The eagle eyed among you will notice that we miss out a part of the text in this reading – the lectionary appoints it for other times.Remembering back to the flow of the story – Jesus has been rejected by his own people at Nazareth, and has sent the Twelve out to be his apostles. In this passage the apostles have returned, and they’re basically exhausted, by the sounds of it. Jesus prescribes seclusion and rest, but they’re interrupted on their journey by those who had need of Jesus’ ministry. Those who came were lost – like sheep without a shepherd. So Jesus taught, and healed, and in stark contrast to the reading a couple of Sundays ago, Jesus is ‘recognised’ and miracles flow from his ministry.

In his work on the gospels, Alexander Shaia suggests that the key question posed in the Gospel of Mark is ‘how do we move through suffering’ – or ‘how do we cross the stormy sea?’. On the face of it, this reading doesn’t seem to talk much about suffering, or crossing the stormy sea.

It does, however, get right to the heart of the matter. Jesus identifies the need for rest, regeneration, healing, transformation and just plain ‘space’ in the Twelve. They’ve been out, actively ministering and teaching – and, I suspect, ‘being’. Who they are was being transformed both by the presence of Jesus with and in them, and also because of their ministry. Ministering out of Jesus’ love and presence has begun to transform them into Jesus’ love and presence, and into who each of them was meant to be. They’re each on the way of deification, as each of us is on the way.

Jesus says to the Twelve, and to each of us, “come by yourselves to a secluded place, and rest for a while.” When we unpack this we see some important things. The Twelve are still to be in community with one another – but a new sort of community. A togetherness in rest, seclusion and silence, where they will find God and one another in a new and different way. They’re to be in seclusion, away from the ministry they were performing, away from distractions and empty of the things we usually use to entertain us and keep us from encountering God and ourselves. They’re to rest for a while. Rest means that – rest. At the moment I’m in hospital, connected to a couple of IV pumps receiving chemotherapy. Part of my treatment is bed rest, because the chemotherapy is hard on the body. I don’t find hospital very restful, but there is an enforced inactivity, and narrowing down of the world which means that I conserve my strength. That isn’t, however, the rest I think that Jesus means. What he is talking about, more, is the kind of rest that reinvigorates and renews – allowing the one who receives it to go back out to minister again.

John Main (a Benedictine Monk and founder of the World Community for Christian Meditation) wrote “In order to enter into this holy and mysterious communion with the Word of God dwelling within us, we must first have the courage to become more and more silent……..a silence where we have to listen, to concentrate, to attend.” The entry into the Word of God dwelling within us speaks to the kind of life that Paul wrote about in Ephesians, which we read about last week. Christ is in us, and we are in Christ – our encounter with Christ in this way transforms us into the likeness of Christ.

In the call to enter into a deserted place, to be silent and to rest for a while, Jesus encourages the disciples to become more and more silent. Not just an external silence, but a vital and alive internal silence in which the currents of the Spirit’s movement within us can be detected, and which can point us towards change and freedom.

An important thing for us to remember is that the call to go ‘in’ is made so that we can go ‘out’ more joyfully, lovingly, and in a more Christ like way.

God is the breath of life. God is presence and he is present deep within our being, in our hearts. If only we persevere we discover that in the power of his Spirit each one of us is regenerated, renewed, recreated so that we become a new creation. “I have poured out my Spirit,” said the prophet Ezekiel. And the Spirit is the presence of power, the power of love. Meditation teaches us that this is the foundational wisdom on which to build life and true religion. What we discover is that we can only live our lives fully if we are always open to this mysterious presence of the Spirit, and always open to the presence more profoundly. That is the pilgrimage we enter upon every time we sit down to meditate. We open our minds, our hearts, our consciousness more permanently to the ultimate reality that is, that is now, that is here.

What is the basis of the Christian mystery? It is surely that the beyond is in our own midst, that absolute reality is here and now. The Christian faith teaches that by being open to the mystery of this reality we are taken out of ourselves, beyond ourselves, into the absolute mystery which is God. God is how we transcend self. We transcend all limitation by simple openness to the All who is now.

The great awakening to the mystery is the Kingdom of heaven and the Kingdom of heaven is now. It is established by Jesus and proclaimed by his own words, “The Kingdom of God is upon you. Repent and believe in the gospel.” To repent means simply to turn in the direction of God. Repenting is turning not so much away from ourselves (for that keeps us still tied to our own center) but beyond ourselves. This means not rejecting ourselves but finding our marvelous potential as we come into full harmony with God. This awareness of potential is the positive basis of Christianity and so, for a Christian, the central concern is not self, nor is it sin. The central reality is God and love and, as far as we are concerned, growth in God’s love. Growth consists both in our openness to his love for us and in the response we make by returning that love. [. . . .]

From John Main OSB, “Growing Point,” THE HEART OF CREATION, (New York (Continuum, 1998), pp. 105-107.

Coming up at the Abbey of St Barnabas at A’Beckett Park

We encourage Associates and friends to access events at the Abbey of St Barnabas at A’Beckett Park. Events coming soon include:

• Back to A’Beckett Park with Archdeacon Ted and Mrs Annabelle Gibson: 24-26 July 2012. For those who knew A’Beckett Park in the 1950s, 60s or 70s. Enjoy the peace and natural environment of the Abbey, share memories and past experiences, stay in one of the refurbished units, pray in St Barnabas Church, find out what’s planned for the next stage of development of the Abbey. Day visitors are welcome on 25 July 2012 to celebrate the dedication of 1 First Parade as Ena Shumack House.
• Men’s retreat: 3-5 August 2012. Facilitated by John Stewart.
• Fire and Creative Writing: 17-19 August 2012. Led by Philip Muston and Sue Fordham. For those interested in creative writing.
• Wind and Music: 14-16 September 2012. Led by Fay Magee and Don Saines, for those who seek expression through music.
• Earth and Art: 12-14 October 2012. Led by Pene Brook, a must for those who are interested in art and visual expression.
• Water, dance and movement: 9-11 November 2012. Led by Susanna Pain – for those who like to move and dance, reflect and take time to relax.

For more information, download the program, or contact Sue Gibson, 03 5156 6580 or info@theabbey.org.au

Support on the journey

The Anam Cara Community’s ministry is to be a support to those who are on the inner journey into God. Each person’s journey is different, and we recognise that there are some for whom the Christian tradition is difficult or not supportive. We’re committed to finding ways to hear the needs of each Associate, and support them as we can.

The Community can offer support in a number of ways: