Theologian Matthew Fox introduces the life and teachings of German mystic Meister Eckhart:  

Of all the mystics of the West, it is difficult to find anyone who more profoundly articulates the journey we make into the divine and out in the world again than Meister Eckhart. His is a spirituality of passion and compassion. Eckhart, a Dominican friar and preacher, lived from 1260 to 1329…. He teaches that spiritual awakening is to lead to justice-making and compassion in the world. He practiced what he preached…. Two examples of this are his support of the Beguine movement which was the women’s movement of the fourteenth century. And another is his support of the peasants. Indeed, half his sermons were preached in the peasant dialect of his day, and at his trial he was accused of “confusing the simple people” by telling them that they were all “aristocrats,” or “royal persons.”  

But this is precisely the heart of Eckhart’s teaching and the heart of the biblical tradition of creation spirituality: That humans are blessed with divine powers and beauty but also with responsibilities of justice-making and compassion that characterize all royal personhood. How do we get to such deep self-esteem and to such deep acceptance of our responsibility?…. Our awareness is everything; our waking up is everything. We need to move from the superficial or “outer self” to the true self or “inner self.” Who is this inner self? Eckhart answers this question in his treatise “On the Aristocrat,” or “On the Royal Person.”  

Fox presents Eckhart’s teaching: 

The inner person is the soil in which God has sown the divine likeness and image and in which God sows the good seed, the roots of all wisdom, all skills, all virtues, all goodness—the seed of the divine nature…. This is the good tree of which our Lord says that it always bears good fruit and never evil fruit. For it desires goodness and is inclined toward goodness…. 

The seed of God is in us. If the seed had a good, wise, and industrious cultivator, it would thrive all the more and grow up to God whose seed it is, and the fruit would be equal to the nature of God. Now, the seed of a pear tree grows into a pear tree, a hazel seed into a hazel tree, the seed of God into God…. While this seed may be crowded, hidden away, and never cultivated, it will still never be obliterated. It glows and shines, gives off light, burns, and is unceasingly inclined toward God

His Holiness Pope Francis so beautifully expressed it: "We must fan the flame of hope that has been given us, and help everyone to gain new strength and certainty by looking to the future with an open spirit, a trusting heart and far-sighted vision." ...

As Pope Francis misses his third Sunday Mass, let us continue to include him in our prayers: 🙏🏼 

O God, shepherd and ruler of all the faithful,
look favorably on your servant Francis,
whom you have set at the head of your Church as her shepherd;

Grant, we pray, that by word and example
he may be of service to those over whom he presides
so that, together with the flock entrusted to his care,
he may come to everlasting life.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the
unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Amen.

"Our perfection does not consist of doing extraordinary things, but to do the ordinary well."— St. Gabriel Possenti

We are invited into a spiritual practice that encourages us not just to welcome these difficult realities into our lives, but also to trust in a greater Presence to hold them with us. When our hearts break, there is something profound beneath the surface. If we pay attention and consent to that almost silent energy, something gently picks up the scattered pieces of our lives and reassembles them into what can become our unique gift to the world. Our wounds become places of healing, renewal, and ultimately, hope.

My mentor once told me, "Each of us comes into this world to fix just one thing. What are you here to fix? You better find out because no one else can fix what you are here to fix." While this may be more metaphorical than literal truth, its message is profoundly important. We are here to listen deeply and to discover what is uniquely ours to do. We are here to respond faithfully, inviting the Spirit into our brokenness, allowing it to be both worker and guide.

I invite you now to reflect deeply: What breaks your heart? How will you respond? Take courage, knowing that you do not walk this path alone. José N. Harris reminds us that "the tears we shed for another person are not a sign of weakness. They are a sign of a pure heart." Similarly, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. calls us to embody a "dangerous unselfishness," urging us to stand with and for one another, even at great personal cost.

So let your heartbreak be your guide. Pray, listen, and act. The future of our world depends on our willingness to say "yes" to this sacred call.

Adam Bucko