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Opening Prayer
Holy Spirit,
You Spirit of Greening Joy,
You Blessed Vine of Creation,
You Fecundity of living things,
You Through the seasons flow,
You Through our veins pulse with life,
You Root us deeply in the Word, Christ,
You Anchor us thoroughly in the Earth,
You Grace us to be carried by the currents of Sky,
You Tree of Life, grant us peace, that
Heaven and Earth united in us, through Wisdom,
Partaking of You and being Your Fruit for the partaking of,
We will live abundantly, eternally, and others, through us,
Will imbibe and taste the same flowing Life of Earth and Heaven. Amen.
(Brian K. Wilcox)
Quote
“The Spirit of God which has been given to this our flesh cannot endure … constraint.”
(The Shepherd of Hermas, Mandate X, ii, 6, tr. Lightfoot, The Apostolic Fathers, p. 433; quoted in Bishop Kallistos Ware, The Orthodox Way, Rev. Ed., p. 89.)
Comments
Bishop Kallistos Ware writes, “The whole aim of the Christian life is to be a Spirit-bearer, to live in the Spirit of God, to breathe the Spirit of God.” (Orthodox Way, p. 90) This is in contrast to the view that the principal aim of Christian living is to obey moral or liturgical rules.
What, then, characterizes the Spirit, seeing we are to be a Spirit-bearer, to live in the Spirit, and breathe the Spirit? Movement characterizes Spirit. The wind is movement. The breath is movement. Wind and breath are the basic ideas behind the concept Spirit in varied world religions, including the Judeo-Christian tradition. The use of fire in Scripture for the Holy Spirit, as at Pentecost in Acts 2, substantiates this flowing, moving, kinetic nature of the Spirit.
However, in Christianity the Spirit is not simply a force, though Spirit is a force. Spirit is a force, or energy; however, Spirit is a personal force. Such is this personal Spirit that St. Paul describes the effect we can have upon the Holy Spirit. In Ephesians 4.30 St. Paul writes “do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God” (ESV). “Do not bring sorrow to,” is another rendition of the passage (NLT).
Therefore, the Holy Spirit is not what theologians call “impassable.” Traditionally, the impassability of God refers to the fact that God acts upon, but is not acted upon. God in transcendence cannot be acted upon. However, God in immanence can be acted upon. This paradox is at the heart of the teaching of the Trinity. Indeed, there is that of God that cannot be saddened, while there is that of God that is deeply touched by sadness.
Since the Holy Spirit is God-moving, constraint is contrary to the Spirit. Yet, pointed out in The Shepherd of Hermas, the Spirit is not apart from flesh in will and nature. Rather, this sacred Spirit is part of the flesh, the body. God, the Father, through God, the Son, has manifested as this lively and loving Spirit, incarnating in our flesh and the body of creation.
Therefore, this Presence-in-movement, lively like breath or wind, is saddened, is grieved, by constraint. And, taking such possibility, then, the opposite must be true. So, we can question, “Can the holy Spirit experience joy?” Yes. And, “Can we bring delight to the holy Spirit?” Yes.
And, the Spirit being part of our whole being, we experience afflictive emotions of boredom, grief, pessimism, negativity, criticalness, lethargy, anger, … when we choose to damn up the flow of Spirit. When we damn up the Spirit, the opposite of the positive, life-giving energies of the Spirit evidence; we can call these anti-life energies, even demonic. Indeed, we can call a demon the ultimate of negativity, of anti-life; a being fully antithetical to the freedom of the Spirit of God; a being without inclination to be life-giving, thus, destructive to others and self.
Hildegard of Bingen (10th Century) apparently coined the term veriditas. By this is meant the “greening energy of the Divine” or the “the greening energy of God.” This Energy flows through all things, and gives life to all things.
We are to be the means of this veriditas. We can be by allowing this Energy to course within and through us. We do not make it flow, for the nature of Spirit is to flow. We do not change the nature.
One image of Christ and the Cross is Jesus hanging on a cross covered with vine. We are to join Christ and, thereby, through the Spirit, the symbol of death outside God in God becomes the source of Life. Through the cross flows the greening Presence of the Spirit. Through dying to self-apart-from-God, we are given Life and share Life.
All I am writing is imaged well by the writer of St. John, in 15.1-8. Therefore, I close with a Scripture for prayerful reading and meditation.
I am the true vine, and my Father is the vine-grower. He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit. You have already been cleansed [same Greek word as “prune”] by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples. (NRSV)
Reflection
What do you do daily to nurture your whole being remaining open to the flow of the Holy Spirit?
How do you see sharing in Holy Communion, or Eucharist, as a means of nurturing openness to the movements of the Holy Spirit?
Do you ever sense the Spirit moving in you? Do you ever feel the Holy Spirit moving through you to another person? Have you felt, lately, the Holy Spirit moving through someone else to you?
Spiritual Exercises
Write a prayer to the Holy Spirit as the greening power of God.
Pray about getting involved in one ministry of outreach through your church or community?
Consider, if you are not already, sponsoring a child through Compassion International. You can find out more about Compassion International by going to www.compassion.net to read about sponsoring, in the name of Jesus, children living in poverty. Thanks! Brian K. Wilcox
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