Abi, Paul, Timothy...and subtle humor

Today, I have my dear brother in Christ, Len Hjalmarson, to thank for the inspiration behind this post.  He Tweeted a link to his post that collects important links concerning women in ministry.  Please take a look...particularly at the link to Don Rousu's post, since it is the one that provided my "missing link" moment!

If you have been following me for any length of time, you will have come to learn about my friend and mentor, S. Scott Bartchy...who was gracious enough to preach at my ordination 18 years ago.  His scholarship and friendship over the past 33 years has been so very important to me.  For this post, it is timely to link to this important post of Scott's from two years ago. While his post concerns Paul's letter to Philemon, the importance of what he calls "deep contexting" in paragraph 2.12 is so very important ... and is the point where translators so often fail us.

Go ahead and read it ... I'll be here when you come back.

You will see that Don Rousu has provided a bit of "deep contexting" for the tension-filled text found in 1Timothy 2:11-15.  I'm going to connect it to some teaching I heard and synthesized from Scott and others over the years.  I am sorry that I do not have links.  I am grateful that all the pieces fell into place for me today...even with a sluggish brain.  I only hope to challenge you with another view.

I'm going to start with the end and work my way forward.  To prepare for this, I ask that you follow J. R. R. Tolkien's sage advice to those who would read imaginative works:  suspend your disbelief long enough to enter into the story so as to experience it as the author intended.  Listen all the way through.  Hear the whole tale.  Could it possibly be true?

Ready?

My paraphrase of 1 Timothy 2:11-15, inspired by The Voice, adapted from the New Century Version and building on the deep contexting of Rousu and Bartchy, goes like this: 


¹¹ Let that woman who is troubling your congregation learn by listening quietly and being ready to cooperate in everything. ¹² But I do not allow such a woman to teach or claim that a woman was the originator of or superior to a man, but want her to learn the truth peacefully, ¹³ because Adam was formed first and then Eve. ¹⁴ And Adam was not tricked, but Eve was tricked and became a sinner. ¹⁵ But that woman will be saved through The Childbearing if she continues in faith, love, and holiness, with self-control.

Need to take a deep breath or two?

It is important to remember a couple of things right off the bat:  this is considered to be a personal letter from Paul to Timothy -- probably a response to a letter from Timothy concerning his ministry in Ephesus.  It is full of insider information and context to which Timothy would have been totally aware.  Timothy would have been completely familiar with Paul's style of rhetoric and his use of humor and other "clever" speech.

The deep context Rousu provides is critical here concerning the culture in Ephesus regarding Artemis/Diana, as interpreted by the Gnostics.  What possibly was being taught by "that woman", among other things, was that women were superior to men because Eve was created first and that, being the Mother of All, she birthed Adam on her own -- with no need of a man. She possibly went further to claim that Eve was the "illuminator" who received "knowledge" from the Serpent and shared it with Adam.  So, they revered the Serpent as the Savior revealer of Truth.

Ugh...the twisting of Truth always comes from reading our own context into the Text, without regard for the deeper context.  This is why it is so important for those who teach to have learned in quietness and cooperation first.  It is just as difficult a task today as it was then.  Sigh....

So here we have Paul, responding to his "son in the Faith" with insightful encouragement and a bit of wit:

• All, men and women, are to be encouraged to learn the Truth in a posture of humility.
• Those who teach falsehoods are to be stopped gently and taught the Truth more fully.
• Just as in Corinth, those in Ephesus had problems with Jesus' new paradigms that subvert their ideas of power and patriarchy. They did not know how to embrace their new situation as brothers and sisters -- joint heirs of God in Jesus.  Where no man is called Father but God and no one is Lord but Jesus.
• As Paul said in 1Corinthians 11 (another passage requiring "deep contexting" and rarely getting it), Adam was created first -- and Eve came from him.  But Adam came from Christ, who created everything.  And Christ comes from God, as the Only Begotten. And now every man comes from a woman in the process of childbirth. It is not about power and hierarchy and authority and subordination, but simply about source in the perichoretic Circle of Life.
• Because Eve did not have enough education, she was tricked by the Serpent and sinned.  There is lots of room to wonder why Adam didn't speak up to defend her ... or why he had not educated her properly ... and, in the end, he went along and ate, too.  The point is to teach well -- without improper embellishment --  and correct error gently as it crops up.
• And in a delicious twist of humor, Paul reminds Timothy that salvation comes -- to that woman (and all humanity) -- through Jesus, who actually was born of a woman (The Childbearing) without the aid of a man!  That woman, if she continues to learn the Truth in faith, love and holiness, with self-control, will be saved.  As will we all....

So there you have it. 

I fully realize that there are a great many scholars who would not agree with me.  Listening for humor, irony, quotations -- this is difficult work in Koine Greek and First Century context.  But we must continue -- especially with the difficult passages that seem out of step with the rest of what Paul teaches and what Jesus lived.  We must all determine that we will learn in quietness of spirit and a humble heart that is open to the Spirit's still, small voice speaking the Truth that will set us free.

I hope that you were able to process this wee post with your disbelief suspended.  I pray that we will allow the Spirit to continue to lead us all into All Truth.  I yearn for the day when we can all truly be brothers and sisters in Jesus, sharing the Good News with those around us that our Father has already adopted them too...even if they don't know it yet! 

Be blessed!

Sometimes we change more than we think...and other ramblings!

As I have been re-reading Peck lately, I find that there are many (and I'm talking MANY) nuances to how I think that just weren't there when I first read these books 20+ years ago.  I am certain this is true because I am not the person I was then.  I have changed.  I have grown.  I have suffered great pain and loss.  I have had three sons.  I have been ordained, entered the pastorate, and left the institutionalized "church" experience.

Yeah, I'm in a completely different place than I was back in the 80s.  It is good to look again at those works that were important transition books in periods of intense growth ... especially when entering that process again!

Which takes me back to a comment I made on the Facebook group "Into the Wardrobe" concerning C.S. Lewis ... someone was wishing that he had written the "Left Behind" series ... which went lots of interesting places full of interesting assumptions all around.  Anyway, someone brought up the fact that Lewis was not a theologian.  And there is where I jumped into the fray:

Interesting thread ... it is an important note that Lewis was NOT a theologian and that he was using his incredible logic and literary depth to help clarify the common ground of all who name Christ as Lord. After he married Joy -- and especially after he wrote A Grief Observed -- i think a number of things that were once logical to a confirmed batchelor may have changed. I am sorry that we do not have more writing from his last days -- but grateful for what we have :-)

I read Lewis' Mere Christianity when I was 19 years old.  It was the most serious reading/thinking I had ever had to do ... and I read it again 20 years later ... when I was in a totally different frame of mind.  Some of the things I agreed with at 19 were not going down as well when I was 39....  I think that if Lewis has gone back and done a revisit to his Mere Christianity after his amazing experiences with Joy, there were many things he would have seen from a very different perspective.  A Grief Observed is really the only window we have into that perspective.

So ... back to Peck ... which I read for the first time when I was in my 30s ... and am now reading again in my 50s!  There were so many important concepts I learned from him that have been helpful over the years.  I am finding, again, that there is a difference when we are learning something because we think we need to learn it -- and understanding exactly why we need to know something. 

I first experienced that when I returned to college for my sophomore year, um, 17 years after my freshman year.  Yeah ... interesting story, that one.  Anyway, I was taking all the normal college classes, living in the dorms with the 18-21 year old students ... but I was now 35.  I understood why I was learning what was being taught because I had been out there working and living and had ready application for all of it.  This is why, of course, professors often love their adult students.... ;^)

I am, however, a little overwhelmed with reading Peck because there is so much that I truly wish I had understood 35 years ago.  Things that are foundational to life, but didn't turn up on my radar when I was growing up in the 70s.

And so, just as this abbess started out describing "reverse mentoring" in her chapter in Voices of the Virtual World, it seems she is there again ... perpetually learning what NOT to do or say or think or be based on trying not to follow poor examples, rather that having been mentored well.  What a sad commentary....

There is nothing more important than being a positive mentor in the life of another.  It is never too late ... but it is a lot harder to do later (although there is much more experiential "mulch" out of which beautiful things may grow!).

Well, this was quite a ramble, eh? 

Be blessed wherever you are in your journey.  May you see those Father is bringing to breathe love and freedom and fullness into your life ... and be present in the lives Father brings across your path, as well.

Abi

God as Supreme Situational Leader

While I wait for Scott to flesh out more of his book as to what it means to be siblings in the Kingdom, I want to revisit a concept that just keeps getting more focus for me ... and today got the 3D treatment!  Wow!

When I was getting my Organizational Management degree, we used an amazing textbook that introduced me to the Hersey and Blanchard theory called Situational Leadership.  (Even though the most current hardcover edition is really expensive, an earlier paperback edition will get you everything you need to get a grip on this important concept without breaking your book budget.)

During that particular class, it dawned on me that this is so right because this is a descriptor of the way God leads.  (It doesn't hurt that Blanchard is a follower of Jesus.  I don't personally know about Hersey.)  Wow ... this insight back in 1994 was very important to my thinking about leadership.  (My experience with managers and leaders has left much to be desired, as recounted in my chapter of Volume One of the Wikiklesia Project.)

And, much like Chesterton's famous quote that Christianity was found difficult and left untried, this concept is the same.  Our ideas of leadership and management gravitate more to the few telling the many how to think and what to do.  We tend to lead according to our style and strengths, rather than leading according to the readiness level of those following.

When Jesus called on the fathers to put down their right to dominate, he was asking them to influence instead of coerce.  It is so much harder having to consider each individual and how you can best empower them to do their best to accomplish God's will....

It is the way of love, this leading by influence.  Equipping.  Building up.  Supporting.  Releasing.

Sometimes you have to simply tell folks what to do, step by step, because they lack the skills to know what to do. 

Sometimes you have to engage folks, because they have some skills they can use, but just aren't able to take on the responsibility.

Sometimes you have to collaborate with folks, because they are skilled and able to take on tasks, but aren't confident enough to take on responsibility.

And sometimes, yes, sometimes you are able to delegate to folks, because they are both competent and confident enough to take the ball and run with it.

...and then we have to remember that God meets us at each of these various stages in our own lives, depending on the task that has been laid out before us!

So, relax!

Lighten up!

Trust Papa! 

His faithful cHesed will always provide what you need to accomplish the task.  The buck stops with him, actually....

Blessings,

Abi

The Fields Are Ripe For Harvesting...

This wee abbess is very happy to again be involved in the wonderful collaborative effort knows as The Wikiklesia Project! Please do take a moment to look at the page for Volume Two and see what we're up to with this --

• See Cynthia La Grou's article in the July edition of the Next-Wave Ezine

• Read the first chapter post by Felicity Dale over at Missional Tribe

Join us as we consider the impact of women in the the Kingdom Fields!

Abi on the cover of Next-Wave!

Well, well, well ... as I live and breathe! You just never know where things will end up, eh?

May has been an interesting month ... more about that another time, maybe. But I did get into a very interesting series of conversations about many purple things. And as we were launching the invitation to participate in Taking Flight, I was primed for other discussions about setting the sisters free to serve in the Kingdom.

And it got my wee purple article on the Cover of the May 09 issue of the Next-Wave ezine.

It's all Sonja's fault ... hehehe.

So, please do click the link and take a look. All the links for the background are there. And the lead article is the perfect follow on. You'd think God knew what he was doing ... ;^)

Blessings....

Taking Flight...An Invitation to Soar!

Today, as I'm hoping you've already seen a dozen times, is the launch date Volume Two of The Wikiklesia Project. I woke up with Bette Middler's voice in my head singing "Wind Beneath My Wings"...and I would embed the YouTube version of it if I had more brain cells firing....

Anyway, this Abbess wants to invite those of you who think for a moment about a sister who brings that song to life. Someone who has been the wind beneath your wings ... "beautiful face without a name, for so long..." It's time to tell the stories of what the sisters have been doing in the Kingdom--and how we can re-imaging what the oft-neglected feminine half of God's Image already is and could be doing to build the Body of Christ.

Read the Announcement/Invitation here, if you missed it above, and then send the link to this post to all your friends (and I do mean ALL of them!). We're going to have a great time reading and discussing the chapters as they come in over at Missional Tribe, so get over there and join, if you haven't already.

If you've ever said that the sisters need more voice or visibility or support, now is the time to step up to the plate and put your heart in writing! Here's the details for proposals.

...I can hear the flutter of wings....

Abi

CovenantClusters is a Covenant Community

Technical Update 1/15/2008: My Techno Husband, who uses a different browser, noticed that there was a code bleed through in my numbered list...I have corrected that problem. Sorry for any confusion!

[NOTE: During this series on CovenantClusters: The Vision Unfolds, it will be important that I keep Abi's Terms updated ... and that you acquaint yourself with what is over in the Scriptorium. There is a link to Abi's Terms in my sidebar, but I will try to be as link-friendly as I can!]

If you want to understand the vision for CovenantClusters, you will have to wrestle with my understanding of the term covenant (yup, it's the very first listing over in the Scriptorium). I have come to find out that there are way too many different thoughts floating out there concerning this word ... and if we are to effectively communicate here, I must help you understand what I mean when I use this word.

Unfortunately, many times it is most efficient to begin defining terms by explaining what you don't mean. Hmmm ... this is very much akin to a type of learning I have coined the phrase reverse mentoring to describe (yes, I just added it in the Scriptorium!) So here goes:

I have found that most people, when they hear the term covenant, think of Abraham and the covenant God made with him to bless the world through his countless descendants. While that's not a bad place to start, I find that too few separate the covenant God made with Abraham from the New Covenant God made with Jesus Christ as our representative. And this is a big deal to me, the separation of these covenants into old and new, or first and second, as some have been calling them. (First and second is too problematic for me, personally.)

I've spent enough time over at Jesus Creed and The Forgotten Ways (and other important blogs) to know that there are many who do not believe as I do about this. I am not particularly interested in rehashing that discussion over here. This is where folks come who want to understand what CovenantClusters is about....

So, we need to take a break here, friends....

One of Abi's basic rules of engagement for discussion is that we must be willing to listen fully to the other in order to be able to understand the view of the other. I usually phrase it like this:

1. Consciously set aside your own presuppositions.


2. Ask the Holy Spirit to open your heart and mind to all God’s truth.


3. When you encounter an idea that raises a question in your mind, make a note of it right then, but don’t dwell on it. (Keep paper handy to record your notes and questions.


4. Set aside your doubts long enough to try to understand what is actually intended.


5. After you have read the entire section, including all references, go back and review your questions. Then, when you're ready to ask me your thoughtful questions, go for it!

Keep in mind that this exercise is not intended to stifle your questions or prevent lively discussion. On the contrary, the search for all of God’s truth requires lively, thoughtful, humble discussion – agreeable disagreement – among God’s people!

This means that you will need find time to go over the Scriptorium and read my entries about Covenant and cHesed (don't miss the link to the chart) ... including the link to Chris McKinney's site, which includes a lot of information from one of our important common sources of information: What the Bible Says About Covenant by Mont W. Smith. (Some of you will remember me mentioning Dr. Smith's passing last November.)


The vision of CovenantClusters is not about a group of people covenanting together to be or do anything new. It is about groups of Christ-followers who cluster together as local representatives of the Body of Christ -- what I call the Christian Hasidim -- faithfully living out the terms and conditions of the New Covenant, cut once-and-for-all on a Roman cross outside the walls of the city of Jerusalem.

Go with God.

The Founding of The Abbey

Well, after having such grand time at the Open House, it just seemed appropriate to finally tell the story of the founding of The Abbey, so you will find it recently added here. Just scroll down to the bottom of the page.

Perhaps you'll be inspired to read the rest of the chapter, indeed, the rest of the book! Click on the Wikiklesia Contributor button on the sidebar and join us in the quest to end slavery in our time.

Be blessed.

It was the best of times; it was the worst of times....

The best thing about blogs is that they connect people. The worst thing about blogs is that they disconnect people.

Huh?!?

Well, the great thing about blogs is that you have the wonderful opportunity to meet and converse with people whom you would never have the opportunity to hang with IRL (or, in real life, as I've recently learned). You come together because of any number of commonalities. I visit blogs of brothers and sisters in Christ with whom I am trying to share "the adventure that Aslan sends," as it were. Our main commonality is devotion to Christ as Lord and a desire to love God and love others--living the Jesus Creed, as Scot McKnight would say. (BTW, I get my connection to the wilder world through my amazing brother, Matt Stone...thanks, Matt!)

And this is a really, really great thing that blogs do. Really great!

The challenge, as always, is the loving of others who are, well, other. As in, not like me. In my case that would be the vast majority of people I meet IRL, much less on the Net....

So, the worst thing about blogs is how easy it is to disconnect when the "honeymoon" is over. When the struggle to stay connected begins to make your stomach churn as your "otherness" really starts showing. You face the moment of truth when you wonder whether your blog buddies will ditch you when they get to know the real you.

Sigh...and we thought this was over after getting through middle school...or high school...or after we got married...or after the kids are in school all day, or with your new small group or church or pastor. Whatever....you fill in the blank__________________.

Nope. None of the challenges of risky relational transparency are ever over...as long as there are still people around. Last time I checked, that still applied to me. And so I am left with the same old dilemma: what am I going to do about it?

This is my starting list of things to do:

• If I want to be heard, I'm going to have to really learn the lessons about listening.
  
• If I want to be understood, I'm going to have to do a better job of thinking about what I mean and saying it plainly and clearly--no jargon, no assumptions, no generalizations.
• If I want to be part of the solution, I'm going to have to choose not to be part of the problem.

So, what is the problem?

In my book it's a failure to speak truth in love. Speaking my best understanding of what the truth of any given topic or situation is in a way that is respectful of the view of the other. Speaking in a tone that will allow others to hear me long enough to choose to really listen. Inviting feedback so that I can ensure that what I mean is what is being understood. Asking clarifying questions that show I really want to understand. Restraining myself from engaging in any and all forms of reactionary assumption or judgment or sterotyping...as well as sarcasm that targets a precious Eikon/bearer of the very image of God.

More lessons of the Purple Martyrdom, I guess...and a reminder from MO Blogger Andrew about the reality of owning the name The Ugly Blogger. I told him in Seabeck that I was struck by his chapter (with that very name) in the Wikiklesia Project's Volume One. It was a private moment for confession to him that I make public here: I, too, have been The Ugly Blogger. And Andrew, I'm hoping you will forgive me for the tinge of it that showed on your blog yesterday. I will learn this lesson in restraint...I will! Thank you for being a person of shalom.

But I choose to step away from those images. (You really do need to get this book and read it--lots of great insights from a wide variety of authors. Click on the Wikiklesia link in the sidebar.) I want all that I am and have and say and do to bring glory, not shame, to my Lord.

Now that I have my own blog, I need to say the things that define who I am and what I am about here in my space and in my time and according to my outline...and quit blog-clogging elsewhere. (Except, of course, at Alan's TFW blog...I am free to be me here and there!)

...so if you're interested in what The Abbess thinks and does, know that you are welcome to journey here in safety--well, the kind of safety that comes from speaking the truth in love, that is. Safe to listen and be listened to...to be and to allow...to learn and to teach.

But beware of Aslan...while not always "safe," he is always good. And the "Lucy" in me always wants to answer his call to follow--even if no one else can see or hear him.

Be blessed.

The Caring, Compassion, and Charity Meme....

My friend and fellow Wikiklesia Contributor, Ed Brenegar, tagged me with a meme on Caring, Compassion, and Charity. The instructions were:

In a new blog post, list and write about the top 1 or 2 causes that simply make your palms sweat, your heart bleed, and send tears rolling down your cheeks. Make sure you tell everyone why this cause is so important to you as an individual.

I have been pondering this, wondering what to say—waiting for the swirling mass of things that touch my heart to settle. And out of that mass, the one that floated to the top surrounds the dearth of truly Christ-like servant leadership in the church.

Not that there aren’t many fine leaders out there—laying down their lives and giving their all for the sake of the call. But there aren’t enough to go around—and too many of the ones we have don’t seem to be actively apprenticing those who will serve with them and rise up to take their places. (This post could probably be classified as a borderline R2A2…)

When I see leadership in the church that runs the gamut from spiritual neglect to spiritual abuse, my palms sweat with a mixture of pain and fear. Pain for clueless leaders doing the best they can without proper training or guidance—and for the many followers wounded by those who unwittingly misrepresent God’s will and God’s way. Fear for the damage done to both the leaders and followers who collectively make up Christ’s Bride—as well as to Christ’s reputation in the world.

My heart bleeds for church leaders, paid and volunteer, who are taken advantage of, used up, and discarded—exhausted, embarrassed, angry—with no thought as to how they might yet be able to serve in God’s Kingdom after they have somehow managed to fail. One after another they submit to this cyclical abuse out of ignorance and a faulty sense of loyalty…and then just seem to slink away, crushed. The walking wounded, collateral damage of the most tragic kind of friendly fire.

Tears roll down my cheeks as I watch them try to smile and rationalize how God has called them to something or somewhere else. And all the while they are held hostage to a mistaken sense of long-suffering and duty to keep a unified face—keeping up appearances, don’t you know.

Not that I don’t value unity, now. Far from it! What I don’t value is intimidation or domination or fear masquerading as unity…or love…or leadership. And, remember, I’m not talking about leaders who lose their First Love through pride and arrogance and ambition—intentionally and selfishly taking advantage of everyone and everything in order to get—and stay—on top.

I’m crying for the precious members of the Body of Christ who have been brainwashed into accepting this methodology as God-honoring and appropriate. The brothers and sisters who have abdicated their responsibilities as members of the Royal Priesthood of the Saints of God for the safety and comfort to be found along the path of least resistance called submission and obedience—to men rather than to God.

You may be thinking, “Gee, I thought this was supposed to be about caring and compassion and charity?” It is…but it’s more a story of Tough Love.

If you’ve been following my stories about Irina and the women political prisoners with her in the Small Zone, you may be able to understand that this is currently leading me to a boiling point concerning true love for your neighbor as your self. The kind that refuses to allow self and others to be treated contrary to God’s law. The kind that sees covenant-breaking as missing the mark—that’s right, as SIN!

The prisoners of the Small Zone were successful in breaking down their captors and gaining their freedom—and inspiring those around them in prison and in the free world—by being willing to stand together for each other against those who broke the law—the laws that applied to prisoners. When their rights were trespassed against, they banded together and agreed upon the action they would take—whether it be a hunger strike, letters of complaint, or smuggled news to the outside world.

I am not suggesting that the situation in most churches is this dire. Nor am I suggesting that the needed response from most church members be this intense. But I am suggesting that there needs to be a day of reckoning in churches where the leadership has been empowered by the members to neglect their responsibilities to truly love and equip the saints for the work of ministry in favor of out-sourcing, efficiency, balanced budgets and a façade of unity.

Jesus Christ, our Victorious Lord, has set us free from bondage to sin and death…and I weep for my brothers and sisters who have accepted the shackles of institutional and hierarchical ease and comfort built on intimidation and domination rather than embrace the dying to self that comes with learning to speak the truth in love.

Onto this river of burning tears, God has set afloat the vision for CovenantClusters—where loving and truth-speaking disciples equip disciples to make disciples. I am drawing up the plans to form the life and rhythm of the community, eager to welcome the companions God is preparing to join me in this journey. God help me build strong sails and learn to set them wisely so as to be propelled forward by the wind of the Holy Spirit…even as St. Brendan set out, praying: “O Christ, will You help me on the wild waves?”

The Abbess says a hushed "Amen" and ponders...now, whom shall she tag? Ah, yes...these three will do nicely:

Matt Stone

Brad Sargent

Janet Woodlock

The Color of the Fourth Martyrdom

A bit of history is in order, I expect…some context for our journey together. Order…hmmm…that word seems to have a number of different meanings….

Where to start?

This link will take you over to the visitor’s page at my Wikidot site called The Abbey, where you can get a few hints about what is important to me: http://the-abbey.wikidot.com/ It won’t take long to read the one page there, but it may be helpful to do so. The rest of this post will be here when you return.

Although The Abbey is a closed mentoring site (more about that another time, I’m sure), I wanted to share this quote from St. Francis of Assisi that continues to inspire me—and is present on our home page. Anyone who has seen Volume One of the Wikiklesia Project: Voices of the Virtual World, would find it just before my chapter—Virtual Mentoring at The Abbey.

Where there is charity and wisdom,

there is neither fear nor ignorance.

Where there is patience and humility,

there is neither anger nor vexation.

Where there is poverty and joy,

there is neither greed nor avarice.

Where there is peace and meditation,

there is neither anxiety nor doubt.

This morning, however, I have been jolted to begin in an unexpected posture. My beloved AbbE gave me a copy of his favorite book—we do love reading at The Abbey—and hoped that I would be able to find some time to read at least some of it. (AbbE knows that reading time is a precious commodity at my home.) I picked it up this morning, just to have a look.

This book by Irina Ratushinskaya, entitled Grey Is the Color of Hope, must be something special for it to be AbbE’s favorite, so I was curious to see what was so special. I had to put it down after chapter nine and record my thoughts…and to dry my tears. How could it be that this was the perfect book for this time in my journey? AbbE would call it “Divine Dominoes”…

It is her prison memoirs—an extraordinary documentary of an experience of communitas whose watchword was “Back to freedom with a clear conscience.” I am wondering what things will go undone in my life while I finish it…or whether it will be something that I can only read here and there because it is too deeply painful. Time will tell. Stay tuned….

As I shared the beginning of the story with my husband, I was overwhelmed with emotion—much like I am as I type this now—with a sense of shame on behalf of a decadent and free Western Christendom that has forgotten the call to live such love that the laying down of one’s life for one’s friends is a blessed privilege.

At Seabeck this week I was introduced to concepts of the Red Martyrdom (shedding of blood and death), the Green Martyrdom (deprivation and isolation) and the White Martyrdom (forsaking the comfort of hearth and home). These are my definitions, now, so forgive me if they do not do justice to the proper depth or nuance.

And I wondered…is there another? A mixture of sorts? Where physical brokenness is evident without actual death…where deprivation and isolation exists in the midst of suburban consumerism…where the call to serve others matches the call to serve one’s own.

So I have decided that The Abbey…and this Abbess…would embrace the color of a fourth Martrydom—Purple. Purple is my favorite color. It also happens to be the color of royalty—suitable for those of the Royal Priesthood and adopted children of King, it would seem.

And purple is lovely next to grey….

Be blessed.