Psalm Meditation 586
Thirteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time
September 11, 2011

Psalm 131
1 O LORD, my heart is not lifted up, my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me.
2 But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; my soul is like the weaned child that is with me.
3 O Israel, hope in the LORD from this time on and forevermore.
(NRSV)

Having gone through a terrible experience, the greatest fear is that it will happen again if the circumstances are even close to the what they were for the original event. In some cases we broaden our sense of fear to the point of being uncomfortable in our own skin. This holds true for individuals and communities all the way up to nations and probably beyond that. We get to the point at which we feel that everything we do leads us right back to that original traumatic event.

The psalmist reminds us to climb up into the lap of God and curl up into the security, love and warmth that can only be found in that holy place. From that vantage point the largest looming fear is made less and together we can face that fear even if it leads to death and destruction. In the presence of God we are reminded that the death of a mortal body is not the end of our life in God. While we do not seek death, we also do not fear it.

In the lap of God we move from victims to survivors. Yes, we were traumatized by one event whose fear broadens to touch many other aspects of our lives. As people of God we do not dwell on the trauma, we deal with it as a part of who we are and move through it by the power of a gracious love that sustains us with hope for the future, despite or perhaps because of the trauma of the past.

September 5, 2011