Subtle Graces of Life

Good morning, Loved Ones,

Here is another piece of the Jewish liturgy. Again, it was shared at our NSM gathering in New York. It is called Aleynu. The Aleynu praises God for allowing the Jewish people to serve him, and expresses their hope that the whole world will recognize God and abandon idolatry. As we are spending many hours this week in service, preparing for the Presbytery meeting on Saturday, I thought this piece was appropriate.

It is up to us to hallow Creation,
to respond to Life with the fullness of our lives.
It is up to us to meet the World,
to embrace the Whole even as we wrestle with its parts.
It is up to us to repair the World and to bind our lives to the Truth.
Therefore we bend the knee
and shake off the stiffness that keeps us
from the subtle graces of Life
and the supple gestures of Love.
With reverence and thanksgiving we accept our destiny
and set for ourselves the task of redemption. (Rami M. Shapiro)

Today I give thanks for . . .
1) . . . the supple gestures of love being performed by the many who are painting steps, replacing ceiling tiles, pouring concrete, cleaning stairwells, installing toilets, plastering walls and on and on and on . . .
2) . . . team leaders - Amy, Javier, Telma, Gigi, DeDe, Carmen, Dedric and Pastor Alfonso who are "wrestling with the parts" to make this meeting the best it can be.
3) . . . fiesta performers - Sudanese, Korean, Kenyan, Indonesian, Mexican, Guatemalan and Grandviewparkian.
4) . . . the opportunity for service the Presbytery meeting has provided us, the strength it will give us to do the next "task of redemption", and for the elevation of our self-image and for increased faith and trust in God.
5) . . . Sunday. It will truly be a day of rest for us, a Sabbath day of worship and celebration for service to God and our neighbors.

Let's bend the knee today and shake off the stiffness. Gimme cinco!

Pastor Rick