During the past eight weeks or so I have found myself returning to three companion topics: ‘Call,’ ‘Compassion’ & ‘Displacement.’ Given all that continues to unfold and enfold in our world I am not surprised that these continue to emerge into my consciousness.
Gentle Reader, I invite you to join me as I continue to reflect upon these three topics, invitations, and challenges. Definitions are crucial and each of these can be defined in a number of ways. For our exploration/reflection I invite us to hold the following three definitions.
Call = I have gifts, talents and abilities and the world has needs. My ‘Call’ invites me and challenges me to identify the needs that exist in my/the world and then to use my gifts, talents and abilities to serve those needs.
Compassion = Compassion, rooted in Latin, means ‘to suffer with.’ When we suffer ‘with’ we are also ‘called’ to serve.
Displacement = to move from the ordinary. ‘Suffering with’ and responding to our ‘Call’ requires me to ‘move from the ordinary.’
Most of us are raised to live ‘ordinary’ lives. Some are ‘Called’ to ‘suffer with’ and to respond to the other’s suffering and this ‘response’ often requires us to ‘move from the ordinary.’
We are raised to want to be ordinary and proper and to live ordinary and proper lives. If we move from the ordinary and if we seek to discern a ‘Call’ to become ‘Compassionate’ we might well become disturbed by what we discern. In order to discern our ‘Call’ we must ‘Show Up!’ and ‘Pay Attention!’ and ‘Become Open!’ to the guide who calls us to choose displacement.
As far as I have been able to discern all faith and humanistic traditions challenge us to discern our call, to choose to suffer with and to move from the ordinary. For Christians here are a few of the invitations (challenges?) that are, more than not, disturbing. I list them in no particular order.
Leave your father and mother. Let the dead bury the dead. Keep your hand on the plow and do not look back. Sell what you own, give the money to the poor and come follow me. These are challenging enough. But the one who invites us also ups the ante with this one (given the state of our world this invitation – NO – this ‘Command’ continues to be the most challenging): A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you MUST love one another.
For Christians, the Gospels confront us with this persistent, disturbing, challenging voice – a ‘Voice’ that invites us and commands us to move from where we are comfortable, from where we want to stay, from where, in fact, we feel at home.
Over time, as we seek to discern and respond to our ‘Call’ to ‘suffer with’ and to ‘move from the ordinary’ we become aware of our own inner brokenness and if we accept and learn to carry our wounds with grace we are more open to and able to discern, embrace and respond to the sufferings of the other(s).
All faith-humanistic traditions were also clear: No one person can respond, suffer with or leave the ordinary on his/her own. Community is necessary. A Community supports us and provides us with a safe haven where we can be unconditionally accepted (all members are like us, suffering, broken and in need of compassion and healing).
I can write more but this will have to suffice for now. As I search for a way of concluding this morning I keep returning to these words: Love one another as I have loved you! What an ‘Invitation,’ what a ‘Call’ and what a ‘Command.’
Searcher-Seeker 