January 16th, 2007

The Creator congregation is, for me, a realization of what the Church ideally attempts to be; which overcomes the divisions, boundaries, definitions or limitiations that are placed on it, even when it does not reach these goals as quickly or as surely as anyone would like.

Unfortunately my perception, at times, narrows and I lose sight of what Pastor Mark challenged us with yesterday in his sermon... seeing everyone as a child of God.

To move away from the narrowness I think about revelations like this poem:

As Kingfishers Catch Fire, Dragonflies Draw Flame
Gerard Manley Hopkins

As kingfishers catch fire, dragonflies dráw fláme;
As tumbled over rim in roundy wells
Stones ring; like each tucked string tells, each hung bell's
Bow swung finds tongue to fling out broad its name;
Each mortal thing does one thing and the same:
Deals out that being indoors each one dwells;
Selves--goes itself; myself it speaks and spells,
Crying Whát I do is me: for that I came.
Í say móre: the just man justices;
Kéeps gráce: thát keeps all his goings graces;
Acts in God's eye what in God's eye he is--
Chríst--for Christ plays in ten thousand places,
Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his
To the Father through the features of men's faces.

Hopkins poem captures (or does it continue to construct?) what I begin to know about the community around me. They live their purpose, as I also try to do. The heart of this poem, to me, is in the last half starting with the line Selves -- goes itself; myself it speaks and spells. When we keep all our goings graces, we act in God's eye what in God's eye we are -- Christ.

There are other visions we have of one another. There are times we move away from this vision but this is an amazing vision Creator reinforces in me week after week.

I hope I provide a glimpse of this vision as I write this from week to week. Recently we have talked about recording sermons for podcasts. I hope we capture music as well. Each week, in worship, the church finds tongue to fling out broad its name.

What else can I add, can this entry add?