Advent Reflections

Introduction

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Angela Center has been for many years a haven of quiet and peace, a place of spiritual nourishment and growth, a sacred place for the spiritual journey. This year we are joined by friends, near and far, who share their reflections on the Advent journey. Each reflection is offered as a gift of personal insight or discovery shared from the heart. May these words touch your heart and be a source of nourishment and hope for your spirit.

In the midst of winter darkness, together despite the miles between us, we await, we call out, we cry for the light. We are expectant, we are hopeful. We long for love, we long for birth. Our longing is for ourselves and for our world.

November 30, The First Sunday of Advent

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November 30, The First Sunday of Advent

Is 63:16b-17, 19b; 64:2-7/1; Cor 1:3-9;Mk 13:33-37

Keep awake – for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in the evening, or at midnight, or at cockcrow, or at dawn, or else he may find you asleep. Keep awake! Mk. 35-36

In the first reading, Isaiah shouts at me and I want to shout back, “Tear open the heavens and come down! Come down like the mountains in an earthquake, flaming like fire in brushwood to make your name known! Come, from somewhere powerful in you distant heavens, and cast your fire on those who start these wars and cause all this hunger and sickness.”

But, in the hollow silence that follows my tirade, I know you are not in the heavens but right here. You are here in your Wisdom in me, in this human community, and in our kinship with all creation. “Come” becomes my own call to wake up to what is right here, right now. It’s my call to open my eyes and reach out to the hands and paws and wings of my kin and hold on tight. Choosing justice and choosing peace these days is sure to give a bumpy ride.

Mantra: Wake me up! Open my eyes!

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Monday, December 1, 2008

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Monday, December 1

Is 2:1-5/Mt 8:5-11

Come, let us climb the Lord’s mountain...that he may instruct us in his ways. Is. 2

“All nations shall stream toward this mountain,” Isaiah says. Humanity, each one of us, is on the way, spiraling up “the highest mountain, raised above the hills.” Though history may seem to be heading in the opposite direction, the shadowed valleys of our time could be showing us that we need a balancing view, the aerial outlook.

Imagination can help us realize that the ancient and universal sacred mountain can be as alive within us as the earthen Fuji, Everest, Kilimanjaro or Shasta. Mountain shrouds in cloud, erupts as volcano, gives birth to springs and the beginnings of great rivers.

Let’s stop for a moment. Feel Mountain in the body. Mists, wildflowers, forests, glaciers, rock are there for us to explore. Let’s climb, and watch others climb too. When we meet at the top, each of us will have a unique perspective of what we see in the four directions around us. What swords might we be carrying as a defense against renewed life? If they were melted into a plowshares, they would be instruments for planting, for bringing forth new views and possibilities.

Mantra: Imagine possibilities.

Clare Morris

Tuesday, December 2, 2008

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Tuesday, December 2

Is 11:1-10/Lk 10:21-24

“Blessed are the eyes …”

“Blessed are the eyes” of the four women martyrs of El Salvador, Maura, Ita, Dorothy, and Jean. “They could see the revelation of the Lord and they could hear His voice.” Although the teaching of justice and compassion had been offered to the wise and the learned in that country, the powerful could not see nor hear what the Lord held out to them. The women had been “childlike” in their trust to whom the Lord had revealed his love and his desire to “rescue the poor when (they) cry out and attend to the afflicted when there was no one to help them.” They longed to bring peace to that troubled land, to serve those in need and lift their spirits in hope, but the ruthless found them too challenging, too much.

What was cut short in the lives of Maura, Ita, Dorothy and Jean, continues in the hearts of those who love them still. The power of Love, and the Spirit of the Lord hovers over all who work until Justice shall flourish...and the fullness of peace… reign forever.” That is our hope; that is our call.

Mantra: Justice shall flourish; peace reign forever.

Roseanne Murphy, SNDdeN

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

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Wednesday, December 3

Is 25:6-9; Mt 15:29-37

This is our God for whom we have waited. Is. 25

This, here, now, within; the One for whom we wait has already arrived. Stop searching, “flailing like time for the grasp of connection.” Advent is not the season to repeat the longing. Wake up and know that you can see, hear, walk and speak.

Advent

In the way that wait

longs for coming

these empty hours

reach out from darkness

probing like time

not knowing

flailing, for

the grasp of connection

Mantra: Here and now

Patricia Ryan, RSM

Thursday, December 4, 2008

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Thursday, December 4, 2008

Is. 26:1-6/Mt.7:21; 24-27

Trust in the Lord forever!

For the Lord is an eternal rock. Is 26

Build your house here

now

on bedrock.

Lay down a center stone

before you begin,

the stone of this moment,

the stone burning

with the One who loves you,

the stone indestructible,

eternal, your only hope.

Mantra: That stone burning with one who loves.

Clare Morris

Friday, December 5, 2008

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Friday, December 5

Is. 29:17-24 Mt. 9:27-31

Do you believe that I can do this? Mt. 9

Blindness afflicted this community of two and they cried out for the pity of Jesus. Yet, when they approached him, it was relationship to which he was inviting them. Do you believe that I can do this? Jesus touched their eyes but the removal of blindness occurred in the transformation of their inner hearts as well. “Let it be done according to your faith.” “ And their eyes were opened.”

Cultural blindness, economic blindness, religious blindness, political blindness, intellectual blindness plague us as we struggle to show God's goodness, dispelling the gloom and darkness that envelop our societies. Let us deepen our hope in the relationship Jesus offers to us and the transformative joy, justice and peace that he promises to all creation;.

Mantra Do you believe that I can do this?

Phyllis Cook SNDdeN

Saturday, December 6, 2008 (Feast of St. Nicholas)

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Saturday, December 6 (Feast of St. Nicholas)

Is 30:19-21.23-26/Mt 9:35-10:1. 5a,6-8

“The Lord will be gracious to you when he hears your cry. When he hears he will answer.” –Is 19

Nicholas, a third century Bishop of Myra, must have been seen as pastoral by the people he served. Whether fact or fiction, the story of his providing of dowries to three young girls who otherwise would have been forced into prostitution suggests a deeply generous and caring man.

Sadly prostitution and other forms of slavery continue today. We see a global effort to curb by law the widespread trafficking of women, men and children--especially young girls. Let us pray to St. Nicholas for the safety of the young, especially those enslaved by the lust and greed of others.

St. Nicholas, protector of the young and oppressed, help us to restore to these victims of violence the precious gifts of freedom and hope through prayer, advocacy and other action.

Mantra: For victims, freedom and hope.

Margaret Hoffman SNDdeN

December 7, Second Sunday of Advent

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December 7, Second Sunday of Advent

Is 40:1-5, 9-11/2 Pt 3:8-14/Mk 1:1-8

Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God.

Is 40.

In Advent Time

I walked

in Advent time,

walked the old fire road

up the canyon

where winter sycamores

made white lace

with their bare branches

and oaks and red toyons

glistened with fog.

At the lake

a gray shadow

lifted its wings,

powerful heron wings over reed-still water,

wings that whispered,

“Peace on earth.

It will be –

peace on earth.”

Mantra: It will be – peace on earth.

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Monday, December 8: The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

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Monday, December 8: The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary

Gn 3:9-15, 20/Eph 1:3-6, 11-12/Lk 1:26-38

“God chose us in Christ before the world was founded, to be without blemish, to be full of love.” Eph. 1

Some days I believe in Eden’s ancient curse. I turn from the headlines, unable to hope. Earthquakes, floods, the portents of global warming; human crimes as enormous as war, as random as road rage. It is not much comfort that Mary’s heart is immaculate. She seems above it all on her pedestal. There are so many of us, the soiled and rapacious.

But Mary is one of us. She is the source of Jesus’ humanity. Mary is what we were before the Fall. Her capacity is ours, too. She considers an unlikely invitation and say, Yes! Risking the long shot, longer odds, she agrees to cooperate in an outlandish scheme to redeem Creation.

Our human nature calls us to do the same. The risky, Yes! The unlikely plan, the random act of kindness. On a day of horrors, I need to get busy, however feeble my actions seem. Drop by drop, they may tip the balance. We are all chosen to be full of love and menders of the world.

Mantra: I am chosen to be full of love.

Ann Denham

Tuesday, December 9, 2008

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Tuesday, December 9

Is 40:1-11/Mt 18:12-14

Like a shepherd, he feeds his flock. In his arms he gathers the lambs, carrying them in his bosom and leading the ewes with care. Is. 40

The compassion and the tenderness of our God have not been celebrated enough in this day and in this age. The shepherd image of a loving, kind and gentle direction given through the voice of the shepherd and the nudging pushes of a shepherd dog blesses us with a most tender image of loving care. Why do we not accept these images in our daily lives? What are we neglecting? What are we afraid of?

These images speak of service and being servants equally to each other. Maybe it is because the prevailing norms treat these images as ones of weakness. Yet, to go out serving and, in return, be served, takes courage, stamina and strength. We are the people of the Suffering Servant, Jesus Christ.

St. Juan Diego, serving a sick father, is the chosen servant to announce the vision of Our Lady of Guadalupe as Mary pregnant with Jesus as the handmaid servant of the Lord.

Mantra: Serve with compassion.

Kathleen M. O'Connor

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

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Wednesday, December 10

Is 40:25-31/Mt 11:28-30

“Come to me, all you who are weary and find life burdensome, and I will refresh you.” Mt. 11

What if we do weary on the way? What if we begin to doubt that we can do what’s needed of us, in order that the new birth, forming itself in our depths inside the life we’re leading, will come forth?

These passages call attention to a relation between burden and strength, and between experience and wisdom. They call us to awareness of a source of strength that is beyond questioning. How to connect with it? Resting in the knowledge of its eternal presence, the weary one of faith willingly accepts this strength again and again, summoning it freshly in each unfolding moment, moving the process toward renewal in its fruition.

Mantra: Yoke of strength, carry to new life.

Gene Sandretto

Thursday, December 11, 2008

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Thursday, December 11

Is 41:13-20/Mt 11:11-15

“It is I who say to you, “Do not fear, I will help you.”

Is. 41

Do not fear! I will help you. Even when you wake up feeling like a worm or an insect! Even when you are poor and needy I will answer you. I will open rivers on your bare heights! I will make your wilderness a pool of water! I will plant cedars, acacias, myrtles and olives in your wilderness! I will do this especially when you feel like a worm or an insect so that your own poverty can leave room for my gifts. I only ask you to do something to round out this circle of caring: turn and help your neighbor who is poor and needy. Then you shall rejoice and glory in me.

Mantra: Do not fear! I will help you!

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Friday, December 12: Our Lady of Guadalupe

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Friday, December 12: Our Lady of Guadalupe

Rv 11:19a; 12:1-6a/Lk 1:26-38 or Lk 1:39-47

“A woman clothed with the sun.” Rev 12

Adonde vas, mi amor?

Where are you going my loved one?

Madrecita, voy donde me mandas.

Dearest mother, I go wherever you send me.

Santa Maria, Madre de Dios,

Holy Mary, Mother of God.

Let me bring hope and consolation to others. Morenita, little dark one, let me be your Juan Diego.

Santa Maria, Madre de Dios,

Holy Mary, Mother of God, Mother of the Creator, Dark Mother, brilliantly clothed with sun,

moon and stars.

Embrace me with your mantel

where roses ever bloom.

Santa Maria, ruega por nosotros pecadores,

Holy Mary, pray for us sinners.

Dearest virgin, we pray, crush the serpent’s head

of trafficking, racism, gangs, drugs,

hunger and unjust wars.

Mantra: Morenita, little dark one, let me be your Juan Diego.

Jacinta Martinez SNDdeN

Saturday, December 13, 2008

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Saturday, December 13

Sir 48:1-4, 9-11/Mt 17:9a, 10-13

“Blessed is he who shall have seen you

before he dies.” Sir.48

The fiery prophet Elijah made his presence known. When he brought down the wrath of God “his word burned like a torch.” Yet later in Sirach we are assured that at the appointed time Elijah will return and bring happiness and love. Enter John the Baptist, the messenger revealed by Jesus at the Transfiguration. The old and the new: one testament. Sometimes we need to hear the whole story.

Mantra: His word burned like a torch.

Gerald Hardy

December 14, Third Sunday of Advent

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December 14, Third Sunday of Advent

Is 61:1-2a, 10-11/1 Thes 5:16-24/Jn 1:6-8, 19-28

Rejoice always! Rejoice! 1 Thes. 5

Reading Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians, I hear his exuberant call to live by new commandments. Rejoice! Pray without ceasing! Give thanks! Don’t quench the Spirit or despise the prophets! Test everything and hold fast that which is good. Abstain from evil.

These are transformative attitudes: to rejoice and give thanks instead of criticizing or complaining; to make room for the unpredictable Spirit in my life; to be willing to change when someone or something calls me beyond my culturally biased thinking and acting; to test and discern my choices; to be aware and seek forgiveness and reconciliation for the evil that I do. Can I make by Paul’s exuberant call a part of my preparation for Christmas? All that is needed is my willingness: “The One who calls you is faithful, and he will do this.”

Mantra: The One who calls me will do this.

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Monday, December 15, 2008

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Monday, December 15

Nm 24:2-7, 15-17a/Mt 21:23-27

Who can be saved? Not the one with riches, but maybe the one who is paying attention.

Dark Mornings, Advent Time

These dark mornings, Advent time,

you sit by your window and wait for the light.

At first you see only your lamp, some books,

yourself reflected in the window as in a mirror,

a mirror against the dense black outside.

December mornings the light grows slowly.

You must pay attention if you are to notice

the gradual change from gray to dull olive,

and that brief moment when each leaf is lit by gold,

on fire with gold, then green.

Right now, you may be waiting to see if the sky

will turn from dark to gray to peach and finally blue,

or if it will give way to gray rain-filled clouds.

Dawn reveals each day and its own possibilities

for peace, for beauty and for love.

“Pay attention! Pay attention!” Someone whispers

in the morning’s sleepy silence. “Pay attention!

Don’t miss this dawn! Don’t miss this day!

Pay attention and see what Child of peace,

of beauty and of love is waiting to be born.”

Mantra: Paying attention, waiting to be born.

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Tuesday, December 16, 2008

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Tuesday, December 16

Zep 3:1-2, 9-13/Mt 21:28-32

“This son said in reply, ‘No, I will not’; but afterward he regretted it and went.” Mt. 21

So often I am that second son. Maybe I don’t come right out and say, “no” to God, but I do complain, sometimes rant and rave, and often try to avoid. I ask every imaginable question, look for alternatives, any way out. Then I argue that this cannot be what God is asking of me. Oh, no! It couldn’t be; there has to be some mistake. Right!

But after all that, like the second son, I go out into the vineyard to do the work. Amazingly, after all is said and done, I can’t figure out what the hubbub was about! God must be smiling.

Mantra: The vineyard awaits my yes.

Dianne Baumunk OSU

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

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Wednesday, December 17

Gn 49:2, 8-10/Mt 1:1-17

Psalm Antiphon: O Shepherd that rulest Israel, Thou that leadest Joseph like a sheep, come to guide and comfort us.

O shepherd of Israel, come guide and comfort us.

O shepherd of Israel, come. Guide and comfort us,

you who know where the water is and spring-green grass.

O shepherd of Israel, come. Guide and comfort us.

You know the clear water and spring-green grass,

the wolf and the snake.

O shepherd of Israel, come. Guide and comfort us.

You know the clear water and spring-green grass.

The wolf and the snake, too, are yours so

come, and make us one in courage and love.

Mantra: Come, guide and comfort us.

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

[1] “Oh Shepherd” is the first of the great “O” antiphons sung at Vespers on the eight days before Christmas. Each begins with the exclamation “O,” and ends with an increasingly urgent plea for the Messiah to come. Their imagery drawn from Hebrew promises of a Messiah, they were composed by monks in the eighth or ninth centuries. Each is presented here as a “nested reflection” on the antiphon. Please see the end of this booklet for a guide to writing nested reflections.

Thursday, December 18, 2008

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Thursday, December 18

Jer 23:5-8/Mt 1:18-25

Psalm Antiphon: O Wisdom that comest out of the mouth of the Most High, that reachest from one end to another, and orderest all things mightily and sweetly, come to teach us the way of prudence.

O Wisdom, breathe in us, come!

O Wisdom, breathe in us. Come

teach us your prudence – your Way, your Tao.

O Wisdom, breathe in us. Come

teach us your prudence. Your Way, your Tao

are only different words for your Wisdom.

O Wisdom, breathe in us. Come

teach us your prudence. Your Way, your Tao

are only different words. Wisdom for a new people, come, breathe in us until we are One.

Mantra: Come, breathe in me.

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Friday, December 19, 2008

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Friday, December 19

Jgs 13:2-7, 24-25a/Lk 1:5-25

Psalm Antiphon: “O Adonai, and Ruler of the house of Israel, Who didst appear unto Moses in the burning bush, and gavest him the law in Sinai, come to redeem us with an outstretched arm.”

O Adonai, come redeem us

with an outstretched arm.

O Adonai, come redeem us.

With an outstretched arm gather the children lost,

afraid, maimed, dead in war and poverty.

O Adonai, come redeem us.

With an outstretched arm gather the children.

Lost, afraid, maimed, dead in war and poverty.

their cries are witness to our cruelty.

O Adonai, come redeem us.

With an outstretched arm gather the children.

They cry, lost, afraid, dead in war and poverty.

Witnesses to our cruelty, may they break

our hearts open

Mantra: Come! Break my heart open.

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Saturday, December 20, 2008

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Saturday, December 20

Is 7:10-14/Lk 1:26-38

Psalm Antiphon: “O Root of Jesse, which standest for an ensign of the people, at Whom kings shall shut their mouths, Whom the gentiles shall seek, come to deliver us, do not tarry.”

O Root of Jesse, come to deliver us, do not tarry.

O Root of Jesse, come to deliver us. Do not tarry

but show us both your power and our own strength.

O Root of Jesse, come to deliver us. Do not tarry

but show us yourself. Our own power and strength

is in our knowing our common dignity in you.

O Root of Jesse, come to deliver us. Do not tarry

but show us yourself. Our own power and strength

is in our knowing our common dignity. In you

we silence dictators, befriend the stranger

and find peace.

Mantra: Come, do not tarry!

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

December 21, 2008, Fourth Sunday of Advent

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December 21, Fourth Sunday of Advent

2 Sm 7:1-5, 8-14, Rom 16:25-27/Lk 1:26-38

Psalm Antiphon: O Key of David, and Sceptre of the House of Israel, that openeth and no mortal shutteth, and shutteth and no man openeth, come to liberate the prisoner from the prison, and them that sit in darkness, and in the shadow of death.

O Key of David, you open and no one can shut.

O Key of David, you open. No one can shut

a gate you open to liberate the prisoner.

O Key of David, you open. No one can shut

a gate you open. The prisoner, the one who sat

in the shadow of darkness and death is freed.

O Key of David, you open and no one can shut

a gate you open. The prisoner once sat in the shadow of darkness and death. Now, free,

it is time for us to walk out into light and life.

Mantra: Come. Walk in the light.

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Monday, December 22, 2008

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Monday, December 22

1 Sm 1:24-28/Lk 1:46-56

Psalm Antiphon: O Dayspring, Brightness of the everlasting light, Son of justice, come to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death!

Dayspring! Brightness! Son of justice, come to give light to our darkness.

Dayspring! Brightness! Son of justice, come!

Give light to our darkness and draw us out of our grim shadows and fear.

Dayspring! Brightness! Son of justice, come!

Give light to our darkness and draw us out.

From our grim shadows and fear stir up our love and love’s courage for justice.

Dayspring! Brightness! Son of justice, come!

Give light to our darkness and draw us out.

From our grim shadows and fear stir up our love and love’s courage –courage for the children,

for friendship, for justice, for peace.

Dayspring! Brightness! Come!

Mantra: Come! Dayspring! Brightness!

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Tuesday, December 23, 2008

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Tuesday, December 23

Mal 3:1-4, 23-24/Lk 1:57-66

Antiphon for December 23: O King of the Gentiles, yea, and desire thereof! O Cornerstone, thou makest the two one, come to save us mortals whom Thou hast made out of the dust of the earth.

O King of the Gentiles, yes – Come!

O King of the Gentiles, yes! Come, Cornerstone,

fulcrum of our common humanity,

come and make us one.

O King of the Gentiles, yes! Come, Cornerstone,

fulcrum of our common humanity. Come and make us one in Yahweh and Jesus,

Buddha and Muhammad,

in Mary, Kali and Kwan Yin.

O King of the Gentiles, yes! Come, Cornerstone,

fulcrum of our common humanity. Come and make us one. In Yahweh and Jesus,

Buddha, and Muhammad,

in Mary, Kali and Kwan Yin,

make us one in friendship, justice and in peace.

Mantra: Come. Make us one!

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Wednesday, December 24, 2008

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Wednesday, December 24

2 Sm 7:1-5, 8b-12, 14a, 16/Lk 1:67-79

Antiphon for December 24: O come, O come Emmanuel, come our King and our law-giver, Longing of the Gentiles, yea, and salvation thereof, come to save us, O Lord our God.

Come, O come Emmanuel,

come Longing of the Gentiles.

Come, O come Emmanuel.

Come, Longing of the Gentiles,

shadow-deep longing, for what,

I cannot name.

Come, O come Emmanuel.

Come, Longing of the Gentiles, shadow-deep.

For what I cannot name, come

and fill this ache, this emptiness.

Come, O come Emmanuel.

Come, Longing of the Gentiles, shadow-deep.

For what I cannot name, come and fill this ache.

My emptiness waits, our world is cold and hungry.

Come, O come Emmanuel.

Mantra: Come, O come Emmanuel!

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

Thursday, December 25 -- Christmas Day

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Thursday, December 25 – Christmas Day

Is 52:7-10/Heb 1:1-6/Jn 1:1-18

In the beginning was the Word;

And the Word became flesh

and made his dwelling among us. Jn. 1

Oh, yes, how I love words…love to read them, to savor their message and love to talk! Sometimes I’m even surprised at what words pop out of my mouth. Aha, so that’s what I was thinking!

But then comes today’s Gospel challenge to put flesh on my words as God did so many years ago in Jesus. Now I am challenged to put flesh on my words – to follow my thoughts and opinions with action. It is way easier to speak my truth and a whole other thing to put flesh on that truth. And here we are Christmas day, celebrating the birth of Jesus whom we try to follow with our whole being. Talk is cheap but enfleshing the compassion and justice of God can be quite costly. Today can I really celebrate my readiness to follow Jesus with more than words and good intentions?

Mantra: Word of God dwell in me,

act through me.

Dianne Baumunk, OSU

Sunday, December 28

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Sunday, December 28 Feast of The Holy Family of Jesus, Mary and Joseph

Sir 3:2-7, 12-14/Col 3:12-21//Lk 2:22-40

“Let the peace of Christ rule your hearts.” Col 3:15

In our times, scientists and theologians alike tell us a new universe story – we are one living, evolving organism. Stars and planets, people, animals and plants, cities and nations, we are one family, holy and beloved. What would our family look like if each of us took Paul’s words to heart? What if we clothed ourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness and patience? What if we forgave one another and let love be the binding of our lives together? Let’s give it a try!

Mantra: “Let there be peace on earth and let it begin with me.” [1]

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

[1] From song by Sy Miller and Bill Jackson

January 1, 2009

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January 1, 2009 - New Year’s Day

New Year’s Resolution

Take things gently. Look for the little good each day as if life were going to last a hundred years.

William James

Take things gently.

Live softly on the earth,

leaving as little footprint as possible.

Breathe the moist, wintry air.

Notice how each green pine needle

is clear in the cold, cold morning.

Read poems. Hum a tune.

Write down your dreams.

Take things gently and life will last

as for a hundred years.

Mantra for a New Year: Gently. Softly.

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN

The Nested Meditation

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The Nested Meditation

Do you remember that song, “There’s a log in the bottom of the sea. There’s a bump on a long in the bottom of the sea? There’s a frog on a bump on alog in the bottom of the sea?” A nested meditation is not unlike that childhood song. Perhaps that is why they speak to us: in a childlike, playful way, they lead us to surprises – places we’d never suspect.

The nested meditation begins with some thought that is sticking in my mind. This could be one of those wonderings – I think I’d like to sit by the sea all day. It could be a quote, something we’ve heard, read, or something from scripture. Nested poems are great ways to discover our own personal meanings in scripture. This is how I came to write the nested meditations for Advent’s “O Antiphons.” Too absorbed in the morning news, the December 17 antiphon began running like a screensaver in my mind: “O shepherd of Israel, come guide and comfort us.” I wrote that down:

O shepherd of Israel, come guide and comfort us.

Then, I broke that line, and extended it forward.

O shepherd of Israel, come. Guide and comfort us,

you who know where the water is and spring-green grass.

Next I copied the both sentences, broke the second line and extended it forward and began to weave my nest.

O shepherd of Israel, come. Guide and comfort us.

You know the clear water and spring-green grass,

the wolf and the snake.

I repeated that process a few more times. Each time I copied all I’d composed so far, then broke and extended my last sentence. Sometimes I changed a word or two. I continued until I found myself with the weaving of a small nest of words. Look back at the meditation for December 17 for the completed nest.

Try this, but don’t limit yourself to Advent. Nested meditations are great ways to open up your own meaning from scripture, prayer, a memory, a barely remembered dream. They may also help you draw out the meaning of some thought that won’t stop pestering you or some piece of beauty or tragedy you witness. Try it. “The sunlight has begun to fall into the trees.” “Go aside to pray alone.” “In my dream I was playing games with children.” You are sure to discover some treasure all your own.

Kay McMullen, SNDdeN