Fourth Night Lullaby

After many days away, Luke and I have made it safely back to the Windy City. It was quite a trip - I am officially deaconated, we had lreunions with old friends - some we hadn't seen in five years or so, we had a lovely Christmas with our folks. Now we are back, and oiur apartment is the kind of disater zone you get when you leave town for 10 days and come home with more stuff than when you left. Its hard to get back into the habit of blogging (yeah, yeah... insert comment about my lack of habitual blogging here, Si). Anyway, Tripp has given me a nice intro - he's posting favorite Christmas carols. It is an "Hispanic folk song" (according to the Hymnal 1982, #113), and really a lullaby carol fitting for today's rememberance of the Holy Innocents.

Duérmete, Niño lindo,
en los brazos del amor
mientras que duerme y descansa
la pena de mi dolor

A la ru, a la mè, A la ru, a la mè
A la ru, a la mè, A la ru, a la mè

No temas al rey Herodes
que nada te ha de hacer
en los brazos de tu madre
y ahí nadie te ha de ofender.

A la ru, a la mè, A la ru, a la mè
A la ru, a la mè, A la ru, a la mè

Oh sleep now, holy baby,
with your head against my breast
Meanwhile the pangs of my sorrow
are soothed and put to rest

A la ru, a la mè, A la ru, a la mè
A la ru, a la mè, A la ru, a la mè

You need not fear King Herod
He will bring no harm to you
So rest in the arms of your mother
who sings you A la ru.

A la ru, a la mè, A la ru, a la mè
A la ru, a la mè, A la ru, a la mè

Ember Day

I bind unto myself today
the strong Name of the Trinity,
by invocation of the same,
the Three in One, and One in Three.

I bind this day to me for ever,
by power of faith, Christ's Incarnation;
his baptism in Jordan river;
his death on cross for my salvation;
his bursting from the spicèd tomb;
his riding up the heavenly way;
his coming at the day of doom:
I bind unto myself today.

I bind unto myself the power
of the great love of cherubim;
the sweet "Well done" in judgment hour;
the service of the seraphim;
confessors' faith, apostles' word,
the patriarchs' prayers, the prophets' scrolls;
all good deeds done unto the Lord,
and purity of virgin souls.

I bind unto myself today
the virtues of the starlit heaven
the glorious sun's life-giving ray,
the whiteness of the moon at even,
the flashing of the lightning free,
the whirling wind's tempestuous shocks,
the stable earth, the deep salt sea,
around the old eternal rocks.

I bind unto myself today
the power of God to hold and lead,
his eye to watch, his might to stay,
his ear to hearken, to my need;
the wisdom of my God to teach,
his hand to guide, his shield to ward;
the word of God to give me speech,
his heavenly host to be my guard.

Christ be with me,
Christ within me,
Christ behind me,
Christ before me,
Christ beside me,
Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort
and restore me.
Christ beneath me,
Christ above me,
Christ in quiet,
Christ in danger,
Christ in hearts of
all that love me,
Christ in mouth of
friend and stranger.

I bind unto myself today
the strong Name of the Trinity,
by invocation of the same,
the Three in One, and One in Three.
Of whom all nature hath creation,
eternal Father, Spirit, Word:
praise to the Lord of my salvation,
salvation is of Christ the Lord.

Today is the ordination of many people that I know. Please pray for Charlie, Sandra, Gwynne, Elaine, the rest of the Chicago bunch, E.J., Tim, Todd, Shannon, Joyce, Lisa, and me. Peace to you all!

Is that what they mean by Southern Comfort?

Food is one of the best parts of the holiday season - greasy dips, chocolate, cookies, pie, chocolate, cranberry sauce, cocktails, chocolate. So, don't get me wrong here - I'm all in favor of a little overindulgence during the holidays, and I like to watch Food Network to get me pysched up for my epicurean adventures. But when Paula can scoop mayonaise into a casserole, pour butter on top, and then say "Now thats an easy, healthy meal"... I think that may be a bit much. But perhaps those are just my Yankee roots showing through again.

Okay, I'm off to have ice cream for lunch. Hey! It has calcium!

PS - For the recipe for said casserole, click here: Baked Shrimp-Crab Salad. Mmmm. Happy Eating!

Done. Kinda. Sorta. Nope, Not Really

I'm done! Seabury classes are over, I took my last online quize (Liturgical Calendar and Daily Offices), turned in my papers (Theology and John Donne), and I even went to the good-bye party for some of the students who are leaving after this term. Then, last night, I watched some TV and played with the craft supplies I bought last week. Everything around here has the attitude and atmosphere of done. Did I mention I'm done?

Except theres a catch. I'm not done. My class at the other seminary meets next week, and I still need to write a paper over there. We're reading Teaching Community: A Pedgogy of Hope by bell hooks, which I'm enjoying. But here is one of the curses of being an extrovert: you absorb other people's attitudes even when they don't apply to you.

Perhaps there is something to learn here, about the already/not yet. Advent is good season for that after all - waiting for something that has already happened, remembering an event of the future.

Did I mention that I'm done? Yeah, I didn't think so.

Marriage of True Minds

My husband knows me so well. When I got home from Chapel this morning, he told me he had exciting news that would make me happy. After a bit of keeping me in suspsense, he told me that he called the cable company to cancel our service. (We had gotten it over the summer at a promotional rate, but planned to get rid of it once the price went up.) When he called though, they offered to keep us at the promotional rate to keep our business! Woo hoo! So, I get to keep my cable, and watch all the football, West Wing and Dawsons Creek reruns, and Food TV that I want. And I am so lucky to have a husband who understands my habit!

So, in honor of that, here is a quote from a show that has been on my mind as I reach the end of my seminary career. You can all guess what show its from.

Joey: Oh, so, in nonacademic terms, I'm just too stupid to know any better?

Wilder: Would you settle for having an open mind? For most people in college, that's the first thing to go. Wow. I hadn't pegged you for such a hardcore cynic.

Joey: I'm not.

Wilder: Look. It's like this. Most people, when they get to college, feel really insecure. It seems like everybody around them knows so much more. So they race to try to catch up, pretend to know things, instead of slowing down to actually learn them. Because they don't realize that the discomfort of uncertainty is the most precious part of the experience. See, if you can feel comfortable... not knowing, you can learn anything, anything. And if not, well, then you've stopped before you've begun.

Joey: Can I ask you one more stupid question?

Wilder: Shoot.

Joey: Who the hell is Derrida anyway?

Wilder: Ha ha! Well, uh, let's just say if literature were the star wars universe, he would be like the Darth Maul.

Advent Three

This morning at church we had one of our licensened lay preachers in the pulpit, and he just really did a splendid job. His tone and demeanor matched the service and the season. It was one of those sermons full of individual sentences and thoughts that just jump across the room and grab you. Here are two that grabbed me:

Repent- be more truthful about your past so that your future will be more hopeful.
Christian faith begins with death. That includes the death of illusions of ourselves, and our illusions of how the world is.

Not much else around here... lots of papers and projects and such. I find it hard to concentrate on school with the upcoming ordination. So, I am trying to create a game about devotion and the arts in Reformation England. Ha! Can we say "senior"?

Countdown

I love Advent, and I always have loved Advent. It used to be a big deal in Sunday School when I was little. During Advent, all the kids would meet in the Social Hall before we went to class, and we would light the Advent wreath and talk about Advent and on work on one song during the season. One year it was "What Child Is This", and we talked every week about what "laud" meant. I think I remember that year because that was the year I got chosen to light one of the Advent candles. I was so excited that afterwards, I ran and found my big sister and said "Guess what? I lit-ed the Advent Calendar!" She hasn't let me live that down yet. Anyway, the other thing we talked about was how Advent was like getting ready for a party- you have to make your house all clean and pick up the mess before you have a party, and Advent was that preparation time. It made sense to me then, and it makes sense to me now. On that note, let me give you this link. Its an online Advent Calendar from the Diocese of Washington. So far it looks beautiful, and a lovely way to keep the season for those of us who look at our computers a little too often. Just don't try to light it!

But in Chapel tonight, we sang a different kind of song about getting ready. The hymn just really struck me... partly because it was fairly unfamiliar, which is a small category at this point when we're dealing with the Hymnal 1982, and partly because I just didn't know what to make of it all. Why don't you all give it a gander, and let me know what you think?

Hymn 573
Father eternal, Ruler of creation,
Spirit of life, which moved ere form was made,
through the thick darkness covering every nation,
light to our blindness, O be thou our aid:
thy kingdom come, O Lord, thy will be done.

Races and peoples, lo, we stand divided,
and, sharing not our griefs, no joy can share;
by wars and tumults Love is mocked, derided;
his conquering cross no nation wills to bear:
thy kingdom come, O Lord, thy will be done.

Envious of heart, blind-eyed, with tongues confounded,
nation by nation still goes unforgiven,
in wrath and fear, by jealousies surrounded,
building proud towers which shall not reach to heaven:
thy kingdom come, O Lord, thy will be done.

Lust of possession worketh desolations;
there is no meekness in the powers of earth;
led by no star, the rulers of the nations
still fail to bring us to the blissful birth:
thy kingdom come, O Lord, thy will be done.

How shall we love thee, holy hidden Being,
if we love not the world which thou hast made?
O give us brother-love for better seeing
thy Word made flesh and in a manger laid:
thy kingdom come, O Lord, thy will be done.
-Words by Laurence Housman, 1919