Credo

I believe in the pureness of grapefruit’s clean burst and the drip of a just ripe plum. I believe in the churn of ocean tides, the aerodynamism of a pelican flock, and the flaunting shimmy of a peacock’s tail. I believe in the goodness of watching dawn’s coming in the company of coffee and silence, in acknowledging the beauty of someone’s garden, and in the map of constellations that grace the heavens. I am for the power of the Word well proclaimed, the restorative calm of familiar ritual, and the joy of Spring’s arrival.

I believe in and I place my trust in a God of love that knows no limit and says “Come unto me.”; in a God who knows me for who I am and knows that there is more for me to discover; in a God whose measure is whether we have loved our neighbor as ourselves. I place my trust in a God who saw fit to create jellyfish, electrons, and the Aurora Borealis; a God who inspired Joan of Arc, John of the Cross, and Jessica Power.

I believe in simple joy, generous love, and soothing mercy. I believe in justice, that everyone should have enough, everyone should be safe, and that the dignity of creation should be honored. I believe in snapping my gum now and then because sometimes the sound says it better than any word I could conjure. I believe mashed potatoes and applesauce should both be a little bit lumpy and that people should get to pick their birthday dinner. I believe in tight eggs, loose oatmeal, and peanut butter and honey sandwiches, in picnics, in walking without aim, in thinking great rambling thoughts, and applying the principles of logic.

I believe in and I place my trust in the Christ who can bring together what is most completely divine and what is most fully human and proclaim of the two, joined, “This is what is real and where I choose to put my heart and make my dwelling.” I place my trust in the light that no darkness can ever overcome, the bread for the world, the salt of the earth, the Word made flesh, my friend.

I believe in saying “thank you,” in taking responsibility, in teaching, in sharing wonder. I believe in friendship, in the occasional comfort of holding hands, in raucous laughter, in long meals at table with those I love, in tears, in knowing what makes me scared, and in holding a lantern in the nighttime of a friend’s fear.

I believe in and I place my trust in the movement of the Spirit that kicks up leaves in a Midwestern fall, wears a gown of grace, a crown of cherry blossoms, and sensible shoes on the journey, and who reminds me to take a nap every now and then to regain perspective. I place my trust in the Spirit who was in the wind at Babel, in the boat on the sea, in the anguish of the Crucifixion, and who shines in the eyes of those most vulnerable.

I believe in the resurrection, in Eucharist, in community, in discovery and revelation, and in Mystery. I believe in wonder and in awe and in contemplative curiosity.

Dear Lord, help my unbelief.