Out there!

Hanging above the atmosphere the Hubble telescope

     looks out and back through Creation.

Among the billion billion objects to look at

it makes a faint blur into this

    the Whirlpool galaxy

More incredible, the Hubble patiently gathers light

which started towards us before our Earth was formed

before Buddha, Jesus, or Mohammed

first looked around and wondered

And can resolve the very center of the Whirlpool

and see that which is beyond all language!

This is what is (Is?) there

Coincidence?  Each one must decide. 

...Bob Graham

Shared House Elder Friendly Community

                                  A   NEW HOUSE AND NEW NEIGHBORS

                                                   By Theresa Berghoff

 As some of you may know, Delaware Trails Neighborhood is part of a Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) also known as Elder- Friendly Communities (EFC). In conjunction with the Reuben Senior Resource Center of the Jewish Federation of Greater Indianapolis, EFC offers information, services, and social activities to assist older adults with aging in place in this community. For some time the EFC has been looking at shared housing opportunities for senior adults.

Last fall a lot in our neighborhood was put on the market when a family on Shawnee sold their home. This extra lot is located on the break in Alimingo at the ditch. The Crooked Creek Community Development Corporation (CCCDC) purchased the lot and in partnership with the EFC has built a house to be shared by four adults, age 60 or older. The EFC will interview and provide services to the tenants.  The CCCDC will collect the rent, and maintain the house, and yard.  The CCCDC, as the owner of the house, has joined DTCA, and also made a generous donation.

Carly Custom Homes has built a lovely one story house with a brick facade. There will be 4 bedrooms with private bathrooms, and walk-in closets. Two sets of residents will share the two shower rooms. Common areas include, the living room, kitchen, dining room,  laundry room, and patio. There is also a half bath for guests.  A concrete drive with four parking spaces is located in the front. Landscaping will be completed in the next few weeks.

The Grand Opening of the shared house at 1507 Alimingo, was August 28, 2013. Residents will move in by October. Please welcome our new neighbors.

Writing Spiritual Memoirs

Writing Spiritual Memoirs

Instructor: Dan Wakefield
Date: 6 Tuesdays: Sept. 10, 17, 24; Oct. 1, 8, 15
Time: 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Location: Marian University, Clare Hall/Room# 130
Cost: $228 non-members, $156 members, $132 student/teacher/senior members

“Miracles. . .seem to me to rest not so much upon faces or voices or healing power coming suddenly near to us from afar off, but upon our perception being made finer, so that for a moment our eyes can see and our ears can hear what is there about us always.” - Willa Cather, Death Comes for The Archbishop

This course will use exercises in drawing, writing, and memory to evoke meaningful events from our past, and to see them through a lens of spirituality. We use “spirituality” in the broadest terms, based on the Oxford English Dictionary definition of “Spirit. . .the animating principle in [humans] and animals; that which gives life to the physical organism, in contrast to its purely material elements; the breath of life.” The idea of “Spirit” might also be evoked by the line of the poet Dylan Thomas: “The force that through the green fuse drives the flower/ drives my green age.”

The leader will provide excerpts from a variety of spiritual memoirs from different faiths to be discussed, including The Seven Storey Mountain, by Thomas Merton; Nine-Headed Dragon River, by Peter Matthiessen; My Guru and His Disciple, by Christopher Isherwood; Night, by Elie Wiesel; and Lit, by Mary Karr. (No need to read the books, unless you are so moved; we will only discuss the excerpts provided.)

Affirmation rather than criticism is offered for the writing. Followers of any or no religious faith are welcome to participate; all paths are honored.

Ode to the Gazebo

Ode to the Gazebo composed by Terri Jump

My favorite gazebo has given me...
Comfort in the high tides and storms,
Grounding in the low tides,
safety in the stuckness of the muddy bottom,
Beauty and delight in the shore birds who share their transitional habitat
with crabs, clams, and fish,
Awe in the magical sunsets featuring hues of of a Monet palate,
Bliss in the reflections of the glorious full moon nights,
Gratitude for the peace that I have found in the midst of family illness, grief, and loneliness over the years,
Prayers for all those who do not have a gazebo in their life.





               

Forty Days

There is a time of remembrance in the Greek Orthodox Church that occurs forty days after a person dies.  Special food is prepared to enjoy following the gathering.  My parents, both of whom died in January, were recently honored with a forty day service, held at the conclusion of the regular morning worship.

I was telling a friend familiar with the tradition, about the difficulty I was having dealing with the complicated layers of their passing.  She suggested I begin a forty day period of reflection dealing specifically with the loss.  She didn't offer an agenda or plan, just the idea.  

The next day, I got a few pieces of paper, brought my heart to God, and asked God to sit with me in grief.  Each day I sat in silence for a few minutes focusing on some aspect of my loss.  I recorded a thought, a scripture, or a brief sketch- whatever came at the end of each day.  Sometimes there was a new insight or perspective.  Other days brought questions or emotions.  Always I felt God's presence, and companionship.

I reached the fortieth day a few weeks ago, coming to a place of peace regarding my mother and the life we shared.  I was so grateful.

The period of forty days occurs often in the Bible.  Noah was in the ark forty days.  Jesus went to the wilderness for forty days.  Lent lasts forty day.  There might be other references to forty days in the Old and New Testament.

I want to offer forty days of reflection for any difficulty or challenge you are facing.  Forty days resting with God could be effective for discernment, dealing with loss, celebrating an event, planting a garden or being present to any life experience.

I am thankful for the way a Greek Orthodox tradition brought me clarity.  Although I feel like I experienced two Lents this year, I have also celebrated two Easters!!

I am so grateful for the way God worked through an intentional forty day period of reflection for personal growth and healing.

Jacquie Reed

Canyon ..waiting for dawn

Canyon                                   waiting for dawn on Grand Canyon's North rim

dark and still.

Night lays like millions of years

in the upside down space

before my blind eyes

pebbles fall under a critter's feet

creation at work here?

Yes!

a glimmer

faint shapes ghost up to me

but rock solid

baked by millennium

cloud dimmed light grows stronger

earth rolls to the sun

see down to the river

see back thru ages and eons

Creation patiently works on

and for a blink of time

I watch it               

By Bob Graham remembering the North rim of the Grand Canyon at 4:30 am

Labyrinth at St Lukes UMC

Lily Labyrinth

circling as life does

lovely faces look to heaven

they and we bloom briefly

nodding together here

gently affirming the Creator;

wisdom for our days

Yellow, orange mingle

sharing God's gift, telling us

“As we,  be as one” 

By Bob Graham upon visiting St. Luke’s Daylily Labyrinth

After visiting an archeological site - Poem by Bob Graham

MEADOWCROFT PEOPLE 

A small creek in western Pennsylvania

Scouting along this creek

moving warily, this is new country

The sun is nearing the valley  rim

It's getting chilly,  he is tired and hungry.

Thunder grumbles beyond the cliff.

He looks up. Here the cliff forms

 a shallow cave, a rock overhang

a hundred feet above.

Looks dry

Climb  .

Ah!

The rock is warm with gathered sunlight

there is a flat floor adrift with leaves

soon he has a small fire going

he sups in luxury.

The storm nears.

But he will be warm and dry this night.

Remember this cozy spot!

Later he leads his small band here

they stay a few days,

Food seems plentiful.

His son remembers,

teaches his daughters,

who show the way to their sons.

So years pass

people come

stay a bit, move on

The creek flows on

the years become decades, then centuries, finally millennia.

After 13,000 years, or so,

in the Middle East

early farmer's huts grow into towns.

Another 1500 years and a Pharaoh

has a pointed thought. A pyramid!

The creek flows on

Trees sprout, grow, fall

After about 16,000 years

I park my car,

beside the creek

climb out, look up

at the Archeological site and museum

where men like me

sheltered their families

for 700 generations!

As I try to grasp that

Thunder grumbles beyond the cliff.

Beyond Coal Rally - St Luke's UMC is Letter N

                  INVISIBLE

Outside my window, a child plays,

Struggling to take breath

The light green leaves, curl and fall

A fish flops on the river edge

Nearby a coal plant belches smoke

And I sit idly by.

On April 15, 2013 a group from St. Luke’s UMC under the leadership of Betty Brandt did not sit idly by, but joined several other Green Congregations, concerned citizens, and The Sierra Club to protest against Indiana Power and Light’s continued pollution of Central Indiana.  IPL belches dangerous levels of lead, arsenic, and mercury from its Harding Street plant.  The Beyond Coal Campaign is asking IPL to invest in clean energy, like wind and solar, rather than raise customer rates to refurbish its antiquated plant.  Our enthusiastic group of recently enlisted “social activists” included a participant who had witnessed  mountain top mining destroying the beauty of West Virginia hilltops and a veteran of a citizen/physician blocked Pet Coke plant in Texas.  All agreed it felt simply grand to stand up and be counted, even when it felt like David against Goliath.  Indianapolis is a beautiful city, and it has the potential to be world class with cleaner air and sparkling rivers.  As Christians we are called to be stewards of this wondrous and fragile creation. As stewards it requires our attention, our thoughtful reflection, and action.
 

Beyond Coal Rally – Saturday, June 1, 2013

 

Indianapolis Green Congregations is participating in the "Indy Beyond Coal" human billboard at the Indy Beyond Coal Rally on June 1st at 12 noon at the Indiana State Museum Lawn.

Since St Luke’s UMC is a member of this organization, I would like to invite you to participate in this happening. Contact me at brandtb@stlukesumc.com to express interest in joining me on June 1.

  

Here is an outline of the event:

This a critical time for our city's energy future-- Indianapolis Power and Light plans to raise rates to fund projects on the dirty, outdated Harding Street coal plant on Indy's south side which will lock Indianapolis into another 20 or 30 years of pollution, health risks and rising fossil fuel costs. IPL's Harding Street coal plant is the largest industrial polluter in the city, and the leading source of carbon pollution. We know IPL can do better, and that Indy deserves a future free of coal pollution- we call on you to join us in asking IPL to move Indy beyond coal into a clean energy future!

Our June 1st Indy Beyond Coal Rally is going to be fun, exciting and a clear watermark that the beyond coal movement is alive and well in Indy. We’ll kick off around 12:00 noon at the Indiana State Museum Lawn and be done by 1:00 pm. We will be bringing together community leaders, grassroots supporters, and groups from across Indy to send a clear message to IPL that the city supports a clean energy future. Community leaders (faith, nonprofit, neighborhood associations, etc) will be speaking out at this event. Our photo mosaic project will be in the background with quotes from people across Indy on how this coal plant impacts them.

Then all the participants will come together and send an incredibly powerful message by creating a human billboard spelling "Indy Beyond Coal." Community groups and supporters will take lead to create this message. See here: http://action.sierraclub.org/images/content/pagebuilder/austin_beyond_coal75391.jpg

Please share this letter with community leaders who might be interested- Indy Beyond Coal Sign-on Letter: https://docs.google.com/a/sierraclub.org/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dFMtd3dySTdWVG1xd09KZU5ZY05SZUE6MQ#gid=0

More info on the campaign:

http://storify.com/IndyBeyondCoal#stories

www.facebook.com/IndianaBeyondCoal

www.twitter.com/INbeyondcoal

http://content.sierraclub.org/coal/indiana

--

Betty Brandt

Director, Spiritual Life Center

St. Luke's United Methodist Church

100 W. 86th St., Indianapolis IN 46260

317-846-3404 ext 339

Spiritual Journeys

Join us in reading the first in our series of personal spiritual journeys.

Journey Through the South with Grandma Lineweaver
Read more... 

Half the Sky Event, Wednesday, May 1, 2013

Violence against women and girls is a global crisis that impacts most communities regardless of race, class, country, religion, or economic status, but it often goes unreported and perpetrators are rarely brought to justice. Factors such as fear of retribution, shame, stigma, lack of economic resources, inadequate social services, and ineffective legal systems impede women and girls’ access to the legal and social supports they need. As a result, survivors of violence are left vulnerable to further abuse from the systems and institutions that are meant to protect them, and the perpetrators are often left unpunished and free to continue perpetrating violence.

For more information http://www.stlukesumc.com/

Lenten Opportunity

Exploring Spiritual Practices

This Lenten season deepen your journey with the Mystery we call God by doing what Christians have done for centuries.  You are invited to explore 6 spiritual practices with the goal of finding at least one that is helpful and meaningful for you.  All are simple to learn and can be woven into your daily/weekly schedule.  Expect one session on each of the following practices: Prayer, Guided Meditation, Silent Meditation, Labyrinth Walking, Journaling and Lectio Divina with a concluding session on Spiritual Types.  Members of the Spiritual Life Center Commission will be your guides for this Lenten Journey.

You may choose a Sunday morning, a weekday or evening class lasting 1 hour for 7 weeks:  February 3-March 17, Sundays (11am-noon in the Spiritual Life Center), Monday evenings (7-8pm in C110), Tuesdays (noon-1pm in E105).  Registration is required at www.stlukesumc.com or by calling 846-3404x339, please specify Sunday, Monday or Tuesday class.  No fee.

Welcome to Spiritual Life Center's Blog

Keep an eye on this blog for announcements and updates regarding the Spiritual Life Center’s programming and concerns.

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