’t know it, God is watching over us, sitting on the stump beside us. When trouble comes, all we have to do is reach out to Him.
Moses had complete faith, which included that deep trust that God was with them in their passage through the desert. Moses asked God for what he needed and God made it happen. God granted Moses’ request.

This Lenten season, let us waken our consciousness to the presence of God. Ask God for what you need and trust that it will be granted (but in God’s time….not ours). And then be grateful. Even before you see the results, be thankful. For this thanks sends proof to our Creator that you trust that your need will be fulfilled.

Most Rev. Dianne Sullivan

What does it mean to live a resurrected life? “Resurrected” as Christians understand it’s meaning, is living a restored life; raised from the dead; full of life.

To live a “resurrected” life has at it’s core the idea of being restored, coming alive again, being raised up, revived and awakened. There’s a sense of hope and undeniable faith that in the end everything will be ok.

“You may not always have a comfortable life and you will not always be able to solve all of the world’s problems at once but don’t ever underestimate the importance you can have because history has shown us that courage can be contagious and hope can take on a life of its own.” Michelle Obama

I recently read an article that offered a nighttime ritual that touched me deeply.

As we crawl into bed and are about to enter that subliminal space of sleep, we review the day and who we have been that day. Without judgment or criticism we look at ourselves and offer blessings. And then we look towards tomorrow and offer blessings to who it is we will be. Who we will be tomorrow rests on the shoulders of today. Drift off and watch the sweetness of dreams that unfold.

How do we live a resurrected life from one day to the next? What would that look like? What would we be feeling? How would we act? What would we be saying? How would we live if we weren’t afraid of anything? What does hope look like? How does it conquer darkness?

There is the powerful story of Yu Xukang, a single father who lives in the Sichuan Province in China, who would do just about anything to give his son with disabilities every opportunity in the world.
Everyday this father walks 9 miles total with his son, who has physical disabilities, on his back to his son’s school so that his son might get an education. The 12-year-old has a disorder that has caused his arms and legs to become twisted and his back to be hunched over. There is no public transportation available to take him over the rugged terrain to class. This single dad estimates that he’s walked about 1,600 miles since he started taking his son to school and then home.
“I know that my son is physically disabled but there is nothing wrong with his mind,” he told a newspaper. “However, I couldn’t find any school here with the facilities to accept him and was constantly rejected.” Waves of disappointment could have stopped him but he persevered.
Xiao Qiang was accepted to the Fengxi Primary School, Yu vowed to do everything in his power to make sure his son would get there every day. His dream is for Xiao Qiang to one day go to college.

This father awakened to his own courage and perseverance but he also awakened to his son’s potential and he restored possibility to his son’s future. This is living a resurrected life. This is a life that is steeped in hope and courage. A life that is lived for someone else, where our deepest desire is to give all that we are away. When we search for someone else’s happiness we find our own.

Living a resurrected life means we face uncertainty every day. We know that the illusion of control is but a shadow and we refuse to allow our fears to bring us to a stop.

“Bethany Hamilton, is a suffer. Her story was told in the movie Soul Surfer. Her arm was bitten off during a shark attack. But Bethany went back into the water to try surfing again less than one month after the horrific attack. She was asked how she could have gotten back into the water so soon and her response was that she knew if she waited even another day longer, she may never have gone back in again. “ She knew fear could have stopped her.
The writer of the article says,
“How often we are faced with just such a thing in our own lives – the waves beckon, but we stand frozen on the shore, wanting assurances of perfect safety before we dive back in. And because safety is never guaranteed, we often never get past dipping a toe in before we turn away, too afraid to try again. “

How many times we are faced with a similar dilemma in our lives. It takes tremendous courage to take a risk and not allow the ocean of fear to drown us. It’s also the little things that we face that can hold us back. Making a phone call, we would rather not make, picking ourselves up when we are struggling, keeping a promise or commitment, saying yes when we would rather say no.

It’s necessary to know what lies deeply in our heart. What is our passion? And how do we follow that? Is that passion greater than your fear of diving in and taking a risk. Perhaps your passion is to love well, to follow your goodness. Will you pull back if your wound is opened again? Or will you live your passion, your resurrected life?

Adversity can be our greatest teacher. When it comes knocking on our door will we open the door and invite it into our hearts? Or will we slam it shut never really knowing how it might have raised us up, so that we could become more than what we believed we could be.

Today Bethany is one of the greatest surfers in the world. A champion many times over, and an inspiration to millions.

Xiao Qiang and his father were offered a place to stay closer to the school, ending the daily 9 mile trek and today Xiao Qiang is first in his class, assured of a college education.

There is something mysteriously present when we follow the passion in our hearts: when we are conscious and aware of how we want to live. If God is the creator then it is God who has inspired our passions, and therefore we are most alive when we follow those passions.

May the waves of hope and love carry you deep into the softness of your heart and into the fearlessness of courage. May you taste the sweetness of God’s breath within your soul and know your place in this world.

By Kathy Christianson

Today is the first Sunday in Lent.

I like to refer to this time as the Big Time Out. It’s that time to pause and reflect on where we’ve been and where we’re going in our faith. It’s like when you go on a trip and on the way home you go over all the events of your trip – maybe remember the way the sun felt on your skin, the laughter, the worry over whether Uncle John was going to tell his dirty jokes or how you felt when cousin Lisa told you that you grow more beautiful with age. During Lent, we have the opportunity to review our spiritual journey.

It’s a fairly common practice amongst many religions to set aside a time for reflection. People of the Jewish faith observe Yom Kippur. Members of Islam participate in Ramadan. The Hindu fast and reflect during Durga Puja. For the Iroquois Indian, their spiritual year begins with the Midwinter Ceremony, also around this time.

When we receive ashes, this tradition is usually accompanied with the words “Remember you are dust and to dust you shall return.” From the time we are born until the time we pass over to the other side, it’s all about the journey. With our greatest reward being able to see the face of God.

As we heard in today’s Gospel, God gives us all that we need for our journey. We are denied nothing. We are given trees which are good for food and they are pleasant to look at. We have connection and shelter in the Tree of Life. From the Tree of the Knowledge of good and evil, we are given free will – the ability to choose. To make our own choices as Robert Frost shared with us. Which road are we going to take? I believe we can never take a “wrong” road. The question remains, when we do choose, did we get the results we wanted? Are we any closer to God?

Maybe during this Time Out we can take the time to reflect and ask ourselves:

• Am I the best person that I can be?

• Do I come from Love in everything I do and say?

• Have I taken the Right Road? Is it time to try another path, or is the path that I am on giving me fulfillment and joy?

• Am I closer to God?

It’s never too late to take a different road. If you decide that the direction you’re moving doesn’t fill your soul, if you don’t feel connected with God, take a moment, and choose to take a different road.

For my deacon studies I am now reading the Book of Numbers in the Bible. There is a blessing that I couldn’t wait to share with you. This version of the blessing is from the Book of Numbers in the Torah:

The Lord bless you and protect you!
The Lord deal kindly and graciously with you!
The Lord bestow His favor upon you and grant you peace!

This Lent, please consider inviting God to be with you. Sit with the holy presence. Choose the path that leads you to God.

Adapted from Mike Dooley and the “Message From the Universe”, Most Rev. Dianne Sullivan

Reading from Wisdom Literature

If it’s not yet obvious to you by now, the real reason for life and living, is that each of us may know love and happiness. Each of us is granted a divine heritage and sacred destiny. Each of us is an answer to life’s prayer. The first light at the dawn of eternity, saw us and knew us to be the beloved of God. Through each of us, God knows God’s own depth and height, reveling in the seas of blessed emotion.

Each of us is a pioneer into illusion, an adventurer into the unknown, and a lifter of veils. We are courageous, heroic, and applauded by legions in the unseen.

To give beyond reason, to care beyond hope, to love without limit; to reach, stretch, and dream, in spite of our fears, these are the hallmarks of divinity – badges of honor. May we wear them with pride.

Your light has illuminated darkened paths, your gaze has lifted broken spirits, and already your life has changed the course of history. May God celebrate each of us.

.

Most Rev Dianne Sullivan
2/05/2017

John 1: 1-3
“There was a man sent from God whose name was John. He came as a witness to testify concerning that light, so that through him all might believe. He himself was not the light; he came only as a witness to the light.
The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.” .

There was a man sent from God whose name was Gandhi. He came as a man of peace to free his country from British rule and oppression. He led his people to the Indian Ocean to protest tax on salt. He was a Hindu but proclaimed himself the brother of all, a man for all people.
He understood that to be a light for others he needed to be a light within himself. He lived the change he sought to see in the world.

There was a woman sent from God whose name was Dorothy Day. She came as woman of service to feed the hungry and lift the poor. She lived among her people in New York with an appetite for goodness, a social activist invested in people. She wrote, “The greatest challenge of the day is: how to bring about a revolution of the heart, a revolution which has to start with each of us.” “We have all known the long loneliness,” she wrote “and we learned that the only solution is love and that love comes with community.’

There was a man sent from God whose name was Martin. He came as a man of vision, unafraid to challenge the rules of injustice, segregation, marching for freedom, the civil liberties for all. “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Martin had “a dream that his four little children would one day live in a nation where they would not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.”

There was a child sent from God whose name was Rachel Beckwith. She was a child of nine years full of wisdom and compassion well beyond her age, who longed for clean water for people of poor countries. She raised nearly $300 for her ninth birthday but her life was cut short by a tragic highway accident. Now there is a foundation in her name providing fresh clean water, pumps and irrigation to developing- countries. Hundreds of thousands of dollars have been raised in Rachel’s name.

There was a man sent from God who waited anxiously in an airport for his wife and two daughters flying from Jordon. There was a woman sent from God who waited in her hijab and prayer rug to pray to Allah for her Muslim family and friends, for their safety.

There is a woman named Ruth, Eona and, Maude: and there is Anne and Johnny May, Gladys, Hazel and Jean, Susan and Linda, Emily, Megan and Kelli all sent from God to be a light in the darkness, a sign of hope no matter where their lives have taken them.
There is a man named Dick, and Roger, Bill and John, all sent by God, Thomas too.
They are the strength for others, the backbone for leaning, the loyal men of commitment. They bring the light of stamina and perseverance, to others.

Salt of the earth is about decency. Light is about guidance and showing the way.

When my daughter was just a child she sometimes would become discouraged or afraid to confront new challenges. I told her these were little hills ahead of her that could be climbed. If she refused to meet the challenge and climb the hill the next hill would be steeper. Little by little she learned to climb those hills and then the mountains of adulthood. Today she has climbed every mountain put in front of her and she has become my light.

To be light for each other means we are listening; we are present; we are open minded and open hearted; we are willing to care; we are willing to give of ourselves; we love and we act from love. We try our best. And when we fail we learn and start again.

To be light means we are willing to enter the darkness and take a step in faith, not knowing where it will take us. This is after all a journey of certain uncertainty.

Letting your light shine takes courage and risks.

Marianne Williamson, author and spiritual teacher wrote, “Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate. Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our Light not our Darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, ‘Who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, fabulous? Actually who are you not to be? You are a child of God. Your playing small does not serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people will not feel insecure around you. We are all meant to shine, as children do. We were born to make manifest the glory of God that is within us. It’s not just in some of us; Gandhi; Dorothy Day; Martin Luther King Jr.; Rachel Beckwith; it’s in everyone. And as we let our light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

We are all meant to shine.
Amen

by Deacon Jean Gilberte
2/25/17

In the first paragraph of the gospel of Matthew, Jesus tells us NOT TO WORRY. Then he goes on to tell us that ‘God knows all that we need.’ Do we trust that God will provide for what we do need? I think that is our biggest question. Do we trust God to know what is best for us?

There are people who worry very little and some worry quite a lot. There are even people who worry about everything. There are also some of us who are worried because they don’t worry when something happens. Is there anyone in this room who does not worry? Is there anyone who is willing to say out loud what they are worried about with no judgment from anyone?

If you are one who worries, please don’t put yourself down for it. Paul, in the first reading, said to not past judgment on ourselves.

In the work that I do (I am a healing practitioner….when asked, I do Reiki for people who are in need). I noticed that people who come to see me because they are not feeling well are often stressed by some form of worry. Worrying creates exhaustion in people. Just last week, I slipped from trusting God and became worried. Of course, my blood pressure went up immediately. So what did I do at that moment?
I sat down and asked God to help me to let go. I took some deep breaths, and every time I let the air out, I let my body relax. After around ten minutes, my blood pressure went back down. Jesus knew 2 thousand years ago that worrying was not healthy. Can you imagine how long that is, and we still haven’t learned how to let go and relax.

God wants us to flourish like the lilies or the flowers that will soon start to grow as spring is approaching. I have rose bushes by my front walkway. God provides the water and the sun and I make sure that good energy surrounds my home. These roses grow so big and they flower from early spring until December. This is without my watering during the summer and without any fertilizer. God really does provide for them.

I was one who grew up doubting myself. About 25 years ago, my youngest son encouraged me to take art class because he was taking the class. He was very wise at a young age and saw some potential in me that I did not see. I didn’t want to because I was afraid I would embarrass myself by doing what I knew and that was drawing stick people. I eventually did take the class. The first painting I did shocked me because it was beautiful. I didn’t know how it happened but it did.

At the time, my mom’s wish was to have a painting of the Trinity (God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit.) I promised her I would paint it for her. My art teacher agreed that she would guide me so I decided to try. A few months into the painting, my teacher informed me that she was moving to California. I was upset that the painting for my mom was not even a quarter done. I brought the unfinished canvas home and placed it on my easel and there it stayed for 2 months because I was afraid that I would find out that I really wasn’t good at painting. My mom would ask about the painting and her birthday was coming up. One night, I prayed to God to please help me to give my mom the painting she so desired as she was such a prayerful woman. I sat at my easel with 5 paint brushes in my hand and I asked, maybe pleaded for my Angels to help me finish the picture as I did not know how to paint people. Somehow my hands just painted non stop. I finished that painting early that morning. My mom cried when I gave it her. My dad now has it hanging on the wall by his bed. Because I fully trusted and let go of the fears around painting, my mother received her gift; somehow at that moment with the paint brushes in my hands, I knew God was going to help me.

Now when I have moments of doubt, I remember how God is always with me as God is always with each and everyone of us. I hope all of us remember how important we are to God no matter what we we’ve done in the past. Please trust in God’s never ending love for us. Remember what Jesus said, “Do not worry.” God knows all about our needs and we need to trust that it will be done.

2/19/2017
by Kathy Christianson

Good morning everyone.
When I was preparing for the readings and homily for today, I chuckled when I saw the Gospel assigned to today. I think the Lord gave me this opportunity to speak about Love because I am working so hard to be consist in Love and Forgiveness.

You all know that I am studying to become a Deacon in this wonderful church (which is one of my greatest honors). In my studies, I have come to know and believe to be true that the way to freedom, the path to happiness and the road to a life fulfilled is through love.

My confession to you is that I resisted this knowledge. I have gone through my years with the belief of an ‘eye for an eye’ or you hurt me and I will hurt you back. If I was hurt, I would stay in the sorrow.

Then, through my relationship with Deacon Jean, I have learned that when I feel I have been wronged, I have come to understand that the things I can only control in these matters is myself. I can control my feelings and my reactions. I came to realize that staying in sorrow only left me in darkness – constantly think about the injustice, maybe plotting a way to “get even”. And I mean constantly – waking and trying to sleep. It was not a good feeling.

I learned from Deacon Jean and through my readings, specific steps that can be taken when we feel we have been wronged. We can:

• Feel the hurt feelings and then let them go. Letting go in this case means not thinking about them again

• If the person who I feel wronged me keeps popping up into my head, I can bless this person. I surround them with Light and Love and then I let them go. If they come into my head 1,000 times, then I do this 1,000 times until what they did goes away. And it will go away.

• The way that works well for me is to go into gratitude. I start listing off things and people that I am grateful for. You can’t be angry or hurt and be in gratitude at the same time.

• We can not harbor a grudge. Instead, pray for that person – that they find happiness and peace. This will leave us with our own sense of peace because we don’t go to the dark place where grudges live.

• I work hard at not talking ill of others. I hear my mother whispering in my ear, “If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.” My mother lived by this life lesson and she was very good at it.

• Who are we to sit in judgment of others – what we think others should do or what they shouldn’t have done? I have a brother, the youngest in our family. He has mental health issues and has made choices in his life that have hurt a lot of people. By praying very hard on this, for a long time, I have finally been able to separate him, the brother I love, from his choices. I have not forgotten his choices but I love him.

This is loving your “neighbor” but also loving yourself. By consistently coming from a place of love, we are happy. We are not weighed down with anger, resentment or revenge. This in turn makes us healthy in body, mind and spirit. Science today has proven that there is a direct connection between our thoughts and actions and our health. Living in negativity – not coming from a place of love – causes the body to break down in the way of disease

I have come to believe that this is why Jesus came here. He came to teach us This Way of living with each other. That each person we see whether it be our significant others, our family, friends, community or even strangers among us are all part of God and should be treated with love, kindness and respect.

And sometimes this is a really hard thing to do when someone is being a bully, saying mean things about people or groups of people. When someone is making fun of someone else, like someone with a physical disability. We still need to find a good in that person – look beyond their words and actions and seek the goodness of their heart. Not an easy thing to do…but it’s doable.

I have come to believe that while all this work is hard, sometimes really hard, the more we try, the more we practice, the easier it comes. It becomes a way of life.

Love is The Way. Love will Conquer All.

Always

by Kathy Christianson

In preparation for today, I thought hard about the message in this gospel. Was it about baptism? Was it about who John the Baptist was? And then what really touched me was the Dove.

During this time in Israel, Jesus had a following that was growing in numbers. People starting talking about him a lot. At the same time, John the Baptist also had a large following. John drew a lot of attention by submerging people in water. This action is a part of Jewish custom but usually only performed on Sunday by men to spiritually cleanse themselves for the week. So, a lot of questions were generated because John was submerging anyone who asked whenever they asked.

John the Baptist was a very devout man. He followed the very formal law of Judaism. Part of the philosophy was that you had to frequently repent for your sins so that you would find favor in God’s eyes. If you did not, you would suffer.

The Jewish Temple priests became very confused. So who is the Messiah? Is it John the Baptist? After all, look at his following. People are listening to him. Or is it Jesus who the priests had been hearing a lot of about and who also had a large following.

So, you’ve got two holy men. Preaching about God and how important it was to find our way to God. But the two men preached about how to do this in two different ways. John taught more about severe sacrificing which would find favor with God. For example, he ate locusts and honey in the desert. He wore rough animal skins and endured the itching and chafing as a sacrifice to God. John taught that the Kingdom of God was coming and we had better be ready in order to be judged in a positive way.

Jesus’ teachings were focused on love, compassion and forgiveness. Love for yourself and for others. Forgiving others who may have hurt you, no matter how deeply. Forgiving ourselves for our own transgressions. He taught about going inside yourself. For inside us resides the Kingdom of God. It is not something that is coming. It is a place that is already here – inside. We just have to find it.

So, now this Dove. As I mentioned, the temple priests were becoming confused. Who is the Messiah that we’ve been waiting for? Is it John the Baptist or Jesus? When the two holy men are at the banks of the Jordan River and John has baptized Jesus, the answer becomes clear when the Dove appears above the head of Jesus, as a sign that he was the true Messiah.

The Dove represents the Holy Spirit, signifying peace, hope and love. Peace that we need to give ourselves and peace that we need to give others. Hope that we can continue to grow and learn and that our hard work will lead us to God. Love – the essence of who God is and who we need to be – all about Love. It’s almost like God was saying – Listen to this man. He’s got it. He knows The Way. Listen and follow him.

We often see the Dove as a sign of peace. While both Jesus and John the Baptist were great men of their time, there are many men and women who are also great people of our time. These men and women are still teaching us about love for one another, community and peace. One of those people is Martin Luther King, Jr. Tomorrow, as a nation, we celebrate the birthday of this peaceful man (although today is really his birthday). Martin Luther King, Jr. was all about peace…all about hope…and all about love. He taught us and showed us that the way to right wrongs was not through violence but through communication, and having an open mind and an open heart. Like Jesus, he was a preacher. He was humble. His message and the way he lived his life, honoring that message, has inspired us. The legacy he has left us is all about Love. Martin Luther King, Jr. is one of my heroes. I have visited his home, the church that he preached at and his memorial in Atlanta, Georgia. There, I found this post card with a quote from him that is etched in my soul. He said:

Hatred and bitterness can never cure the disease of fear; only love
can do that.
Hatred paralyses life, love releases it.
Hatred confuses life. Love harmonizes it.
Hatred darkens life; love illuminates it.

Thank you for being the Dove, Mr. King.