Guest Post from Dr. Dennis Ortman: One Big Breath
The following guest post was buried in the Christmas mail, but it is still worth reading:
ONE BIG BREATH
“The
Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and
the power of the Most High will overshadow you.”
--Luke
1: 35
I just started participating in yoga classes. I wanted to
breathe a little more life into my old, slow, stiff body. The instructor from
India invites us to assume many seemingly unnatural positions with our bodies,
which I think of as “pretzel poses.” We stretch like rubber bands, hoping not
to snap. She asks us to hold those poses for several minutes and breathe slowly
and deeply. She instructs us to be aware of our bodies and breathe into the
physical sensations we experience. I experience mostly pain, which she tells me
is “just discomfort.” She says, “Just follow your breath. It is your life
energy,” which she assures us will bring relief. Each session ends with one big
breath and the exchange of a solemn greeting, “Namaste” (Bow to you.).
The classes have changed my perspective on life and
religion. Now I think of both as “one big breath.” Let me explain.
TWIN PEAK FEASTS
I was born and raised Catholic. After a brief period of
wandering and searching, I am again committed to the Catholic Church as my
preferred path to God. In the Christian tradition, there are two central
feasts: Christmas and Easter. In both, God’s breath, which is another name for
Spirit, is creating new life. Just as human life begins with the first breath
and ends with the last, the whole universe lives and dies by God’s breath. The
energizing Spirit fills the whole universe. It moves in two directions: inward
as inspiration, and outward as expiration. It is an ongoing process of
receiving and sending out, a continuous interchange. These movements work
together to create wholeness. During the liturgical year, we follow closely
God’s breath.
At Christmas, we celebrate that the Word became flesh in the
birth of Jesus Christ. God exhaled and sent his Spirit into the world through
the womb of Mary. His Spirit moved inward, creating new life within us that is
both Divine and human. Spirit and matter were inseparably joined. A precious
gift was given. The angel Gabriel announced to Mary, “The Holy Spirit will come
upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore, the
child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.” (Luke 1: 35)
We celebrate Christmas not only as a past event, but in
every moment of our lives. We believe God exhales and inspires us, fills us
with His life and love. The Holy Spirit has come upon us, and the Most High
overshadows us. The wonder of it all can take our breath away. Christ is born
in us daily. We share the gift of the new life given us.
At Easter, we celebrate the passion, death, and resurrection
of Jesus that has brought us new life. During these events, the Spirit moved
outward. Jesus expired on the cross. With his last breath, he said, “Father,
into your hands I commend my spirit.” (Luke 23: 26) The crucified one, who was
filled with the Holy Spirit, surrendered it for the benefit of us all. He told
his disciples the night before he died, “Yet I tell you the sober truth: It is
much better for you that I go. If I fail to go, the Paraclete will never come
to you, whereas if I go, I will send him to you.” (John 16: 7) Jesus further
explained, “When he comes, however, being the Spirit of truth, he will guide
you in all truth.” (John 16: 13)
Jesus did not abandon his disciples, as they did him. His
promise was fulfilled on Pentecost. The disciples were huddled together, hiding
for fear of the Jews. They feared suffering Jesus’ fate. The Acts of the
Apostles recounts the event: “Suddenly from up in the sky there came a noise
like a strong, driving wind which was heard all through the house where they
were seated. Tongues as of fire appeared, which parted and came to rest on them.
All were filled with the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 1: 2-3) God’s breath was
experienced as a windstorm that gave them courage. This timid group was
inspired to go forth and preach boldly the Gospel.
His followers also experienced the presence of the risen
Lord. Jesus surrendered his Spirit on the cross, and it entered the whole
world. Not only were his disciples inspired, but the whole community was filled
with his Spirit. The community became the Body of Christ where his Spirit lives
on in the world. St. Paul wrote: “It was in one Spirit that all of us, whether
Jew or Greek, slave or free, were baptized into one body. All of us have been
given to drink of the one Spirit….You, then, are the body of Christ.” (I
Corinthians 12: 13, 27)
We all live in the shadow of death. One day we will take our
last breath. That can be terrifying. However, the resurrection of Jesus gives
us hope. When we expire, our Spirit does not die. St. Paul writes: “And if
Christ has not been raised, our preaching is void of content and your faith is
empty too….Just as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will come to life again,
but each on in proper order.” (I Corinthians 15: 14, 23-24) When the breath
leaves us, our body decays and returns to the earth. However, when, like Jesus,
we surrender our Spirit, we are enlarged. Our spiritual selves live on as part
of the universal Body of Christ.
SPIRITED UNIVERSE
Scientists tell us our universe happened about fourteen
billion years ago. Our human history of only two hundred thousand years is a
mere blip on the horizon of time. Scientists also recognize that our world is
composed of measurable elements, perceived by the senses, called matter, and
other immeasurables. Some invisible energy force keeps everything in motion.
Also, a mysterious intelligence orders it all.
Our Judeo-Christian tradition calls that mysterious force
and intelligence “Spirit.” God did not hold His breath until Christ’s birth. He
spoke long ago, and the universe appeared. It began with God’s one big breath,
his exhalation. The Book of Genesis recounts: “In the beginning, when God
created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless wasteland, and
darkness covered the abyss, while a mighty wind swept over the waters. Then God
said, ‘Let there be light.’ God saw how good light was.” (Genesis 1: 1-4)
Successively, God’s word created the sky, earth, vegetation, stars, and all
living creatures. His Spirit enlivened matter. That energizing Spirit is the
Life Force that creates and sustains our world. Divine Wisdom orders it. The
word universe means “one turning.” The Spirit is the Center around which the
universe revolves, even though many of us do not recognize it.
The creation of humanity is related in two accounts. In the
first, God created man as His final act: “Then God said, ‘Let us make man in
our image, after our likeness’….God created man in his image, in the image of
God he created him; male and female he created them. God blessed them saying:
‘Be fertile and multiply; fill the earth and subdue it.’” (Genesis 1: 26-28) In
a second account, God breathed life into a piece of earth: “The Lord God formed
man out of the clay of the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of
life, and so man became a living being.” (Genesis 2: 7) Humanity, the late
arrival on the scene, was then given dominion over all creation. We were given
a powerful God-like Spirit to continue His creative work in the world.
Human history moves in a straight line and follows a divine
plan in the Judeo-Christian accounts. This differs from the Hindu and Buddhist
traditions in which the universe moves in circles, in eternal repetitions. The
Hebrew Scriptures relate God’s guidance of His chosen people: “The Lord, the
God of our fathers, brought us out of Egypt with his strong hand and
outstretched arm, with terrifying power, with signs and wonders; and bringing
us into this country, he gave us this land flowing with milk and honey.”
(Deuteronomy 26: 8-9) God’s Spirit led them to the Promised Land.
The Christian Scriptures prophesy the final fulfillment of
God’s plan in Jesus Christ: “God has given us the wisdom to understand fully
the mystery, the plan he was pleased to decree in Christ, to be carried out in
the fullness of time: namely, to bring all things in heaven and on earth into
one under Christ’s leadership.” (Ephesians 2: 9-10) Our destiny is for all
people, of every race and nation, to be united in the heavenly Jerusalem. No
one is excluded. God’s Spirit creates unity, which is our calling. The work
towards that goal is our ongoing mission.
Our world is an enchanted place. It is filled with Divine
whispers. St. Paul wrote: “I consider the sufferings of the present to be
nothing compared to the glory to be revealed in us. Indeed, the whole created
world eagerly awaits the revelations of the sons of God….Yes, we know that all
creation groans and is in agony even until now.” (Romans 8: 18-20, 22) We can
listen to the groaning in our world and in our hearts with hope. The Divine
Spirit empowers us to work toward making all things new, according to God’s
plan. God breathes new life into our world through us. If we follow our breath,
the Spirit’s urgings, we will create something new and unimaginable. The world
awaits breathlessly our hope-filled response.
Because God’s one big breath sustains all, every moment is sacred.
No time or place is profane. We can realize God’s presence in any time or life
circumstance. Paying close attention and following our breath, we can sense the
subtle movements of the Spirit. We hear the angels of our better nature
speaking. Living fully in the present moment, we are inspired to move forward.
Grateful for the grace, we exhale and share the Spirit of love, courage, and
peace.
For more posts about and by Dennis Ortman and his books, click HERE.
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