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Donna Schaper
Donna Schaper was one of the first women ministers in the United Church of Christ, a liberal Protestant denomination. She studied at the the University of Chicago Divinity School and received her Masters of Divinity from the Lutheran Theological Seminary at Gettysburg in 1973. She soon became a key figure in the feminist movement within the church and campus ministry during the 1970s. She has served churches in Tucson, Arizona; Philadelphia, Philadelphia; Amherst, Massachusetts; Riverhead, New York; and Coral Gables, Florida. She was the Associate Chaplain at Yale University from 1976 - 1980.
In Chicago in the 1980s, she was the Executive Director of the Urban Academy in Chicago (now known as the Center for Public Ministry). In that position she struggled to change seminary education to include training in urban, public ministry, as well as more private pastoral ministry. In the 1993, she became the first woman Area Minister for the Massachusetts Conference of the United Church of Christ, with responsibility for 107 churches in the four western counties of Massachusetts. During that time, she edited the UCC's newsletter for peace and justice ministries.
Schaper is now senior minister at Judson Memorial Church in New York City, where, in addition to her preaching and pastoral ministry, she has initiated a training program for seminarians interested in public ministry. She is also a consultant for Bricks Without Straw, which aids congregations and nonprofits in fundraising, conflict management, and making a little go a long way.
Schaper is one of the most widely published women ministers in the country, especially within the mainline church. Since the late 1980s, she has authored 18 books on everything from becoming 40, to understanding Sabbath, to spiritual rock gardening, to the differences between male and female ministerial styles, to devotional guides to different Christian seasons (Advent, Lenten, and the like). In addition, she has written hundreds of sermons, articles, and meditations.
Read For:
Advocacy of justice and peace perspective based on the Gospels
Creative practices of everyday spirituality
A vision of the Christian adventure as a challenging quest for meaning
A profile with bibliographic and distinctive contributions to spirituality of Donna Schaper, a writer, feminist, peace advocate, and preacher in the United Church of Christ.
Brenda Shoshanna
Trained in psychoanalytic, psychodynamic, humanistic, and transpersonal approaches, Dr. Brenda Shoshanna has spent almost 30 years working as a psychologist who integrates Zen practice into everything she does, including working with clients. In her practice, she focuses on an individual's gifts and strengths. She believes that as these aspects grow stronger, defenses fall away by themselves. Shoshanna is dedicated to integrating psychology and spirituality and applying it to everyday life. She has taught at Adelphi University, Marymount College, Barnard, and has offered more than 500 talks and workshops on all aspects of psychology, spirituality, fulfilling one's potential, and creating authentic peace of mind.
The mother of four grown children, she has spent many years close to family and friends, and also working as a playwright in theater. A theme she continually deals with in her writing, life, and heart is how to bring peace and reconciliation, not only between individuals, but among the different religions.
Read For:
Insights into Zen Buddhism and Judaism
Excellent spiritual practices for daily application to life's challenges
Commentaries on the spiritual meanings of everyday life
A profile with bibliography and distinct spiritual contributions of Brenda Shoshanna, psychologist and therapist, Zen practitioner, and counselor, speaker, and workshop leader on relationships and caregiving.
Christina Feldman, Silence
As we listen to the stories of the mystics and sages who have embraced silence as a beloved, we learn that silence is not passive, alienated, or lifeless. Within its depths is found an abundance of energy, creativity, love and wisdom. The sages do not return from the deserts and mountaintops dysfunctional, depressed, or indifferent, but with profound patience, tolerance, and commitment to transformation. Silence, it seems, is not a surrender of personal freedom. It is the place where we connect with our deepest values and discover freedom within our own heart. Silence is not even the opposite of speech but a way to find the truths that need to be spoken and a way of speaking them so that they can be heard.
Silence is not a surrender of personal freedom.
Bringing Peace
If we have the will and determination
to mount such a peace offensive,
we will unlock hitherto tightly sealed doors of hope
and bring new light into the dark chambers of pessimism.
— Martin Luther King, Jr.
When Martin Luther King, Jr. wrote the above words in 1967, he was referring to the nuclear arms race and the 'discords of war.' King was convinced that our energy ought to be focused on working for 'peace and prosperity' for all nations, rather than on waging combat. While his words are fittingly directed toward massive wars between nations, his message applies equally to the warfare that goes on within the human heart and personal relationships.
I am convinced that peace among nations will not happen until there is true peace within the hearts of individuals. Within my own life a stronger peace has gradually taken root, mostly due to my commitment to daily, personal meditation. When I open the door of my heart and spend time with the Holy One, I become aware of what thwarts my effort to be peaceful. If I tend to the source of the distress, this, in turn, leads me to greater serenity. Then, when I move beyond the door of my heart into the wider world, this embraced peace accompanies me. Unless I deliberately choose to turn away from inner harmony, I can count on it to bless the people and the work of my life.
Becoming aware of my inner conflicts sometimes occasions a brutal recognition and uncompromising verdict of needing to change my ways. Learning about peace is one thing. Putting peace into practice by changing attitudes and actions is quite another. If unrest, nonforgiveness, dissension, apathy, or discontent reside in me, the scent of this will be on each breath I take. Discordance will contaminate each part of my life.
Here is what I suggest in order for peace to abide in our hearts and in our world:
• Place merciful peace on our lips when words of prejudice, gossip, shame, and blame are eager to be there.
• Draw forth humility from our heart when our ego seeks to triumph over and trounce the victims of our self-righteous superiority.
• Voice open, non-defensive dialogue when the loud anger and unfair accusations of others attempt to topple us with their ferocity.
• Work nonviolently for the active pursuit of peace when others opt for waging the aggression of war.
• Set to rest what screams for revenge. Bid farewell to what drains away kindness. Ease our old grudges, remnants of resentment, and any remainders of jealousy.
• Sift through the rubble of former battles with anyone. Sort out and discard the decomposed rot. Find what is salvageable. Save what benefits a growthful love.
• Resist attempts to mend what is beyond repair. Let go of what was but can be no more. Move on without reluctance or self doubt.
• Free what trembles with fear. Embrace what longs for acceptance. Forego anxiety and worry, which steal peace from the soul and add to inner turbulence.
• Resist the desire to grasp. Have only what is essential for life.
Today, bring peace with you to every creature, to solitary corners and crowded streets, to each hostility and every anxiety. Most of all, embrace confidently the bountiful peace of Indwelling Love so your presence in the world becomes one of healing tranquility.
Reflect on the Following:
Does something need to change within your heart and life in order for you to bring more peace into the world?
Meditation
Begin by going within to where the Holy One is the deep source of your serenity. Sense an easy flowing peace moving through your body and soul. Open the door of your heart and let this peace move outward to wherever you will be today. Visualize tranquility emitting from the pores of your body, mind, and spirit. Notice how this peace stretches beyond you and permeates all it couches. Return now to your heart-space. Remain in the serene awareness of God's presence until it is time for you to close your prayer. Go forth to make a difference in the world.
Prayer
Divine Peace-Bringer,
take what is jagged in my relationships
and transform it with your grace.
I will do my best to bid farewell
to whatever keeps me from inner peace.
Help me bring your enduring harmony
into every part of my existence.
I open the door of my heart to you.
I open the door.
Scripture to Carry in Your Heart Today:
Do not let your hearts be troubled (Jn 14:1).
A reflection and exercise on bringing peace to our heart and into the world.
Inner Peace
Settle into a posture that is as relaxed and alert as possible.
Allow your eyes to gently close.
Take a few moments to be aware of your body, releasing any areas of tension. Let your shoulders, face, and hands relax and soften.
For a few moments focus your attention on your breathing. Be particularly aware of your outgoing breath, following it with your attention until the very end of the breath.
Rest your attention in the brief moment between the ending of an out-breath and the beginning of the next in-breath.
Take a few moments to reflect on where you most repetitively battle with yourself.
Sense the places you are most judgmental of yourself, the places where you extend to yourself the greatest unkindness or blame, the places that trigger feelings of shame or self-consciousness.
You may be aware of carrying events or acts from the past in your heart and mind that are laden with guilt or regret.
You may be aware of recurring patterns in your present, in speech, thought, or action, that cause pain or alienation and that you wish to be free from.
As you reflect on these patterns or events, sense what happens in your body and mind.
Sense how simply bringing these places of pain into your attention may trigger feelings of contraction, tension, or resistance in your body. You may be aware of the rhythm of your breathing changing, becoming shorter or tighter. If this happens, bring your attention to the part of your body that is registering distress or discomfort and let it soften and relax.
Sense the aversion you have for these places in your own heart and mind. Sense your wish to be free from them. Be aware of how the aversion and resistance themselves are the energy of struggle and inner estrangement.
Reflect on what you may need to cultivate or nurture to make peace with yourself.
Reflect on what difference it would make to those places of rejection and alienation to cultivate a greater kindness, acceptance, or compassion.
Can you offer to yourself the forgiveness and generosity of heart to embrace the places of greatest difficulty and unease in your own heart and mind?
Are you able to stay present with those places in yourself that you are most tempted to flee from?
Reflect on what it might mean to befriend yourself, to offer to yourself the openness and understanding you would both wish to offer to others and to receive from others.
Sense that your capacity to make peace with yourself may not depend upon denying anything.
Your capacity to be at peace with yourself begins with your willingness to let go of prejudice and judgment.
With a wholehearted and gentle attentiveness, explore those places in your heart and mind that are the source of the greatest struggle and pain.
Sense how it may be possible to bring calmness, gentleness, and care to those places without any expectation.
When you are ready, open your eyes and come out of the posture.
A guided meditation to bring calmness, gentleness, and care to all parts of ourselves.
Marcus J. Borg
Marcus Borg went to his eternal rest on January 21, 2015. For many people, including us, this progressive Christian theologian enabled us to "meet Jesus again for the first time" and embrace the "God we never knew" of panentheism. After reading his books, we could affirm both our Christian roots and our interreligious visions. For many who now consider themselves Spiritually Independent, Borg provided a bridge to a vibrant, accessible, and hospitable Christianity. He wrote about the heart of Christianity, and our hearts are grateful for his every word. - Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat
Marcus J. Borg grew up in North Dakota and was educated at Concordia College in Minnesota, Union Theological Seminary in New York, Oxford University in England, and the University of Tubingen in Germany. He taught at Oregon State University for 28 years where he held the Hundere Chair of Religion and Culture at the time of his retirement in 2007. He served as a Canon Theologian at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Portland, Oregon. He also held positions at Concordia College, South Dakota State University, and Carleton College. He received major awards for outstanding teaching.
Borg was a Fellow of the Jesus Seminar, a group of scholars examining the historical accuracy of the words and deeds attributed to Jesus, and also the New Testament columnist for Bible Review. He was the national chairperson of the Historical Jesus Section of the Society of Biblical Literature, the oldest and largest association of biblical scholars in the United States, co-chair of the New Testament Program Committee of the International Society of Biblical Literature, and president of the Anglican Association of Biblical Scholars.
Deeply involved in the life of the Episcopal Church, he has taught both clergy and lay people for over 30 years. The New York Times has described him as "a leading figure among a new generation of Jesus scholars."
Borg was the author of 21 books, several of which were bestsellers. He also collaborated with other religious scholars for books on Jesus, God, and the teachings of other world religions. He lectured widely overseas (England, Scotland, Austria, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, Israel, South Africa, Sweden, and Australia) and in North America, including the Chautauqua and Smithsonian institutions.
Marcus Borg was a breath of fresh air in the musty halls of Christian scholarship and biblical studies. In most of his books, you will find illustrations from his spiritual autobiography that keep his insights and overviews grounded in real life. He had a knack for clarifying difficult theological issues and writing in a pensive style that is accessible to clergy, laity, and seekers of all stripes. Almost single-handedly among progressives, Borg opened up new avenues of experience and thought for lapsed Christians or nonbelievers interested in re-visioning the Christianity of their childhood. He wrote clearly and concisely about the meaning of wisdom, compassion, justice, the kingdom of God, and life as a journey of transformation. His books boldly take us into fresh fields of wonder, mystery, and passion in regard to Jesus, God, the Bible, and the Christian way.
Read For:
A scholarly and yet accessible grand tour of the life, ministry, and meaning of Jesus.
A consistently challenging appreciation and understanding of the life of faith.
Wonderful and varied teachings on compassion and justice.
• A Christian perspective on the spiritual practice of transformation.
A profile with bibliography and distinctive contributions to spirituality of Marcus J. Borg, progressive Christian, Jesus scholar, accessible teacher of the Christian way as a path of transformation, compassion, and justice.
O God of Mercy
O Lord,
I place myself in your hands and dedicate myself to you.
I pledge myself to do your will in all things—
To love the Lord God with all my heart, all my soul, all my strength.
Not to kill, not to steal, not to covet, not to bear false witness, to honor all persons.
Not to do to another what I should not want done to myself.
Not to seek after pleasures. To love fasting. To relieve the poor.
To clothe the naked. To visit the sick. To bury the dead.
To help in trouble. To console the sorrowing.
To hold myself aloof from worldly ways.
To prefer nothing to the love of Christ.
Not to give way to anger.
Not to foster a desire for revenge.
Not to entertain deceit in the heart.
Not to make a false peace.
Not to forsake charity.
Not to swear, lest I swear falsely.
To speak the truth with heart and tongue.
Not to return evil for evil.
To do no injury, indeed, even to bear patiently any injury done to me.
To love my enemies.
Not to curse those who curse me but rather to bless them.
To bear persecution for justice’s sake.
Not to be proud.
Not to be given to intoxicating drink.
Not to be an overeater.
Not to be lazy.
Not to be slothful.
Not to be a detractor.
To put my trust in God.
To refer the good I see in myself to God.
To refer any evil I see in myself to myself.
To fear the day of judgment.
To be in dread of hell.
To desire eternal life with spiritual longing.
To keep death before my eyes daily.
To keep constant watch over my actions.
To remember that God sees me everywhere.
To call upon Christ for defense against evil thoughts that arise in my heart.
To guard my tongue against wicked speech.
To avoid much speaking.
To avoid idle talk.
Not to seek to appear clever.
To read only what is good to read.
To pray often.
To ask forgiveness daily for my sins, and to seek ways to amend my life.
To obey my superiors in all things rightful.
Not to desire to be thought holy, but to seek holiness.
To fulfill the commandments of God by good works.
To love chastity.
To hate no one.
Not to be jealous or envious of anyone.
Not to love strife.
Not to love pride.
To honor the aged.
To pray for my enemies.
To make peace after a quarrel, before the setting of the sun.
Never to despair of your mercy, O God of Mercy.
Saint Benedict's commitment to follow the edicts of his faith.
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