Awakening a Keen Observer

Saturday, February 12, 2011

A touch of the Holy

Last weekend a really gifted young woman preached in New Life Church. Karen has such great gifts and skills. I am really pleased to have her as a sister in ministry..may the way be clear for her to find a Call.

Monday after being in the office in the morning Karen and I went to Old Town Albuquerque. It is a charming square. (ok there was that lapis and coral necklace that will haunt me it was only $40. The native americans had beautiful work on display. We had no trouble finding a parking place as it is the off season. The day however was bright sunny and really beautiful.

We parked in front of the church on the square, San Felipe Catholic church was built in 1793. They have been a church here for almost 300 years. Karen and I walked in and it is a beautiful chapel. It was quiet and peaceful.
A man was praying in the front. We sat in the last pew. The man was deep in prayer. He would pray, cross himself as is the tradition, genuflect and then pray again. We observed him and could Feel the way the Holy was present to him. He walked backwards down the aisle never turning his back to the altar. I was moved.
The statues in the front were beautiful and had not two other people come in to pray I would have gone forward to have seen them closeryu
We stayed for ... a good while ... silent. We both felt it was time to leave and so we quietly left.

There was to be sure a touch of the Holy. Perhaps in fact more than a touch. There was the presence of the Spirit. I'm not Catholic but there are some things we gave up at the time of the Reformation that I'm not so sure we should have. More on that at another time.

I am happy we went into the church. I am touched by the time we spent there. I am comforted by the presence of Christ daily.

God abides
Bobbie G. McGarey
@2011

Albuquerque,
bobbiemcgarey on facebook

Monday, February 07, 2011

Re-Imagining

The Book, The Phantom Tollbooth, has a traveler moving through different lands. At one point the traveler finds himself suddenly on an island named Conclusions. He doesn't know either how he got there or how to get off. He finds out that you get to the island of conclusions by jumping there...and the only way off is to swim back through the Sea of Reason.

I was reading through my files and found the one that contains the 1994 reports about Re-Imagining conference in Minnesota. I wrote a letter to my colleagues and in response got replies like...I have read other things quite different from people who listened to the tapes and heard what happened -- did you attend the same conference?..and I will pray for your soul, and I don't think we are in the same church. None of these folk had attended or had spoken directly with someone who was there but they were willing to take articles and headlines over my first hand account of my experience.

All of that was very interesting and challenging. And I laugh often when I see books published by men, some of whom greatly challenged the conference with titles like re-imagining the church... Is it a gender issue.

Sometimes I think that even though I was in high school and college during the break-thru of the women's movement things have only partly changed in folks value of women. We are horrified at stories we hear about girls children being neglected and yet women in this country still make less than men in the same jobs with the same training.

I was a supply pastor in a church about four months ago when a man came up to me and said, "O they let girls be ministers now?" I looked at his face longing to see him an expression of a joke--but I found no such response. I said I'd been ordained 32 years so Yes women are ordained. How odd was that?

When my son was born in '78' one of my friends said...Oh too bad you didn't have a girl you could raise her to be good liberated feminist. I replied that if we didn't raise some liberated men then there would always be an imbalance. And to the credit of other mom's from that era we do have some wonderfully liberated men.

I suppose all of this is to say that we all have work to do in respecting one another, encouraging one another, being open to listen to new ideas, and to recognize we are not always right. (What? ha ha ha )

So this Monday I am Re-Imagining the week... and all the days ahead. Expectations are not always the same for everyone.

God Abide
Bobbie Giltz McGarey
@2011
ABQ New Mexico

Friday, February 04, 2011

whoop

Grace and Peace
Whoop
I found the other power cord for my computer, well my daughter's computer that I've borrowed. I thought it was still packed in Raton. The part that broke was the little pointy part that goes into the computer itself. I thought I had to buy a new one and have waited for some time to do it because it is about $80. And I don't have an extra 80$ I'm happy I waited. Although it would be handy to have one here and at the office... Extravagant. Really that $$ will help 'my' boys in India that equals bout a month for each of them.
John is heading back to OK in a few weeks to sell the house. How is that for positive thinking? He'll drive the truck think happy thoughts about the weather getting better.
I'd switch cars with him but mine has an engine illness, (I keep giving it transfusions of Oil) and I have to have that fixed. All in all. We will be doing ok once we sell the house. Till then there are a lot of the finances to be worked out.
Having whined about that I know that we are really ok. We have warm places to live and good work to do and great people to work with and that is wonderful.

Being safe isn't an issue here and I really like the light I get in the afternoon and evening in my bedroom/study/office. That is the second room in my apt.
I do miss my books. Really they are friends to me. I will get some of them here eventually. I am looking to get a bookcase at a garage sale when the weather thaws out some. (and an Ironing board).

I am very happy!

God abides
Bobbie Giltz McGarey
@2011
ABQ New Mexico