Cosmic Mass Now Playing

Two wonders are too great to be told but must nevertheless be declared. There is the wonder of creation and the wonder of the human journey toward wholeness and redemption. One of my favorite rites in the Episcopal Church is Eucharistic Prayer C which proclaims the drama of redemption against the backdrop of the mystery of creation.

Everyone has experienced a sense of wonder in the presence of creation. “Breath-taking” and “awe-inspiring” are terms often ascribed to nature. There are innumerable examples which can connect us immediately with the wonder of existence, causing us to marvel at the mystery of the universe.

Who cannot stand in wonder when gazing at the night sky? I can recall as a child the joy and amazement I felt when looking at the stars. By the time I was 10 years old I had been schooled in the concept of light-years and by the time I was 14 I had watched the Apollo lunar landings as our first steps of space exploration were televised. I spent many a night looking toward the Pleiades, marveling at the vastness of the universe and wondering about my place in it. The sheer grandeur such a sight can give one the sensation of being afloat on a sea of mystery, as if on the cusp of tapping in to an ancient memory in the mind of God.

Beginning in the 1990s when the Hubble Space Telescope began sending us images from deep space, we saw a multitude of galaxies at various stages of formation. Increased knowledge led to increased wonder and amazement.

Juxtaposed to that outward vision of the universe, the inner journey that we all make can also instill us with wonder. Some call it a journey toward wholeness, some call it salvation, others call it enlightenment. It is a path we take as individuals and also as a community. Sometimes increased moments of awareness come in private meditation; sometimes that awareness comes while gathered in community. Often it helps to proclaim the Great Mystery as we come together for worship. Eucharistic Prayer C can be a vehicle for that proclamation.

What is Eucharistic Prayer C?

The prayers for Mass, or the Eucharistic service, are labeled Eucharistic Prayer A, B, C, and D. The most frequently used are Eucharistic Prayers A and B. By far the most poetic and the most cosmic of the Masses is Eucharistic Prayer C.

Consider the opening prayer as the Eucharistic Rite begins:

God of all power, Ruler of the Universe, you are worthy of 
glory and praise.
Glory to you for ever and ever.

At your command all things came to be: the vast expanse of 
interstellar space, galaxies, suns, the planets in their courses, 
and this fragile earth, our island home.
By your will they were created and have their being.

From the primal elements you brought forth the human race, 
and blessed us with memory, reason, and skill. You made us 
the rulers of creation. But we turned against you, and betrayed 
your trust; and we turned against one another.

Later in the Mass, just prior to the consecration of the bread and wine, we hear this prayer:

Lord God of our Fathers: God of Abraham, Isaac, and 
Jacob; God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: Open our 
eyes to see your hand at work in the world about us. Deliver 
us from the presumption of coming to this Table for solace 
only, and not for strength; for pardon only, and not for 
renewal. Let the grace of this Holy Communion make us one 
body, one spirit in Christ, that we may worthily serve the 
world in his name.
Risen Lord, be known to us in the breaking of the Bread.

The Celebration at St. Andrew’s Church

St. Andrew's Episcopal Church

I was delighted last Sunday as the service unfolded at St. Andrew’s Church to hear those magnificent liturgical prayers from Eucharistic Prayer C. At the end of the service, my wife commented to the rector, the Reverend Ed Hunt, about how much she loved Eucharistic Prayer C. Father Ed replied that the church will be using it in the liturgy from now until September. You heard it right – the Cosmic Mass will be playing for the rest of the summer at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church on Birmingham’s Southside.

So come one and all, every Sunday from now until September at 10:30 a.m. to St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church  in Birmingham where you can meditate on a cosmic scale in  music, worship, liturgy and poetry.

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Finding Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood

One of the happy asides for me that came with being a father was having the opportunity to visit Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood.  As soon as my daughter was old enough to pay attention to television, we started tuning in to Fred Rogers’ program on Public Television. In fact, for all of my daughter’s pre-school and early elementary years, TV viewing for her was limited to PBS children’s programming, and a few other children’s programs at places like The Discovery Channel, Nickelodeon and on video tape.

Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood, however, was the best thing ever developed in children’s programming. It was something my wife and I always enjoyed watching with our daughter.  Once my daughter started preschool, I began taping Mister Rogers. I found that I could get a week’s worth of programming on one VHS tape (this was before TiVo, DVDs, etc.). That way she (and I) were able to watch the show later if the broadcast was missed. We loved the pace of the shows, and parents could learn about interacting with children by watching how Mister Rogers talked to children and what things he chose to talk about with children.  

I learned some things myself about zoos and aviaries, about how graham crackers are made, how poets deal with words, and how musicians ply their talents, and many other fascinating things from Fred Rogers’ field trips.  Above all, it was reassuring to watch him and understand that I could make it as a parent in spite of my doubts and worries about whether I could get this parenting thing right.

Fred Rogers may have been one of our best examples of a healthy, well-rounded life – a self-actualized person.  The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines self-actualization as “to realize fully one's potential.” It is a term coined by psychologist Kurt Goldstein and also used by psychologists Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers.  It carries the connotation that one is living fully within one’s potential and has made full use of that potential. Once I was taking a graduate course dealing with developmental psychology and the topic of self-actualization was discussed. The instructor asked us to name some examples of people who were self actualized.  Since I had spent some of my daughter’s formative years watching Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood with her, I immediately put Fred Rogers' name to the class as one whose life was a prime example of self-actualization. The professor had a look of surprise, then of awareness. “I think he is a good example," the professor said. "Usually in class students will mention names like Jesus Christ, the Buddha, or Mahatma Gandhi, but Fred Rogers is certainly a good example of what we are talking about.”

Fred Rogers was definitely a gift to all who encountered him, whether in person or on television.  He showed us how to talk to children and he taught us how to be a good neighbor. You can read another writer’s reflections in an article, “15 Reasons Mr. Rogers Was the Best Neighbor Ever.” There is also a wonderful video on You Tube in which John D Boswell (melodysheep) has done an auto-tune digitalization for PBS of some wonderful moments with Mister Rogers. You can see that delightful and inspirational video below.

A Bowl of Kitchery at the Golden Temple

One of my favorite places in Birmingham is the Golden Temple Natural Grocery and Cafe on the Southside. It is a vegetarian restaurant / health food store where you can find all kinds of interesting foods, natural herbs, books and gifts. A great place to go for lunch, it has been one of my favorites for years. If you have time, you can browse the store after you eat, find exotic gifts from India or Thailand, pick up the latest edition of Tricycle magazine or Mother Jones (or any number of publications), buy some organic groceries, vitamins, or Birkenstock sandals. It is where I always go to get seitan, pumpkin seeds, bulk Basmati rice, and natural herbs.

Golden Temple is always an invigorating spot for lunch. Today was a busy day helping our rector and his family  move to a new rectory. I have a pick up truck and they needed a hand. Fortunately, there were several parishioners and three pick up trucks on hand.  Around 12:30 I was needing sustenance and was driving through Southside on Eleventh Avenue where Golden Temple is located. An empty parking spot confirmed that this was the place for lunch. The lunch special today was "Kitchery - a mung bean Indian stew." I got a bowl to go so I could eat it before lifting the next load of furniture and boxes. The kitchery was excellent -- delicious and nourishing!

It was so good and replenished my depleted energy so well, I wanted to get the recipe. I went on line and found this recipe. I haven't tried to make it yet, but I definitely will. There were several recipes available online, but this one seemed to resemble the version I had at Golden Temple. I found in my online search that "kitchery" (sometimes spelled "kitchari") means "mixture," that it is often a combination of rice and lentils and is used in Aruvedic medicine to calm the digestive system and promote healing in the body. In the recipe below, you will notice that it calls for an assortment of vegetables. The vegetables I identified in the kitchery I had included thinly sliced carrots, celery, and a green leafy vegetable - perhaps kale or bok choy.

Mung Bean Kitchari: an Ayuvedic Recipe

by LIVEWELL360

Cook Time: 45-60 min

Kitchari (pronounced kitch-a-ree) is an Ayuvedic recipe, prized as a being nourishing and cleansing for the body. It means “food of the gods” in Sanskrit is a staple comfort food in India. Jam-packed with nutrients, fiber, and vegetable protein, kitchari is great for when you are recovering from an illness, zapped of energy, or having digestive problems. It’s very hearty and simple to make. Kitchari would be perfect for making a big batch over the weekend and eating it for lunch throughout the week.

Ingredients (9 servings)

1 cup of mung beans, dry

10 cups water

6-7 cups assorted vegetables (celery, carrots, zucchini, green beans, or broccoli)

2 tablespoons ghee or cooking oil (olive, coconut)

2 onions, chopped

2-inch piece of fresh ginger root, minced

3-4 garlic cloves, minced

1 heaping teaspoon turmeric

1 heaping teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/2 teaspoon fresh cracked pepper

1 cup brown basmati rice

1-inch piece kombu

1 tablespoon Celtic sea salt or Himalayan pink sea salt

Instructions

Prep Ahead: Wash the mung beans and soak them in water overnight.

In a large stockpot, saute the vegetables in the ghee on medium heat until onions are translucent.

Add the rest of the ingredients, except the salt, bring to a boil. Lower heat, and cook for another 45 to 60 minutes.

Stir in the salt at the very end. Some people say that adding the salt when the beans are still uncooked

makes them harder to digest. They recommend adding the salt after the beans have been cooked.

(Retrieved at http://livewell360.com/recipes/?recipe_id=6013509)

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