Working From Our Innerselves

What kind of spiritual environment were you born into?

Working From Our Innerselves

Matthew 7:21-29 Common English Bible (CEB)

Entrance requirements

²¹ “Not everybody who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will get into the kingdom of heaven. Only those who do the will of my Father who is in heaven will enter. ²² On the Judgment Day, many people will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name and expel demons in your name and do lots of miracles in your name?’ ²³ Then I’ll tell them, ‘I’ve never known you. Get away from me, you people who do wrong.’

Two foundations

²⁴ “Everybody who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise builder who built a house on bedrock. ²⁵  The rain fell, the floods came, and the wind blew and beat against that house. It didn’t fall because it was firmly set on bedrock. ²⁶  But everybody who hears these words of mine and doesn’t put them into practice will be like a fool who built a house on sand. ²⁷  The rain fell, the floods came, and the wind blew and beat against that house. It fell and was completely destroyed.”

Crowd’s response

²⁸ When Jesus finished these words, the crowds were amazed at his teaching ²⁹ because he was teaching them like someone with authority and not like their legal experts.

Common English Bible (CEB)Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible

This is the grand finale of the Sermon on the Mount, a strong reminder is that what counts is our inner life.

Today I received a card and donation from an old friend of mine in Missouri. Her children and I were friends when we were growing up, and I spent a lot of time at their house, and she and her husband were there for me in so many times. She is Southern Baptist, and her late husband was a Deacon. He was a lawyer, whom I went to when I sued the church. Joe asked me how I was making money, and I told him honestly as a prostitute, and he laughed and said, “Well I always new you were creative.”

They are stanch Southern Baptists, but at the heart of their theology is that of loving one’s neighbor.  They hold the same views of their denomination on being gay, women’s ordination, and so on, but in their mind, they are called to give love without judgment, leaving the rest in the hands of God. Hertha has followed me, donated to our ministry, and has been there when I needed a friend, without judgment.

This comes from a strong inner relationship with Jesus of Nazareth. A relationship out of which pours love without judgment. It comes from within, for that is where the Spirit dwells and guides us.

In the struggles of our society, especially around homeless, immigration, and all the social issues that effect all of us, especially the poorest of the poor, we need to listen, and let the Spirit lead us in walking among our brothers and sisters in the way of love, respect, and non-judgment, and working together to meet each other in the middle.

David Paul Bible was executed in Texas last night for rape and murder  in 1986. He was pushed in a wheel chair for his execution.

Meeting in the middle means to see all sides, and for me personally, that means that execution is wrong. To take a life, diminishes the universe.

So remember David Paul and his victims in your prayers, and reflect upon, what life means to you.

Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!

Fr. River Damien Sims, D.Min.

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA 94164

http://www.temenos.org

415-305-2124

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Treat People As You Want to Be Treated!

TREAT PEOPLE AS YOU WANT TO BE TREATED!

Matthew 7: 12

Today I was reading of the 1980 Presidential Debate where candidates of the same party reflected: “Illegal Immigrants are my neighbors, we must not be harmful to them or their children but treat them with respects. Their children must be educated with our children. .and the other: “Let them come and work and they can pay taxes until they go back, they are our neighbors,” the first from George Bush, the second from Ronald Reagon.

They both essentially confirmed today‘s Gospel, “Therefore you should treat people in the same way that you want people to treat you.” And the passage which says, “Render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s and unto God what is God’s.” We should not have borders.

The reality is until we look at ourselves and come to terms with our own divisiveness, our own pettiness and being judgmental nothing will change, but become more brutal through social media without personal contact. We are brutal, hateful and mean to each other, we can not meet each other half way.

It is not about President Trump, or the Republicans, it is about us not facing ourselves, and our own issues.  Once they are gone, there will be another administration and again, as with President Obama the same thing will happen. Our society is fragmented, and the key to bringing it together is

“Therefore you should treat people in the same way that you want people to treat you. .”

Never easy, but the only way!

Fr. River Damien Sims, D.Min.

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA 94164

http://www.temenos.org

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Love After Love

LOVE AFTER LOVE

   

Yesterday was a day of celebration of equality at Pride. When you work with the people  reality of their humanity breaks through.  There is a lot of anger and fear present.

One gentleman who last year talked to me about the neglect of seniors at Pride, and I filed his comments. Nothing was done because the reality is Pride is a celebration, and the reality is that it is geared toward the younger crowd, as are all large parties are.

]The Pride Committee does an excellent job, with what they have. This year he was antagonistic, threatening, made up stories about my volunteers, and called the police on me. It was painful, and in looking at him I saw how he must feel, he does not feel valued, feel worth anything. Yet that is no excuse for abuse, period. When my time comes I hope  I can accept it more graciously (as I always do, sarcastic!)

There was a younger man in his twenties who wanted in our area and I had to have him removed because he was not a senior or disabled. He stared at me for several hours, and than as I was moving through the crowd later, bounced in my face and hit me in the stomach saying, “you  m…f.”

There was a lot of anger in the crowd, and I thought about the Scripture, “Christ died for us while we were yet sinners,” the “sin” I believe he died for was that of our own inhumanity to each other in our biases, prejudices, our hatreds, our need to be number one.

Our salvation is about creating us into human beings who care and love each other, meet each other half way, and share. In the book of Acts we have the early church sharing of their belongings. That is what Jesus is all about.

The poem below shares what I believe the Scripture “Christ died for us when we were yet sinners” is describing. Christ calls us to look at the word “afford,” and what a friend told me early in my professional life: “You can afford to let go,” or “You can afford to give it sometime.” or “You can afford to try that out and see what happens”.

We can let our own judgments go and not be afraid to sit with others, and to see ourselves for who we are, faulty human beings on the same journey, and when we look at ourselves to become comfortable with ourselves and thus become comfortable with everyone. We are teachers of each other. I can afford to hear them, step back, and consider the merit of their judgments, I may even end up thanking them.

Love After Love

“The day will come, the time will come when with elation you will greet yourself arriving at your own door

and each will smile at each other’s welcome saying sit here, eat you will love again the stranger who was yourself.

Give wine, give bread, give back your heart to yourself, to the stranger who has loved you all your life who you ignored for another who know you by heart.

Take down the love letters from the bookshelf, the photographs, the desperate notes feel your own image in the mirror, see it.”

Feast on your life.

Derek Walcott

Fr. River Damien Sims, D.Min.

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA 94164

http://www.temenos.org

415-305-2124

A Rainbow of Colors

A Rainbow of Colors

Matthew 6:19-23

Pride begins tomorrow.  There will be partying, speeches, drinking, and people going wild. Pride is  a time of the celebration of equality, and it celebrates not just LGBTQ equality but the equality of all people.

We will have four  high school students, one new graduate from high school, and one college student helping us in our booth.  They are all straight, and yet sexual orientation, color, economic status, means nothing to them, they see all as equal. Three have parents from Central American countries. Their high school is a public school in Terra Linda that is very diverse.  Last year we had three one from Texas, one from Marin, another who had transitioned to a man. We have a prism of the rainbow.

Youth in the Haight very seldom mention any thing about sexual orientation. We have had reporters wanting to do stories on “gay” youth, and we take them to the Haight and very seldom does anyone identify as LGBTQ. In an environment where there is openness, and diversity, youth see sexual orientation as just a way of life. Adults from age 30 on up seem to focus on labeling.

Across the country in  homophobic and less diverse environments, prejudice rages.  Pride stands as a symbol of hope to the places of prejudice. 

We focus on our political leaders making the changes, but the changes that we seek for greater equality, come from the grass roots, comes from us.  Social service agencies are overwhelmed–we need to get in and help them; we need to protest and let our voice be heard; rather than complaining on social media, tearing every politician a part we need to face the pain in our society and do something about it.

Our Scripture today calls us from moving away our capitalism, our greed, to sharing our wealth so that all will be provided for.

The Rainbow Flag represents the colors of the rain bow where all of us are a prism of colors and beauty shines through.  We are a prism of equality.

Fr.  River Damien Sims, D.Min.

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA 94164

http://www.temenos.org

415-305-2124

LGBTQ Youth and Spirituality

(Matthew Shepherd)

LGBTQ YOUNG ADULTS AND SPIRITUALITY

“Myth Brings Understanding and Meaning to Our humanity” (Unknown)

Matthew 5:43-48

Last Thursday night at the Terra Linda High School graduation, a young lady, gave an amazing speech on diversity. She began with a period of silent meditation, for those who have died from racism, sexism, and LGBTQ.  

Each day across this country, and in our state we find LGBTQ young adults being persecuted, killed, and traumatized because of their sexual orientation. This week we celebrate Pride, a time of recognition that being LGBTQ  is a part of our diversity as human beings.

As we look around San Francisco we see churches displaying the Rainbow Flag, but inside there are few young LGBTQ young people and there are reasons:

First our Scriptures, written two thousand years ago, and the theology surrounding them, have been interpreted from a homophobic view point. That view point has permeated Christianity for over a thousand years. It is the prime interpretation in our society now. And will continue to be.

Secondly, the mainline churches have been fighting over LGBTQ rights, and that fight has and is bloody. Our former denomination is in a bloody fight as of now, and it will continue. The ideas, the statements, and the theology that comes out of this is death dealing to LGBTQ  young people.

Thirdly, in those welcoming congregations, LGBTQ youth do not feel welcome. They come into an environment in which sexuality is talked about around primary traditional  lines, where diversity in the various expressions of sexuality–leather, wicca, dual relationships,  etc. are seen as contrary to normalcy. We had a holy union service for a three women, and the words said to us by clergy in several mainline denominations are not repeatable. Congregations are not open to the diverse ways of relating that has come out of the LGBTQ experience, and out of the contemporary journey.

Fourthly LGBTQ youth do not feel welcome because they often feel treated as “the other”. Adults are afraid to work with youth, they are afraid to share their lives, to walk with them as friends, to share their journey. Youth feel set aside. The programs are very superficial, never deal with the real issues of their lives, but are very bland.  It is understandable that adults are afraid because of the fear around being accused of abuse, but the reality is that as Christians we are called to enter into relationships, we are called to walk on the edge. Life is messy, and dangerous.

Fifthly, the organized church as we know it has become less important as a social gathering place. Buildings become empty.  In Amsterdam the great cathedrals are museums, bars, and shops.

Young people find interaction  on social networks, in social groups outside the church, where they can interact without the constraint, of a theology that is narrow and judgmental, and socially destructive.

“Myth Brings Understanding and Meaning to Our humanity” (Unknown). In seminary we had a course entitled: “The Spirituality of Myth,” and it was the course that saved our life for it brought us into seeing Scripture as myth, and not as a literal, historical translation. The myth of Creation, the Exodus, of the Christ, Crucifixion, Resurrection, and Ascension.  It is a story of God’s love for humanity, a love so intense that Jesus gave his life in order that we might have new possibilities in that love as we live each day of our lives.  It is a story that brings God’ s love in many faces–all expressions of God in life. All who love people, universally, are the expression of that God. Love is the expression.

We have traditional Christians who often want to attend “our mass” in the Park, and we give a watered down excuse. Our “mass” is simply sitting around and letting people talk about their lives. Sharing, and talking. These youth have been hurt so much by the traditional Church and Christians who come to the Park trying to save their souls with a homophobic, theology of  “come to Jesus” and all will be well, as they starve, fight for their very existence.

Many have PTSD from violence, abuse, homophobic backgrounds. They are judged for their life styles, for their reasons for being on the street, and have been crucified by the traditional church in so many ways.

People want answers, the only answer is that in choosing Jesus our lives can be transformed into moving away from homophobia, allowing ourselves to enter into the lives of young people, in such a way we can walk with them on equal ground, and listen in their pain. We cease becoming the “other”. We meet them where they are expecting nothing in return. We move from our places of comfort into their world. We share of what we have, without expectation of return. Our biases, prejudices, disappear and we walk in the myth of Jesus, who loves all.

We are called to live in love–as along as all we do rings out in the words of Jesus–“Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you”, that is what matters.

For us ‘the church” are people of all beliefs, or no belief, people of any race, creed, sexual orientation and gender,  who give of themselves to others, who take chances to make life better, who walk with people as equals. The Church are those who live out the life of love to everyone. Our judgments we put aside, and walk in giving, caring, and listening.

This Pride we look at our life and we are reminded of the words of Elizabeth Gilbert: “You can measure your worth by your dedication to your path, not by your successes or failures.”

Our path is that of Pride, diversity, loving our neighbor as ourselves, and loving each other as equals. We invite you to move out in Pride.

Fr. River Damien Sims, D.Min.

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA. 94164

http://www.temenos.org

415-305-2124

We still need volunteers for our Accessibility Booth at Pride

 

No One Notices

No One Notices

Matthew 5:13-16

“Unfortunately,  no one notices your tears.

No one notices your sadness.

No one notices your pain.

But everyone notices your mistakes.”

This quote is one of the truest quotes I have found in a long time. It says it like it is. In the last few months people have never noticed my tears, pain but they notice my mistakes, and I make a hundred mistakes to my one good thing.  I have hundreds, if not thousands I am a friend to, but have probably one or two if any, that I see as my friend.

There is a quote I picked up in New Orleans that says: “A friend is one who sees through your act and enjoys the show,” and few people see through my act. They run. To enjoy the show is to see a person very wounded, very vulnerable, and who sees in that vulnerability and woundedness the goodness, the softness, and the giving. To see them as a person who makes a hell of a lot of mistakes, but who cares for you regardless.

It is easier to see people’s faults and mistakes because we do not have to look at our own, and it easier to not see their vulnerability since it would make us look at our own. I listened to a homeless person this morning crying in emotional pain, and I see myself in that person, it is not easy, but is how we show our humanness.

The “ism’s we use: ageism, sexism, racism, etc. are a means of categorizing people. it puts them down, and is a way of control and manipulation. They are a means of showing a person as faulty.  When someone tells me I am “not getting any younger” in trying to help me, that ends any chance of them helping me. I have interviewed people and they have used an “ism’ and that ends the interview.   That is ageism period. When someone makes critical remarks of the age of the friends who have helped me more than anyone, I nail them to the wall, that is ageism. Using “ism’s” is a way of finding fault with people, and making them easier to understand and handle. It is a put down, it is wrong.

My vulnerability is all over the place right now. I am unsure of myself, my work, feel like I hurt my friends, I feel like I have no friends most of the time,  I think of suicide, and running away, and I hear about my mistakes. I had to rearrange my funeral service because a person in charge of it felt it was not “appropriate” to have certain people in it and my liturgy was not formal enough. It showed my lack of formality. Among other criticisms. I thought  you  must want me dead, and I also thought I can not do anything right. I am fu’k up even with my own service.

One of my best friends told his mom that “River never judges me,” and frankly that is the truth. I have never judged him,  I see his goodness, his sweetness, and the good he does and is capable of. I will never judge him. There will be plenty of people who will judge, not me.

“Unfortunately,  no one notices your tears.

No one notices your sadness.

No one notices your pain.

But everyone notices your mistakes.”

Fr. River Damien Sims, D.Min.

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA 94164

http://www.temenos.org

 

For Everything There Is A Time!

 

Ecclesiastes 3:1-11 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

Everything Has Its Time

“3 For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:

² a time to be born, and a time to die;
a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted;
³ a time to kill, and a time to heal;
a time to break down, and a time to build up;
⁴ a time to weep, and a time to laugh;
a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
⁵ a time to throw away stones, and a time to gather stones together;
a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
⁶ a time to seek, and a time to lose;
a time to keep, and a time to throw away;
⁷ a time to tear, and a time to sew;
a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
⁸ a time to love, and a time to hate;
a time for war, and a time for peace.

The God-Given Task

⁹ What gain have the workers from their toil? ¹⁰ I have seen the business that God has given to everyone to be busy with. ¹¹ He has made everything suitable for its time; moreover he has put a sense of past and future into their minds, yet they cannot find out what God has done from the beginning to the end. “

New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright © 1989 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

There is a time and place for everything in life.We are born, we live, we grow up screaming and protesting, and we scream and protest all of our life looking for meaning and purpose and a place to be and live in comfort.

In looking at our own life we have lived the life our parents dreamed of, but just in a different way. They raised us to go to college, to graduate school, and be a professional, and that is what we have done and am. Life has thrown it’s curves, and we have simply walked around them  and frankly have done what our parents would have wanted. My parents were proud of our  call to ministry it was a dream come true to have a son serve the church, and dreamed of us serving in a large church and even be a bishop,  but would have been just as proud of the work we do now, serving in the greater parish of the streets, and being a bishop on the margins.  Life sends its curves, we adjust, we grow or we wither an die. From grapefruit we make orange juice. Our parents were good parents who believed in us and raised us to live our dream.

People look at the way we live and either joke about it or praise our  choice of simplicity, and our  sacrifice. The truth is our parents lived in a small house, drove used cars, gave most of their money away, traveled, and enjoyed life–we came by that from them. It is our call, but a call that we inherited. Like them when we travel we stay in good motels and hotels, eat at great restaurants, and have fun, but live simply and give most of our earnings away. We have had the best medical treatment that money can buy in the past months. Even the time we were  on the street we made good money, (illegally), and lived well. Over all we have lived a productive life–if you see living as a capitalist as productive.

In the past months as we have seen homelessness increase–with no real help–have met doctors, lawyers, all kinds of professionals, who are homeless because of mental illness, and so on, and see so many who are where they are because of an economy that rewards people  who play the corporate game, and shuns people who do not fit into the places they are expected to, and those who have suffered abuse from poverty, drug use, and  we have come to understand the words of Jesus throughout the Gospel which is proclaimed to the disenfranchised, and while we find hope in those words, also live in a sense of despair. They do not bear fruit, people suffer, live in poverty, mental illness, on the streets. Sometimes those words  seem like the “opium of the masses.” Believing that ultimately the reign of God will be fulfilled, seems really like living a lie, frankly it seems like bull-sh’t.  It is kind of hard to look to fulfillment in the reign of God when that seems endless. People suffer, and hurt now.

In the last year we have suffered a sense of despair in people. Social media brings out the worst, the racism, the disconnected, the homophobia, the lack of being connected. and the pain and futility of loneliness. There is a lack of being connective, and we see that in those who have money, and power. We hear over and over from good people they have few real friends, while they have money, a great place to live, but it gives no meaning, no purpose, they remain empty. We see people with everything materially commit suicide. It is real despair, real pain and suffering from not having friends who care, and can  talk to. Not having meaning in life.

Dom Augustine Guillerand once wrote: “God will know how to draw glory even from our faults. Not to be downcast after committing a fault is one of the marks of true sanctity.”

We hope this is true, because we are judged by our  faults, little things, without even talking to us. It is endless.
We are sent text messages, Face book messages, and so on, and am reprimanded, and put down, when the majority of the time we are misread, or people do not know the context. This is endless some days, to the point we do not look at emails, or read texts.

When we talk to someone verbally context and understanding comes some much easier, we get bits and pieces by email and texts. One of our friends has told us that he has learned that one ‘fault” does away with all the good, and in truth it does. We know nothing about redemption.  There is an “I funny” comic that says: “Forgiveness is like tofu,” and it is. We see forgiveness as weakness, we demand perfection out of everyone, and when that fails we turn away people and move on failing to look at the log  in our own eye as we see the spot in our neighbor’s eye.

As Jesus taught us forgiveness is the key to being human, to opening our hearts to one another, to caring for one another, and providing for one another. Without forgiveness we are back to our early evolutionary stages.

We  have people on death row, serving life sentences, and shorter sentences, and people who have hurt others deeply, that we share the Guillerand quote with, for in all of our faults there is hope as we can  turn towards good and care for others. It may take years, but there is the hope of redemption and new life.

There is always hope.  We believe that with all of our heart–otherwise we would not say it, and we take the crap and hatred for saying it.

Personally we are in the  twilight zone. We have done our best, and the question is what else is there? Why keep on trying?   Why keep on struggling?

And the words of I Corinthians sum up what holds us at the moment, and will hold us  into eternity:

^8″ Love never ends. But as for prophecies, they will come to an end; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will come to an end. ⁹ For we know only in part, and we prophesy only in part; ¹⁰ but when the complete comes, the partial will come to an end. ¹¹ When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child; when I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways. ¹² For now we see in a mirror, dimly,^[b] but then we will see face to face. Now I know only in part; then I will know fully, even as I have been fully known. ¹³ And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love.”

Fr.River Damien Sims, D.Min.

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA 94164

http://www.temenos.org

Compasssion

COMPASSION/GIVING/CARING/LOVING OUR NEIGHBOR

Mark 3:20-35

There has been a video on Facebook of a really young boy, 10 or 11,  who supposedly was trying to break into  a car being confronted by a large man, who is scary even for me. The man is calling the police, who apparently never came, and the young boy is smarting off to him and pushes him the man knocks him down. The responses don not reflect the attitude of an enlightened society:

1. “Funny how River Sims is a big Catholic one of the cruelest of religions i;n the history of the world for centuries.”

River Sims follows Jesus of Nazareth the one who calls us to love our neighbor as ourselves and welcomes little children unto him, the  church is a human institution, created by humans.

2. “I would B slap the little kid”.

3. “River Sims take off the rose colored glasses, children like that grow into dangerous adults. I am going to guess that by the time he is 15 he will be in juvie.”

Youth, any of us, become who we see they are. Show love, equality, and see where that goes, it works.

4. “The kid was punching him first.”

5. “Amazing that some larger person let him get that far.”

Bishop William Alexander once commented:  “If you are truly catholic, as Christ himself is catholic then we must have a church broad enough to embrace within its communion every living creature.”

Jesus was called “mad” today because he called people to break out of their cultural labels and tribes.  The spirituality of Jesus embraces everyone in the spirit of love.

It is in that spirit that we should look at this young boy, and see him for who he is: first of all he is young boy, whose mind is not fully developed and will not be for many years, and sees the world from a black and white perspective and not seeing the wrong in what he is doing, but as something in which he is having fun. Youth often see things in the moment, and as a means of having fun, and  they have no conception of the consequences. Teenage drivers drive fast, they find so much fun in that–but no sense of the possible consequences, their minds are not there yet.

Secondly, for an adult to hit a young boy is abuse, regardless of the circumstances, pure, and unadulterated abuse.

Secondly, to push any one in a corner is setting yourself up for difficulty.  Friends do that to me and they find I become very difficult.

Thirdly, rather than meet the young man from your level of power, meet him on his own, talk to him, and in the calmness more will be accomplished. You will come to see exactly what he is a boy.

Fourthly, our remarks reflect our own inner turmoil, our own inner difficulties, when we point one finger we are pointing four at ourselves, we need to look at ourselves.

Fifthly our society has broken down in communication, we use Facebook and social media to express ourselves rather than talking to one another. Our youth have little contact on one on one any more, it is all social media, we need to have contact, to show love, to spend time with each other, provide care, compassion, and see the society that develops.

People tell us  that the internet shows our true nature, and that we will always respond with our animal instinct. But I believe that in living in Jesus of Nazareth our lives can be transformed into divine love. Yesterday was the
Feast of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and to one of her titles I would add “Comforter to those who love until their heart breaks.”

The Velveteen Rabbit is a book about a stuffed rabbit who becomes real through being worn out by human suffering and care.  Let us seek to be the Velveteen Rabbit, let us wear our hearts our without judgment, walking with people where they are.

I  work with a young man.who was  16,  when he   committed murder. He  is now 33. One night he knocked me down in the a Park in while I was doing outreach, and several hours later murdered a gay man.  I advocated for him at his trial, and have worked with him through the years. It took him years to see what he has done was wrong, and part of that is that his mind was still developing, and of the abuse that he had been through as a young male. J has come to grasped the catastrophe of the murder, he is working through it, and is coming out a guy who has maturity. Nothing is black and white.

Maturity is looking at yourself, and coming to terms with your own wrongs, and seeking redemption. We all have that capability if we are given the grace to do it. Every one deserves a chance.

Let us look around us and hear Jesus say: “Here are my mother and my brothers. For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother,” and that is to “Love  your neighbor as yourself.” Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!

Fr. River Damien Sims, D.Min.

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA 94164

http://www.temenos.org

Self-Piercing Love

Self-Piercing Love

Ephesians 3:8-19, John 19:33-37

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus

Today is the Feast of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus and what we believe  this means is that the water and blood flowing from the side of Jesus is the union of divine and human love.  And in that union human love becomes divine when we give it without reservation, without judgment, and with complete and utter compassion as we become one with those we love.

In six days there will be a graduation in Marin. It is bitter-sweet as we find gifts, wrap them and prepare to give them on that day. It is bitter-sweet because one of the graduates demonstrated, and continues to demonstrate to me the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, in his love towards  us in the past months of pain, and struggle, and the others have in their own way. They are leaving, things will change, but their love will remain. On my arm we have a tattoo with a sword, two names, under it,  and  “Homies” 2018, they have been our  homies–our two most loyal and best friends,  and have been the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus to me. we  want to remember them, as they fade in to the winds of time.

When we  first came to San Francisco someone suggested we have tattooed on our  body the names of the youth we have had funerals for–and if we had done that our  body would be covered. We remember the thousands, one by one, our  heart bleeds for them, and there are nights their faces come to us. Last night a nineteen year old died from a stabbing, we are working with his parents today, and we are crying, and hurting, but this is what the Sacred Heart of Jesus means==to enter into the lives of others as Jesus did.

We can never avoid suffering, there is so much suffering on Facebook, so much anger, from that suffer, and when we enter into that suffering with the divine love of Jesus, with the Sacred Heart of Jesus, their is still pain, but you find much joy.

Carlo Carretto in I, Francis, describes in his words of St. Francis, The Sacred Heart of Jesus:

“Only naked human beings, as naked as possible, can escape the ravages of time, and are able to place themselves before the nakedness of the Gospel, and make it their own.”

The “nakedness of the Gospel” is to love God with all of our heart, mind and soul, and our neighbor as ourselves,” to love with the love of Jesus who laid down his life for people, and continues to suffer with us. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!

Fr. River Damien Sims, D.Min.

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA 94164

http://www.temenos.org

 

God and Neighbor

God and Neighbor Time

Mark 12:28-34

Today, I think of Sean, who volunteered once a week during his senior year in high school. He has just gotten his first job, and has started a non-profit named: “Give A Lunch: Make A Friend.” He simply makes two lunches away and gives one away every day, not to a stranger, but to a person–a neighbor–he encounters and calls by name. Sean encourages every one he knows to do the same.

If we simply look, listen, and sit without judgment we will come to face with ourselves in each person. In each hand that I hold, that suffers from homelessness, depression, drug abuse, loneliness, and broken, homeless or not, I see all of us. Recently someone asked a person on the street if I was that “priest” and his reply was, “No he is one of us.” We are all the same.

In looking at ourselves in the face, the words of Carl Jung ring true:

“That I feed the hungry, that I forgive an insult, that I love my enemy in the name of Christ–all these are undoubtedly great virtues. What I do unto the least of my brethren, that I do unto Christ. But what if I should discover that the least among  them all, the poorest of the all beggars, the most impudent of all the offenders, the very enemy himself-that these within me, and that I myself stand in need of the alms of my own kindness–that I myself am the enemy who must be loved–what then?”

We need to look our selves first before we judge others, it would really make our lives and those of others different, take it from one who knows, very personally.

Fr. River Damien Sims,

P.O. Box 642656

San Francisco, CA 94164

http://www.temenos.org