tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64390861912071949062023-11-15T11:11:26.602-08:00songs of peaceWe are as the flute, and the music in us is from Thee;
we are as the mountain and the echo in us is from Thee.Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.comBlogger92125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-30091888046292893272018-10-03T13:14:00.002-07:002018-10-03T13:14:55.675-07:00I'M BACK!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Friends,<br />
<br />
I'm back! Just wanted to let you know that I'll be at the Peace Tree Spirituality Center in Missouri this Friday night at 7pm offering a concert: Saturday's workshop is at the center. Sunday morning music is at the church. If you're in the area, come on out for a lovely weekend of chant,s song, kirtan, stories and poetry from a Celtic Christian tradition.<br />
<br />
Blessings,<br />
Stefan<br />
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<a aria-describedby="u_8m_1" aria-owns="js_2qb" class="_5xhk" data-hovercard-prefer-more-content-show="1" data-hovercard="/ajax/hovercard/page.php?id=1096153377202604&extragetparams=%7B%22eid%22%3A%22ARB2iaee7Idt0w8sl3GiEzK03cqkU9KMEyFAyAB050JUU_WGl-rom57MbPaJ13ceOy4npeEDXe7xnEjd%22%7D" href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Zion-United-Church-of-Christ/1096153377202604?eid=ARB2iaee7Idt0w8sl3GiEzK03cqkU9KMEyFAyAB050JUU_WGl-rom57MbPaJ13ceOy4npeEDXe7xnEjd" id="u_fetchstream_16_n" style="color: #4b4f56; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: 14px; position: relative; z-index: 2;">Zion United Church of Christ</a><div class="_5xhp fsm fwn fcg" style="color: #90949c; font-family: inherit; max-width: 376px; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">
5710 North Highway 67, Florissant, Missouri 63034 </div>
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Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-8912913047526231652016-04-03T13:39:00.001-07:002016-04-03T13:39:10.446-07:00THE WORK OF RESURRECTION: WALKING THROUGH WALLS<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">THE WORK OF RESURRECTION: WALKING THROUGH WALLS.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">We Christians get all excited about Easter and the Resurrection and rightly so. The death and resurrection of Jesus is at the heart of our faith. But what happens after Easter Sunday? The Gospel passage today makes it clear. After Jesus' resurrection he got to work. He went walking through walls of fear and bringing peace. If we say we follow the original demolition man himself -Jesus, then we have work to do. Today, let's do some knocking down of social barriers. Let's walk through some walls of prejudice. Let's bring some peace to a world huddled in the corner of anxiety and fear. May it be so.</span></div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-16953228712849491462016-03-24T23:36:00.003-07:002016-03-24T23:42:27.540-07:00HOLY WEEK: A REFLECTION ON POLITICS AND THE DEATH OF JESUS<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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HOLY WEEK: A REFLECTION ON POLITICS AND THE DEATH OF JESUS<br />
Holy Week and Christ is killed again. This time in Brussels.<br />
Before that - Syria, Paris, New York, Somalia, South Sudan, Afghanistan, Iraq...<br />
Over and over and over again that beautiful body is torn. Those lovely eyes forever closed.</div>
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What of his hopes and dreams? What of his love?<br />
Can we bear the weight of his fallen form?<br />
Or will we, from fear and pain, choose to crucify those who pounded nails through one we loved?</div>
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And then what?<br />
Shall we embark on a never ending cosmic crucifixion, in which the collateral damage includes<br />
The loss of our own integrity?<br />
Shall we elect those leaders who foam revenge on the other and threaten greater control over their own people?<br />
Shall we continue to support our politicians whose investments profit from the death of this world?</div>
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No. We shall not. No. We dare not.<br />
Instead may we look to the earth , to those grace-filled trees, to mountains that have outlasted centuries of war.<br />
Seeing with new-born eyes the way things grow.<br />
All things and all people everywhere.<br />
And ask the question within:<br />
What seeds have we planted to grow such strange fruit?<br />
Look to the roots , to richer soil and see<br />
What seeds there are for trees of life to grow and be.</div>
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Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-75321762436284197962016-02-27T22:08:00.001-08:002016-02-27T22:08:35.137-08:00LAMENT FOR THE WORLD<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 15.456px;">LAMENT FOR THE WORLD. There are times when we need to weep and wail, to storm and rage and to do so in a community of mutual trust. It does us good. Here is a communal lament for the suffering of this world. Listen closely ( headphones best) at the beginning for actual reports of violence around the globe. We begin with the Irish vocable 'Ochone' and move to cry out 'Kyrie, Christe.'</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; line-height: 15.456px;"><span style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;">https://soundcloud.com/mcfarlandp-1/ochon-a-lament </span></span></div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-75798847188458124482016-02-26T09:52:00.003-08:002016-02-26T09:52:15.139-08:00THIS IS WHY I DO WHAT I DO<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 15.456px;">THIS IS WHY I DO WHAT I DO. Last night I shared some music in a gathering that I hadn't been with in about a year. A lovely community mostly of Indian descent. Before we sang, a mom with her little boy came up to me. She said: "My son has been singing your song all the time this past year. He loves the Jaya, Jaya song!" His name is Krish, short for Krishna. I wish you could have seen the delight in the eyes of little Krishna when we stared to sing his favorite song. And so, this is why I do what I do. It's all about making the voyage, crossing bridges, and finding delight in the making of new friends on the other side.</span></div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-9729837430690929172016-02-21T10:05:00.002-08:002016-02-21T10:05:34.022-08:00"RUN, JESUS, RUN... HIDE, JESUS, HIDE." A Reflection on Christianity and Politics<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17.5636px;">"RUN, JESUS, RUN...HIDE, JESUS, HIDE." This was the advice given Jesus back in the day when it became clear that his words and actions were a threat to the political, economic and religious establishment of the time. 'Don't get involved in politics', they said. " Just go along with things the way they are". " Don't say or do anything that would challenge the 1%". " We have a lovely liturgy and such beautiful music." In the end the Wall Street of the day -the powers that be</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17.5636px;">- did destroy him but not before he began a movement that would from time to time break out in history to challenge any and all political, religious or economic systems that failed to be compassionate to the most vulnerable. So, the question is: where are we in all this today? Are we running and hiding from the social realities of our time? Or are we entering in specific ways and in deeper and deeper ways, the ongoing struggle for a more just society and a more compassionate community? </span></div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-28496704328762753622015-12-18T20:58:00.002-08:002015-12-18T20:58:12.279-08:00EVERY LINE SINGS OF HOPE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">EVERY LINE SINGS OF HOPE. In the poem called, 'The Fountain', Denise Levertov manages in every line to sing of hope without ever mentioning the word once. Often in retreats I'll share this poem and we'll work with its' images comparing them to other poetic images in sacred texts and to the poetry of our lives. This poem is one of the first poems I memorized and comes back to me in times of darkness and despair.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">‘The Fountain’ by Denise Levertov.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">Don’t say, don’t say there is </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">no water<br />to solace the dryness at our hearts.<br />I have seen<br />The fountain springing out of the rock wall<br />and you drinking there. And I too<br />before your eyes<br />found footholds and climbed<br />to drink the cool water.<br />The woman of that place, shading her eyes,<br />frowned as she watched-but not because<br />she grudged the water,<br />only because she was waiting<br />to see we drank our fill and were<br />refreshed.<br />Don’t say, don’t say there is no water.<br />That fountain is there among it’s scalloped<br />green and gray stones,<br />it is still there and always there<br />with it’s quiet song and strange power<br />to spring in us,<br />up and out through the rock.<br />-Denise Levertov</span></div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-82939289946046426432015-12-14T12:23:00.000-08:002015-12-18T20:57:30.420-08:00COLLATERAL DAMAGE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: 16.0pt; line-height: 107%;"> COLLATERAL DAMAGE<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">It’s no
longer just about them, you know, those nameless names that get in the way of our
semi-accurate bombs and drones, or those children on the nightly news fleeing
war or gunned down on our city streets.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Too bad.
Sorry. What’s for lunch?<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">No, now,
it’s about us. We are the ones. Really.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Yes, we the
ones who are killed. Bombed, gunned down, droned and drowned sitting in our
comfy living room chairs or standing at the kitchen counter.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">When we do
nothing, say nothing, think nothing, feel nothing about the vile and villainous
doings in this world… <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Every time
that one of those nameless names is maimed or murdered and we carry on as
though another atomic bomb did not just explode in our faces…<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">Then we die.
A vital part of our precious humanity simply goes up in smoke. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 107%;">But,
cheer-up. It’s ok. Keep watching. Post
another selfie. Sip a latte. Have a
piece of pie. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-82691214230682835442015-12-11T12:08:00.003-08:002015-12-11T12:08:58.926-08:00IN CASE YOU HADN'T NOTICED...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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IN CASE YOU HADN'T NOTICED: In case you hadn't noticed there's a terrible tide surging up and tearing down those tall trees full of lovely leaves.<br />.<br />It's like some newly opened wound inflicted before you or I were born,<br />pusing fear and hatred from venomous mouths with pompous pouts.<br />.<span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;"><br />Tell me, what are we? What have we become?</span></div>
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Is our nobility merely sleeping or is our noble king dead, poisoned through the endless hearing<br />of mindless rants without a human head?</div>
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Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-9984192969862631082015-11-22T11:39:00.001-08:002015-11-22T11:57:30.777-08:00THE STRONG WINDS OF SPIRIT<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: "helvetica" , "arial" , sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">MAY THE STRONG WINDS OF SPIRIT clear from me these lifeless leaves of fear and hatred that still cling to this magnificent tree that is True Self. May I stand before this world rooted in compassionate depths, in openness and strength, in vulnerability and love, naked, fearless, fierce and free.</span></div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-38514452639685838552015-11-18T11:37:00.004-08:002015-11-18T11:37:48.612-08:00ENTANGLEMENT: SPOOKY ACTION AT A DISTANCE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">ENTANGLEMENT: SPOOKY ACTION AT A DISTANCE. This was Albert Einstein's way of describing what Quantum Mechanics shows us, namely that two separated atoms continue to affect each other, faster than the speed of light, no matter what the distance of their separation. Perhaps in our prayer and meditation we can remember that our thoughts, words and actions, and even our intentions, may indeed span the known universe in unimaginable and infinite ways. And the distance that we think is there between us, may in the end , turn out to be yet another illusion. After all, we are, each one of us, a wondrous universe of whirling atoms.</span></div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-61324019219380871642015-11-17T07:51:00.001-08:002015-11-17T07:51:10.743-08:00THE DREAM MAY NEVER HAPPEN...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">THE DREAM MAY NEVER HAPPEN, the vision may never be seen, the song may never be sung... but all through this dark night, this dream, this vision, this song will be a light guiding your faltering steps to that place that, for now ,is only glimpsed in dreams, in visions and songs. </span></div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-21120432487723545332015-11-16T10:43:00.003-08:002015-11-16T10:43:55.748-08:00WHEN WE ARE SHAKEN TO THE CORE...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">WHEN WE ARE SHAKEN TO THE CORE...that is NOT the time to react. Rather, when our inner landscape trembles, that is the time to draw more deeply from the well of wisdom and compassion, to cup those wondrous waters with open hands and drink of peace.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;" /><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXjUwSxNUL8" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #3b5998; cursor: pointer; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px; text-decoration: none;" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PXjUwSxNUL8</a> </div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-53766484756186473782015-11-13T07:24:00.001-08:002015-11-13T07:24:37.206-08:00LONGING OR THE DOGS OF LOVE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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LONGING OR THE DOGS OF LOVE: When we enter the silence of meditation many things surface from the depths. One such depth-dweller is the presence of longing, the experience of our deepest desires which often we cannot articulate but we know are present in powerful ways. This is the stuff that breaks the heart. Sometimes we attempt to express this longing in terms of our desire for love, meaning, happiness or power. Whatever name we apply, it somehow seems to <span class="text_exposed_show" style="display: inline;">fall short of the reality we experience. Sometimes, naively, we even try to place our deepest longing on a person or thing, a career, our dream house, a community....But sooner or later we return to this ache of the heart that refuses to leave the room. The Welsh have a word -'Hiraeth', pronounced hee-reyeth. It doesn't translate well into English. It is a particular kind of yearning or homesickness that longs for the land that once was or that never was. A beautiful, painful place in the landscape of the human heart, not unlike Augustine's restless heart. I wonder... might this longing be that good guide and even more... that can lead us further along the Path to that Place we call Home? The poet Rumi has a lovely little poem called " Love Dogs". Here is my own paraphrase based on Coleman Barks translation::</span></div>
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" In the night, a voice cries out<br />' Oh God, Allah, Oh Love'<br />Lips grow sweet with the sound of praise-<br />'Oh God, Allah, Oh Love'<br />And then... a cynic shows up and says:<br />'So, I have heard you calling out.<br />Tell me, have you ever gotten any response?'<br />Silence. The one who praised stopped praying altogether<br />and fell into a confused sleep.<br />Dreams came...<br />Dreams of Khidr, guide of souls.<br />Khidr, sitting in a lush green forest asking the question:<br />" Why have you stopped praising?"<br />The answer? 'Because I have never heard anything in response.'<br />" Ah," said Khidr. " Do you not understand?<br />The Longing you express IS the return message.<br />The grief you cry out from draws you<br />closer and closer into Union.<br />And your pure sorrow desiring help...<br />your pure sorrow, this is the Secret Cup.<br />Listen to the moaning of a dog for its Master.<br />That whining is the connection.<br />There are Love Dogs no one knows the names of<br />Give your life to be one of them."<br />-Rumi</div>
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" Out of the Depths I cry to You..." -Psalm 130:1</div>
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Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-46092086847232354812015-11-12T10:23:00.003-08:002015-11-12T10:23:56.807-08:00BEING WITH WHAT IS/BECOMING WHAT IS YET TO BE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">BEING WITH WHAT IS AND BECOMING WHAT IS YET TO BE: When we sit in silent meditation we are being with what is.Thoughts. feelings and sensations come and go. We are not trying to change anything or anyone.We are seeing things more and more as they are and not as we wish them to be. And yet, in the simplicity of this moment something IS happening in us and to us and through us. We enter into a deeper acceptance, a non-judgmental spirit, a loving embrace of things as they are, i</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">ncluding ourselves and others. That is a powerful moment. Perhaps a difficult moment and even a dangerous moment. For in this moment we ARE being transformed and are being given what is needed to become bearers of peace and transformation in this world. Through our practice, I believe that endless gifts of the heart are given and the infinite goodness of the heart.deepens with each breath. Love is unfolding. By learning to be with what is we practice the true nature of Love. By being with things as they are we are transformed, more and more, into Lovers of what is and loving Creators of what Love desires to unfold in this world.</span><br />
<span style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">Blessings on your meditation.</span></span><br />
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Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-36422493351703586002015-11-11T08:29:00.002-08:002015-11-11T08:29:58.069-08:00IT'S ABOUT SHOWING-UP.<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">IT'S ABOUT SHOWING-UP. Welcome to day 6 of the Worldwide 30 Meditation for World Peace on Facebook.. Anyone who practices anything regularly knows that it's about showing-up. Sometimes we don't feel like it. We'd rather stay in bed or get busy doing something else. Sometimes we wonder if the practice is doing any good at all. I remember Br. Roger of the Taize Community in France. For more than 60 years, he and his community, showed up everyday, three times a day to sit and meditate, sing and pray. I remember him saying that there w</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.32px;">ere many times when he did not feel like being there. He spoke of his commitment to simply be there and show-up. When we show-up in our meditative practice we attest to a reality larger than our own feelings. We offer ourselves to ourselves, to the world and to Divine Mystery. This past weekend one of the retreatants spoke of " revealing ourselves to ourselves." I like that. I believe that this revelation happens as we practice. Sometimes in spite of our feelings we are there. And sometimes it's a struggle. Frodo Baggins near the end of his journey said, " I can't do this, Sam." Sam's encouraging response might be directed to us ," There's some good in this world, Mr. Frodo. And it's worth fighting for." The myriad of beings from east and west throughout history attest to the goodness, the beauty and the power of a practice of meditation. When we meditate, we join with them and all to come in a timeless transformative moment. And all we need do is show-up...</span></div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-61374070025234763882015-11-07T09:46:00.000-08:002015-11-07T09:46:04.310-08:00NEW WEBSITE<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
I want to thank Rebecca Snyder for her excellent work on the new website. Thank you, Rebecca!<div>
Rebecca is a gifted artist and designer and a joy to work with. I heartily recommend her and her work to those who are looking for website renewal.</div>
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You can check out the new website at: www.songsofpeace.net </div>
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Many thanks!</div>
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Macushla</div>
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Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-71390765363912185972015-04-02T11:34:00.000-07:002015-04-02T11:34:17.938-07:00" NOT REALLY WELCOMED AT THE TABLE."<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, 'lucida grande', sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">WE HAVE TAKEN A WARM, HEARTY MEAL THAT WELCOMES A WORLD OF FRIENDSHIP, DENIAL AND EVEN BETRAYAL and turned it into A COLD, DRY WAFER OR BIT OF BREAD THAT SATISFIES BUT A FEW.</span><br />
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<span data-reactid=".2p.1:3:1:$comment10153724060757729_10153724522337729:0.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1.$comment-body.0.0" style="background-color: #f6f7f8; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, 'lucida grande', sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16.0799999237061px;"><span data-reactid=".2p.1:3:1:$comment10153724060757729_10153724522337729:0.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1.$comment-body.0.0.$end:0:$0:0">This lavish and radical welcome, this nourishing, sustaining meal IS the Christian church in its essence . How to live this feast of Divine Love even more deeply so that those ( and there are many ) who feel excluded and unwelcome may enjoy this good</span></span><span data-reactid=".2p.1:3:1:$comment10153724060757729_10153724522337729:0.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1.$comment-body.0.3" style="background-color: #f6f7f8; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, 'lucida grande', sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16.0799999237061px;"><span data-reactid=".2p.1:3:1:$comment10153724060757729_10153724522337729:0.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1.$comment-body.0.3.0"><span data-reactid=".2p.1:3:1:$comment10153724060757729_10153724522337729:0.0.$right.0.$left.0.0.1.$comment-body.0.3.0.$end:0:$0:0"> food and drink alongside those of us who feel satisfied and content in our communities of the like-minded? I post this today on Holy Thursday because I was out walking and met a man who is very poor and homeless and when I invited him to accompany me to attend a lovely church community that I feel right at home in, he said: " I'm not REALLY welcome there ." It got me thinking/feeling... And I remembered hearing these words from others over the years. My question: Why? Why is this so? Can I see things from the perspective of one who does feel excluded ? Can I gain new insight and another perspective? Can we move beyond our contentment with where we are now and ask the hard questions of radical welcome? Can we imagine a longer, broader, new and different Table ? Or do we remain satisfied?</span></span></span><br />
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Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-76987146103088651342015-04-02T11:17:00.000-07:002015-04-02T11:17:37.536-07:00THE QUESTION OF WHY<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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WHY? This is the question that Jesus cried out in his agony upon the cross. This is the question that captures my attention today. For years I have kept that question at a distance as a theological query seeing it as Jesus' ultimate question or better, quest in his personal relationship with his Abba, the Divine One. " Father, why have you abandoned me?" But now, I'm troubled. I'm disturbed by the recurring thought that I am missing something more essential to the living of my life - the broader ethical implications that only now my imagination brings to my fearful mind. This question , 'Why? , is for me the ultimate question of my existence. Why am I? Why you? Why this world? Why suffering? Why death? As I've reflected more and more on this in seminary, university, on the streets, reading the philosophers and theologians over many years, it becomes clear to me that there is no satisfying answer but the question, that gnawing question, remains urgent. Why? Is it possible that the asking of the question itself is a kind of answer, a deeply human response to what is. When I cry out ,' Why?' I am throwing myself into this world of suffering with passion and the ever present possibility of passionate and compassionate engagement. When we listen, when we hear Jesus crying out from the cross, is it possible that Jesus' question ignites a theological and existential fire in our midst? When we bring together another shocking cry of the Rabbi with this question a different light is shed. Jesus once said, " Whatever you do to the least of these you do to me." When I attempt to make the connection I begin to see the world differently. I hear Syria crying out in their abandonment, "Why?" I hear the Palestinian people crying out from their refugee camps for more than sixty years, " Why?" I hear men , women and children crying out from the rubble and shattered structures, " Why?" I hear those who live in poverty in the inner cities, in rural America continuing to lament their schools and the violence on their streets with this one word, " Why?" I hear the millions around the world struggling to find enough scraps of food to merely survive crying out, " Why? Why? Why?</div>
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Now here's the kicker: I hear Jesus crying out through all these human beings, crying out not to God but to us. Christ, can you not leave us alone? We are doing all we can! What do you want from us? The ultimate question of why is aimed right at me and right at you. It is a serious disturbance of the peace. And remember, this is a question with no satisfying answer so it will not go away. It is not intended to be answered. It is intended to be felt like an earthquake in the heart. And when we're able to ask it we ask it with passion and compassion over and over and over again. The question of why is meant to propel us deeper into the darkness of suffering, ours and the world's. This kind of question asks us until we cry out with Jesus, " Why?" This unanswerable 'Why?' is our constant companion and will lead us, if we desire, and sometimes in spite of our desires, deeper into the awkwardness of relationship, deeper into the struggle for justice, and deeper into the paradox and the mystery of our lives. Ultimately it's about transformation -ours and the world. And along the way there is the danger and risk of change. And along the way there is also the delight of asking questions that unearth truth and joyful discovery. And it all begins with, " Why?"</div>
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Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-45872219620427276072015-03-26T20:25:00.001-07:002015-03-27T05:05:32.800-07:00HEARTBEAT OF THE BELOVED TOUR<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Long Island, Boston, Buffalo, West Virginia, Memphis, Cookeville, Brunswick,Takoma Park, Fairfax, Washington, D.C...Churches, Coffee Shops, Seminaries, Homes.Sidewalks...For the past six weeks it has been a whirlwind of visiting people in faith communities large and small, receiving the warmest of hospitality, deepening and extending friendship,sharing the new music from the CD called CELTIC KIRTAN: HEARTBEAT OF THE BELOVED. It has been a sacred journey of being with people, spirits, animals, listening to stories, rivers, trains, sharing songs and chants, concerts, workshops, liturgies, drumming, poetry and prose, good food, great conversation, laughter and tears and becoming more and more engaged in the work. And what is the work? What is really happening in the midst of it all?</div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-38038317423461421292014-12-23T17:20:00.000-08:002014-12-23T17:20:15.997-08:00WHY AM I A FOLLOWER OF JESUS ?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Why am I a follower of Jesus? The short answer is because I don't believe that Jesus came to start a new religion but rather, to start a fire under every religion - the fire of love. I believe that what Jesus set in motion is the deconstruction of every known religion and simultaneously the reconstruction of every known religion. And it doesn't stop at religion. That deconstruction/reconstruction affects any and every system whether it be philosophical, psychological or political which at its heart uses force and violence to ultimately get its way while seeking to exclude any human being from an ever expanding ecumenical embrace. And it goes even further...Jesus' path of radical love and non-violence goes right to the heart and mind, body and soul of every individual lighting the fire of transformation under our assumptions, our beliefs, our greed, our fears, and our hatreds. There is no fortress , be it social or individual, in society or in the psyche, that is safe from the flames of this all transforming fire of love.</div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-11983803273935483632014-12-14T21:41:00.001-08:002014-12-14T21:45:32.755-08:002015 Pilgrimage of Peace<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Friends,<br />
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In 2015 we'll be taking the music, stories, poetry...on the road. We call it a Pilgrimage of Peace. We'll be visiting churches, colleges, seminaries, retreat centers, pubs, coffee houses...and sharing in concerts, retreats, workshops, festivals, flash-mobs, non-violent demonstrations... If you would like a visit let us know.<br />
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The schedule for 2015 will be posted in January on the website www.songsofpeace.net .<br />
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Let's stay in touch through Macushla and Friends: Heartbeat of the Beloved on Face Book.<br />
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I am very much looking forward to seeing you in the New Year!<br />
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Blessings,<br />
Macushla</div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-8943129214783487252014-10-31T15:23:00.000-07:002014-10-31T17:11:24.188-07:00Cry of the Banshee -Episode Three<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Cry of the Banshee - Episode Three<br />
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The living and the dead together in silence, waiting, listening, not knowing what was about to take place. Two things happened.. First, the light became focused on one person and the golden-red rays of that lower sun seemed to envelop the Banshee herself where she stood and the effect was that she smiled for the first time. At the same time the roots of those trees which before had seemed a violent intrusion into the space began to take on a different character altogether and became like great cords of compassion which gently moved toward the uninvited guest, surrounding her , lifting her slowly upward and creating a hallowed hand for her to sit upon and rest. Closing her eyes her body lightened. All watched in amazement hearing the voice from below speaking a kind of music, addressing her with such tender affection and great respect in words perhaps, but more like soft, sweet melodic phrases that only she could understand. In the very next moment the light broadened to include all of us and the voice became intelligible and all understood its meaning, a meaning which had never been uttered before in any church. To us the voice said: " This is my Beloved Daughter. I delight in her." And again the Voice sang these words in a different key: " This is my Beloved Daughter. I delight in her." And a third time: " This is my Beloved Daughter. I delight in her." Each time the message was heard it was like layers of history, of suffering, were being peeled away and ancient wounds revealed and healed. Each utterance like the deepest medicine penetrating the human heart. The first one and the only one to speak was Patrick, that wondrous old saint who brought the Christian faith to Ireland. He approached the Banshee, bowed to her, and knelt before her. " I ask for your forgiveness, dear lady", he began. " My Breastplate, my prayer of protection, has not protected the ones I love. I have failed to protect the people from wolves and snakes and dark birds of prey, from centuries of abuse and neglect, from the terrors and certainties of authority, power and control. I have failed to protect the very people whom I love from a religion that suppresses and silences the songs and chants, the beliefs and ways of a people I first met so long ago, my heart's love. I see it now and I ask for your forgiveness." At these words the Banshee embraced and kissed the saint. Together they wept. Together they laughed out loud! Their embrace became a dance and the trees began to move in grace-filled ways. The roof of the church opened and the sky became visible. The rays of the sun above broke through and clouds poured down rain on every single head as if in a new kind of baptism, a baptism of nature's power, of nature's beauty, of nature's hidden meanings. And a new song was heard in the native tongue, an all-embracing song. A song that listens to wind and questions the soul..A song that raises the dead and levels the living. Can the sun and the moon dance as one? Can the darkness and the light sing the same song? In the midst of this new music the old church structure dissolved like melted wax. The walls disappeared and the trees became a lovely grove surrounding and sustaining us all. Even the wolves and snakes and birds of prey were welcomed and transformed in this new ecumenical song. It was an eternal moment, a moment in which all were " blessed and could bless."<br />
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Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-25684653893200023692014-10-30T12:56:00.000-07:002014-10-30T17:13:30.870-07:00Cry of the Banshee -Episode Two<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Cry of the Banshee - Episode Two<br />
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At the sound of these words the foundation stones of the church itself began to tremble and convulse as the Banshee went from words to sighs and groans.Her voice seemed to be the voice of many, the voices of neglected souls long ago, calling out through rock and standing stone. She wailed and she wept and her hot tears ran down her well-worn face , over her breasts , down her sturdy legs and fell upon that cold floor. Each tear falling to the ground of the church created an opening that seemed to drop down, drop down into an abyss. From each opening the roots of ancient trees began to rise, running round the interior of the building , covering the stained -glass windows like haggard hands, and blocking out the sun until all was completely dark. The only sound being the crawling of the trees upon the floor, along the walls, and reaching as high as the ceiling, blotting out any artificial light. And finally even that sound stopped and what remained was utter stillness , total silence. It is difficult to put into words what happened next. In the darkness, in the silence,in the nothingness we waited. We waited in the moment for the next moment to appear. And everyone, aware of a presence, or better yet the presence of many presences, opened their eyes but nothing could be seen. Nothing could be heard. Not yet. Everything was felt. And then as a curtain or veil slowly lifting a warm, rich and multi-colored light seemed to grow out of the earth beneath our feet. From the openings below created by the Banshee's tears, a light was emerging until all were illumined or bathed in the rays of this sun from below. And in these rays were seen and heard and felt - melodies, songs and chants from some other world, which rose and sounded together in various modes, carried by the colors of this earthen sun. As we looked around the room we saw other faces from long ago. There was Patrick. There was Brendan. And there was Brigit , Columba, Ita and Hild and many more... all kept silence as if waiting for the next moment; the next moment when the most beautiful, the most powerful voice of all was heard, heard not just with our ears, but in the depths, in 'the deep heart's core'. A voice, deeper and richer than any ancient imagining , and the words, more like a song, cut gaps in hearts of stone and filled deserts with rivers of longing and desire. This voice, this blessed voice was rising from below, from the earth, speaking or singing in numinous tones. I will tell you now what this voice said, and did: -Episode two</div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6439086191207194906.post-48132099761847128322014-10-29T20:28:00.001-07:002014-10-30T17:10:28.900-07:00The Cry of the Banshee<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19.3199996948242px;">THE CRY OF THE BANSHEE She walked into the Holy Mass when the priest was holding up the bread and the cup and she unleashed a cry that pierced the ear and sent shudders down every spine. Then she spoke: " You have killed the spirit of the people . In the name of the saints you have banished the saints." The priest shouted back at her," How dare you interrupt the divine Mass. Who do you think you are? " Her voice changed into low growl-like tones," I am the voice of your deepest fear. The voices of the millions whom you and your holy liturgy suppress and silence. It all ends now." What happened next horrified all who dared to keep their eyes opened. -Episode one</span></div>
Stefan Andre Waligurhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07191211253013354313noreply@blogger.com0