Phaecians.
When someone complains that their life has lost its significance, and that they are alienated or disconnected or depressed, likely they have lost touch with the expression of their virtues, “the gifts they were born with,” their very particular, personal abilities to act with prerogative in the world.
~ Michael Goldberg*
easter.
“We had hoped…” Oh God, we had really hoped! Why? Why would you leave us in such despair? Can you feel the pathos in these gut-wrenching words?
When the risen but incognito Jesus joins two disciples trudging down the road between Jerusalem and Emmaus, he sees them stricken with sorrow. "We had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem [us],” they confided. Hopes, consistently buoyed over months and years of the most incredible reports of this anointed rabbi, now lie desolate on the ground. Doomed and lost forever, it seems. Truly, hope is risky. The pain of dashed hopes is like none other. Just ask our epic journeyer.
Sailing a small raft from Calypso’s island, the weathered sojourner Odysseus is attacked once again by his nemesis Poseidon and washed ashore on Scheria. The native Phaecians are noble, restrained, and motivated by the highest ideals—the essence of the Enneagram One energy. As a matter of moral obligation, they succor our wounded hero and promise him safe passage home, finally, impossibly, to Ithaca. But first, they host him at their very own Olympic games to test his mettle. They want him to display his special, God-given virtues… which he does to their great amazement. “Virtues are our powers that allow us to know ourselves and overcome dangers and distractions along the way.”* Are your own virtues hitting on all cylinders these days?
Sometimes we have to be reminded of who we really are, and often it takes a special friend to name what’s in us and boldly call us out. Especially if we’re discouraged. Sometimes we need to tap into our One energy and dig deep to find what is real and true and bring it forth. Your integrity, your generosity, your talents, your wisdom. The difference between a hero and a victim lies at this crossroad: When you’ve been beaten down, can you reclaim your essence and step back into your True Self?
Our Emmaus friends are stunned and resuscitated by the revelation that Jesus is not dead after all, that their hopes are more alive than ever. It’s an emotional whiplash of the best kind, and it comes right when they need it most! As Lent comes to a close and we celebrate the nexus of our faith, I invite you to hope once again. Things live, then they die… and then they come back to life again in another form. What is coming back to life in you today?
growing your soul
Souls can only grow by dying and resurrecting, and this is the crux of the Easter story! Do you know what’s dying in you today… and what’s wanting to come back to life?
serving our world
Communities also grow by dying and coming back to life. Can you look past the insanity of our election season and see a deeper, more hopeful emergence coming?
takeaway
Dare to Hope.
*Michael Goldberg, Travels With Odysseus. I’m taking much of my inspiration in this series from his book. I recommend it!