Together on the Journey:
A Weekly Blog
Ever present God, whose Son our Savior was lifted high upon the cross that he might renew all Creation through himself: Mercifully grant that we, who glory in the mystery of our restoration, may have grace to take up our cross and follow him on his way to bring new life to all things; through Jesus the Wisdom of Creation, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
This is the creation-themed collect for Holy Cross Day from the Season of Creation guide from the Episcopal church in the US. Every year, from September 1 – October 4, the church places its focus on caring for, praying for, and learning about creation.
And this Sunday, while we place our focus on the cross, we are reminded of God’s love for us, but not only for us, but for all of God’s creation.
Fall is my favourite season. I love the cool crisp air, the leaves changing colour, and the abundance of the harvest I see at farmers markets. All of these things remind me of the beauty and abundance of God’s creation. So as we place our focus on creation this month, I invite you to reflect on what reminds you of the beauty and abundance of God’s creation in this season, and to remember that God’s love is visible in all of these things.
During the Season of Creation, I am going to close these posts with a poem for you to reflect on, and perhaps use in your prayers. This week, I will leave you with one of my favourite poems by the American poet Wendell Berry. It’s included in a collection of his poems entitled The Mad Farmer Poems. My friends, Brian & Sylvia, who are farmers, have a copy of this poem on the wall of their farmhouse, and this poem reminds me of them, God’s love, and different ways to look at creation that surrounds us.
Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front
by Wendell Berry
Love the quick profit, the annual raise,
vacation with pay. Want more
of everything ready-made. Be afraid
to know your neighbors and to die.
And you will have a window in your head.
Not even your future will be a mystery
any more. Your mind will be punched in a card
and shut away in a little drawer.
When they want you to buy something
they will call you. When they want you
to die for profit they will let you know.
So, friends, every day do something
that won’t compute. Love the Lord.
Love the world. Work for nothing.
Take all that you have and be poor.
Love someone who does not deserve it.
Denounce the government and embrace
the flag. Hope to live in that free
republic for which it stands.
Give your approval to all you cannot
understand. Praise ignorance, for what man
has not encountered he has not destroyed.
Ask the questions that have no answers.
Invest in the millennium. Plant sequoias.
Say that your main crop is the forest
that you did not plant,
that you will not live to harvest.
Say that the leaves are harvested
when they have rotted into the mold.
Call that profit. Prophesy such returns.
Put your faith in the two inches of humus
that will build under the trees
every thousand years.
Listen to carrion — put your ear
close, and hear the faint chattering
of the songs that are to come.
Expect the end of the world. Laugh.
Laughter is immeasurable. Be joyful
though you have considered all the facts.
So long as women do not go cheap
for power, please women more than men.
Ask yourself: Will this satisfy
a woman satisfied to bear a child?
Will this disturb the sleep
of a woman near to giving birth?
Go with your love to the fields.
Lie easy in the shade. Rest your head
in her lap. Swear allegiance
to what is nighest your thoughts.
As soon as the generals and the politicos
can predict the motions of your mind,
lose it. Leave it as a sign
to mark the false trail, the way
you didn’t go. Be like the fox
who makes more tracks than necessary,
some in the wrong direction.
Practice resurrection.
(“Manifesto: The Mad Farmer Liberation Front” originally published in The Country of Marriage, copyright © 1973 by Wendell Berry)