The left overs

 John 6:11-12

Then Jesus took the loaves, and when he had given thanks, he distributed them to those who were seated; so also the fish, as much as they wanted. When they were satisfied, he told his disciples, “Gather up the fragments left over, so that nothing may be lost.”

Gather up the fragments

The lost

The discarded

The overlooked

The unseen

The hidden

The different

The other

For all matter

None are invisible

or extraneous

in the economy of God

And each contains

a divine spark

that we are called

to kindle

and fan into flame

feeding body, mind and spirit

shaking off the dirt and grime

that has accumulated

through life overlooked

and disregarded

See through the dust

the starlight 

that pulses and glows

Release the beauty

deep within

Step into God’s kingdom

of justice and abundance.

Gathering up the fragments

so that nothing may be lost.

Smudging the lines

 

On the Feast Day of Mary Magdalene  July 22nd

John 20:15-18

Jesus said to her, “Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you looking for?” Supposing him to be the gardener, she said to him, “Sir, if you have carried him away, tell me where you have laid him, and I will take him away.” Jesus said to her, “Mary!” She turned and said to him in Hebrew, “Rabbouni!” (which means Teacher). Jesus said to her, “Do not hold on to me, because I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’ ” Mary Magdalene went and announced to the disciples, “I have seen the Lord”; and she told them that he had said these things to her.

Mary Magdalene- 

said to be a sinner

by the keepers of tradition

and authors of history 

who didn’t know what to do

with a woman who refused to conform

who didn’t fit their neat and tidy boxes

but spilled out

smudging the lines

so carefully drawn

to curtail and contain.

Mary Magdalene -

said to be demon possessed

by a narrow minded community

that couldn’t accommodate

her passion and spontaneity,

her love expressed in full view

that threatened to disrupt

prescribed teaching and ritual

Mary Magdalene - a woman

Maligned

Misunderstood 

Like every woman 

who dares to rock the boat

and refuses to fit the mould 

prescribed by the patriarchy

in every age.

Thankfully, God confounds the rule makers

by choosing misfits and mystics

to be prophets 

and witnesses to resurrection.

Called to be…

 The gospel for my first celebration of the Eucharist as a priest

Mark 6:4

Then Jesus said to them, “Prophets are not without honour, except in their hometown, and among their own kin, and in their own house.”

After the high of ordination

the ceremony and the celebration

the reality of priesthood hits home

called to be a prophet

among those who know us

a prophet without honour

Called to break bread at the altar

and in the neighbourhood

and to be broken and shared

in serving the one

who told a good story

who burst many a pompous bubble

who lived on the edge

in the gap between heaven and earth

who wreaked all kinds of mischief

with a twinkle in his eye

Called to be

priest, prophet and mischievous mystic

Give thanks to the Lord for this glorious gospel!

My Lord and my God

 Today is the Feast of St Thomas - and I will be ordained a priest in the Scottish Episcopal  Church

 - Messages from colleagues and friends have inspired this prayer for this day:

John 20:24-28

But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”

A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”

Handling the body of Christ

The feast of St Thomas

an auspicious day for ordination

Thomas - forever dubbed the doubter

I want to embrace the insight

of an apostle who was so much more

The twin who spoke up

brave enough to own what he was thinking

and, by his honesty

got to touch the body of Christ

to feel the marks

and caress the wounds

I pray that

as I follow that calling

I, too, will continue to question

and make space for others’ voices

to be heard

And, as I handle the wounded flesh of Christ

at the altar

and in the world 

may I be able to say

with awe and reverence

My Lord and my God