BREAKING
OPEN THE ORDINARY
By
Sandy Prather
Take
courage, and be open to the work of the Spirit
A Jesuit priest tells the story of visiting Mother Teresa in Calcutta. As he was taking his leave, she asked him to pray for her. Honoured by the request, he assured he would be glad to, but what should he pray for? “Pray I don’t get in God’s way,” she replied.
Scripture would call it openness to the Spirit, but there is also an
old-fashioned theological term for it: “docility to the Spirit.”
While we might react negatively
to the language, the concept is valuable.
The word docile conjures up images of meekness, timidity or even of
being tamed. It’s a passive term, not attractive to those who
prefer a more robust Christianity. In reality, it is about removing
the barriers we put up in our lives. Docility to the Spirit refers to
our openness to the Spirit and our willingness to allow ourselves to
be moulded and formed. It is about giving the Spirit permission to enter
into our lives so that we might be transformed. Sadly, the reality is
we can be blind to the Spirit and block its work.
St. Paul warns us of just
such a possibility in Thessalonians. “Do not stifle the Spirit,”
(1 Th 5:19) he admonishes. Theologian Karl Rahner, in an article of
the same name, reminds us that while we cannot totally stifle the Spirit,
as individuals and as church we can kill the face of God in the world
to make enough difference that we should be concerned.
A few years ago a friend
was given a devastating diagnosis of cancer. The only possible treatment
was a dangerous, invasive surgery with an almost zero chance of success.
He was given three days to decide whether to accept the surgery or not.
After a day of deliberation, he quietly determined to himself that he
would refuse it. The day came to tell the doctors of his decision. The
Scripture reading of the day, which he prayed in his morning prayer,
happened to be from 1 Thessalonians 5. He read, “Do not stifle
the Spirit,” and it hit him like a hammer. He realized, risky
as the treatment was, he had to take it. It was, he reasoned, the only
way to give God a chance. Turning down the only possible treatment was,
in effect, stifling the Spirit. Happily, the treatment, while arduous,
was a complete success and he was given his life.
There are several attitudes
we must cultivate, Rahner suggests, if we are to be open to the Spirit.
Having the courage to take risks is one of them. Being willing to venture
is another. The Star Trek motto, “to boldly go where no other
has gone before,” is a spirited one. The Spirit, Scripture tells
us, is one of newness, inviting us to go forth in creative, life-giving
ways.
A young mom, new to the parish,
approached the parish priest one Sunday. She was interested in starting
a weekday morning Bible study group for Moms and children. The nay-saying
pastor, overworked and tired, squashed the idea in the bud. “It
won’t work. We’ve tried it before,” and the conversation
was over.
It is easy to stifle the
Spirit, to squelch the enthusiasm and life right out of people. Those
of us who have been in the field for a while have seen it too many times.
Our own attitudes shut us down: weariness, inertia and the disappointments
that lead to cynicism and apathy. Closed to the presence, the power
and the signs of the Sprit, it’s easier simply to say no.
The risk of refusing the
Spirit happens not only in ministry. We see it in relationships: the
parent who fears to try yet again to reach the alienated teenager, the
spouse reluctant to challenge their partner’s negative patterns
of interaction, the leader opposed to working collaboratively. Docility
to the Spirit means our attitude will be one of saying “yes”
when the invitations to life come along, oft times in the face of our
own hesitancy.
It also means having an attitude
of being open to the unexpected, and to finding the Spirit in unexpected
places. The Spirit is like the wind — it blows where it will.
We think we know the places where the Spirit is, but just as Jesus went
out everywhere, amongst all the people, so does the Spirit. No one person
and no one institution has a lock on the Spirit. The Spirit is in our
church and outside it, within the Catholic hierarchy and within the
people in the pews, in our culture and in all other cultures. There
is no limit to where the Spirit can go.
Our attitude then, if we
are not to stifle the Spirit, is to accept Spirit and co-operate wherever
we find it. Vigilance and attentiveness are needed. Jasper Friendly-Bear
exhorts us at the close of the Dead Dog Café Comedy Hour to “watch
for the signs,” and so it is with the Spirit. Attentiveness to
the signs of the Spirit’s presence is necessary since, like the
wind, the Spirit is invisible. We see only its effects. Paul calls them
the “fruits” of the Spirit and he provides several lists
of them in Scripture. We must realize when we encounter things like
peace, joy, patience, perseverance and gratitude, that these are the
signs the Spirit is present and must be facilitated.
“Watches, cars and
Christians can all look chromed and shiny. But watches don’t tick,
cars don’t go and Christians don’t make a difference without
insides. For a Christian, that’s the Holy Spirit” (Tim Downs).
If we are not to stifle the Spirit’s power in each of us and in
the world, docility to the Spirit is a necessary virtue. Our single
best prayer might be to echo Mother Teresa: “Pray I do not get
in God’s way.”
Prather, BEd, MTh, teaches and facilitates in the areas of faith and spirituality and is the director at Star of the North Retreat Centre in St. Albert, Alta. She and her husband Bob are blessed with four children and 10 grandchildren.
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