Ruminations from the Rector
Ordinary usually means common, routine, customary, regular, usual, and sometimes even deficient in quality. Extraordinary usually means beyond what is usual, exceptional, remarkable, more than, superior in quality. As we step into ‘Ordinary Time’ in the liturgical calendar of the Church, we might want to challenge these definitions and look at them through new sacred eyes.
December through May in the Church’s liturgical year is marked by many significant events. It begins with Advent (preparation, expectancy, pregnancy), which moves into Christmas (birthing, new beginnings, new possibilities), and
then into Epiphany (manifestation, revealing, showing, presence). Lent (reflection, penitence, introspection, change) starts with Ash Wednesday, a time of entry into this six-week period of transition, and ends with Palm Sunday, Holy Week, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday and finally the Easter Vigil and Easter Sunday, which says quite loudly that death always leads to new life, that endings are always followed by new beginnings. Six weeks of Easter lead to the celebration of Pentecost, the giving and receiving of Spirit flowing in the world.
From Pentecost, we move into six months of what the Church calls ‘Ordinary Time.’ There are few major celebrations, lots of vacations, and a ho-hum attitude sets in or…..
You recognize the extraordinary in what has been called ordinary. It has been said that a good movie or book is simply ordinary life with all the boring parts taken out. What makes life boring? What brings life to life for you? The Church has separated out some very telling moments in the life, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ Jesus. These moments point to the extraordinary in the ordinary, and help remind us that any moment can be a transformative experience; any moment can bring a healing, a miracle, a death and resurrection.
As you reflect on your life over the next six months you might want to pay attention to the extraordinary in what appears to be ordinary. You might want to stop what you’re doing in a mechanical way and do it in a way that is more consciously aware. You might want to look at yourself and others in a way that opens you to seeing the sacred wherever you look. You might want to listen a little deeper to the silent pulse of God in every situation, see the beauty in all the events.
The birds are back with us, singing new songs. The flowers are inviting new beauty into our lives and the warmth of the sun wants to melt the coldness that freezes us out of meaningful relationships. Is it possible that the ‘ordinary’ is really ‘extraordinary’ and all that is necessary is that you to awaken to it? Reconnect the dots of your life and experience the sacred in the ordinary. Imagine the extraordinary wherever you are. Transform and be awake to what brings life to life for you and remember: ‘The joy of God is a person fully alive.’
Dr. Rick Meyers+
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