Tuesday, February 26, 2019

Tuesday Sermon: Trust


          "Doveryay, no proveryay."  (Dovieri-ai, no provieri-ai.)  According to Suzanne Massie, author of "The Reagan Years", the Russians like to speak in proverbs.  "Trust, but verify" became one of Ronald Reagan's favorite sayings when he was dealing with the idea of nuclear disarmament. 
          Today's Old Testament reading comes to us from the Book of the All-Virtuous Wisdom of Yeshua Ben Sira, more commonly known as Sirach, or Ecclesiastes.  This book is the largest book of wisdom or ethical teachings that survives to this day, having been written in approximately 200 to 175 BCE by Joshua, son of Sira, a Jewish scribe in Jerusalem.  Sirach is not part of the Jewish canon of scripture, but was accepted as such by the Council of Trent.
          Trust, but verify, seems to be the theme in both the Old Testament and Psalm today – where we, as humans, are told both that we should trust in God, and yet, be prepared to have that trust tested, repeatedly.  But the questions are, why are we being tested, and who is doing the testing? 
          Sirach's wisdom comes in pairs, where he provides an attribute one must practice, and a challenge one will face during that practice.  For instance, "Set your heart right and be steadfast, and do not be impetuous in time of calamity."  This is both an encouragement of steadfastness, with a warning against impetuousness – the opposite of being steadfast; the challenge that will test that virtue will be calamity.  There's a whole history lesson within this reading, summed up in the question:  "Consider the generations of old and see:  has anyone trusted in the Lord and been disappointed?"  The person who answers that question has to review their knowledge of the Torah and the prophets – only to come to the conclusion that the answer is no.  It has only been when people have not trusted the Lord that they have sinned and turned away from God, finding only disappointment.
          Psalm 112 makes it clear that those who trust and follow the teachings of God will always be rewarded and blessed.  God has, from the beginning, provided us with boundaries and choices, rewards and consequences – as any good parent does. 
          So, is it God who tests our trust in Him, or is it our own human nature that gets in the way, and tests God's word?  Or tests God?
          In our Gospel reading, Christ talks about welcoming a child in His name being the same as welcoming him.  The thing is, children don't look to be welcomed by people they don't trust.  They get an innate sense of a person and know whether they will feel safe in granting their trust or whether someone is just paying lip service as they jockey for position, as we often see politicians kissing babies.  By putting our trust in God, by truly welcoming Christ, we have decided that the Great Commandment – loving God with all our heart, soul, body and mind, and loving our neighbor as ourselves – is more important than spending our time verifying the trust we give God.  The Russian proverb is how people deal with other people – but it has no place in our trust in God. 
          Remember the saying from Isaiah, which was also repeated by Christ:  "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord.  “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." 
          We have a tendency to treat God the same .way we treat our fellow man. And he’s not man. He’s God. We have to learn to trust that.  But when we do test that trust, we will find the consequences God has promised.  His Word is certainly everything we need to verify our own trust.

Sunday, February 24, 2019

Sermon: Thinking Outside the Box


          Our lessons today provide us with examples and concepts of thinking outside the box.  And that's the lesson that we have to learn to apply to today's situations and thinking.  But today, let's look at the boxes presented first, or the context of our readings.
         The Old Testament lesson shows Joseph's brothers, completely dumbfounded, and scared to death, that this man – the one they had sold into slavery and told his father he'd been killed and eaten by wild animals – was going to do them equal harm.  Their actions would finally be coming home to roost, so to speak, because not only would the worst of them undoubtedly be put to death, but their father and younger siblings would likely starve to death.  Their jealousy, their breaking of the tenth commandment not to covet anything and everything belonging to their neighbor, or in this case, their brother, puts them into the mindset that justice requires they be punished.
          But Joseph's outside-the-box thinking recognized that each action and choice made by his brothers was altered by God's grace.  He considers that God has provided him guidance and blessings that now allow him to preserve not only the lives of the Egyptians, but also his family and many from the land of Canaan, where the famine had spread to.  As I talked about last week, this is certainly all about attitude.  And Joseph's attitude – while doing no more than what amounts to pranking his brothers as a little bit of payback – considers himself blessed.  He has also figured out how to be a blessing on those less fortunate, taking the warnings about the upcoming famine to heart, and ensuring that God's grace would be spread out to a great number of people.
          So here we then switch to the context of Christ's time and the social pecking order.  Predominantly, Christ is speaking mostly to Jews, who have been under the thumb of the Romans for quite a while, and some others who were under the jurisdiction of the Babylonians.  They have been low on the social totem pole, certainly not equal to the Citizen of the day.  They certainly understand all that Christ refers to, in changing the order of thinking of those who have been superior in society.
          First, it is important to note that turning the other cheek had a particular meaning during the time the gospel story was written, that is lost on us today. To hit someone on the right cheek would require a blow with either the left fist or a right backhand. Think about it:  how would you hit someone else on their right cheek? At that time a backhand was not a blow to injure; it was a blow to insult, humiliate, or degrade the person being hit. It was not administered to an equal, but to an inferior. Masters backhanded slaves; husbands their wives; parents their children; Romans, the Jews. The whole point of the blow was to force someone who was out of line, back into place.
          Jesus' audience was made up of people who were used to being degraded. What He was saying to them is, “refuse to accept this kind of treatment anymore. If they backhand you, turn the other cheek."  Get outside the box they've put you in, and declare your humanity, your status as a child of God.  By turning the other cheek, the servant makes it impossible for the master to use the backhand again. The left cheek now offers a perfect target for a blow with the right fist; but only equals fought with fists, as we know from Jewish sources, and the last thing the master wants to do is to establish this underling's equality.  This act of defiance renders the master incapable of asserting his dominance in this relationship, in this way.  By turning the other cheek, then, the “inferior” is saying: "No.  I refuse to be humiliated any longer.  I am your equal. I am a child of God.  I won’t take it anymore”. Now, this kind of defiance is really not a way to avoid trouble, but the point has been made.
          In a parallel scripture in Matthew 5, this story includes the advice from Christ that we should also "go the extra mile."  In that example, we see the same unmasking of an oppressive system.  Roman soldiers could force or impress labor on subjected peoples, but their practice limited forcing such labor to one mile. For example, whoever was found on the street could be coerced into service, like Simon of Cyrene who was forced to carry Christ's cross.  At that time, armies had to move quickly. The majority of the rank and file depended on impressed civilians to carry their packs. Whole villages sometimes fled to avoid being forced to carry soldiers’ baggage that could weigh anywhere from 60 to 85 pounds.
          What we tend to overlook is the fact that carrying something an extra mile was, in fact, an infraction of the military code.  Recall that the soldiers’ code allowed for one mile of forced labor at a time – that was the limit. So, imagine a soldier’s surprise when, at the mile marker, the civilian says, “I will carry it another mile”. Why would he want to do that?
          Normally soldiers have to coerce people to carry their packs, but the Jew who does so cheerfully and will not stop is a provocation.  Is he insulting the legionnaire’s strength?  Trying to get him disciplined for seeming to violate the rules? Or will this civilian file a complaint?
          What the civilian has done is turn the tables. He has thrown the solider off balance by depriving him of the predictability of the victim’s response. The victim has seized the initiative and taken back the power of choice. Imagine a Roman soldier pleading with a Jew to give back his pack! The humor of this scene may have escaped us, but it could scarcely have been lost on Christ's listeners, who must have been delighted at the prospect of bringing discomfort to their oppressors.
          What Jesus was doing was laying the foundations for a social revolution. An armed revolution against the Romans would have proven catastrophic, but a social revolution becomes political when it reaches a critical threshold of acceptance.  This in fact did happen to the Roman empire as the Christian church overcame it from within.
          While Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. advocated civil disobedience, a phrase coined by Henry David Thoreau, Christ's examples spark creativity.  He was not advocating this as merely a technique for outwitting the enemy, but as a just means of opposing the enemy in a way that holds open the possibility of the enemy also becoming just.  Both sides must win. We are to pray for our enemies' hearts to change, and to respond to ill treatment with a love that is not only Godly, but also from God.
          Jesus is saying, don't react violently to evil, don't counter evil in kind, don't let evil dictate the terms of your opposition, don't let violence lead you to mirror your opponent. Find another way, a third way, a way that seeks to remove evil from our world, not add to it.
          Take the adversity in your life, and find a way out of the box.  Find the blessing, and then find a way to share it with others, to enrich your "enemy" with kindness and justice in such a way that their own actions will demand a change.  As always, the Great Commandment is our guide, but Christ also tells us to think outside the box.
          I'm going to end this with a Franciscan benediction:

          May God bless you with discomfort
          At easy answers, half-truths, and superficial relationships
          So that you may live deep within your heart.

          May God bless you with anger
          At injustice, oppression and exploitation of people,
          So that you may work for justice, freedom and peace.

          May God bless you with tears,
          To shed for those who suffer pain, rejection, hunger and war,
          So that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and turn their pain into joy.

          And may God bless you with enough foolishness
          To believe that you can make a difference in the world,
          So that you can do what others claim cannot be done,
          To bring justice and kindness to all our children and the poor.  Amen


Tuesday, February 19, 2019

Tuesday Sermon: Where Is Your Faith Written?


          "Watch out—beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and the yeast of Herod."  It's always interesting to unpack even one sentence uttered by Christ.  So much meaning fills so few words.
          For anyone who uses yeast in baking, we're aware that a little bit of yeast fills an entire batch of dough.  And when the yeast is actually making bread, it's a good thing.  But when the yeast represents two opposite groups among the Jews, there's a whole other level of meaning going on.  However, keep in mind what it is that yeast does.
          So today, let's talk about what the yeast represents in Christ's metaphors.  Interestingly enough, the answer is found in the other Gospels.  Pharisees were the social conservatives of the Jewish Faith.  In Luke 12, Christ states, "Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees, that is, their hypocrisy."  They were more concerned with letter of the law than the spirit of the law; with the intellect, rather than the heart.
          On the opposite end of the spectrum are the Sadducees, or those known as Herodians.  These are Jews on the more liberal end of the spectrum, where their lives and teachings were pervaded with materialism, worldliness and compromise with the world.  The "yeast of Herod" would be those Jews who had joined forces with Herod in compromising with Rome.
          Putting the questions Christ put to His disciples into context, He reminds them that each time they have been faced with the need for bread, He has provided a miracle to feed the people.  And yet each time, they react again with fear, rather than with faith in the abilities He has shown them.  They know in their heads that God provides, but they have not yet engraved that faith on their hearts.  Jesus warns them of the yeast – that tiny amount of leaven that can pervade their entire beings with doubt.  How often does the Divine need to prove Himself before we believe?
          Looking at the reading from Genesis, "the Lord was sorry that he had made humankind on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart."  I often wonder how God looks upon the people of the earth today, and wonders if the yeast of the Pharisee and of the Herodians hasn't permeated the Earth again.  I can remember as a child listening to this story and feeling shame that we, as a people, grieved the Lord to His heart.  Where is the faith of Noah today?  How do we reach a point of having little bread, and react with faith, rather than with fear?
          We see and we hear, but we often do not comprehend. We read His Word, but we do not truly believe it. We have experienced His power, but it has not convinced us that we can trust Him completely.
          The Lord is challenging each of us to examine our lives in the light of His work in us. He is calling us to total faith and trust in Him, and to live that faith in our daily lives.  He is calling us to lay aside our "what if's" and our "how's". He is calling us to trust Him.  Think about that and be aware of each of the blessings you experience in your own life.  Write your faith upon your heart.

Sunday, February 17, 2019

Sermon: It's All About Attitude


          I'd like to begin this morning with the context of our gospel reading.  Christ has spent the night in prayer on the mountain.  He comes down "to a level place", and there, ensures that every person in the crowd of disciples and followers is healed.  It's both a gift to them, and a mystery, because He's about to confuse the majority of them, and they probably need all their faculties about them to make sense of the fact that He's going to turn their understanding of the world on its ear.
          Among the Jews and early Christians, healing and other signs of power are evidence that God was at work, and that one could trust that the words spoken by the person performing these deeds, were true.  And throughout Christ's ministry, He never performed a "miracle" of judgment.  He didn't cause blindness in a sighted person, or strike someone dumb who spoke the right words but failed to understand in their heart.  He healed with compassion and tenderness.  He provided words of wisdom to those who needed guidance, but did not condemn them.
          So here, in what is often referred to as the "Sermon on the Plains", we encounter the four blessings and the four woes.  And life seemingly turns topsy-turvy.  There's a song by a Christian songwriter, Steve Taylor, that goes like this:
Up’s down, down is out, out is in.
Stairways circle back to where you’ve been.
Time falls, water crawls, are you listenin’?
Did you ever chase your tail
through a maze of exit doors?
I have seen the light by Braille.
I have blazed the road before us.
We’re walking in Escher’s World again.
Rise up you nimble-minded men.
Birds roar, lions soar, sheep are cruel.
Snails pace, papers chase, midgets rule.
Stuffed shirts, status hurts, we ain’t foolin’.
Let the sequels have their day;
The remake’s on its way.
We’re living in Escher’s world it seems;
We’re wide awake within our dreams.
          So, let's circle back around to context.  Most of the people Christ is speaking to are Jews.  They are heavily taxed by the government, mistreated and abused by both Roman rulers and Roman soldiers.  Many are poor, overworked, hungry and sick.  There's never enough to do what needs to be done.  There are always more bills at the end of a paycheck, and always more things on your list that need to be done at the end of the day.  And they're expecting a Messiah who is to free them from this oppression – not someone who tells them they're blessed.  In his first major public sermon, Jesus tells them, how blessed they are to be poor, to be hungry, to mourn, to be hated, for they will be blessed in heaven.  Well, what about now?  Talk about Escher's world!
          And then, to those who may have made something of themselves, gained money, prestige, honor, and happiness – Jesus tells them, woe are they, for they have gained all they desired here, only to experience hardship in heaven.  What?  Why should I follow you then?  I gain nothing!
          But to my way of thinking, Jesus is talking about attitude.  Life is not fair; we will find people and governments who make life hard.  And sometimes we overcome; sometimes we fall.  All of that, however is about this temporary, physical life.  The question is, what do we pursue with our talents?  Who do we bless with our gifts? 
          Here at the very beginning of Christ's ministry, he makes it clear that being His disciple is not choosing an easy path.  What we pursue may bring us hunger or oppression, sorrow or fear.  But if in pursuing the kingdom of heaven, we find ourselves enriched – that in itself is not a cause for woe, but rather what we do with our blessings.  Are we following the great commandment?  Are we loving God with all that we are, and loving our neighbors as ourselves? 
          If, however, we are pursuing the almighty dollar, scratching to get ahead, and spending all we have to keep up with the Jones – then woe are we, for we never learned to share what we have with those less fortunate; we didn't learn that it's not all about "me", but rather all about "us."  We will later hear from Jesus that how we treat the "least of these" is how we treat Jesus Himself. 
          One of the things this sermon is designed to do is to explain what being a disciple is all about.  It's not for the faint of heart; it's not the easy path – but it is the right path.  In our Old Testament lesson, Jeremiah speaks the words God gave him, explaining blessings on those who trust in the Lord, and curses on those who trust in only themselves.  "Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green; in the year of drought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit. The heart is devious above all else; it is perverse— who can understand it? I the Lord test the mind and search the heart, to give to all according to their ways, according to the fruit of their doings."
          We are a people who believe that salvation is through grace, and at the same time, that because we believe, our actions will reflect that faith, and produce the good fruit, even in times of drought.  So it's not that good works will get us to heaven, but rather that our belief must, of necessity, be reflected in our lives.  As Paul says to the Corinthians in our New Testament lesson, if we don't believe that Christ rose from the dead, that Easter didn't happen, then our faith is meaningless, and our actions have no value, except as we live here physically, right now.
          So the whole lesson here boils down to, any circumstance in your life, negative or positive, is a doorway to greater blessing.  It all depends on your attitude, and how you can find that blessing in your present circumstances.
          In the midst of our daily lives, how much do we focus on the coincidences - the opportunities that we allow to pass us by because we don't trust that God might be acting through someone who can provide what we need? And how often do we pay attention to the fact that we, ourselves, may be the instrument through which God is acting?
          I am reminded of the story that goes around about a flood and the man who is convinced God will save him. He is visited by two sets of people in boats and a helicopter, but sends them away, because God will save him. When he dies, of course, he asks God why He didn't save him and God's response was, "I sent you two boats and a helicopter - what did you expect?"  Or the other joke about the atheist college professor who says he'll wait 15 minutes for God to smite him in order to prove He exists - and the Marine that decks him because God's busy right now and sent him.
          Even in the face of the evils done to Joseph, son of Jacob, is it not possible that God, in His infinite wisdom, wanted Joseph in another place, where he might act as His hand, extended in grace at a time of His choosing? Looking at the rather volatile history of the Christian Church, is it not possible that some of these things that occurred were to aid in spreading the news of the Christian Faith - in a way that could be accepted at the time? Would the Church have grown without the choices made, at the Council of Nicaea, for instance? While men have free will in the choices they make, can God not turn acts of ignorance or evil, into acts that will benefit His faith?
          Like Paul, do we trust that God will guide us right?  Are we ready to take the hand God sends us to help, allowing others an opportunity to be a blessing?  And will we see blessings as opportunities to bless others?  It's all about attitude.

Saturday, February 16, 2019

Herbal Notes and Recipes from Hildegard Workshop


Writings on Herbal Medicine include both Physica – written in common German; and Causae et Curae – written in Latin


Within her books, she had 437 claims of health benefits using 175 plants.  She used the Doctrine of Humors with the rule of fours (divine sphere, cosmic realm, physical area, mental area).  Additionally, she believed the Doctrine of Signatures, originally organized in the Materia Medica by Pedanius Dioscorides.  It's an interesting doctrine, that God provided us clues as to which plants were good for treating which organs, which could include shapes, colors, similarities to diseases, etc.

She believed in Harmony between mind, body and spirit as God is the true healer. 

In October 2012, she was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Benedict, four months after she was canonized.

6 GOLDEN RULES OF LIFE (PHYSICA)

1.       Draw energy from nature's life force – Viriditas – Divine healing power of green; nature's regeneration; God's healing plants.

2.       Healthy and balanced nutrition found from food's healing powers.

3.       Regenerate strained nerves with healthy sleep and dream regulation.  This would include good mood, positive thoughts prior to sleeping that would lead to good dreams and possibly prophetic visions.  Methods include:
a.       Bedtime rituals and schedules
b.       Sleep naturally or get out of bed.  Don't make bed a battleground.
c.       Avoid stimulants.
d.       Avoid alcohol.
e.       Bed is for sleeping, not watching TV, working, reading, eating, etc.
f.       Sleep chamber should be cool, calm and comfortable.
g.       While a 20-30 minute cat nap is fine, generally avoid naps.
h.       Get regular exercise.
i.        Have a healthy diet.
j.        Keep a sleep journal by your bed.  Analyze your sleep patterns and write down any dreams.

4.       Finding the harmonious balance between work and leisure.  This dealt with the humors of the body:  Sanguine (blood); Choleric (yellow bile); Melancholic (black bile); Phlegmatic (Phlegm).  Qualities were dry, wet, tepid and foamy.
a.       Strengthen the spirit – prayer, meditation, practicing talents/gifts.
b.       Cleanse the body – fasting
c.       Moderation – of behaviors, thoughts and actions
d.       Sharpen the senses – be aware, set goals, live life on purpose

5.       Detox and purification with regular fasting and sweat baths.  “Moderate fasting renews health in those who are sick or less than healthy. In addition, those who are healthy benefit from periodic fasting, by preventing sickness that has not yet arrived.”

6.       Optimism and strength of mental defenses using the 35 subconscious virtues. 
Inner love of the spiritual / Outer love of the material
Discipline / Exuberance
Modesty / Jocularity
Compassion / Ruthlessness
Divine victory / Sloth
Patience / Anger
Belief / Cynicism
Abstinence / Feasting
Generosity / Bitterness
Benevolence / Spitefulness
Truth / Deceptiveness
Peace / Contention
Happiness / Misery
Discretion / Excess
Salvation of soul / Shiftlessness
Humility / Pride
Charity / Envy
Fear of god / Vainglory
Obedience / Disobedience
Faith / Disbelief
Hope / Despair
Simplicity / Luxury
Justice / Injustice
Strength / Numbness
Cosmic bond / Disorientation
Stability / Instability
Longing for the heavenly / worry over the earthly
Openness / Stubbornness
Freedom from Desire / Desire
Harmony / Discord
Reverence / Scurrility
Consistency / Restlessness
Worship / Crime
Frugality / Greed
Heavenly joy / World-weariness


RECIPES

Hawthorn Berry Cordial

2 cups dried hawthorn berries
2 apples, chopped, seeds removed
2 teaspoon minced fresh ginger
2 vanilla beans, cut in half lengthwise
3 cinnamon stick
10 whole cloves
(Alternatively, 6 cardamom seeds instead of half the cinnamon and cloves)
Zest of 2 lemons
4 tablespoons dried hibiscus
2/3 cup unsweetened 100% pomegranate juice
1 cup honey, or to taste
4 cups brandy

Mix together in a glass jar and shake daily for 2 weeks to 1 month.  Strain out the solid bits for compost pile and store liquid in glass container out of sunlight.

Hawthorn berry strengthens the heart, and is a blood pressure equalizer – lowering high blood pressure and raising low blood pressure.  Rather than working to suppress the body's natural reactions, and just treating the symptoms, hawthorn berries also treat the cause of high blood pressure – the health of the heart.  Hawthorn also helps with systemic inflammation, so keep an eye on how you feel overall to determine the proper dosage for yourself.

Please keep in mind that Hawthorn berries should not be used by those diagnosed with diastolic congestive heart failure.  Additionally, if you are on medications for blood pressure, consult your doctor before adding hawthorn to your diet. 

Ginger, cinnamon, cloves and vanilla bean also have heart healthy properties and support hawthorn's work in this cordial.  I didn't have cardamom seeds, so I substituted additional cinnamon and cloves for it.

If you were to make this cordial for blood pressure problems, you would then take about a teaspoon 3 times a day.  It's quite good when mixed with sparkling water.

Spiced Hawthorn Pear-Plum Brandy

2 cups of brandy
1 Tablespoon fresh ginger, grated
2 cinnamon stick
5 whole cloves
(Substitute cinnamon/cloves with 1 T cardamom seeds, decorticated (no pods))
1 vanilla beans
2 pears
4 dried plums or 1 persimmon
1 cup dried hawthorn berries
¼ cup honey

Mix together in a glass jar and shake daily for 2 weeks to 1 month.  Strain out the solid bits for compost pile and store liquid in glass container out of sunlight.

This digestive cordial can be sipped on its own or added to hot apple cider as an after-dinner drink.  Again, this is good for heart health and for aiding digestion.  This can also help with diarrhea and bloating. 

Salves in General

Skin balms, salves and ointments are easy-to-make semi-solid blends of beeswax (or some vegetable wax) with one or more liquid oils. The distinction between these applications simply depends on their cosmetic or therapeutic properties.

In a wide sense, skin balms are general purpose cosmetic applications, designed to soften and nourish the skin. Typically made from oils that have superior emollient, soothing and nourishing properties, they are ideal for hands, feet and elbows, and to soothe extra dry, chapped skin.

Being anhydrous (waterless), these applications are absorbed slower than creams, and offer therefore the best choice for those skin, muscular and joint conditions that benefit from long, slow massage. Simple skin balms, made from healing oils (such as avocado, virgin coconut, corn, sweet almond, apricot kernel, rice bran, and mango or Shea butter) are a great way to restore suppleness and softness to tired feet, hands that suffer from contact with irritating substances, chapped elbows or rough knees. The mechanical action of massage and the friction of the massaging hands on the skin generate extra heat, which contributes to opening the pores and making the skin more receptive to absorb into its deepest layers the active principles contained in the wax-and-oil blend. For this reason, skin balms are typically used as bases for healing salves, therapeutic ointments and pomades.

When healing herbs are infused in one of the base oils, the nourishing and warming action is combined with the benefits of the chosen herbs, reaching the deepest layers of the skin. It is important to keep in mind that, since possible skin problems would be magnified by these "deep reaching" preparations, synthetic fragrances and herbs that might cause skin irritation should always be avoided when preparing salves and ointments.

A simpler alternative to infusing herbs is adding, at the end of the process and just before pouring the base balm into storage containers, a few drops of one or more essential oils, chosen depending on skin type and desired effects

Preparing a skin balm base

The ingredients in a skin balm are basically two: one or more liquid oils, and some beeswax or vegetable wax. Skin balms, salves, ointments and pomades are relatively soft and easy to spread, and require 4 to 7 parts of liquid oil(s) for each part of beeswax.

Measure out the ingredients by weight into your chosen melting pot.

Place this container into the double boiler, half-filled with water, and heat until the beeswax is melted.

Remove from the heat and let cool for several hours.

Once the balm is set, check its consistency and "feel". If the balm is too hard or feels "waxy", add an extra part of liquid oil, and remelt it in the double boiler.

Repeat the previous step until your balm reaches the desired consistency. Remember to take notes, which will help you when you wish to replicate the same recipe.

When the desired consistency has been reached, melt down the balm once more if you would like to add any essential oils or Vitamin E, which act as a preservative for the oil base. If essential oils or Vitamin E are used, mix well before pouring into individual storage containers.

For making salves you follow the recipe above for oil. After you have your herbal oil to the scent or strength you desire you warm it up just enough so it will melt wax. You add approx. 1 Tbls. of organic beeswax or solidified butter (i.e., Shea) for every cup of oil. Stir your beeswax into the warmed oil until it’s dissolved. Pour into dark glass containers and close with a lid. If you find your salve is not as thick as you wish you can reheat it and add more beeswax.

The amount of wax that gets added depends on the other solidifiers that are used, such as the Shea butter or Coconut oil, which is solid in cold form. One thing to note if using Coconut oil is that there is more of a gel-like quality than waxy quality to a salve made with it.


Arnica Salve

From Angelika’s Diary:

            There are certainly times that I can understand why the physicians are gaining ground in popularity.  I met a woman at a crossroads faire, and found that although she had some effective treatments, she really didn’t know what she was talking about.  I fear that someday, she will be accused of witchcraft, and not even know that she’s simply ignorant.

            Working with the Archers of Ravenwood, I learned quickly to have a large amount of arnica salve on hand, for a more bruised group of people I’ve never met.  You would think it was a badge of honor for a new archer to earn an “archer’s tattoo”!  What it means is that you’re too new to shooting to understand how to get the rest of your arm out of the way of being hit by a string traveling fast enough to propel an arrow hundreds of yards, and immediately, a large welt rises, followed shortly thereafter by most colorful bruising.  It pains me to look upon it, and yet daily, I’m called to ease the sting and speed the healing.

            One day the woman I talked about was visiting, and upon being presented with the arm of yet another brave, but forgetful (for he’d forgotten his armguard) warrior, she brought out a butter of her own that she called Toad Ointment to aid the healing of the bruise.  I asked her how she made it, and she described the barbaric ritual of taking four good-sized toads, boiling them in a pot of water and simmering it down to half a pint, then adding a pound of butter, and a goodly amount of arnica tincture.  While she was describing this, I used my own salve on the lad and sent him on his way, much relieved that the sting had disappeared so quickly.  The woman looked rather surprised, and asked what I did differently that it would work so much faster than what she made.  I explained that if one skipped the toads and the butter, there’s much less to work through to get to the skin.  I’m afraid she didn’t appreciate my criticism of her methods, and she took her leave rather quickly after that.  Toad ointment!  Can you imagine such a thing?

            Arnica can be a formidable opponent in fighting off bruises, muscle aches and pains, sprains, and for archers, the dreaded bow rash.  There are approximately 28 varieties of Arnica, all, of course, from the daisy family, but not all having the same medicinal effects.  Arnica montana plants have bright yellow, daisy-like flowers that bloom between June and August. Other names for the plant are leopard's bane, mountain arnica, mountain tobacco and mountain daisy.

            Arnica stimulates blood circulation, and can raise blood pressure, particularly in the coronary arteries. Used externally only, it contains anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties that reduce pain and swelling, improving and speeding wound healing. It works by stimulating white blood cell activity, which digests congested blood, and disperses trapped, disorganized fluids from bumped and bruised tissue, joints and muscles.  Using the flowers, hundreds of preparations are made from the plant, particularly in Germany.  Most useful for our purposes is a preparation of the arnica flower in a gel or cream form. Two methods of preparation are listed below. Arnica is on the list of strictly protected plants, and is threatened with extinction. Please obtain either the dried flowers or pre-prepared formulas from reputable dealers.

            While arnica, which was initially discovered by goat herders, who saw their charges eating the plants when they’d been injured, is good for goats and cows, it’s not good to use internally for humans.  For us, it can cause vomiting, weakness, increased heart rate and nervous disturbances!

Preparations:

Angelika’s Salve:  Using a cold pressed oil (made by covering the herb with a good olive oil, keeping it out of the light, and shaking the jar twice daily for four months before straining out the solid bits), add enough solidifiers (beeswax, butters, fats) to make a good salve.  (I’ve found that adding a little tea tree oil – not known in Angelika’s time, of course – will make the salve work even faster.)

Tincture: Prepare the tincture ahead of time by placing 4 ounces of the dried flowers in a glass jar with a tight fitting lid. Add two cups 100 proof vodka or Everclear, and leave in there for 2 weeks, shaking the jar occasionally. At the end of that time, strain the mixture through a cloth into a brown glass bottle, and keep it tightly closed. Tinctures are useful when you don't have time to heat water to create compresses. Mix 15 drops of the tincture with a cup of water, soak a cloth in it and place it on the affected area for 2 minutes. Don't let arnica sit on the skin for too long.

Cream/Gel: This is a blend of oil, beeswax and water. You can make your own (see below) or purchase an unscented, water based cream. Add 2 ounces of arnica flowers to a cup of the cream, mix well and simmer in the top of a double boiler for 30 minutes. Strain before it cools into a container with a tight lid.

To make your own cream, melt 2 ounces of beeswax in a double boiler. Add 1 cup olive oil or other vegetable oil and blend. Add 2 ounces of the herb and mix well. For a lighter cream, add a little water. Simmer for 20 minutes, mixing well. As a preservative, add a drop of tincture of benzoin. Strain through a cloth into sterilized jars.



Tuesday, February 12, 2019

Tuesday Sermon: Metaphors to Explain Sin


          Today's Gospel has often been confusing to people, even when they understood that Christ was speaking metaphorically, using hyperbole to emphasize just how important it was that we avoid sin.  In this passage, Jesus refers to the “hand,” the “foot,” and the “eye”. These are our three problem areas when it comes to dealing with sin.
          One of the words that was often used in older translations for this passage was "offend".  If you remember the passage as I do, the King James version reads:
And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.  And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched. And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.  And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire: Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

          So there are several things here to note.  In this instance, to "offend" is to lead someone to sin.  This can be through directly leading someone to sin, as in the case of Eve offering Adam the apple, or Aaron creating a statue of gold for the people to worship; it can be leading someone to sin indirectly, when we treat others in unkind or unloving ways, which can spark an angry or frustrated reaction.  Leading someone to sin can be through setting a bad example, particularly if you're considered an upstanding member of the community.  People can be led to sin because we failed to lead them to righteousness, in failing to give them the spiritual food for which they are starving. 
          The three body parts describe all the areas where we humans are tempted to sin.  What Jesus is talking about in these verses is how we are to deal with our sins. When temptation to sin comes into our lives, we must deal with it immediately, harshly, ruthlessly, consistently and decisively! Sin should receive no quarter within our own hearts.  There were some in the early church who believed the passage was literal, and Origen actually emasculated himself in order to prevent himself from the sin of lust.  What he didn't realize was that it is not the body part that causes us to sin.  It is the heart, and the metaphors used tell us how to change our hearts – our bodies will follow along.
          The hand refers to the things we do, activities in which we engage, relationships we have with others.  If any of those things are causing us to sin, then we need to evaluate our activities and the people in our lives.  See what needs to be changed in order to live the life Christ is asking of us.
          The foot refers to the places we go, areas that can encourage behaviors that are good for our souls, or areas where we will find temptations and others who will help us normalize sin in our lives.  Think about where you go, and whether it feeds or starves your soul.
          The eye refers to the things we see or desire to have, but we must evaluate again whether those things feed us, or "offend" us.  Many in this day and age are finding that the internet is certainly a place where the eye can offend.
          The last thing to mention here is where there is a discussion of the worm and the unquenchable fire.  The King James version obviously emphasized the unrepented sins that lead to hell, where the Revised Standard version summarizes it into one statement.  In this instance, Jesus is referring to a place well known to the people of the time – the ever burning fires in a pit at Gehenna.  It's estimated these days that where you have a heap of trash, the decomposition will eventually cause spontaneous combustion, and the fires can burn unceasingly if always provided with fuel.  In this pit, people threw trash, slaughtered animals, criminals, etc. and so the fires seemingly never went out.  As people decompose, we often find the worms or maggots that consume the body.  Here Christ was describing hell in a way that people might understand – a worm that would never die, but always consume your flesh, in a burning pit like the fires of Gehenna. 
          This passage emphasizes just how important one's choices and actions are, particularly where "little ones" are referenced – those learning about God, those marginalized and unprotected, those who we are here to serve as baptized members of Christ.  Examine your hands, feet and eyes, and be certain that your choices serve God's people.

Tuesday, February 5, 2019

Tuesday Sermon: Selah!


          Today's sermon is a little bit different, in that we're going to focus on the Psalm 62, and one of the saints honored today, Agatha of Sicily.  Agatha lived from 231 to 251 CE. 
          Psalm 62 has the mysterious word that appears 71 times in the Psalms:  Selah.  Apparently, no one really knows what it means, but by the best guess, it means to pause and praise, pause and contemplate, or to give value.  This is apparently one of the root words in Hebrew that scholars disagree about.  So then the question becomes, when you’re reading those passages in the Bible and you come to the word “Selah”, do you actually say Selah, or should you say something in praise of what you have just heard?  Hallelujah!  Or should we pause and think about what we’ve heard, giving it the respect and careful consideration it apparently deserves?
          "For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall never be shaken."  In these first two verses, we are provided the foundation upon which the Psalmist rests.  It can also be exemplified in Agatha's story.  According to the 13th-century Golden Legend, 15-year-old Agatha was from a rich and noble family, and, as one of the famous "virgin martyrs", she had made a vow of virginity and rejected the amorous advances of a low-born Roman prefect named Quintianus. 
          The first place in Psalm 62 that is followed by Selah is at the end of Verse 4, where it has been described how much a person can be battered.  Quintianus thought he could force Agatha to turn away from her vow and force her to marry him.  His persistent proposals were steadily spurned by her, so Quintianus, knowing she was a Christian – and this was during the persecution of Decius, when so many Christians were put to death - had her arrested and brought before the judge.  And of course, he was the judge.  He expected 15-year-old Agatha to give in to his demands when she was faced with torture and possible death, but she simply reaffirmed her belief in God. He was her foundation.  In order to force her to change her mind, Quintianus sent Agatha to Aphrodisia, the keeper of a brothel, and had her imprisoned there, where she suffered a month of rape, assault, and efforts to get her to abandon her vow to God and go against her virtue.  Selah.  A place to pause and think. 
          What would you do?  Is there a temptation here to blame God for the vow you made?  Or do you continue, knowing that no matter what they did to your body, your soul remains pure and steadfast, and will not be shaken.
          Quintianus sent for Agatha again, argued, threatened, and finally had her put in prison and had her tortured. Amongst the tortures she underwent was the cutting off of her breasts with pincers. After further dramatic confrontations with Quintianus, Agatha was then sentenced to be burnt at the stake, but an earthquake saved her from that fate; instead, she was sent to prison where St. Peter the Apostle appeared to her and healed her wounds.
          The second place in the Psalm followed by Selah is after the eighth verse:  "Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us."  Selah!  And here, I think the pause is more of a praise, but one of quiet strength and conviction.
          Agatha experienced atrocities in her very short life, but she trusted in God, and He brought her to Him from the prison in which she died.  May her example make us pause and think.

Sunday, February 3, 2019

Sermon: DNA with Love


          Having a sister whose brain I can pick with a simple phone call has been an absolute blessing to me.  The conversation this week was something like, what's the difference between DNA and talents people have?  If a family has a particular talent for music that "runs in the family", is that genetic or environmental? 
          God said to Jeremiah, "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you."  In Psalm 139, the psalmist speaks to God, "For it was you who formed my inward parts; you knit me together in my mother’s womb."  God has plans for us, even within the confines of free will, He literally activated DNA knit into your very being, so that you would have the talents and gifts available to you that are needed.  Jeremiah, like Moses, argued with God about being a prophet. 
          How many times have you argued with God over gifts He's given you?  Did you happen to realize that you were bad-mouthing His choice?  Now, notice that neither Moses nor Jeremiah got into trouble for questioning God:  He simply explains to them that, of course they have what they need to accomplish the tasks He sets before them. 
          The thing is, we have to acknowledge the gifts from God – unwrap them, so to speak, and actively put them to use.  You may have the predisposition to healing or speaking in tongues, to leadership or to hospitality – but without acknowledging their existence, and focusing on developing them, it's still just random DNA.  But that's where the DNA, the genetic similarities that appear both within families and that seemingly show up out of nowhere occur.
          So listen to Paul's letter to the Corinthians, beginning with the end of last week:  "Strive for the greater gifts.  And I will show you a still more excellent way."  Throughout that lesson Paul was pointing out how our gifts and talents work together for the benefit of our families, communities, and church, and that each person's work was equally as important, even if not equally visible. 
          Here we get to the environmental factors of our talents and gifts.  Through striving individually to explore the gifts we've been given, and how they can be used to benefit others, joining with others in learning and developing our own gifts, we honor the trust and plans that God has made for our lives.  But because we are only a part of the whole, we also need to encourage others to cultivate their own gifts, and help them to grow in ways they might not yet have considered. 
          Haddon Robinson writes in "Decision Making by the Book" of a concert violinist whose brother was a bricklayer. One day, a woman began gushing to the bricklayer about how wonderful it must be to be in the family of that violinist. Not wanting to insult the bricklayer, she added, “Of course, we don’t all have the same talents, and even in a family some just seem to have more talent than others.”
          The bricklayer replied, “Boy, you’re telling me! That violinist brother of mine doesn’t know a thing about laying bricks. If he couldn’t make some money playing that fiddle of his, he couldn’t hire a guy with know-how like mine to build a house. If he had to build a house himself, he’d be ruined.”
          Robinson observes, “If you want to build a house, you don’t want a violinist. If you’re going to lead an orchestra, you don’t want a brick-layer. No two of us are exactly alike. None of us has every gift and ability. Our responsibility is to exercise the gifts we have—not the ones we wish we had.”  This is not to say that we can't strive to improve ourselves in areas other than those in which we are gifted.  We may have a passion for music, without an equal talent for producing it.  But if we enjoy making a joyful noise – that's all God asked for, because we do so with love.
          The continuation of Paul's letter in today's passage – which didn't originally have chapters or verses, so it truly is a continuance – discusses the "more excellent way" he referred to last week.  That way, of course, is with love. 
          Paul points out that we could have any gift at all, but if it is used without love, without focusing on using it for the common good, it's nothing.  Love provides us with patience, kindness, humility.  It helps us to encourage others, to rejoice in their truth.  Love is enduring, and with love, anything is possible. 
          One of the other apostles points out in the Gospel of John, "God is love."  He so loved the world that He sent Christ to us, to teach us the greatest commandment – the law of love.  The people of Jesus' hometown today were unable to hear with ears of love what Christ was saying to them.  That is something we all have to work on. 
          If you don't know your gifts, pray.  Think in truth about what is or are areas in which you excel.  Talk with others about what gifts they see in you.  Then pray again and listen for the spirit of truth.  Get your own ego out of the way – this includes not only being honest with yourself, but not arguing with God about His choice in what He knit into your DNA.  You may feel unworthy or unqualified.  And there's a great saying – God doesn't call the qualified; He qualifies the called.  Trust that He didn't have to frog[1] anything – it was knit right the first time. 
          And finally, the last test of whether a gift comes from God is whether you can use it in love, with the common good in mind.  Paul points out, "Love never ends."  And through everything, as Jeremiah says, "I am with you, says the Lord."


[1] "Frogging" is a knitting slang term, where we have to "rip-it, rip-it" out when we've made a mistake.