Anita Lustrea

This is an audio version of Mike Murphy‘s Friday rumblings. This is a regular post on Facebook that I’ve turned into a podcast. I decided Mike’s words needed a wider audience. You may agree or disagree with what he says, but there is certainly much food for thought contained here. You can friend Mike on Facebook for the printed version or read it below.

Rumblings. 6.23.23.

1.“If you want to identify me, ask me not where I live, or what I like to eat, or how I comb my hair, but ask me what I am living for, in detail, and ask me what I think is keeping me from living fully for the thing I want to live for.” ~ Thomas Merton

What are you really living for? 

What’s holding you back from being all in?

 If you have a mature small group these are great questions just waiting to be discussed. For that matter just sitting quietly by yourself, with a journal at the ready, might prove to be a life giving spiritual exercise.

2. Bishop Robert Barron tells us of an Irish wag who summed up the Catholicism that he was taught,  with this phrase: “In the beginning was the word, and the word was no!” 

That was pretty much it.

3. “It is said that 

before entering the sea

a river trembles with fear.

She looks back at the path she has traveled,

from the peaks of the mountains,

the long winding road crossing forests and villages.

And in front of her,

she sees an ocean so vast,

that to enter

there seems nothing more than to disappear forever.

But there is no other way.

The river can not go back.

Nobody can go back.

To go back is impossible in existence.

The river needs to take the risk

of entering the ocean

because only then will fear disappear,

because that’s where the river will know

it’s not about disappearing into the ocean,

but of becoming the ocean.” ~ Kahlil Gibran

4. “Much of what the Bible demands can be stated in one word, Remember.” ~ Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel.

“Christian faith is grounded in remembrance – we are called to remember God‘s presence in the gospel life of Jesus, in our personal stories, and in our daily lives.” ~ Trevor Hudson

5.  “When I look back on the Trump years, I see a dark time of division, corruption and social decay…America was more bitterly divided, and deficits increased each year of his presidency. His early Covid lies helped fuel an immense amount of confusion and almost certainly cost American lives. And his entire sorry term was capped by a violent insurrection fueled by an avalanche of lies.” ~ David French is an attorney, evangelical Christian  and political conservative who writes opinion pieces for the NYT.

“Now, as Trump seeks to return to the White House, he speaks of Jan. 6 as “a beautiful day.” He says there was no reason for police to shoot the rioter attempting to break into the House chamber, and he denies there was any danger to his vice president, Mike Pence, who was hiding from a pro-Trump mob chanting for him to be hanged. He has promised to pardon many rioters if he becomes president again.

On this and a host of subjects, from sexual assault to foreign and domestic policy, Trump’s positions have become even more extreme, his tone more confrontational, his accounts less tethered to reality …Where he was at times ambiguous or equivocal, he’s now brazenly defiant.” ~ “The deepening radicalization of Donald J. Trump” ~ WAPO

There are those who yearn deeply for his return to power. May our good God rescue them from this desire and save us all from his promised retribution.

6. St. Louis University priest and ethicist John Kavanaugh, who passed away in 2012, observed that “On many Sunday morning presentations of Christianity, we hear much of money and success, often of psychological stability and social popularity, frequently of the glories of capitalism and the dangers of socialism, but rarely of the poor, the suffering, the rejected and disenfranchised.”  

When it’s all about my agenda, my needs, and my desires, it’s easy to forget about the poor, the suffering, the rejected, and the disenfranchised. These are the people Jesus felt a special kinship with. So when I say I want to follow Jesus perhaps I need to actually stop being so self obsessed and start caring more deeply about the people Jesus cares about.

7. “I am so distant from the hope of myself,” writes Mary Oliver.

As one who sometimes feels that way, I’m glad that “Saint Mary” (as some see her) told the truth about how hard it can be to embrace our own flawed humanity.

I’m also glad for her steady reminder to get out of our own heads and into the natural world where the trees urge us to “stay awhile” so we can learn from their rooted and uplifting way of being in the world. Like the trees, we can catch the light and shine it back, breathing peace into a world where everyone should have a chance to shine.” ~ Parker Palmer, Quaker author, educator, and activist

8. The Southern Baptist Convention has backed itself into a corner and the fundamentalists in the mix don’t have nor do they appear to desire an exit strategy.

The issue is all about male headship and biblical inerrancy.  Here it is in a nutshell.

Want to be a pastor? 

Do you sense God called you to that? 

Not if you’re a woman. 

It’s a men’s only club.  

It just ain’t biblical for a woman to desire that which rightfully belongs to a man. 

And if it ain’t biblical then it can’t be Southern Baptist.

Oh ya, the guys decide what’s biblical. 

Not you. Cuz you’re a woman.

9.  “Lord, let me let you love me.” ~ John O’Malley, SJ

This is quite beautiful. I have pushed back on God’s love for me far too often. I felt unworthy of it. God’s response: “I get it. I know you and why you feel this way. But I still choose to love you.” 

10. Garth Brooks, the Country Music Hall of Famer, said last week that his new bar in Nashville, Tennessee, would serve “all kinds of beer, including Bud Light. If  you come into our house, love one another. If you’re an a**hole, there are plenty of other places to go. I love diversity and I will always be inclusive. All are welcome.”

I think he’s right. I don’t have to agree with  someone’s lifestyle choices, music preferences, religious affiliation, beer likes, or political opinions in order to treat them as a fellow member of the human race and a sacred creation of God.

The post Mike’s Rumblings – 06-23-23 appeared first on Anita Lustrea.

This is a weekly release of the spiritual practice Lectio Divina. I hope you’ll listen and ponder the scripture passage offered and let me know your thoughts. My email address is [email protected]. Also, feel free to share this podcast on your social media or tell a friend about it. 

If you’d like to support this podcast you can do so through a gift to PayPal using the email address [email protected].

If you enjoy the beautiful guitar music, you can learn more about Steve Wick and how to purchase his music on his website.

The post Lectio Divina 57 – I Samuel 1:20, 24-28 appeared first on Anita Lustrea.

Jon Sweeney joins me again to talk about Meister Eckhart. Jon and co-author Mark S. Burrows have written Meister Eckhart’s Book of Darkness & Light: Meditations on the Path of the Wayless Way.  This is the 3rd Meister Eckhart volume Sweeney and Burrows have co-authored and I highly recommend them all.  Meister Eckhart has been a huge figure in spirituality for more than 800 years. If you want to contemplate and go deeper, Eckhart can help take you there.  I think you’ll enjoy our conversation.

Find Jon M. Sweeney in the following places:

• Twitter

Note: When clicking through on links to products on Amazon, as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

The post Jon M. Sweeney – episode 366 appeared first on Anita Lustrea.

Hi, I’m Anita Lustrea and I’m privileged to be a spiritual director. Each time I begin a session, I use a quote or poem or prayer.  As I share one of these with you, see what might catch your attention. Maybe there’s something here for you today.

The post Saturday Poem/Prayer – Hafiz appeared first on Anita Lustrea.

This is an audio version of Mike Murphy‘s Friday rumblings. This is a regular post on Facebook that I’ve turned into a podcast. I decided Mike’s words needed a wider audience. You may agree or disagree with what he says, but there is certainly much food for thought contained here. You can friend Mike on Facebook for the printed version or read it below.

Rumblings. 6.16.23 

1.  The Church in Sardis is mentioned in Revelations 3. The text reads in part: “I know your deeds; you had a reputation of being alive, but you are dead. Wake up…restore what little remains…go back to what you heard and believed…repent and turn to me again …” 

Sardinians had a story of God worth telling. Over time, they began telling a story about cutting God loose instead of walking with Him. God, always grace filled, implores them to choose life and gives them a blueprint to do so. How many followed that blueprint? We don’t know. What we do know is that Sardis is cited in scripture as being warned about their drift away from God and into spiritual indifference.  

Each of us has a story to tell. My bet is that many of us know what it’s like to feel spiritually alive and then for one reason or another  begin to grow apathetic towards the things of God. The Lord, ever faithful, implores us to come back home. 

Not everyone listens. Some hear but just say no. 

2. In 2017 then 

Nebraska Republican Senator Ben Sasse  said in frustration: “It feels like this party I’m a member of, has gone post-Constitutional.”

Kind of prophetic, huh?

3. This is my riff off of an old Chuck Swindoll story.

The littlest angel asked Jesus: “What’s your plan for carrying on your work?” 

Jesus smiled, in that way he does, and brought her to the edge of a cloud. From that vantage point you can see all of human history. You maybe didn’t know that but I swear it’s true.

Jesus pointed down and asked the little angel about what she was seeing. She replied “I see a bunch of people reading something.” Jesus said, “They’re reading Mike’s Rumblings.” The angel questioned Him saying “But I asked you about the plan to carry on your work.” Jesus chuckled. “Those people and many other ordinary folks are my plan.” The angel earnestly said: “What if your plan doesn’t work?” Jesus simply said: “It’s got to. It’s the only plan I’ve got.” 

We are God’s plan. Let that sink in.

4. “Who am I really

A beloved child of God

And God is well pleased” ~ Anita Lustrea

5. As a general rule, you don’t get indicted if there is no evidentiary proof of criminal wrongdoing. And when a former president is indicted on federal charges (the one and only one), you can pretty much bet the bank that every ‘i’ is being dotted and every ‘t’ crossed. So, all the right wing commentators and politicians crying ‘foul’ and/or bellowing “what about Biden and Hillary” are beating the wrong drum. They’re trying to distract us because they know many citizens are easily distracted and as part of the distraction, they’re throwing in threats of violence.  Lucky us. 

Instead of diverting attention away from Trump they should be paying attention to exactly what he did and the cavalier way he went about doing it. And they should be reminded that, if he would have just returned the materials, instead of lying and then moving   and trying to hide them, he wouldn’t be in the severe legal jeopardy he finds himself in.

These same loyalists are casting aspersions upon Special Counsel Jack Smith and his team who are only guilty of working very hard and honoring their oath of office, two things Trump had a very difficult time doing. 

6. Is there such a thing as an essential faith practice? I once asked this question to my Franciscan Friar spiritual director. He said: “Be present to the Presence of God in the present moment.”

Thomas Merton advises: “You do not need to know precisely what is happening, or exactly where it is all going. What you need is to recognize the possibilities and challenges offered by the present moment  and to embrace them with courage, faith, and hope.” ~ Thomas Merton

7. Politicians all have a stump speech. They give it at most every stop. Reporters can practically recite it word for word. 

I think Jesus had a stump speech. It was the Sermon on the Mount. I wonder how many times he gave it? My guess is he gave it every chance he could. It was the essence of everything he wanted humankind to know.

8.  The question before the American church is this: Will Jesus be lifted up or will it be MAGA, with its Christian nationalism agenda? 

Who is going to be brave enough to put this question on the table for their church staff and board to ponder and debate? I think it’s a question for all churches to deal with, liberal or conservative. However, to dare ask it opens up a can of worms. 

Spend some time with it yourself but be aware that it is a far more challenging and nuanced question than it appears to be at first glance. 

9. Did you know that at least 104 restrictive voting laws have passed in 33 mostly GOP-controlled states since the 2020 election? 

So when the Supreme Court last week struck down Alabama’s redistricting map that was constructed to disenfranchise Black people and to insure that every district leaned heavily to the political right, my mouth dropped open and then I silently cheered. I hope you did too. Cuz there’s a good possibility that more of the 104 restrictive voting laws will be challenged. 

I’m praying that not only will they be challenged but that they will be struck down. 

10. I remember hearing a story about two towns,in big snow country, that were connected by a 15 mile narrow, dirt road, Every spring, as the  snow melted and the road became increasingly muddy, each town put a sign up that simply said: “Choose your rut carefully. You’re going to be in it for awhile.”

Apply where and when necessary. 

The post Mike’s Rumblings – 06-16-23 appeared first on Anita Lustrea.

This is a weekly release of the spiritual practice Lectio Divina. I hope you’ll listen and ponder the scripture passage offered and let me know your thoughts. My email address is [email protected]. Also, feel free to share this podcast on your social media or tell a friend about it. 

If you’d like to support this podcast you can do so through a gift to PayPal using the email address [email protected].

If you enjoy the beautiful guitar music, you can learn more about Steve Wick and how to purchase his music on his website.

The post Lectio Divina 56 – Acts 2:38-41 appeared first on Anita Lustrea.

Welcome to a new feature called Saturday poem or prayer. Maybe some word or phrase will stick with you. Maybe it will bring you to life after a hard week. Give this short podcast a try. It’s only a couple of minutes and who knows what morsel will give you some fuel for your day!

The post Saturday Poem/Prayer – Francis Dorff, O. Praem. appeared first on Anita Lustrea.

This is an audio version of Mike Murphy‘s Friday rumblings. This is a regular post on Facebook that I’ve turned into a podcast. I decided Mike’s words needed a wider audience. You may agree or disagree with what he says, but there is certainly much food for thought contained here. You can friend Mike on Facebook for the printed version or read it below

Rumblings. 6.9.23 

1. “Until a drag queen walks into a school and beats eight kids to death with a copy of “To Kill A Mockingbird’’, I think you’re focusing on the wrong s#@t.” ~ Wanda  Sykes    

Sometimes in life, it pays to focus on what’s really important and to hold loosely to what’s not. If we don’t have that kind of focus we’ll end up acting like fools, majoring in the minors, making mountains out of molehills and then patting ourselves on the back for being so big and strong. “Stupid is as stupid does” the philosopher Forrest Gump reminded us. There’s a whole lot of stupid going on these days. But we can choose to stand against all the nonsense. We can do that, right?

2. “Jesus seemed to have been less distressed by faux pas born of benevolence than by errors arising from legalism.” ~ Brennan Manning

Translated that means Jesus didn’t sweat the small things such as the tiny stumbles of well meaning people. He also wasn’t a fan of the mean spirited legalists who tried to make something alarming out of nothing.

3.  My take is that the ban books movement is a quasi political/religious crusade driven by people who want to save the world from any idea that’s contrary to their own. 

It took a bit of time but folks on the ‘other side’ are fighting back.

The headline in the Washington Post read: “Protester opposed to book bans gets Bible pulled from some Utah schools.” 

The story is that “The Bible has been removed from libraries in a Utah school district after being challenged by a person making a jab at book bans. 

After a state law allowing school districts to pull “pornographic or indecent” books from schools was passed last year, someone in the Davis School District submitted a complaint about the King James Bible, arguing the text was “pornographic by our new definition.”

A school district committee determined that the Bible was not age-appropriate for elementary and middle-schoolers, though it ruled that the text does not contain the type of “sensitive material” the law seeks to keep out of schools.” 

I was wondering when an astute group of protestors would hand the conundrum of ‘the Bible’ to book banners. After all, they’re saying, the Bible is filled with all kinds of gritty material. There are stories of adultery, murder, genocide, deceit, larcency, rape, betrayal, and conquest. Which of these are appropriate for young minds?

I understand completely what they are doing. I doubt they’re anti-Bible, just using it to force a necessary debate and to let the bullies know that they have a foe. My guess is that this is but skirmish #1. 

4. Various astute authors  suggested that  growing old gracefully requires us to make practices of faith such as  prayer, silence, solitude, meditation, sacred readings, sacrament, and community the essential habits of of the latter stages of our life. 

There is a spiritual dimension to aging that is oftentimes neglected. Those who attend to their souls in the last years of  their life seem to grow into what it means to be an ‘elder’.  

5. “The world we’ve built using technology is less and less good for the most important thing about us, which is our design for love. From the moment we come into the world, what we are most looking for, most in need of, most designed to learn to give and receive from others, is love — intimate, profound, mutual relationships of giving and receiving, even at great cost to ourselves. That is truly what love is. In the psychiatrist Curt Thompson’s beautiful phrase, we’re all “looking for someone looking for us.” None of us were born looking for a screen. We were all born looking for a face.”  Andy Crouch in a Tish Harrison Warren NY Times Opinion piece.

Yes. Not a screen but a face. 

6. “I will never surrender to the woke mob.” ~ Florida’s Governor 

I wrote to him saying this:

Dear Guv: 

Just chill a bit dude. 

Where’s all this anger coming from? Who wounded you so deeply? What could happen if you quit calling people names and initiated dialogue with your self proclaimed enemies? I bet you’d learn a few useful things. 

My guess is that all this sounds scary to you. It offends the macho facade your false self has created for you. Any softening would force you to look at who you really are. My hunch is that you’d like the person God intends you to be a lot more than the man you currently see in the mirror.

By the way, that mob you so despise is populated by helpers, teachers, nurses, ministers, priests, rabbis, imams, moms and dads, firefighters, lawn care people, and bartenders. They’re just regular folks, trying to do what’s right and good, and who don’t need your derision. 

In the meantime awakened voters aren’t going away. They’re already mobilizing to make your next campaign a bumpy ride. 

P.S. Playing ‘gotcha’ games with refugees isn’t a good look. It’s mean spirited. Not a good look at all. 

7. When we meet the Creator and His Son and the Holy Spirit, we will know it’s ‘real’ especially when our posture towards money, success, relationships. and power begin to change. And if nothing changes, chances are that spiritual encounter wasn’t all that real. 

8. A commercial. 

As many of you know, I am a trained Spiritual Director. It is one of the deep joys in my life to walk alongside men and women who need someone to help them care for their souls. I go to a Spiritual Director and that monthly time is helpful to me. In many respects, as Richard Rohr suggests, we are all “awkward stewards of our own soul” and most of us need a bit of help sorting things out. With all that said I have room for two or three more directees. Message me if you’re interested and we’ll set a time to talk it through. My wife Anita also has an opening or two so if you want a spiritual director and prefer a female let me know and I’ll connect you.  

I’m also considering doing a couple of  ‘group’ spiritual direction sessions a month. Group direction is a way of listening to and reflecting with a community of fellow seekers on our encounters with God in everyday life.

If interested, or have questions about this let me know.

9. “Most young adults I know aren’t looking for a religion that answers all of their questions, but rather a community of faith in which they feel safe to ask them.” ~ Rachel Held Evans

Actually, I think this is true for all of us who need to ask questions. We’re after a safe place and a community of faith willing to grapple with the answer to questions that rock the boat a bit

10. “I’m not interested in whether you’ve stood 

with the great; 

I’m interested in whether 

you’ve sat 

with the broken.” ~ Sue FitzMaurice

Maybe ‘having sat with the broken’ is the ultimate litmus test for political candidates. And us. 

The post Mike’s Rumblings – 06-09-23 appeared first on Anita Lustrea.

This is a weekly release of the spiritual practice Lectio Divina. I hope you’ll listen and ponder the scripture passage offered and let me know your thoughts. My email address is [email protected]. Also, feel free to share this podcast on your social media or tell a friend about it. 

If you’d like to support this podcast you can do so through a gift to PayPal using the email address [email protected].

If you enjoy the beautiful guitar music, you can learn more about Steve Wick and how to purchase his music on his website.

The post Lectio Divina 55 – Acts 2:29-36 appeared first on Anita Lustrea.

I’m a spiritual director and have the joy of beginning sessions with quotes or poems or prayers and I thought I’d start sharing them with you hoping it will give you a morsel to chew on during your day! This is called Morning Prayer by Padraig O’Tuama.

The post Saturday Poem/Prayer Padraig O’Tuama appeared first on Anita Lustrea.