Coming Forth

The other day, up in Big Sur, as we were taking a short hike up to Pfeiffer Falls along a beautiful little trail in Pfeiffer State Park, I was thinking of my friend Paul. Paul used to love that hike. For one thing, it is a pretty hike. The trail is lined with sycamore, laurel (thanks Beth), and giant coastal redwoods. The path meanders back and forth over a small creek that bubbles and jumps over rocks and fallen branches. The trees rise like the walls of a gothic cathedral casting shady shadows everywhere. And for another thing, it is an easy hike. The whole trip, to the falls and back, is less than a mile. We used to tease Paul (mildly) about how easy the hike was, because we were taking much more strenuous hikes farther back into the Ventana Wilderness to see rambling oaks and wild scrub, and larger, more magnificent waterfalls.

Just a few years ago, we took that same hike and, thinking of Paul, I was no longer chiding him for his laziness. I was thinking about how difficult this hike felt. Since our injuries, it had been at least three years since we had done any hiking when we took that hike, and this little hike to the falls kicked our butts. And as we struggled along our way, I thought back to another me, the me from ten years ago, the me that was running marathons and working out thirty hours a week. And that seemed like an entirely different life. It seemed like a different person. That me didn’t have time for writing blogs, or for making much music. That was a pretty busy me. And that me was pretty sure he understood things. That me isn’t me anymore. I mean, a part of him is, but I have died and been reborn several times since then.

In fact, I am not the same me I was a year ago. Thank God. A couple of years ago, I was reborn again when I decided it was time to do something about the weight finally and to go on a diet. Since then, I’ve lost 130 pounds and gone back to practicing kung fu. I have gone to both extremes and now found a nice comfy place in the middle, realizing that exercise and eating right can be a part of my life without being ALL of my life. Now I have room for many things in my life.

And so it is Easter Sunday. All of the past 40 days of the Lenten Season have been carrying us towards this day. Today is a day of rebirth. It is a celebration of life. Christians celebrate this day upon which Jesus showed us that death had no power of humankind. There was no longer any reason to be afraid. But every religion and culture celebrates life at this time of year. It is spring, after all, the end of the long cold winter season. All around us we see the rebirth of life. The trees grow new leaves. All around those who live in rural communities hear the sounds of new life. Baby goats, sheep, horses frolic in the meadows. Today is the celebration of new life.

It seems like we live and die to ourselves many times during our lives. There are so many new beginnings for us. My marriage to Becky, the end of my first marriage, the births of my sons, my entry into college, my graduation, all were new beginnings. Sometimes these new beginnings just happened, and sometimes there were planned. Sometimes we look at our lives and see the need for a change. We look at ourselves and think, “Okay, I’ve done this long enough. Time for something new.” And then we go out and do something, like take our first jog, or enroll in a language class, or take piano lessons. But sometimes we let things stand in our way. There is no doubt that we feel this need for a change long before we do anything about it. But something stops us.

Jesus had a friend who lived in Bethany by the name of Lazarus. He was the brother of Mary (possibly Mary Magdalene, but we don’t know for sure. It was the Mary who washed Jesus’ feet with her tears.) and Martha. Some people came to Jesus and told him that Lazarus was quite ill. Mary and Martha had hoped that Jesus would come and cure their brother. But Jesus chose to wait a couple of days before leaving where he was. When he finally got to Bethany, he was told that Lazarus was dead. According to the story, which may or may not have actually happened (it only occurs in the gospel of John, and some scholars doubt its authenticity), Jesus went to the tomb of Lazarus and directed the people there to roll away the stone. He then called Lazarus to come forth from the tomb. Everyone was amazed when Lazarus did come on out of the tomb. Jesus then directed the people to remove his grave clothes and let him go.

Now I want you to picture this scene. Lazarus would have been prepared after his death in a traditional manner, with his arms and legs bound. Imagine yourself wrapped tightly in a sheet. It must have been really hard to get himself out of that tomb. Can you imagine yourself, wrapped up in a sheet, getting out of bed and sort of hopping your way to the door of your bedroom? In some ways it must have been a funny sight. But more importantly, Jesus didn’t tell people to go in and take him out. Jesus called out to Lazarus, but he had to come out of the tomb on his own, in spite of the clothes that were binding him. And we have to walk out of our own tombs as well.

Still, we need someone to roll away the stone. That’s one of the things that Alcoholics Anonymous understands. It’s the second step of their famous twelve-step program, to believe that a Power greater than themselves could restore them to sanity. That stone gets in the way of our reinventing ourselves. And sometimes it seems like that stone is impossible to move. But even if you accept that you need the help of a higher power to move that stone away, you still have to get up, in spite of those things that bind you, and manage to get yourself out of that tomb.

Those people who believe in the story of Jesus, who believe he was a holy man, believe that he transcended death in order to show us that there is no need to fear anything, that by faith, we can live, and live more abundantly. Jesus told us we could rebuild our lives, remake ourselves, by serving others. He taught we could transform ourselves by living lives dedicated to peace and to love. He taught that this is how we connect with the divine creative power, whatever you want to call it. This is how we regain paradise.

But it does involve work on our part. Jesus said blessed are the peace makers, not the peace wanters. We are called upon to rise up out of our own tombs, just as Lazarus did. Loving one another is not something we feel, it is something we do. And it is not an easy thing to do. Waging Peace is not for sissies. It is not easy. And the more you try to do that Jesus taught, the more you are treated as he was. I find the more I try to live a non-violent life of peace, the more abuse seems to be hurled my way. I have been called traitor, terrorist, even the dreaded “L” word…liberal. It doesn’t matter. It comes with the territory. I will continue to try to remake myself as much like Jesus as I can. Whether or not you believe he was who the church says he was, he did have a life and faith worth emulating. And, thanks to him, the stone has been rolled away for all of us. We just have to come forth. That is what Easter is all about.

And this rebuilding of ourselves is a constant process. I know that after that “easy” little hike to Pfeiffer Falls, I will do my own stepping forth in order to make myself stronger. It’s time to set those injuries aside and unbind myself. And in another ten years I will look back at my life now and wonder was I ever that person. But this will require that I get off my ass and do something about it. The future looks bright. But then, why shouldn’t it? It’s Spring. It’s Easter.

Happy Easter to all of you. I hope you and your families have a wonderful day. I only wish that everybody’s family could be together this day, and that none of our people were off in some other horrible place putting life in peril. And so, here is a collection of prayers for peace from many different faiths. May God, or whatever you want to call that power, grant us peace.
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Native American Prayer for Peace

O Great Spirit of our
Ancestors, I raise
my pipe to you.
To your messengers the four winds, and
to Mother Earth who provides
for your children.
Give us the wisdom to teach our children
to love, to respect, and to be kind to each
other so that they may grow
with peace in mind.
Let us learn to share all good things that
you provide for us on this Earth.

Buddhist Prayer for Peace

May all beings everywhere plagued
with sufferings of body and mind
quickly be freed from their illnesses.
May those frightened cease to be afraid,
and may those bound be free.
May the powerless find power,
and may people think of befriending
one another.
May those who find themselves in trackless,
fearful wilderness–
the children, the aged, the unprotected–
be guarded by beneficent celestials,
and may they swiftly attain Buddhahood.

Bahai’ Prayer for Peace

Be generous in prosperity,
and thankful in adversity.
Be fair in thy judgement,
and guarded in thy speech.
Be a lamp unto those who walk
in darkness, and a home
to the stranger.
Be eyes to the blind, and a guiding light
unto the feet of the erring.
Be a breath of life to the body of
humankind, a dew to the soil of
the human heart,
and a fruit upon the tree of humility.

Sikh Prayer for Peace

God adjudges us according
to our deeds,
not the coat that we wear:
that truth is above everything,
but higher still is truthful living.
Know that we attaineth God when we loveth,
and only that victory
endures in consequences of which no
one is defeated.

Native African Prayer for Peace

Almighty God, the Great
Thumb we cannot evade to
tie any knot;
the Roaring Thunder that splits
mighty trees:
the all-seeing Lord up on high who sees
even the footprints of an antelope on a
rock mass here on Earth.
You are the one who does
not hesitate to respond to our call.
You are the cornerstone of peace.

Hindu Prayer for Peace

Oh God, lead us from the
unreal to the Real.
Oh God, lead us from darkness to light.
Oh God, lead us from death to immortality.
Shanti, Shanti, Shanti unto all.
Oh Lord God almighty, may there be peace in
celestial regions.
May there be peace on earth.
May the waters be appeasing.
May herbs be wholesome, and may trees and
plants bring peace to all. May all beneficent
beings bring peace to us.
May thy Vedic Law propagate peace all
through the world.
May all things be a source of peace to us.
And may thy peace itself, bestow peace on all,
and may that peace come to me also.

Jewish Prayer for Peace

Come let us go up the mountain of
the Lord, that we may walk the
paths of the Most High.
And we shall beat our swords into ploughshares,
and our spears into pruning hooks.
Nation shall not lift up sword against nation–
neither shall they learn war any more.
And none shall be afraid, for the mouth of the
Lord of Hosts has spoken.

Shinto Prayer for Peace

Although the people living
across the ocean
surrounding us, I believe,
are all our brothers and sisters,
why are there constant troubles in
this world?
Why do winds and waves rise in the
ocean surrounding us?
I only earnestly wish that the wind will
soon puff away all the clouds which are
hanging over the tops of the mountains.

Jainist Prayer for Peace

Peace and Universal Love is the essence
of the Gospel preached by all the
Enlightened Ones.
The Lord has preached that equanimity
is the Dharma.
Forgive do I creatures all,
and let all creatures forgive me.
Unto all have I amity, and unto none enmity.
Know that violence is the root cause of
all miseries in the world.
Violence, in fact, is the knot of bondage.
“Do not injure any living being.”
This is the eternal, perennial, and unalterable
way of spiritual life.
A weapon howsoever powerful it may be,
can always be superseded by a superior one;
but no weapon can, however,
be superior to non-violence and love.

Zoroastrian Prayer for Peace

We pray to God to eradicate all the
misery in the world:
that understanding triumph
over ignorance,
that generosity triumph over indifference,
that trust triumph over contempt, and
that truth triumph over falsehood.

Muslim Prayer for Peace

O God! O our Master!
You are eternal life and everlasting peace
by Your essence and attributes.
The everlasting peace is from You
and it returns to You.
O our Sustainer!
Grant us the life of true peace
and usher us into the abode of peace.
O Glorious and Bounteous One!
You are blessed and sublime.

Christian Prayer for Peace

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love,
Where there is injury, pardon
Where there is doubt, faith,
Where there is despair, hope,
Where there is darkness, light,
Where there is sadness, joy.
O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much
seek to be consoled as to console,
not so much to be understood as to understand,
not so much to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
it is in dying that we awake to eternal life.
- St. Francis of Assisi

Taoist Prayer for Peace

If there is to be peace in the world,
There must be peace in the nations.

If there is to be peace in the nations,
There must be peace in the cities.

If there is to be peace in the cities,
There must be peace between neighbors.

If there is to be peace between neighbors,
There must be peace in the home.

If there is to be peace in the home,
There must be peace in the heart.
Lao-Tse

Peace be with you all. Shalom, mir, shanti, pacem en terris, hey wa.