Eco-Justice
Notes:
The Serenity Prayer -- and reflections for Holy Week
Date: 3/22/02
from Peter Sawtell, Executive Director, Eco-Justice
Ministries
[3-23-02]
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"Lord, help me to accept what I cannot
change."
This week, those words grace the signboard of a church
that I pass on my way to work. They immediately bring to mind the more
extensive "serenity prayer" used in many Alcoholics Anonymous
groups: "God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot
change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the
difference."
The Serenity Prayer is grounded in pastoral and
psychological wisdom. It has been a vehicle of guidance and healing for
countless folk who have wrestled deeply with addiction and personal
crises.
It is true that there are personal battles we cannot
win, broken relationships that we cannot heal single-handed, pieces of
our history that have been written with indelible ink. There are things
we cannot change, and acceptance of those is an essential part of being
empowered to work at the changes that are possible.
+ + + + +
I saw the church sign as I was hearing the headline
news on the radio -- disturbing news about energy legislation, violence
in the Middle East, and murder in my home city.
The coming together of those diverse sets of words
surfaced a long-standing intellectual and spiritual question for me, a
question that hooks into the core of my work with Eco-Justice
Ministries. When is the challenge too great, the cause too hard? Where
do we need to come to acceptance, rather than courage? How far are we
called to push in seeking difficult changes? I pray for the courage to
change my personal lifestyle -- to treat others kindly and justly, to
consume less stuff, and to shift my values from personal convenience
toward the good of the community. I pray for the courage to carry on the
political efforts -- to nag and challenge my two "stiff
necked" Senators (a fine biblical phrase for those who will not
turn their attention to see new and righteous possibilities).
But, Lord, how can I take on the whole drive of
"progress" that is destabilizing life on this planet? What can
I do to turn aside the march of economic and cultural globalization? How
can I make a dent in the escalating patterns of energy use that are
accelerating climate change? Must I deal with those problems where
change seems impossible? O God, can't I just accept "the way things
are" and find a degree of serenity?
Somewhere, there is a dividing line between the things
I cannot change, and the things I can. God, grant me the wisdom to know
the difference.
+ + + + +
We stand at the beginning of Holy Week, the most
profound and challenging eight days of the Christian calendar. The
message of Holy Week, the proclamation of Easter, is about the
astounding possibility for change. By the power of God, even sin and
death are conquered. By the grace of God, lives are transformed.
The Holy Week pilgrimage works its way to serenity, of
a sort, as Jesus comes to acceptance of his death. But that path goes
first through agony in the garden, and includes the excruciating pain of
the crucifixion.
As I read the story of Holy Week, I know that the
transition point between changeable and changeless is not in a
comfortable or convenient place. The prayer for acceptance is never an
excuse for an alcoholic to keep drinking. And I know that it cannot be
an excuse for me to easily accept my complicity in the exploitation and
destruction that are entwined with modern life. For Jesus, alone in the
garden after the Last Supper, serenity came with the acceptance of his
fast-approaching death. It did not remove him from the struggle, but
took him onward to selfless sacrifice.
Yes, we need to be able to accept the limits of our
power to control the world. We need to accept that some strategies are
ineffective, and that some things will change only through the grace and
power of God. But our quest for serenity must never lead us to
acceptance of the evil, injustice, exploitation and destruction in our
midst.
+ + + + +
Gracious God, with you all things are possible. In the
coming days, draw us into the depths of faith that will fill us with
courage and wisdom. May our serenity and acceptance never be an excuse
for taking the easy path. Rather, as we come to an acceptance of that
which is unchangeable by our efforts, may we be liberated and empowered
in the continuing struggle for peace, justice and the integrity of
creation.
Amen.
Peter Sawtell, Executive Director, Eco-Justice
Ministries
E-mail: ministry@eco-justice.org
Web page www.eco-justice.org
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