Leaving Nothing Out

by Sr. Joanna O’Meara, VHM

"Line of Light:" Illumination in the darkness

As I clicked onto the Internet this morning, headlines from “The Daily Telegraph” newspaper took my attention: “Hadrian’s Wall lit by ‘line of light.'” 500 volunteers spanning 84 miles along the Roman wall – which is also a national walking trail in northern England – illuminated this expanse. Volunteers as far afield as Canada & Australia all were taking part.  This must have been a sight to behold!

As we reach just ‘beyond’ the mid-point of Lent we find ourselves reaching for the ‘line of light’ which awaits us as we celebrate Laetare (rejoice) Sunday.  Our eyes adjust to a splash of rose amidst the purple which has adorned worship spaces these weeks, and we are encouraged to see and experience the promise of joy which awaits us: Jesus’ risen life among us.

Wendell Berry in his poem ‘Like Snow’ calls us to leave nothing out:

‘Suppose we did our work

Like the snow, quietly, quietly,

Leaving nothing out.

Our ‘work’ these weeks may have surprised us in quiet ways.  Today, we are called to ‘Rejoice’ out loud, and to see within ourselves the ‘line of light’ which is leading us toward Easter. As our Lenten focus we have pondered the ‘visual’ image of a procession of all peoples : Christian, Jewish and Muslims all walking together. This past week we continue to experience the procession of forgiveness as witnessed by Mary Johnson, the commitment of young people from Creighton who stayed at The Jane House to immerse themselves in our neighborhood for a week,  our Feast of a Wednesday morning Eucharist shared with so many of our dear friends & neighbors, networking with long established community organizations such as Turning Point, and listening with a group of collaborative Churches on the north-side as a bridge to reconciliation.

Something special must have spurred 500 people on to volunteer and carry ‘light’ as a beacon for all to see across Hadrian’s Wall.   Let us see the work of rejoicing this Sunday – maybe not ‘quietly’,  but without any hesitation, ‘leaving nothing out.’ Let us be light for one another.