This also spoke to me so deeply, the Liturgy as "a container, a way for us... to "learn to hold". How blessed we are that we have the Liturgy to help us "learn to hold the impossible truths" on our "cross carrying" (Sister Vassa says this) journey. I have not fully learned to hold my truths either but I am also thankful for the signposts on my journey. You are one of them. Thank you.
"to point out just one of the ways liturgy provides a container, a way for us, as Vince Granata put it, to “learn to hold” the “impossible truths” our families may contain.
I have not fully learned to hold my own truths, not yet anyway. Still, I am grateful for the signposts—like this powerful memoir and the life of the Liturgy—provide on my journey.
It is extremely difficult simultaneously to hold on to both sides of the "pairs" ... But I think it is vital for healing. It seems to me that it is how we hold on to our humanity - we must not ourselves become splintered into shards of humanity. I'm thinking too of the Solzhenitsyn quote about the line between good and evil running through the center of every human heart. I am still very much struggling with this but these are thoughts I ponder as I sit here in this place.
Thank you for sharing this story and your further explanations of it all. This stood out to me: "It is not only the “good” elements of us that bear the image of God—we bear His image as our whole, multifaceted selves, the broken shards of that image coming to unity in God’s love and mercy." Comfortable to think of my self as "the broken shards of that image". I also appreciated what you said about the genealogy reading and it's importance. Christ's lineage truly had some questionable people, we truly should be aware of that, but then there is repentance! Have always loved this list of names. I used to tease my girls when they were growing up that they had to name their children from this list. We have 6 Grandchildren and no names from this list (smile). That aside I was deeply affected by this writing for many reasons, the paradoxes, "pairs" we all struggle with in families especially, but also friends, and the tragedy's I have know in families that suffer with mental illness... Mental illness is so misunderstood, misdiagnosed and many suffer alone, in silence. Thank you again for bringing this to light. I believe it will bring healing...
This also spoke to me so deeply, the Liturgy as "a container, a way for us... to "learn to hold". How blessed we are that we have the Liturgy to help us "learn to hold the impossible truths" on our "cross carrying" (Sister Vassa says this) journey. I have not fully learned to hold my truths either but I am also thankful for the signposts on my journey. You are one of them. Thank you.
"to point out just one of the ways liturgy provides a container, a way for us, as Vince Granata put it, to “learn to hold” the “impossible truths” our families may contain.
I have not fully learned to hold my own truths, not yet anyway. Still, I am grateful for the signposts—like this powerful memoir and the life of the Liturgy—provide on my journey.
It is extremely difficult simultaneously to hold on to both sides of the "pairs" ... But I think it is vital for healing. It seems to me that it is how we hold on to our humanity - we must not ourselves become splintered into shards of humanity. I'm thinking too of the Solzhenitsyn quote about the line between good and evil running through the center of every human heart. I am still very much struggling with this but these are thoughts I ponder as I sit here in this place.
Thank you for sharing this story and your further explanations of it all. This stood out to me: "It is not only the “good” elements of us that bear the image of God—we bear His image as our whole, multifaceted selves, the broken shards of that image coming to unity in God’s love and mercy." Comfortable to think of my self as "the broken shards of that image". I also appreciated what you said about the genealogy reading and it's importance. Christ's lineage truly had some questionable people, we truly should be aware of that, but then there is repentance! Have always loved this list of names. I used to tease my girls when they were growing up that they had to name their children from this list. We have 6 Grandchildren and no names from this list (smile). That aside I was deeply affected by this writing for many reasons, the paradoxes, "pairs" we all struggle with in families especially, but also friends, and the tragedy's I have know in families that suffer with mental illness... Mental illness is so misunderstood, misdiagnosed and many suffer alone, in silence. Thank you again for bringing this to light. I believe it will bring healing...