Healing in His Wings - 12/4
"What a beeauuutifulll day!"
It's Maren here! For those of us who sing in choir back at St. Olaf, this is a common vocal warm up that we use to start rehearsals. But it's also how we started the morning today, at 5:00am, to watch the live stream of St. Olaf's annual Christmas Festival.
The repertoire, the faces, and the pancakes (courtesy of Jason and Amy) were all warm reminders of the people who are waiting for us back at home. The music was lovely -- and then the sun came up, and we went to class to consider images of Jesus as king, as sufferer, and as clan-defying friend.
As we've gone through Global, we have tried to grasp the power of Jesus' life and teachings to heal in this world -- to mend conflicts and divisions, to illuminate social injustices -- which seems especially appropriate now, given that this year's theme of Christmas Fest is "Ris'n With Healing in His Wings."
In parallel, we are witnessing Chinese communism, the great equalities and the vast inequalities that have arisen in the state -- among the rich and the poor, the right and the left, the young and the old, the out and the in. It is easy to debate these issues in class; it is much more difficult to wrestle with them outside, where people are sitting on the sidewalk without hats or gloves, who lack the money to pay for a winter coat or another meal.
So today, we are transitioning into seeing this world. And we are working to see the pain, the beauty, and the healing powers that be, both in the ways that we hear the story of Jesus and in the ways that we hear the stories of each other.
It's Maren here! For those of us who sing in choir back at St. Olaf, this is a common vocal warm up that we use to start rehearsals. But it's also how we started the morning today, at 5:00am, to watch the live stream of St. Olaf's annual Christmas Festival.
The repertoire, the faces, and the pancakes (courtesy of Jason and Amy) were all warm reminders of the people who are waiting for us back at home. The music was lovely -- and then the sun came up, and we went to class to consider images of Jesus as king, as sufferer, and as clan-defying friend.
As we've gone through Global, we have tried to grasp the power of Jesus' life and teachings to heal in this world -- to mend conflicts and divisions, to illuminate social injustices -- which seems especially appropriate now, given that this year's theme of Christmas Fest is "Ris'n With Healing in His Wings."
In parallel, we are witnessing Chinese communism, the great equalities and the vast inequalities that have arisen in the state -- among the rich and the poor, the right and the left, the young and the old, the out and the in. It is easy to debate these issues in class; it is much more difficult to wrestle with them outside, where people are sitting on the sidewalk without hats or gloves, who lack the money to pay for a winter coat or another meal.
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