Advent Series Vol. 2
Peace, outer space, and a litany
Dear Friends,
As we are in the thick of baking cookies, putting up Christmas decorations and wrapping presents, we enter into our second week of Advent. I don't know if you feel this, but I feel as though Christmas just ended not too long ago. The years are progressively going by faster as I grow older. I don't know if it is because of social media, the shortened cycle of news and entertainment, or is it because I have children, I feel the years go by so quick now.
So to relish the time we have this Christmas, we are reflecting on a passage of scripture and writing a poem based on our meditations.
This week's reflection is about Peace.
This week’s passage of peace is John 14:1-6. We have pasted it below.
As I was reflecting on these verses this past week, I came across an article about an astronaut saying he wished every single person on Earth could see what he saw—Earth for what it is from space. All the things we worry and fight about will seem insignificant.
Then I was reminded of how a few years ago, William Shatner took a trip to space and was overwhelmed with grief. This is what he had to say about Earth:
"It’s a little tiny rock with an onion skin air around it. That's how fragile it all is. It's so fragile. We hang by a thread ... we're just dangling."
What astronauts and William Shatner experienced has a name, and it is called the overview effect. The overview effect is defined as being in a state of awe, having encountered transcendence. It is almost like when Moses went up the mountain and saw God, and his face was shining from encountering God’s glory.
What does awe have to do with peace? Seeing Earth compared to the vast dark space puts astronauts in a state of awe and peace, realizing a lot of the things they chase after on Earth don't matter. Politics, wars, division, etc. all these things seem insignificant when you see how small Earth is in the context of the entire universe.
The overview effect is a good illustration of eternity and seeing everything in that light. As Christians, we do live in the context of eternity. When we look outside of ourselves and see our lives as a whole, a lot of the things we cling to will start to shrink and become less important. Part of peace comes from not holding things too tightly. The good news is, that is only part of the story. If peace depended on us trying to let go of things and not struggle so much, that peace wouldn't last very long. The good news is that Christ himself promised us that he will prepare a room for us, and we will go to where he is right now. That is why, we can have peace and not be troubled.
“Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God; believe also in me. My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. You know the way to the place where I am going.”
Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?”
Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
For this week's prompt, we chose to write a litany based on our reflection of John Chapter 14:1-6 and an article we read about William Shatner's trip to space. A litany is a type of call-and-response prayer traditionally used in churches. Usually, there is a call and response between the clergy and the congregation. We thought it would be appropriate to try and make our own kind of call and response as we reflected on themes from the reading and the feelings Shatner expressed about his experience.
We interspersed our meditation with supplications to God that might be found in written prayer or in the bible. For your litany, you may choose an article or essay to reflect on. You can use the William Shatner Essay, or maybe try looking at these beautiful photos from the Astronomy Photographer of the Year contest. Pair your reflections with this week's passage. Here is our litany:
Litany William Shatner's trip to space Filled him with overwhelming Sadness; seeing earth turning Into a vanishing point, A blue marble from boyhood Rolling across the floor Disappearing and reappearing As he left it. The sight must echo in his mind Even now that he’s returned from orbit— How he moved so fast but the world Seemed to turn slower as he rose up In that rocket ship. On earth, the echo of Our Father who art in heaven stays with a child who kneels By his bed while his mother prays For a better future. It stays, and what stays in motion, Remains in motion, until you float And leave it altogether. Is this what it means, to know the way To the place where you are going? O Christ, I am struck by the sadness You Must have felt on your journey in the cloud, Struck more by how I must have seemed To be a speckle in your vision compared With vast seas of blue and wispy Atmospheric nebulae. O Lord, hallowed be thy name In heaven’s blue and merciful sky, And may you look down on me From the wings of the wind. O God the Son, Redeemer of the world, Let me remember the place You are preparing. Let me linger on the journey With my face pressed to the glass. God be gracious to us.
We’d love to see your reflections on this prompt! Tag us when you post them or post them below in the comments!
Have a blessed week!
Poignant and inspiring.