Author Archives: Leo Denton

The Crash

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Korea on fire from today's bombing

Korea on fire from today’s bombing – photograph from CNN.com

This morning, while dreaming of some intense situations, I received a message of sorts without words from the heart-friend who dreams inside of me: “Time is generous but time is short.” Somewhat startled, I woke up, it had my attention.

Inspired to be focused and hard-working, I did my chores, wished my daughter, Mignon, a happy birthday, and checked the news. The fighting between North Korea and South Korea inspired me to draw upon the You-Are-Who-Are prayer which brought many more things into focus for me. It was also the anniversary of an important experience in my life (the Tuesday before Thanksgiving).

On that Tuesday and I was quite young, attending the Pontifical College Josephinum, a college seminary, located in Worthington, Ohio. The Thanksgiving break was just beginning and most students were going to their homes or visiting friends away from the college. The dorm hall was filled with the thrills of newfound freedom and adventure. There were, however, a few students, like myself who were staying at the college. By the time 5 o’clock rolled around, it was much quieter, and I was looking forward to some quiet time. As the noises began to cease with the last of the holiday-bound students, I began to connect, ponder, pray, …

A thought struck me hard: here at my college I knew people who not only spoke of unselfish love theoretically but who in their daily lives loved others unselfishly. I knew of course that there were many other people in my life who also loved unselfishly, but until coming to this college I had simply failed to see it. I thought of the difference that love makes and was overcome with a sense of awe and gratitude toward God, our All in All. An aspiration welled up in me, “Lord, I am so grateful for this, that I am willing to suffer for you.” Right away, I began to sense that God was coming. I was somewhat scared not knowing what to expect. “Knock, knock, knock.” Someone was knocking at my door. What terrible timing, I was very disappointed that my experience with God was being interrupted. Reluctantly I went to the door.

Two great friends of mine were at the door. They wanted to go bowling. I told them that I didn’t want to go, but they continued to cajole me. Because the college’s bowling alley was manually operated, it took at least three to bowl. Two or more would play while another managed the pins in the back. I named four other students who were staying, but my two friends replied that they had already asked them. I had my doubts about that, but I knew too that those others were not much into sports and were unlikely to go bowling regardless. So grudgingly I agreed to go bowl with my friends for a short while.

At the alley, we decided that my friends would bowl the first game, and I would go to the back. Some frames into the game, I consoled myself with the thought that everything was going fine, and that I would be able to return to my dorm room soon. Once again the ball came crashing through the pins and I jumped down into the pit and placed the bowling ball on the return ramp above me and bent down to pick up the fallen pins. Without warning the bowling ball struck me in the head. It had fallen off the ramp. Though I passed out, I was still standing with my head bowed down close to floor when I began dizzily regaining some consciousness. I knew where I was and what had happened, but my sight was not focused and I was in intense pain. I knew that I had a fairly serious head injury and that I needed to go back to my room.

Without saying a word to my friends, I walked out of the alley. My friends tried to speak to me as I passed by but my mind was swimming and their words sounded completely garbled. I knew I had a concussion; one worse than the one I had when I was 12 years old. The dorm was close and I walked to it without problems. Once in the dorm, I began to climb the steps to my room and I think I may have fell down the steps but I am not sure. When I reached my room, I was trying to settle myself but there were new knocks at my door. I could hardly think at this moment but I opened the door. It was my friends who had no idea what had happened, much less how much I was hurt or how much pain I was in. They really wanted me to go back to the alley, and I was doing a poor job of explaining that that was impossible. At one point, I said something like I just want to pray, and one of my friends complained that I was trying to be “a saint or something.” Not realizing the seriousness of the situation and joking around he slapped me in the face. It was gentle I’m certain but the pain that I felt was nearly unbearable, tears exploded from eyes, and every curse word I had ever said wanted to unleash itself on them but I remained silent. Right away they understood something of the situation, backed up, and left my room.

Immediately, I went to my bed, took a deep breath, and for the first time since being struck by the bowling ball remembered that I had just prayed, “Lord, I am so grateful for this [seeing that human beings can love unselfishly], that I am willing to suffer for you.” I was floored. God had indeed come and answered my prayer. I just had not recognized God’s knock and presence. I realized then that I really should be praying. I knew that my suffering had meaning and let myself enter it.

Not having any idea how to begin, I began to pray the rosary (a traditional Catholic Christian prayer of meditation). It was Tuesday, which meant meditating on the sorrowful mysteries: the agony in the garden, the whipping at the pillar, the crowing of thorns, the carrying of the cross, and the crucifixion. Being in such pain, it was not difficult to identify with Jesus. While considering the mysteries silently, I was praying the rote prayers aloud, and at some point early on, I began to notice that as I was saying the words to the prayers, I was hearing myself utter a lot of non-sensible syllables. As the strange sounds continued, I began to notice some bits of meaning and even some phrases here and there: suffering … survivors … darkness … fires … a mountain … As the hours went by, I began to see visions too: people suffering and crying out in pain, fires across a very dark mountainside, large and small pieces of wreckage, … I began to realize that I was joining and witnessing the aftermath of a plane that had crashed into a mountain. Words and images continued to confirm this interpretation. In a very striking image, I saw a suffering yet peace-filled woman with hands out-stretched in praise and in prayer to God. I felt one with the people in the crash and I knew that God wanted me to join my suffering with them, be with them, and pray for them. Eventually, after several hours, I went to sleep.

Early the next morning, I was anxious to hear more about the crash, but when I checked the news, there was no news of a plane crash. I found that very strange; the experience had been so real, surely such an event would have made the news. My head was hurting, but I was able to do things slowly and carefully, so I went to breakfast. There were only a couple of people in the cafeteria, I asked, but no one had heard of the plane crash. I continued to check the news each hour throughout the day. At 2:00 P.M. there was still no news, but at 3:00 P.M. on the radio, I heard something like the following:

There was a plane crash last night in Virginia. The plane had departed from Ohio and was en route to Washington, D.C. The plane was flying in dense fog and the pilot did not see the mountain in front of it. So the plane crashed into the mountain without warning. The reason this was not announced earlier is because the crash occurred at a site of a secret White House used in the event of a nuclear war.

Upon hearing this news on the radio, I was satisfied knowing that I had prayed for these people in the crash when few others knew of their suffering.

After several months my head healed up.

After a few years, I had told a dozen or so people about the experience. Each time I related the story, the people responded to the effect, “Oh yeah, I remember that.”

In later years deeper dimensions of this experience have emerged – realizations that have floored and dumbfounded me – realizations about suffering, revolutions of the heart, hope, unselfish love, healing, blessings, victory, and thanksgiving.

Please stay tuned. Thanks …

“Time is generous but time is short.”

Freedom from Fear – The Strong Heart of Aung San Suu Kyi

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“It is not power that corrupts but fear. Fear of losing power corrupts those who wield it and fear of the scourge of power corrupts those who are subject to it. Most Burmese are familiar with the four a-gati, the four kinds of corruption. Chanda-gati, corruption induced by desire, is deviation from the right path in pursuit of bribes or for the sake of those one loves. Dosa-gati is the taking the wrong path to spite those against whom one bears ill will, and moha-gati is aberrartion due to ignorance. But perhaps the worst of the four is bhaya-gati, for not only does bhaya, fear, stifle and slowly destroy all sense of right and wrong, it so often lies at the root of the other three kinds of corruption.” These are the words of Aung San Suu Kyi, a long time political prisoner and advocate of democracy, a Nobel Peace Prize recipient, who was just released from imprisonment in Burma.

Being imprisoned because of her words and her popular leadership, Aung San Suu Kyi has not depended on the powers of this world (see Luke 4:4-6 and John 18:36). Instead she has proclaimed, “Without a revolution of the spirit, the forces which produced the iniquities of the old order would continue to be operative, posing a constant threat to the process of reform and regeneration. … A people who would build a nation in which strong, democratic institutions are firmly established as a guarantee against state-induced power must first learn to liberate their own minds from apathy and fear.”

Enduring imprisonment she has lived out her universal call to overcome “fear of imprisonment, fear of torture, fear of death, fear of losing friends, family, property or means of livelihood, fear of poverty, fear of isolation, fear of failure.” Instead of fearing, she has relied on “the wellspring of courage and endurance in the face of unbridled power … [and] a firm belief in the sanctity of ethical principles … [and] a historical sense that despite all setbacks the condition of man is set on an ultimate course for both spiritual and material advancement.” She believes in a “vision of a world fit for rational, civilized humanity” and in “concepts such as truth, justice and compassion” which empower her “to dare and to suffer to build societies free from want and fear.”

A BBC article, also found under Empower News (see tab above), provides more information on today’s release of Aung San Suu Kyi.

God bless Aung San Suu Kyi and God bless us all!

 

The night before last, I had a dream of a man who was in a barracks building in which he lived. Without warning some uniformed men entered the building and arrested him. They took him to another building and accused him of disturbing the social order because he had asked this question: “If our work with underground oil can suddenly cause such a catastrophe, what can result from our work with bombs?” The interrogators viewed the man as a danger to society and intended to keep him in custody for a long time.

Today, with a much greater appreciation for the scriptures, the Catholic Christian tradition identifies Bible readings for each day. After the dream, I read the Gospel reading of that day. It is very relevant to the Aung San Suu Kyi’s call toward liberation from apathy and fear:

“’As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be in the days of the Son of Man; they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage up to the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Similarly, as it was in the days of Lot: they were eating, drinking, buying, selling, planting, building; on the day when Lot left Sodom, fire and brimstone rained from the sky to destroy them all. So it will be on the day the Son of Man is revealed. On that day, a person who is on the housetop and whose belongings are in the house must not go down to get them, and likewise a person in the field must not return to what was left behind. Remember the wife of Lot. Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses it will save it. I tell you, on that night there will be two people in one bed; one will be taken, the other left. And there will be two women grinding meal together; one will be taken, the other left.’ They said to him in reply, ‘Where, Lord?’ He said to them, ‘Where the body is, there also the vultures will gather.’” – Luke 17:26-37.

For me, one very convenient source of receiving daily scripture readings by email is The Daily Gospel.

In an earlier post, Make Your Noise, I also quoted Aung San Suu Kyi.

Proposals for the Coastal Recovery Commission of Alabama

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Kindra Arnesen speaking from the August 5, 2010 Buras Town Hall Meeting

Time for your voice to be heard!

Many families in coastal South Alabama depend on a sound coastal environment for their livelihoods. The coastal communities in south Mobile County have been assaulted by the oil catastrophe. Many families are still recovering from Hurricane Katrina and the ongoing oil catastrophe. These proposals provide needed tangible benefits for these communities.

The proposals have emerged from several community brainstorms held in Coden and on Dauphin Island. These proposals are sensitive to community needs and the goals of the Commission. The set of proposals are not meant to be comprehensive but to be included in the comprehensive plan being developed by the Commission.

Ecological Needs 

  • Clean, restore, and enhance gulf and bays
  • Build and enhance 100 miles of oyster reefs and 1000+ acres of coastal marsh and seagrass – see http://100-1000.org/
  • Ensure that water, air, and food are safe with ongoing long-term testing – data should be fully and immediately available to the public
  • Develop comprehensive, fail-safe regulations to prevent future oil catastrophes – prevention is a great deal better than the cure

Coastal Community Participation 

  • Enlist local decision making and employment in coastal recovery efforts
  • Invest in coastal economic opportunities to support sustainable coastal recovery and enhance Alabama’s coastal areas and waters
  • Train south Alabama medical professionals to diagnose and treat environmental health conditions potentially related to the oil catastrophe
  • Immediate public transparency on all issues relating to public health such as the use of dispersants in area waters and the ongoing presence of oil and other health threats in area waters
  • Listen and learn from coastal communities in order to improve future responses to coastal disasters such as oil spills and hurricanes

Education and Support Initiatives for Oil-Affected Families

  • Grant full scholarships for children of low-income, oil-affected families to local universities, community colleges, or technical schools
  • Provide job training and a support system for coastal workers and others who have lost their livelihoods due to the oil catastrophe
  • Enhance science curriculum at all levels (K through college) to better appreciate Alabama’s coastal environment and to provide appropriate service-learning programs to support the environment (see service-learning resource center at the University of South Alabama http://caslce.usouthal.edu/)

 Coastal Fire Protection 

  • Develop a unified, comprehensive plan for coastal fire fighting resources
  • Several coastal communities need multipurpose fire engines with 75-foot ladders and with storage for water and foam
  • Fire and rescue response boat powered by twin engines and capable of pumping water from sea
  • New bunker gear capable of protecting the well-being of the firemen and providing self-contained breathing for firemen
  • Radio communications for hazardous-materials quick response needs that connect Mobile, Baldwin, and neighboring counties in Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida

These proposals will be submitted to the Commission this evening at the Bayou La Batre Community Center. This is a public meeting for the Commission to share its plans and receive input from the public. Meeting starts at 5:30 P.M.

Compassion is Every Breath

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With every breath we take, we draw life from the same atoms that have been shared by countless creatures, people, and prophets. We look around and see flowers, sunsets, birds, butterflies, and many wonders. No matter what we have done or not done, good or evil, we benefit from the sun and rain that nourishes the plants and fruits we eat (Matthew 5:44-45). Such is the loving generosity of our Earth and our Creator.
Mother Theresa photographed by Wikimedia-Commons User Túrelio.

"We can do no great things, only small things with great love" - Theresa of Calcutta. Photographed by Wikimedia-Commons User Túrelio on July 13, 1986.

As the Creator’s children, as parts of the Earth, just like the air we breathe, we are called to generously share our gifts so that life might be sustained, that justice might be created, and that peace might be restored. Our sharing, like the Earth’s sharing, must extend to everyone, even to those who ignore us or treat us harshly, just as we have ignored or harshly treated the Earth.

This revolutionary call is not about great individual heroic acts, but about us, plain everyday people, alertly respecting one another, hoping in one another, and acting wisely and generously together. It is the mustard seed growing. It’s believing in the great good of “small things” done “with great love” (Theresa of Calcutta). It’s acting without looking for any credit or reward, “do not even let your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (Matthew 6:2-4). It’s each of us connecting our hearts to the needs around us and joining together so that each small breath and each small act works for the benefit of all.

If you’re interested in Alabama’s coastal communities and in the environment and you’re able to come, we are having a Future of the Gulf – Community Brainstorm this Thursday (October 28) at 6:30 to 8:30 P.M. at the Coastal Response Center at 7385 Highway 188 in Coden, Alabama. If you feel your voice is needed, please come and invite other interested persons, your voice is needed! Snacks will be provided.

Also if you have a minute check out Empower News (see tab above), it is really coming along. Thanks to Dawn McKinney, Rachel Guillory, and Mignon Denton for contributing to this effort regularly.