Categories: spiritual-writings
Date: 14 October 2008 07:00:44
One assignment [minimum 4,000 words; I have done about 4,850] down, one [5,000 words] to complete. The first is due tomorrow, the second next Tuesday. Thanks be to God for His assistance in helping me -- it has been an enormous struggle. Sadly, I have brought on some stresses myself and let me anxiety take hold, so I have not been in the best frame of my mind. But, with the grace and help of God, I am getting through it. All things going well, I should be ready to annoy you all again more regularly from next Tuesday [I think this assignment will go "down to the wire" as it were].
The last two days I have been on a conference put on by VISA for PCI DSS compliance [basically protection of cardholders' data]; it was very enjoyable -- despite some dry matter at times. A great presenter, over from Utah in the US, who did make it interesting and had a number of stories to tell. To add to the benefit, it was at the Intercontinental Sydney; a very plush hotel -- and the food and drinks we were served were marvellous. Endless tea and coffee, biscuits, cakes and all manner of pastries; Monday's buffet lunch was meat and seafood, with vegetables, and some mouth-watering and stomach-filling desserts; Tuesday's buffet lunch kept the desserts and went with a Chinese theme for the main and entrées. Well worth the extra hour of travel each way [and the getting up earlier as well] to head to the city.
Yesterday on the way to the city by train I dipped, after a few months, back into St Ephrem the Syrian, particularly his Hymns on Virginity, which take much of their imagery from the Gospels as well as the Old Testament. Using images such as the virgin as a tree where her womb is a nest for chastity and people such as the Theotokos, Mary Martha's sister and Anna the Prophetess, Hymn 24 shows the peace and joy that comes from the virgin state. I was particularly struck by stanza 7 which I will share:
Blessed are you if you will be a daughter to Mary[*]Beautiful imagery, beautiful words...and, to me, a most wonderful call to not only love God, but to have love that is intoxicating, overwhelming. Also to constantly fix my gaze on the "one beauty alone": God; and to reflect Christ in my heart, in all my emotions and my thoughts, to all. May the Lord have mercy upon me and help me in this, particularly in these times of stress, anxiety and depression when, sadly, it is all to easy for me to lose focus on God, and the image of Christ in others, and make myself the centre of it all.
whose eyes scorned all persons.
She turned her face away from everything
to gaze on one beauty alone.
Blessed is her love that was intoxicated, not sober,
so that she sat at His feet to gaze at Him.
Let you also portray the Messiah in your heart
and love Him in your mind.[* - here Ephrem means the sister of Martha]