IN TIMES OF CRISIS

LAURENCE FREEMAN, OSB - DIRECTOR OF THE WORLD COMMUNITY FOR CHRISTIAN MEDITATION
Have you ever met one of your heroes? I'm not talking about someone who saved your life, or won the game, but someone who you've admired from afar. Maybe it's an author or a public figure who you've grown to respect more than simply admire. Who are these people who loom large in your life?

Laurence Freeman (above) has been a hero of mine for some time. Over the past three years, I've read everythng he's written on Christian meditation and have listened to CD's of talks he's given around the world. He was chosen as the spiritual guide for WCCM, after the death of its founder,Fr.John Main. While in Cork at the pre- conference retreat of WCCM, I had the opportunity to listen to six presentations by Laurence and the photo above was taken by a Canadian participant as I was talking to him following one of the sessions.

Freeman's topic was living in times of crisis. Looking around the world, he named the crises in their many forms: economic, social, personal, spiritual. Crises affect individual lives, families, communities [including the Church] and nations. While his hope was that Christians would be doing more than cursing the darkness along with everyone else. But Freeman voiced his fear that along with people of no faith, believers too have lost their way. Too many have naively believed that like for other dilemmas we've acted as though we can just Google an answer and it will come... or we can read the latest book by a guru, or just keep our heads down until the crisis passes. It's unfortunate that we're only slowly coming to realize that our past coping skills are useless in a worldwide crisis that even experts are loathe to predeict how long, how much worse or how to get out. The best thoughts, plans, experiences, have not helped us to crawl from the havoc. And they never will.

In times of trouble, in times of uncertainty, in times of small personal crisis as well as worldwide crises the scope of which has beset us over the last few years, our hope is found in the same place, in the same person, in the same way. Hope, like peace is God's gift and the way to the other side of trial is through the very heart of God--seeking, abiding, cleaving there.

Most of us have found ways to adjust to the fragility of the economy, our smaller portion of all we'd become accustomed to and the lowering what we see on the horizon for our future. But coping is no way to live the abundant life. Coping is not the same as living in hope, peace or joy. Do you know how to access the place where these treasures reside in the heart of God? Is it your practice to spend time there? Are these golden lights part of your daily expereince?

While the lectures, writings and insights of Freeman have been important to me... they've never been an end in themselves. Freeman's work relentlessly points beyond himself to the One Who is, Who was, and is to come. He writes and speaks to help others (now around the world) learn how to find the One who holds eternal treasures.

Crises come to all of us and our loving God desires to help us meet even the ones we're likely to think we can handle on our own. May you find your way to the heart of God this week. I'll see you there. BLESSINGS AND JOY, Kathleen Bronagh Weller, THE CELTIC MONK