Dear Friends,

The theme that intrigues me from this Sunday's gospel is that of the unique authority that Jesus exercised. His "authority" is such that he is able to expel demons from a troubled man merely by uttering a simple command.

As I think about the question of "authority", the everyday example of watching parents and their young children navigate the check out counter in the supermarket comes to mind. As a young mom, I was convinced that the displays surrounding the checkout cashiers were a deliberate set up to test the "authority" of parents. And, of course, in a way, that is exactly why they are full of unhealthy goodies that children crave. It's a fascinating study in human behavior to observe how families steer their way through this passage. Some parents maintain their cool, and with confidence decline the pleas for treats; others 'lose it' often sounding like children themselves as they refuse the request; some parents give in/give up with exasperation... often accompanied by a running commentary on how ill behaved their child is. In the first case, the child hears the 'authority' in their parents voice, and know that there is no point in trying to whine or bargain in order to get their own way.

This is the kind of 'authority' by which Jesus speaks. It is the kind of 'authority' that we as Christians... followers of Jesus the Christ have access to and are called to cultivate in our lives. How do we cultivate this? One way is by "knowing". Knowing the scriptures and our faith... not simply the 'words' proclaimed, but more deeply the Word as it is broken open in our lives... in our hearts. Our God continues to speak to each of us, and our call is to listen, to hear, and to act on this 'authority'.

In today's world, this kind of "knowing" within is not easily accomplished. We have so many distractions, responsibilities, external pulls on our energy, that detract from attending to the Voice within which will teach us how to "be". The kind of authority we are called to is an authority that is grounded in a consistent reaching into our depths and connecting to our Source. The parent in the supermarket who can speak with "authority" in that moment of stress, is one who has consistently, unrelentingly built a relationship of loving trust, 'presence' and clarity with the child. This is the kind of relationship Jesus shared with our Creator and the relationship that the Spirit continually invites us into.

One way to foster this kind of deep relationship with our God is within the experience of community. If you are seeking community to nurture you in your love for God and God's people and creation, we invite you to join us at Spirit of Life. As a community, we try wholeheartedly to "be Christ" to one another, to tend to the needs of one another, and to those in need in our world. Together, we celebrate our belief that we are being transformed by God's grace as we gather together in prayer. We warmly invite you to come and gather with us at our Table, and join in our experience of the "kin-dom" of God. We are an inclusive, open, affirming and interactive community, deeply committed to being a people of "justice and joy."

We wish you deep joy in your life and your relationship with our God,

Find more about past weekly reflections and podcasts in our ARCHIVE PAGE.