Sunday, June 9th, 2024: "A Sacred Place"
“A Sacred Place”
Richard M. Webster (FUPC – Loveland, CO) June 9, 2924
“Think of a place that feels sacred to you.” - - - That was my assignment: to think… feel… imagine… envision… describe… “a sacred place.”
Come with me and picture this sacred space. You need not look at me. In fact, you may find it easier to look away… or look at the monitor… or close your eyes. - - - Sometimes the place I see is a large room… with plain walls, several windows, and two open doors. At other times, that space is outdoors on a warm day shaded by a tall tree… You can decide which feels more comfortable to you at this moment –
a quiet room or an outdoor space.
Whichever you choose, look on the FLOOR of the room… (or the GROUND beneath the tree)… and visualize a flat clock face… Round and white, this clock face is at least12 feet in diameter. Along its edge, there are black numerals in each quadrant – 3-6-9-12 and in between 1&2 – 4&5 – 7&8 – 10&11.
JUST THEN… a person enters the space carrying a chair… places it on the SIX… and sits down. And soon, others come, placing chairs on one of the numerals, until there is a full circle of 12 seated people – male and female… young and old… Some know each other and begin talking… others sit quietly.
Using the clockface as a guide, they have arrived at a designated time… will remain for a period of time… and will depart when their time has ended. They have a common purpose… with an agenda or goal or topic that brings them together.
AND THEN… sensing that NOW is the time, one begins to speak… the others look and listen. The speaker may be sharing information… or telling a story… or offering a prayer.
AND THEN… another begins to speak. As you watch, you see them taking turns speaking and listening. In this circle, it is hard to tell who is the convener (or if there even IS one). In this circle, each person has a place… each is valued.
At one moment, person TWO and person EIGHT carry on a dialogue while the others listen. And then the speaker changes. The conversation goes back and forth. - - - I am reminded of Matthew’s Gospel when Jesus is with the 12 and says:
“Where two or three are gathered in my name,
I am there among them.” (Matthew 18:20)
There may be two or three - seven or eight - eleven or twelve - fifteen or twenty. The gathering in his name may be spoken or implied. But there is a feeling… a belief… a trust… that the Spirit of Christ… the presence of God… a Holy Spirit… is among us, surrounding us, enabling us to speak and listen - and see each other as a child of God.
LOOK AGAIN… notice that one seat in the circle of 12 is now empty. When one person is missing, the circle is broken. The absence is felt. We might not describe it as grief… but we do miss the wholeness… the shalom… when the circle is complete… and all offer themselves to each other.
LOOK AGAIN… now there are only two in the circle. One is at TWELVE and the other at SIX… OR they may be at NINE and SIX… OR one is at THREE and the other at FOUR. The arrangement may vary. The proximity may change, but we remember: Where two or three are GATHERED in my name, I am there among them.
NOW LOOK AGAIN… All the chairs are empty. Just then, a person enters, goes to chair SIX and sits down. And soon, two others take seats at 10&11. And two others come and sit at 1&2. And when we look closer, we see a glass barrier extending all the way across the space from NINE to THREE. Those on one side of the barrier can SEE the one seated at SIX, but cannot HEAR. The wall divides them and blocks their common purpose.
NOW LOOK AGAIN… The glass barrier between 9&3 fades away, but a short wall appears at TWELVE extending to the center of the circle. Those at 10&11 can see those at 1&2, but cannot hear or speak to them. You can see their frustration building. The one seated at SIX can speak to those on the left or on the right, but cannot help them communicate with each other. - - - Then the one seated at SIX begins to read a verse from the Letter to the Ephesians:
“For he is our peace;
in his flesh he has made both into one
and has broken down the dividing wall…
that is, the hostility between us.” (Ephesians 2:14)
And as they hear those words, the barrier that has divided them, and the hostility between them, begins to fade away. And they take new seats around the circle and begin to speak and listen to each other, sensing that the love of Christ… the Spirit of God… was in their midst. “This is our peace.” Each person coming into this space brings some baggage from the past, and also, some hope for the future. In this space…
Much… may not be visible or spoken.
Why they gather… may not be obvious.
Emotions… may be hidden.
Agendas… may be mixed.
The results… are not guaranteed.
Some enter, carrying their dividing walls with them...
and sometimes those walls never do come down.
But when it DOES happen…
when two or three are gathered in his name…
when ten to twelve come together speaking & listening…
when the baggage we bring becomes lighter…
when the hostility between us begins to fade…
when we look at each other and experience a oneness.
When THAT happens… to some it may feel magical… for me it is a holy mystery.
When I realize that the Spirit of Christ is among us,
bringing us a peace beyond our understanding… I can feel it.
When THAT happens… that place… this space… has become for me “a sacred space.”
Thanks be to God. Amen.
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