Advent Online Retreat Wk 3

Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path; Psalm 119:105

Week Three: Journeying

by Kathy Prudden

Our preparations are in hand, and we’ve been waiting in mindful anticipation. It is now time to consider the journey to Christmas.

Let’s think, for a moment, about the journey that Mary and Joseph took to Bethlehem. Can you imagine begin nine months pregnant and having to ride on a donkey for miles, far away from home and all that was safe and familiar? Consider also the spiritual journey they were on; they were about to give birth to the son of God. What childbirth and parenting classes prepare you for that? Wow!

As unimaginably difficult as that must have been, though, they were not alone. Mary and Joseph had each other, along with God, and probably a heavenly host overseeing the whole enterprise. Based on their responses to the angel, I imagine that there were people in their lives who had nurtured their faith

What has your faith journey been like? Have there been people who have accompanied, and nurtured, you? This week let’s pay attention to those people and circumstances that have been meaningful in our faith journey.

Poetry for Meditation and Reflection

Fluent

I would love to live

as a river flows,

carried by the surprise

of its’ own unfolding.

-John O’Donohue

Ithaka

As you set out for Ithaka

hope the voyage is a long one,

full of adventure, full of discovery. . .

Keep Ithaka always in your mind.

Arriving there is what you are destined for.

But do not hurry the journey at all.

Better if it lasts for years,

so you are old by the time you reach the island,

wealthy with all you have gained on the way,

not expecting Ithaka to make you rich.

Ithaka gave you the marvelous journey.

Without her you would not have set out.

She has nothing left to give you now.

– Constantine P. Cavafy

Audio Divina: Music for Meditation and Reflection

Breath of Heaven, Amy Grant. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8_475FKJWQ

O Come All Ye Faithful https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wjl-KIGrOWA

We Three Kings. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8mjRxkMBkE&list=RDk8mjRxkMBkE&start_radio=1

In Audio Divina we partner with music to hear the still, small, voice of God, and to enter into God’s presence. Begin by setting aside some quiet time and space in which to listen to the music several times. As you listen to the song the first time be aware of words or melodies that catch your attention. Let them settle into you. After a pause, listen to the song a second time, noting any reflections or prayers that emerge. Then spend several minutes sitting in silence, letting God speak to you. Finally, make notes in your journal about what you heard or experienced. There are multiple songs provided, so you can engage in this activity several times throughout the week.

Suggested Activities:

1. Create a piece of art – visual, written, music, dance – that depicts your spiritual journey. As you consider the finished piece, reflect first on the art itself; what do you notice in line, form, tempo, freedom or restriction of movement, spacing and pacing? Then, reflect on the meaning of the piece to you.

2. Imagine your spiritual life as a novel. Who are the characters that have moved the story along? What are the significant plot developments? How does this story unfold for you from this point forward? Watch your inner censor; this is not about reality or life planning; it is an exercise to let your imagination speak to you.

3. Think about the people who have helped you on your walk with God. Who listened to you, taught you about prayer and reading scripture, modeled what is means to be a person of faith? Consider letting them know the role that they have played in your life; in person, or in a journal entry.

Pictured above: “Swiss Santons”, Barmettler Family, Creche from Switzerland