From one little mouth

II.      Vows of Rejection

“We renounce violence of the heart, tongue and fist, neither willing nor working harm to any”

8. I will reject violence of the tongue: I will not speak or write any curse, insult, abuse, slander, deception, falsehood, or gossip

(by Helga Weber via Flickr)

The tongue is certainly a difficult thing to manage well. We humans are curious. We like to tell ourselves that we have things under control. How quickly and easily we say something in an effort to be humorous or to put someone in their place, and then eventually wish we could inhale those same words back in because of embarrassment or regret. The notion of “control” evaporates, and we realize that our words have caused injury that can’t be ignored.

In the Bible, James knew this quite well... “From the same mouth come blessing and cursing” (James 3:10). The things we say with our mouths reveal the kind of person we are. Cruel or nasty words can come quite easily. Kind words spoken in patience are not always on the tips of our tongues. But the habits of “good speech” can be formed. It might mean responding more slowly or even remaining quiet when a flippant response would be easy. So James writes in 3:13 urging us to “show by your good life that your works are done with gentleness born of wisdom.” Speaking good words that come from this gentleness is a skill that for most of us takes time to develop into a virtue that we do well. It does take a little bit of patience and wisdom to learn deeper patience and wisdom.

That Pitter-Patter

II.      Vows of Rejection

“We renounce violence of the heart, tongue and fist, neither willing nor working harm to any”

7. I will reject violence of the heart: I will not harbor anger, resentment, envy, prejudice, or hatred.

("heartbeat" by Alesa Dam via Flickr )

Rarely can I forget the times the pitter-patter intensified.  Instantaneously in those moments the regularity of my heart rate is gone.  Everything has been ratcheted up.  I seethe.

Had I know that a backyard baseball game would get me this worked up; I probably would have gone swimming.  Had I know that my life would cross paths so frequently with that of a friend, and at each juncture, he would laud his accomplishments above mine; I probably would have chosen a different career track.

All too often I make room to harbor anger.  I allow for comparisons.  I make space for this to continue day upon day.  Elbowed out of the way are the things I have to offer.
 

Hush

I.        Vows of Affirmation

“We devote our daily life to God, and to serving our neighbors as images of God”

4. I will live, speak and act with courtesy, respect, and honesty toward friend and enemy, neighbor and stranger.

("A World without Words" by Christian V. via Flickr)

We live in a world of many words. More words flying around than at any time in history. Twitter, blogs, 24-hour news, billboards, morning radio shows, sermons, email marketing campaigns, newspaper editorials. Words are cheap, words are abundant, words have to out-shout the others to even be heard and “go viral.” Many of our words end up unheard, ignored, misunderstood, simply drowned out. Or they bring undo fear, pain, division, hatred. Or worse, they distract us, deafen us, numb us and cause us to miss God’s voice. 
 

Long Christian history (and other spiritual traditions) offers a forgotten spiritual discipline that is a key to following Jesus as peacemakers: Silence. When we are truly silent (including our own interior chatter) we are left to pay attention to God. To overcome the violence, misunderstandings, and anxiety in the world God calls us to listen carefully to God’s own words rather than ours. In attentive silence we listen for God speaking, telling us how to carry out the peaceable actions of today’s vow: “I will live, speak and act with courtesy, respect, and honesty toward friend and enemy, neighbor and stranger.” 

Not Mine [Alone] To Do

I.        Vow of Affirmation 
“We devote our daily life to God, and to serving our neighbors as images of God”

3. I will live, speak and act with truth, compassion, kindness, gentleness, mercy, patience, generosity, and expectant hope that others will respond in kind.

("the shift" by Cornellia Kopp via Flickr)

When faced with lists of to-dos or to-bes, I can slog down in the hard work of doing and becoming something better.  But in my stubborn independence, with my thanks-for-offering-but-I’ve-got-things-covered response, I miss something important about the discipleship life.  Yes, God’s calling demands sacrifice and perseverant hard work on our part, but only as a response and an outgrowth of what God has already begun in us. In the end it begins with God’s faithful work and not simply ours.

After the tragic shooting at the West Nickel Mines school house, the Amish community persevered in the painfully compassionate work of forgiving Charlie Roberts. In Forgiveness, John Ruth notes that this Christian act was “not a strategy or skill, but the fruit of a radical reorientation.” Yes, it certainly took a stalwart moral commitment on the part of the Amish in Lancaster County to live, speak and act with kindness and mercy, but it was only made possible by the work that Christ had already begun long before in them as a tight-knit church community. Paul calls this preliminary initiating work New Creation. He likens it to fruit grown in us by the Holy Spirit, or new clothes washed and put on us by Christ. 

In the Same Way

I.        Vows of Affirmation

“We devote our daily life to God, and to serving our neighbors as images of God”

("Holy Trinity" Andrej Rublev via Wikimedia Commons)

2. I will seek the image of God in each and every person; I will treat them as fully worthy of the good I desire for myself.

The foundation for loving our neighbor (not to mention our enemy) is the conviction that they bear the very image of God and even have a calling from this God who loves them unceasingly. Trappist monk Thomas Merton writes clearly, “[A person] cannot be at peace with himself or with God unless he is trying to love others with a love that is not merely his but God’s own love.” Merton offers great insight into today’s vow in the following two paragraphs from, No Man Is an Island:

 “It is clear, then, that to love others well we must first love the truth. And since love is a matter of practical and concrete human relations, the truth we must love when we love our [sisters and] brothers is not mere abstract speculation: it is the moral truth that is to be embodied and given life in our own destiny and theirs. This truth is more than the cold perception of an obligation, flowing from moral precepts. The truth we must love in loving our brothers is the concrete destiny and sanctity that are willed for them by the love of God. One who really loves another is not merely moved by the desire to see him contented and healthy and prosperous in this world. Love cannot be satisfied with anything so incomplete. If I am to love my [sister], I must somehow enter deep into the mystery of God’s love for [her]. I must be moved not only by human sympathy but by that divine sympathy that is revealed to us in Jesus and which enriches our own lives by the outpouring of the Holy Spirit in our hearts.”