Easter II 04/27/25
The Still Point
A Time of Meditation and Reflection
The Second Sunday of Easter
... At the still point of the turning world. Neither flesh nor fleshless;
Neither from nor towards; at the still point, there the dance is,
But neither arrest nor movement. And do not call it fixity,
Where past and future are gathered. Neither movement from nor towards,
Neither ascent nor decline. Except for the point, the still point,
There would be no dance, and there is only the dance... T.S. Eliot, Burnt Norton
Peace on each one who comes in need;
Peace on each one who comes in joy.
Peace on each one who offers prayers;
Peace on each one who offers song.
Peace of the Maker, Peace of the Son,
Peace of the Spirit, the Triune One.
Alleluia! Christ is Risen. The Lord is Risen indeed. Alleluia!
Opening Prayer
O God, whose Son Jesus is the good shepherd of your people: Grant that when we hear his voice we may know him who calls us each by name, and follow where he leads; who, with you and the Holy Spirit, lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
Scripture Reading John 20:19-31
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained." But Thomas (who was called the Twin), one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe." A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe." Thomas answered him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe." Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book. But these are written so that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that through believing you may have life in his name.
Poem: “Spring” by Mary Oliver
Faith is the instructor.
We need no other.
Guess what I am,
he says in his
incomparably lovely
young-man voice.
Because I love the world,
I think of grass,
I think of leaves
and the bold sun,
I think of the rushes
in the black marshes
just coming back
from under the pure white
and now finally melting
stubs of snow.
Whatever we know or don’t know
leads us to say;
Teacher, what do you mean?
But faith is still there, and silent.
Then he who owns
the incomparable voice
suddenly flows upward
and out of the room
and I follow,
obedient and happy.
Of course I am thinking
the Lord was once young
and will never in fact be old.
And who else could this be, who goes off
down the green path
carrying his sandals, and singing?
Meditation
Our gospel reading for the second Sunday of Easter is one of the accounts of the risen Jesus appearing to his followers. When we read these stories, we might consider in what ways Jesus offered something that was needed by the person or people to whom he was appearing. In this case, Jesus invited Thomas to touch him, to put his finger on his side, and to feel his wounds. The story may lead us to contemplate the nature of faith...and of doubt. How does faith grow? How does doubt, which seems to be always present to some degree, play a role in that growth?
The poem by Mary Oliver imagines a dialogue with Faith as the "instructor." The instructor says "guess who I am," but is then silent to the questions asked. The poet, who loves the world, imagines faith using images from nature. But then, she follows the Teacher with the incomparable voice, who she identifies as the Lord, as he goes off down the green path with sandals in hand, singing.
We have many questions... but perhaps faith grows as we simply follow Jesus, with questions unresolved. "Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves," Rainer Maria Rilke said in his letters to a young poet. "Live the questions now."
Questions for Reflection
In your own faith journey, what role have doubt and questions played?
As a faith community, how can we be more aware of the differing needs of individuals?
How can we be open to questions and doubts, and invite people into a more profound sense of community?
What does it mean to you to love the questions... and live the questions?
In the remaining days of Eastertide (until June 8), what would you most like to focus on, both in your own faith journey and in the St. Andrew's community?
Prayers
We bring before God someone whom we have met or remembered today
We bring to God someone who is hurting tonight and needs our prayer
We bring to God a troubled situation in our world
We bring to God, silently, someone whom we find hard to forgive or trust
We bring ourselves to God that we might grow in generosity of spirit, clarity of mind, and warmth of affection
We offer our thanks to God for the blessings in our lives
We name before God those who have died.
Gracious God, you hear all our prayers: those we speak aloud, those we hold in our hearts, and those prayers for which we have no words. Hear the prayers of your people, and grant them as may be best for us, for the sake of your holy name. Amen.
Accept our thanks for all you have done, O God. Our hands were empty, and you filled them.
May Christ’s holy, healing, enabling Spirit be with us every step of the way, and be our guide as our road changes and turns, and the blessing of God our Creator, Redeemer and Giver of life be among us now and remain with us forever. Amen.
Reflections this month offered by Frank Nowell
Image Credit: “Still Doubting,” by John Granville Gregory
