The Walk: If Jesus can forgive crucifixion surely we can survive and find a resolution*

Wednesday, June 27, 2007

If Jesus can forgive crucifixion surely we can survive and find a resolution*

"Prince of Burgundy, I pray of you — I beg and humbly supplicate — that you make no more war with the holy kingdom of France. Withdraw your people swiftly from certain places and fortresses of this holy kingdom, and on behalf of the gentle king of France I say he is ready to make peace with you, by his honor."
"Her Letter to Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, 17 July 1429; Quicherat V, pp. 126–127

Joan of arc was cool. I am amazed by those people who rise up and stand firmly and passionately on what they believe, against all odds.

I think of Jesus who, nailed to the cross, cried out for God to forgive those who didn't get what they were doing.
God forgive me when I am ignorant and hurt someone and God be with me when suffering seems unbearble and peace has been displaced. I pray that even when I have been hurt that I remember my Lord's words. Its so ironic that the very people who were God's people put the Savior up on that cross. So much pain caused in the name of religion. When religion sets its sites on theology instead of application it misses the wounded on the side of the road, it misses the woman's heart who has just been caught in adultery and it misses the Savior of the world.

God, keep my eyes open so that I may not miss those. Sometimes it seems so much easier to keep them closed.

*From "Wings of Forgiveness" by India Arie

6 comment(s):

Great post, Bev.

Your blog posts are so colorful and filled with beautiful photographs. Mine are usually blaw text.

How do you do all that clever stuff?

Jim

By Jim Clark, at 2:12 PM

I love you, Beverly. You have such a beautiful heart.

By Laurie, at 3:53 PM

jim...i got blog skills..

laurie..girl, i love you too!! takes one to know one.

By Beverly, at 4:51 PM

I keep coming back to that prayer of Jesus, Father forgive them for they know not what they do... I pray that he still prays that prayer for us all, because most of the time we haven't got a clue what we are doing.
That's such a beautiful yearning of your heart, beverly, I truly don't want to miss the wounded either.

By gracie, at 9:40 PM

I just recently realized that the singular thing that runs through my admiration for different people is a deep respect for struggle. Forgiveness is not an event - it's a process that progresses over a long period of time with a great deal of heartache and struggle. Jesus' forgiveness at the cross is, as you and Gracie observed, a great and powerful one.

I have some forgiving to do - it's not easy, and I don't expect to finish any time soon - but because of the great example of others who have entered the struggle to forgive (and especially the Master's), I am committed to make it through.

Great post!!!

By Scott, at 6:48 PM

Forgiveness takes such a discipline, which in itself can be the ultimate struggle. FOLLOWED by the NEXT struggle, that Jesus tells us goes hand in hand with the act of forgiveness: FORGETTING!

Thanks for the reflection, Bev, and for Joan of Arc's letter of supplication. It reminded me of Thomas Tallis, one of my favourite English church musicians, born in 1505. He would write some of his most heartfelt music for worship during the 16th century, a time of complete horror for those in England who would strive to be closer to Christ's teachings.

Some might say that God would take the carnage of Henry VIII's adulterous life and use it towards a rebirth of sorts: a new direction and faith in the meaning of 'church' and Christian fellowship, making it more accessible for the common folk.

I am reminded of these 'Double F's' in music scores at times: the double FF (fortissimo). Sometimes music sounding to this dynamic leading can sound like it is truly struggling -- through frustration, anger, etc. Other times, like in Vaughn Williams' Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, the FF's can be glorious, and transport our souls to wonder, bringing us to our knees.

If you can ever listen to this awesome work, note there are two characters in the strings section (violin and cello), in dialogue. As you listen to them throughout this piece, you can almost hear their resolve -- their musical resolution -- towards the end of their music of passion to not only forgive, but to forget whatever that transgression was between them.

(Vaughn Williams AND Thomas Tallis are both probably turning in their graves at my use of his work. Oh, well...)

By Deb, at 5:20 AM