Praying the Seasons

For several years, I have written during the summertime about prayer. This column in one way or another has talked about the summer months as times to stop, enjoy and relax into prayer and reflection. The inspiration came from the pause of vacation time and the freer time to spend with family and friends. The summer seemed to offer the same invitation to stop, take time, and enjoy the presence of God.

With the change of time and the thought of spending more time at home and inside, the fall of the years moves us again to prayer and reflection. Each season and each turning of our lifestyle invites us to a new openness to God. The fall is no different. What are the fall blessings in our spiritual life, especially as a time of prayer, thought, and contemplation?

With the spring comes new life and hope as the earth greens and the flowers and trees begin their growth spurt. On the heels of this spring rhythm we can pray ourselves into the celebration of Resurrection and new hope. We have survived the winter’s darkness and barrenness. We await new light and a freedom of new motion and freedom in our lives. We just breathe a bit deeper. Easter and Pentecost bring the possibility of a new spring in our spiritual life.

November Possibilities

September and October give us a renewed indication that the seasons are changing. The last colors and blooms of the summer seem brighter, but there’s the realization that they are short lived. The colder days and chillier temperatures of November push us into another time for our world and for ourselves. The days grow shorter and the darker nights invite us to stay at home near the hearth. The earth, at least in our part of it, seems to get more barren and empty.

To match the seasons, the Church moves into some thoughts and remembrance of All Souls. We remember those who have died. We give some pause to the limitation of human life. We traditionally have lingered prayerfully in November about living and dying. The cold, the dark, the shorter days invite us to contemplate the more serious realities of human life.

The liturgical cycle moves us further along in this process. The Sunday readings, moving toward the Feast of Christ the Kingdom and the Advent Season, speak of the end times and the gathering of all people in Christ. We are invited to think and pray about the coming of the Kingdom, a time of completion of all things in Christ. We are urged to be alert and attentive to these final actions of God in our human history. We think and we pray about on what do we base our hope. We read in the readings about how this hope of final things shapes our present living.

December will soon bring us to Advent with its first two Sundays about the same Kingdom themes. How is God bringing things to

completion? Where can we look for the actions of God in our lives? Advent brings together the multi-leveled waiting for the Birth of the Savior and the birth of the Kingdom of God in our times. In both cases we wait for God to act in our lives.

The metaphors of our historical waiting and of our celebration of the birth of the Savior in history present us with various images and possibilities. Our history is gathered into the fullness of God’s Kingdom, which speaks of a completion of our human living and longing. At the same time, there’s a gathering of all people into a transformation of all things into Christ. The old gives way to the new in Christ. Like the seasons, we leave the past behind and there’s a grieving in that process. At the same time we expect new things, a new world in the presence of the Father.

The birthing of the Savior is the bringing to birth of new epoch in Christ. The Father brings us new hope as God dramatically and intimately enters our human history in Christ. Hope is rewarded with the possibility of seeing the glory and light of God around us, embracing our world.

Fall-to-Winter Spirituality

Some thoughts for moving into prayer from light to darkness and through to new hope might be:

As we move indoors, light the fireplace, take some time, and invite the presence of God into your life. Enjoy the warmth, the fire, and peace and security of being near to the presence of God. What is seen and experience outside, bring within yourself.

Enjoy the gathering of people and family around your table. Recognize God-with-us in our family and friends. Be thankful for the moment. Know the unity and oneness of mind and heart in the Lord.

Pick up your Bible. Choose a gospel or an epistle. Little by little read a bit everyday. Choose a smaller piece of the Word, rather than a marathon to rush to the finish. Savor the peace and the silence of being alone, but in the presence of the Father.

Be thankful for the good things of the earth, for the people in your life, for the blessing of your life. Pray in satisfaction, rather than in wanting more. Fall and winter are times of ingathering as people and as community.

Stop by the church. Sit in the back and marvel at those new stained glass windows. Take a quick thought of the mysteries of Christ portrayed. Allow the light and the darkness of the season to bring you to peace and to stillness. Try a stop in the morning of the bright sun or an evening of the waning light.

Every season brings a new invitation to prayer. Every time shows us another face of God. Let us pray. Let us be moved and changed as the seasons turn. Prayer moves within us and moves us closer to the Kingdom.

CDH