Our passage for Sunday was Matthew 5:1-12. Instead of a sermon, Luc and Donelda led us through an indigenous translation of Matthew’s beatitudes using a spiritual practice known as Relational Prayer. This blog offers a few thoughts on the beatitudes, as well as an introduction to the movements of Relational Prayer.
The beatitudes outline the character of God’s good way – a culture where all is centered in God’s love, and all is lived out through relationship. There is blessing in this good way, not just for individuals but for communities, and for all creation itself. A community that is formed by God’s character promotes self-awareness, mercy, justice, right living, comfort, joy, humility, kindness, peace, and the ability to see God and God’s work.
We walk this good way by living with a heart connection to our Great Creator’s Spirit. As we receive and respond to the healing power of the good medicine of our Creator’s love, we find the deep blessing of this good way. We find we have the companionship of God throughout the ups and downs of life. We find we have the work of God’s Spirit within us and around us. We find we are more able to form relationships that foster life, uphold the dignity of all humankind, and care for all of creation. The foundation for walking the Good Way is being centered in God’s love, and living from the heart.
Living this life deepens when we frequently stop and pay attention to the movement of God’s Spirit, within us and around us. Relational Prayer is a contemplative exercise that helps us stop, look, and listen to the movements of the Spirit. Here are the movements of relational prayer (ARRR):
1) Acknowledge: What arises? Choose a scripture passage and read it over a few times with a posture of awareness, tuning in to what your heart is drawn to, what shimmers or stands out for you, and what rises to your awareness. You may notice the Spirit inviting you to engage with something from this passage: Where do you feel this in your body, your emotions, your senses, and your thoughts? Are there memories from the past or circumstances in your present life that come to the forefront? Are there concerns, regrets, gratitudes or other emotions that come to your awareness? As you name these internally, you may wish to jot them down.
2) Relate: Engage with God about all the noticing. Communicate with God about your thoughts, feelings, questions, wonderings, longings, desires, circumstance and all that has arisen, in whatever way feels comfortable for you – writing, pondering, praying out loud. These movements that you are noticing in your heart are precious to God, even the ones you may want to hide. God desires to have a relationship with us. It’s ok to be real, honest, and vulnerable. Relating all that comes to our awareness fosters intimacy with our God, the Triune One who loves us just as we are.
3) Receive: Take and receive the grace God has for you. Listen and rest in God’s love. Do you hear the whisper of the Spirit? Are there things that God may be speaking to your heart through this time? Is there an invitation to ease in your body? The Trinity offers themselves to you in love in the midst of ALL that is there – the good, the bad, the ugly…All we experience is fodder for the transformation of our souls, the encouragement of our hearts and the centering of ourselves in the Love of God.
4) Respond: When we receive from God, we are invited to make a response on our part. This is a relational exchange from the heart. We can choose how we wish to respond. We may have been moved by mercy and forgiveness, or found encouragement and insight. We may have been led to see a truth we needed to see, we may have had a “felt sense” of God’s love. Whatever we have encountered, notice how your heart wants to respond to God? Is it a peace you wish to carry with you as you go? A response of surrender and letting go? A feeling of gratitude and or praise? A longing you wish to voice? Whatever it may be, express it now to God in whatever means you wish – write, speak, pray, dance, repose in peace & trust.
Lakota Prayer
Great Mystery,
teach me how to trust
my heart,
my mind,
my intuition,
my inner knowing,
the senses of my body,
the blessings of my spirit.
Teach me to trust these things
so that I may enter my Sacred Space
and love beyond my fear,
and thus Walk in Balance
with the passing of each glorious Sun.
An indigenous translation of the New Testament can be found in the First Nations Version (FNV). Sunday’s full talk, including Luc’s personal story, can be found in the Southpoint podcasts.
– Blessings,
Anne and Donelda
Art by: Holly Elizabeth Harris
