"Bending Toward Justice"

"The Arc of the Moral Universe Is Long, 

but It Bends Toward Justice!"  (Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.)

For the first time in our Nation's history a sitting President of the United States has voiced his personal position in support of "same-sex marriage."  While others may be surprised and dismayed by the revelation, I am both appreciative and proud that it also came from the first African American President of the United States. 

No doubt President Obama knew his statement would draw considerable criticism, but that African American Pastors, Clergy and Lay Leaders are among the loudest to cry foul is illuminating and yet, timely.  That these so-called Men of God - who have been "judged" and stigmatized by another dominate group's assertion of biblical authority - are engaging in the same destructive tactics to try to deny other human beings their Right to self-actualization by virtue of their unalienable (God given) Rights of "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness"  is shameful to say the least.

But, while you all know I certainly have my opinion on the matter, I am grateful and humbled by the presence of those Scholars and Clergy who have courageously reported for duty on this battlefield, and as such, I yield the floor and this blog post to Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III.  Please take a moment to listen with an open mind and a loving ear.

Peace,

Rev. Dorinda G. Henry

THEOLOGIA HABITUS EST!

An open letter from Rev. Otis Moss III to the Black Clergy

My Brother:

Tell your brethren who are part of your ministerial coalition to “live their faith and not legislate their faith” for the Constitution is designed to protect the rights of all. We must learn to be more than a one-issue community and seek the beloved community where we may not all agree, but we all recognize the fingerprint of the Divine upon all of humanity.

There is no doubt people who are same-gender-loving who occupy prominent places in the body of Christ. For the clergy to hide from true dialogue with quick dismissive claims devised from poor biblical scholarship is as sinful as unthoughtful acceptance of a theological position. When we make biblical claims without sound interpretation we run the risk of adopting a doctrinal position of deep conviction but devoid of love. Deep faith may resonate in our position, but it is the ethic of love that forces us to prayerfully reexamine our position.

The question I believe we should pose to our congregations is, “Should all Americans have the same civil rights?” This is a radically different question than the one you raised with the ministers, “Does the church have the right to perform or not perform certain religious rites.” There is difference between rights and rites. We should never misconstrue rights designed to protect diverse individuals in a pluralistic society versus religious rites designed by faith communities to communicate a theological or doctrinal perspective. These two questions are answered in two fundamentally different arenas. One is answered in the arena of civic debate where the Constitution is the document of authority. The other is answered in the realm of ecclesiastical councils where theology, conscience and biblical mandates are the guiding ethos. I do not believe ecclesiastical councils are equipped to shape civic legislation nor are civic representatives equipped to shape religious rituals and doctrine.

The institution of marriage is not under attack as a result of the President’s words. Marriage was under attack years ago by men who viewed women as property and children as trophies of sexual prowess. Marriage is under attack by low wages, high incarceration, unfair tax policy, unemployment, and lack of education. Marriage is under attack by clergy who proclaim monogamy yet think nothing of stepping outside the bonds of marriage to have multiple affairs with “preaching groupies.” Same-gender couples did not cause the high divorce rate, but our adolescent views of relationships and our inability as a community to come to grips with the ethic of love and commitment did. We still confuse sex with love and romance with commitment.

My father, who is a veteran of the civil rights movement and retired pastor, eloquently stated the critical nature of this election when speaking to ministers this past week who claim they will pull support from the President as a result of his position. He stated, “Our Ancestors prayed for 389 years to place a person of color in the White House. They led over 200 slave revolts, fought in 11 wars, one being a civil war where over 600,000 people died. Our mothers fought and were killed for women’s suffrage, our grandparents were lynched for the civil rights bill of 1964 and the voting rights act of 1965…my father never had the opportunity to vote and I believe it is my sacred duty to pull the lever for every member of my family who was denied the right to vote. I will not allow narrow-minded ministers or regressive politicians the satisfaction of keeping me from my sacred right to vote to shape the future for my grandchildren.”

“The institution of marriage is not under attack as a result of the President’s words.”

Gay and lesbian citizens did not cause the economic crash, foreclosures, and attack upon health care. Poor underfunded schools were not created because people desire equal protection under the law. We have much work to do as a community, and to claim the President of the United States must hold your theological position is absurd. He is President of the United States of America not the President of the Baptist convention or Bishop of the Sanctified or Holiness Church. He is called to protect the rights of Jew and Gentile, male and female, young and old, Gay and straight, black and white, Atheist and Agnostic. It should be noted the President offered no legislation, or executive order, or present an argument before the Supreme Court. He simply stated his personal conviction.

If we dare steal away from the noise of this debate, we will realize as a church we are called to “Do justice, live mercy and walk humbly with God.” Gay people have never been the enemy; and when we use rhetoric to suggest they are the source of our problems we lie on God and cause tears to flow from the eyes of Christ.  I am not asking you to change your position, but I am stating we must stay in dialogue and not allow our own personal emotional prejudices or doctrines to prevent us from seeing the possibilities of a beloved community.

November is fast approaching, and the spirits of Ella Baker, Septima Clarke, Fannie Lou Hammer, Rosa Parks, A. Phillip Randolph, James Orange, Medgar Evers and Martin Luther, King Jr. stand in the balcony of heaven raising the question, “Will you do justice, live mercy and walk humbly with our God?” Emmitt Till and the four little girls who were assassinated in Alabama during worship did not die for a Sunday sermonic sound bite to show disdain for one group of God’s people. They were killed by an evil act enacted by men who believed in doctrine over love. We serve in ministry this day because of a man who believed in love over doctrine and died on a hill called Calvary in a dusty Palestinian community 2,000 years ago. Do not let the rhetoric of this debate keep you from the polls, my friend.

Asking you to imagine a beloved community, your brother and friend,

Otis Moss, III
Senior Pastor
Trinity UCC

 

"She Played the Whore... Remix!"

"A Certain Levite"

For those of you new to this blog, I created this blog out of the need and desire to communicate with members of my "Sexuality and the Bible" bible study class. In the class, I asked them to compare and contrast Judges 19 with Genesis 19. What I learned was shocking. As a woman, this has got to be THE most difficult scripture I have ever had to read. What is even more difficult is hearing from people - who boast about being readers of the "Word" - how few are familiar with this story.

I'm not going to go into detail about the similarities and the differences, but I urge you to read them both, as we preachers like to say, "for your own edification" - side by side.  Instead, what I am going to do is touch on the most troubling elements in the text. First off, we learn "there was no king in Israel." This is mention of and introduction to "King" and "Kingdom" language.  Next we are introduced to a "certain Levite" (the priestly tribe of Israel), and entering stage right - his concubine - who "played the whore against him, and went away from him unto her father's house" (KJV v.2).  Let me take a moment and break that down for you from the Black Woman's Cotton Patch Version.  Here we have an independent woman, you see.  A woman who apparently knows her worth and one day, she decided she wasn't going to take it (whatever "it" was) anymore.  She got up early one day before he woke up, or came into her tent, got her $h!t and left his @$$.  Because she behaved wholly contrary to how women were expected to conduct themselves, the author of the narrative characterized her in the most negative light.  "She played the whore," but he had a concubine (a woman kept by a man and provided for, whose status was lower than that of his wife).

As the narrative continues, after "four whole months," the Levite "went out after her, to speak friendly unto her, and to bring her again (v.3)." Ooby kaby... Here we go. Now listen, I don't know about you, but right away, I smell something foul. I know right off the bat something in the soup ain't chicken! We are told from the start, in the first two verses, that 1) the woman was a concubine and 2) she played the whore! That ain't the kind of woman I'm gonna write home and tell Mama about! You can certainly believe when she parts from me I'm not going to go after her - unless of course I was "a certain Levite," and she was considered my property.  Therefore, the reclamation of my property was what I "went after," and not some harlot who had brought shame to me and embarrassed me in front of my people! Instead, the offensive colloquial phrase, according to the Black Woman's Cotton Patch Version, "B!t@h betta have my money," is probably more accurate to describe his frame of mind. Okay, okay, for you hopeless romantics out there, maybe he was going to whisper sweet nothings into her ear to get her to come back.  Not so, says the black woman sitting on the end of the third pew with her her lips pursed and her left eyebrow in the center of her forehead.

Maybe, but what does happen is that after this "certain Levite" reaches her father's house, to  retrieve his property, I mean whore, I mean concubine, and staying longer than he intended, because the young woman's father delayed him for several days, the Levite, along with his collected property, asses and servants head back. On the way, they opted not to "turn aside hither into the city of a stranger, that is not of the children of Israel." Instead, they went on to Gibeah (which belonged to the Israelite tribe of Benjamin)(v.12-14). Initially, no one took them in! Whaaaat? There's no room in the inn?  Can you hear the echos of another story in here?  And not the one I've asked you to compare to huh?  Well alright then.  Umph... Where was I?  Oh, ok, his own people would not take him in? Wow... A people, who know the and live by the hospitality custom did not adhere to it - not even for a member of the priestly tribe.  Hmmm...

Finally an older man, an Ephraimite (not one from among his people) who living among them, takes the Levite and his crew in - to wash their feet, and gave them food and drink. Then suddenly, like the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, the people of the town beat at the door saying, "Bring forth the man that came into thine house, that we may know him" (v.22). And like the story of Sodom and Gomorrah, there is a virgin daughter and a whore, I mean a concubine available that is offered up to the crowd by the older man saying, "humble ye them, and do with them what seems good unto you" (v.24). This time however, the whore - I'm sorry, I keep messing that up - the concubine - the woman this "certain Levite" went after her, "speak friendly" to, is thrown out to the angry crowd. She is beaten and raped throughout the entire night until morning. Dusk turns to night and night turns to dawn.  At daybreak, she's released and makes it back to the old man's house where she "fell down at the door of the house, and her hands were upon the threshold" (v.27). Talk about a "humbling" experience.  Believe it or not, it gets worse.

 Again, you know this story is about something altogether different, right?  Once again, it is about Israel "whoring" after other gods, faith practices etc.  It is also a message for all you independent women out there.  If you start smelling yourself and go out there "looking for love in all the wrong places," this is what will happen to you.  In the end, through all the abuse, bumps and bruise, through all the pain, displacement and humiliation, you should try to make your way back to God (Uh oh, I feel my help coming), prostrate (humbly submitting and begging for forgiveness).  The message for Israel is, no matter the social location, no matter how battered, beaten and penetrated strangers, you may be, God will remember and forgive you.  S/HE will come for you, and speak tenderly into your ear.  Hallelujah! Glory to God! ;)

Here is where I'll end this post. I'm exhausted, irritated and it's late. But, riddle me this; could this story be out of place? Can you imagine the wailing cry of a woman being beaten and gang raped throughout the entire night? Could you stand by and let it happen? Do you think God did? Could this be the "great outcry" of Sodom and Gomorrah that warranted a divine visitation and investigation - ultimately ending in the complete destruction of several cities? Could the mistreatment, devaluing, and rape of a woman really be the truth about the sin that did Sodom in? Dare me to say it! Double dog dare me! 
© Dorinda G. Henry, 2012

THEOLOGIA HABITUS EST!

"You Big Dummy!"

Samson - Judges 13-16

Well hello there...  Yeah, yeah, yeah...  It has been a minute since the last post, but, surely you must have known I was not going to move from the tragic encounter that brought George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin together at a crossroads that would lead to Trayvon's death and (eventually) George's arrest for killing him.  The event was and is not only an unfortunate encounter for Trayvon and George, but it is also a sad and ugly reminder of the historical fear that most, if not all black men in America have to live with on a daily basis.  So, again, I beg your pardon for the delay of this post, but guess what???  I ain't sorry. ;)

Now...  Before I even get started, let me be clear!  I DO NOT LIKE SAMSON!  This is a warning and an apology in advance because I don't like him and so I didn't want to write about him, but, he's such a "big deal" in the bible and many of our formative years.  So, here we go...  I believe we left off somewhere in the middle of Judges, and right before we run into one of my favorite childhood characters, Samson.  As I struggle with this, let's pick it up right there, because most of the other judges in the book of Judges, unlike Samson, are boring and of course did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.  Oh, wait!  There is one other noteworthy judge, Jephthah - who offered his daughter as a burnt offering to the Lord for his victory over the Ammonites.  Crazy and disgusting I know, but you'll have to read about that on your own (Judges 11:29-40).  Just to be clear, Samson is no different.  His debauchery, however, is legendary.  But before I get into that, come walk with me down memory lane.  Yes, I had a childhood crush on Samson.  You see, as a skinny, little, ugly, nappy-headed black girl in Lubbock, Texas, Samson was always described as this big ole long (luxurious) haired, good looking man!  He had a back as big and as wide as the front door, a chest you could flick a quarter off of, legs and arms of steel and enough charm to trick any little girl out of her candy money, or any woman out of her -- well -- you know what I mean.  As a full grown woman now, with my big girl panties on, and newly improved lenses and understanding (minus the rose color tint), Samson is a bit of a "hot mess."  From the beginning until the end, he leaves much to be desired.

He, like many of the "heroes" of the bible (when we read it literally that is), has an exceptional birth.  The narrative of his birth, like the narrative of the Virgin Mary, is visited by "the angel of the Lord," and is told, "Although you are barren, having borne no children you shall conceive and bear a son."  The "barren old woman," is a theme that began with Abraham and Sarah.  That them will pick up here and again and continue on throughout Israel's history.  Likewise, the "special" male children with these miraculous births, each come with their very own "special" instructions.  In Samson's case, the angel gives his mother instructions as to what she can and cannot do.  You know, "no wine or strong drink, nor shall she eat anything unclean," and, "No razor is to come upon his [Samson's] head, for the boy shall be a Nazirite (one consecrated) to God from birth."  All of this because the text states, "He will begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines" (13:1-5a).  

Now, as you read on, you, like me, will bear witness to something that is often overlooked in the scriptures.  That is the Wisdom of the women juxtaposed against the men.  I'm not going to go into it, but you must read it for yourself and pay close attention to the communication between the mother and father when the father fears they are going to die for looking upon the angel of the Lord.  There is also a very subtle reference to Deborah - you remember that queen "honey bee?"  Umm hmph...  Watch how they just drop that in.  You'll also see a spoiled little boy growing up to become a rebellious and rambunctious youth, and an even greater menace to himself and others as he enters adulthood.  He speaks to his mother and father as if they are his servants, he eats honey (there she is) from the carcass (unclean) of a lion that he is recorded to have killed on the way to get a wife from among the "Uncircumcised Philistines."  He shares it with his mother and father without telling them where he got it from, then he goes about terrorizing the Philistines - ultimately resulting in the death of his first wife who was killed as a consequence of his abandonment, recklessness and murderous rampage (Chapters 13, 14)!

Finally, what you've all been waiting for, the narrative of Samson and Delilah.  Now I know you all have heard this story, but have you read this story?  I mean really... Have you really READ this story?  I doubt it, because if you have, then again, you, like me, would be looking at Samson and saying to him, in the same way Redd Foxx's character, Fred Sanford of Sanford and Son would have looked at and said to his son, Lamont frequently - "You big dummy!"  C'mon now...  Delilah, like his previous wife (although we don't know if she is an Israelite or Philistine), is approached by the the "lords of the Philistines," to find out where Samson gets his strength from.  It is recorded on two separate occasions, Delilah inquires of Samson where his strength comes from.  In both instances, he teases her and tells her a "tall tale."  Each time she does to him, precisely what he has told her would make him weak, "and be like anyone else."  Each time she calls for the lords of the Philistines to subdue him.  And in what I find to be quite humorous, he breaks loose, making a mockery of her and those "Uncircumcised Philistines" that are trying to subdue and capture him.  But, because she "pestered" him - I'm not even going to touch that - but let your mind run free - he tells her the truth and, we know the rest of the story (16:1-31). 

Ok, I did it and I'm done.  Can you tell I had a hard time with the post?  Uuurrgghhh...  I did!  Briefly, here's an editors note: This narrative is a metaphor about the history of Israel "whoring" after the gods of the neighboring peoples, and those groups under whose control they may have fallen under.  It is also the place where "Promise" and "Fulfillment" is complete.  That is to say, that even when they (Israel) did what was evil in the sight of the the Lord, the Lord remembered the Promise made to their ancestors and consequently fulfills it.  I say that to say this; My childhood image of Samson has been replaced by the image of him as an adult, seeing clearly, making real the words; "When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; When I became a [woman], I put an end to childish ways" (1 Corinthians 13:11).  I pray you do the same.  Peace!

©Dorinda G. Henry, 2012

THEOLOGIA HABITUS EST!     

"Remember My Name"

                 TRAYVON MARTIN

February 5, 1995  -  February 26, 2012

Jesus Wept

(John 11:35)

The above scripture is noted as the shortest scripture in the King James Version of the bible.  Arguably, it is one of four instances where we observe a spontaneous emotive reaction from the man we know as Jesus.  Like the cleansing of the temple (Matthew 21:12,13) - the cursing of the fig tree (Mark 11:12-14) - and the cry of anguish on the cross, "Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani," (My God, My God, why has thou forsaken me) (Matthew 27:45-46) - his weeping catches us off guard.  Similar to the people's reaction around him who appear to have observed Jesus weeping, we are engendered to feel total and complete compassion for him in the fullness of his humanity.  Consequently, the reason why Jesus wept is serendipitously lost and thus, once again we miss the true miracle.  

Jesus weeps because of the death of the Lazarus.  He appears to be so moved by the loss of this man that he openly weeps for him.  The next major event recorded to have happened was Jesus arriving at the tomb where Lazarus was laid.  After a brief prayer, he calls, with a loud shout, "Lazarus, come forth."  The dead man appears, he is unbound and Jesus continues his ministry (John 11:28-44).  This event is recorded as Jesus' greatest miracle.  But what happens, when God weeps in the fullness of God's divinity?  What cataclysmic movement would we experience in the world around us, internally and externally when God weeps?  

Elie Wiesel, the author of the Nobel Peace Prize winning book, NIGHT, tells us of an ancient legend, "That whenever a just person dies, God sheds two tears.  And when those tears fall into the ocean, they reverberate throughout the universe."  If we take this legend and make the theoretical concrete, there must be some major shift in the environment, in the world around us, when God's tears hit the ocean and reverberates into the universe.  It is a divine acknowledgment, "Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground" (Genesis 4:10).  It is recognition of our pain and loss.  It is a divine call, that requires a divine response.  It is urgent and it is clear.  Throughout the years, the multitude of vibrations created from God's tears are like shock waves that travel unmolested around the world to both oppressor and oppressed people alike. 

They ring loud in the hearts and minds of captured souls aching and yearning to be free.  They are vibrations that catch hold of the living, and at the appointed hour, bounce about like a wildfire out of control.  It is a fire that burns within, a fire that cannot be extinguished.  It is "truth crushed to the earth" rising again.  It is a dead slave rising to rejoice.  It is God calling forth a free people to help others get free.  It is God saying to us in tangible ways, "Be still and know that I AM God" (Psalm 46:10a).
©Dorinda G. Henry, 2012

THEOLOGIA HABITUS EST!

*A CALL TO ACTION
Call or Write: US Justice Department and demand the arrest George Zimmerman for the murder of Trayvon Martin; Phone: 202.514.2000

"Sinking To Rise No More"

"...Winter storms have come
And darkened my sun
After all that I've been through
Who on earth can I turn to 

After all my strength is gone
In you I can be strong
And when melodies are gone
In you I hear a song, I look to you

About to lose my breath
There's no more fighting left
Sinking to rise no more
Searching for that open door..."

Whitney Houston - THE VOICE - 1963 - 2012

"With tears streaming down my eyes," and suffering through a body racked with pain, I am determined to publish this post.  It has been weeks since I felt so moved and inspired to write another post.  But God always has a way of kicking our butts into doing what it is we are called into purpose to do and to be.  And so, with an extremely heavy heart, and even more painful joints, I come now to pen this, my final tribute to Whitney Houston, the VOICE of our generation - the VOICE touched by God and sprinkled with some sassy salt, the bitterness of vinegar, a lot of sugar's sweetness and a hint of fiery cayenne pepper.

Her VOICE spoke directly to me and for me.  It seemed as if she and I were the best buddies in the whole wide world.  Every song, every album was about me.  When the reality of my particular particularity came crashing down around me, and I felt like I couldn't face another day, she sang to me to remind me that loving myself was The Greatest Love of All.  When I felt like dancing like David - until my clothes came off - she would join me in the mirror and sing, I Wanna Dance With Somebody.  I cannot tell you how many relationships she has sang me into because I truly felt at that One Moment In Time, that I Have Nothing, if I didn't have whoever it was at that time.  Of course there were those relationships she also had to sing me out of by comforting me with the promise of; Where Do Broken Hearts Go?  It was Whitney Houston's rendition of our National Anthem, The Star Spangled Banner, that challenged me to set aside my contempt and frustrations with this country's history of slavery, Jim Crow Laws and systematic racism and made me proud to be an American again.  As we both grew older, as it was in my younger years, so too was the case when I began to struggle with my call into the ministry, that she was there, singing I Love The Lord to me, giving me the strength and the courage to "run on" in spite of naysayers and cries of foul from family, friend and foe. 

I have loved Whitney Houston "in a space where there is no space or time," through both of our life's triumphs and disappointments.  We are broken vessels put on this earth to shine the light of God's blessings and purpose for our life in a cruel, dark and unforgiving world.  God blew into the depths of Whitney's soul and what came out will never be met or beaten in our lifetime.  Maybe one day, God will see fit to allow us another opportunity to hear from heaven again.  But, until that time comes, for me and for us all, I long for the day to hear the Divine's melody coming forth and through my bestest buddy in the whole wide world - Ms. Whitney Houston.  Dearheart, God has heard your cry.  S/HE has shined the light on you and called you back home.  Rest now, for the "melodies are gone," and you have left us with many a song.  For that, I say THANK YOU!  I will miss you and shed tears every time I hear that melodious VOICE.  Goodnight love.  I'll listen for you on the other side of midnight.  Peace.

"...And every road that I've taken
Led to my regret
And I don't know if I'm gonna make it
Nothing to do but lift my head

And when all my strength is gone
In you I can be strong

...My levee's have broken, 
my walls have come
Crumbling down on me
The rain is falling, defeat is calling
I need you to set me free

Take me far away from the battle
I need you, shine on me"

                            (Robert "R" Kelly)
©Dorinda G. Henry, 2012

THEOLOGIA HABITUS EST!

"A New Thing"

"Do not remember the former things,

or consider the things of old.

Behold, I am about to do a new thing;

Happy New Year!  Yes, I know that was a long break, but I left you with some great songs, did I not?  Alright then.  Besides, if you've been following this blog, you know I wasn't in the best of moods during the Holidays.  But, 2012 is here and I have wholeheartedly kissed 2011 goodbye.  So, as they adage goes, "Out with old, in with the new."

When we left, we were in the book of Judges and admittedly, I am about to lose my mind!  We should have ran right through Judges, but with life's happenstances - to include, but not limited to surgery and another death in my family - we are still in the middle of that book!  Now I could run on to the end and start up with the next book, Ruth, but I won't.  I'll wait and journey on as we have in times past.  So get to reading and meet me in Judges - somewhere around chapter 7.  In the meantime, however, let's prepare our hearts and minds for something new coming upon the horizon.

We are going to meet some very interesting characters in these next few chapters and upcoming books that will change the way we look at the "Old" or rather, Tradition and the "New," Contemporary.  Times have and are rapidly changing and strangely enough, our journey in Reading The Bible Again for the First Time, is aligning itself right along side of us.  We will soon find out, through our own inquiry, through our own reading and through our own new and critical lenses that even the contemporary debate on marriage will find itself center stage with proponents for marriage equality gaining strength and precedent from the Holy Bible.  Have I wet your lips enough to return?  I sure do hope so.

In the meantime, enjoy one of my favorite gospel songs, Tell him, by Lauryn Hill, one of my favorite artist.  Yes, I did say gospel songs because it is quite spiritual.  This is one of those instances where the Old and the New, Traditional and Contemporary expressions of worship and spirituality met in the middle and created something that raises our senses and spirits to a level that causes us to reach that place of Divine Ecstasy without the Preacher, the Church, the choir or dare I say, self stimulation....  oooohhhh, uh, yeah, yeah, ah yeah....  Uh, ummm, uh huh, uh huh.  ;)

Do you not perceive it?

I will even make a way in the

wilderness and rivers in the desert."

                                      (Isaiah 43:18,19)

©Dorinda G. Henry, 2012

THEOLOGIA HABITUS EST!

"All Hopes and Fears"

"O little town of Bethlehem
How still we see thee lie
Above thy deep and dreamless sleep
The silent stars go by
Yet in thy dark streets shineth
The everlasting Light
The hopes and fears of all the years
Are met in thee tonight..."

Once again, I have to beg your pardon for my delay.  If you've been following, I'm sure you understand how this Holiday Season might be a difficult one for me.  2011 is one of those years that my humanity could have done without, but one that I'm sure will render some life-altering lessons in the months and years to come.  Nevertheless, rather than a joyful time, it is a time of hardship, heartache and pain.  I've thought long and hard about this post and decided rather than do nothing and let a good post last until the new year, that I would be true to mine own self and transparent to others.  

As I sit here in the dark - awakened yet again at or around the time of my mother's death on August 8, 2011, just 21 days before my birthday with tears staining my face - I find myself searching to find that place in space and time where happiness resides and laughter abounds.  I am searching for hope through disillusionment, joy through pain, light in the midst of darkness and laughter through unceasing tears.  In that place, that quiet place where there is nothing but the beating of my heart, now working harder to remind me that I am still alive with much more to do, I reached back into my yesteryears for those comfort songs of Christmas.  

I remember them fondly.  I remember being a child in the Christmas play, singing Silent Night and Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer at the top of my little lungs.  I remember being made to put up the largest and most complicated Christmas tree in the whole wide world, and then serenading it with the song O Christmas Tree.  I remember the lights and sounds of a family of women jockeying for their place in the kitchen to cook the dish that only they could cook.  I remember knowing that soon and very soon, I would wake up to a poor child's miracle of toys, clothes, shoes, bicycles, and my mother sitting in the chair smoking a cigarette and shaking her knee as she watched my delight when I opened that one gift I didn't expect to get.  But more than that, I remember the heavenly sound of my mother's sultry voice singing The Christmas Song by the irreplaceable Nat King Cole.   With that in mind, rather than get into the scriptures, which I'm sure you'll read and hear plenty of, I've decided to gift to you my little bit of my happiness and fond memories of songs sang and loved by my mother.  There'll be a new song every day until the New Year. 

So sit back, listen and enjoy them fully, knowing that "all hopes and fears" are carried through tears, and that they brought some light into a dark place, a smile to a sad face and "wondering love" sent from above that warmed and mended a broken heart.  Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas.  Peace!

"For Christ is born of Mary

And gathered all above

While mortals sleep, the angels keep

Their watch of wondering love

O morning stars together 

Proclaim the holy birth

And praises sing to God the King

And Peace to men on earth..."

                              (Rector Phillips Brooks, 1868) 

©Dorinda G. Henry, 2011 

THEOLOGIA HABITUS EST!