People sometimes ask me how I come up with things to write about. “Don’t you ever run out of ideas?” The answer is that I do run out of ideas, quite often in fact. More specifically, there are times I sit down to write and don’t know what I want to write about. It’s not that I have run out of ideas, it’s that I haven’t got one sitting in my mental queue. Typically, when I sit down to write a sermon or a Rambling, I have an idea bouncing around in my brain that just needs fleshed out. Other times I look at the blinking cursor and have no idea what to say. Call it preacher’s block, or whatever you want to call it, but if I haven’t gotten an idea by the time I sit down to write it probably won’t come easily.

Preachers can usually find something to say, however. While some of us have a sense of ourselves that we have a worldview or a clever intellect that we simply must share with others, I don’t think that’s behind most of our homiletical endeavors. Those of us who have the great honor of preaching are trained to do it. Over time we become even more conditioned to the task. Most “older” priests are good preachers if for no other reason than the fact that they have been doing it so long and have spent so many hours reflecting on passages of scripture and Christian communities that the Spirit finds an easy conduit to reveal insights and truths about God’s Kingdom.

Priests preach because it’s a part of our vocation. In the examination at a priest’s ordination they are instructed to proclaim the Gospel in word, and specifically, to preach. It is a key part of our ministry to reflect on God’s word, God’s hopes and intentions for the world, and therefore on the world itself. In another way of describing it, we are to reflect back such things to the communities we serve, almost like holding up a mirror. Sometimes we hold up mirrors to admire the image we see, and other times we hold it up to locate and identify blemishes. Preaching is no different. There are different kinds of messages that can be sent through the same medium, and hopefully there is a range of them in order to communicate with as many people as possible.

Said another way, preaching (and Rambling for that matter) is a specific kind of reflection; theological reflection. Those of you who have experience with Education for Ministry (EFM) know that theological reflection is at the heart of our growth as Christians. Theological reflection is that process by which we reflect on the experiences of our life through the lens of our faith. Such reflection allows us to bring the two together, integrating our life and our faith in a way that lets us live more fully into our Christian identity. It allows us to see God in our lives, perhaps capturing a glimpse of the Holy Spirit as she zips around the corner of some moment we look back on.

Theological reflection provides us with an opportunity to see where the rubber meets the road, as it were. Because God does not often speak to us from burning bushes or via holy messengers like Gabriel, we have to listen a bit more carefully to see and hear God’s messages for us. By reflecting prayerfully on what we experience we do learn to hear God speak to us in all sorts of places in our lives, from great losses to great joys. Even the mundane, when reflected on, can open up insights into God’s hopes and dreams for us and for the world. This latter source of revelation is the one for which I’m most grateful, lest I have nothing to ramble on about week after week.

While preachers may be hardwired, or at least trained to be theological reflectors, the practice does not belong to us alone. It is a practice that all Christians can and do benefit from. All it takes is a little bit of attention and intention. It is probably easiest to engage in reflection of this sort through meditation, or journaling, or by working with a spiritual director, or even by sitting down with a blank piece of paper or a blank screen and simply letting words and ideas flow from places unseen. We tend to think that God is often far away and unseen, yet when we train ourselves to look at our life with our theological reflection eyes open, we find the opposite is true.

Jesus was a master at this; consider his parables. Some were stories (he made up), and others were simple reflections about everyday experiences or images his listeners could relate to. But by the time he was done with them, they became much more than the ordinary experience they started out as. His teaching was more than prophecy; it was this same integration of the seemingly mundane parts of life that come alive with depth when the Holy Spirit sets to work on them. Some days it is harder than others to figure out what I might share that will help someone in their Christian journey or provide an insight into the gospel of Jesus Christ. I always find something. I can admit that some have been more helpful than others (and vice versa), but in truth, the more I do it, the easier it is.

This is why I write every week in addition to the preaching I do in liturgy. It’s practice, like any artist or athlete practices their art or their sport to get better at it. It is one of my spiritual practices, helping me in my own journey, and it is a part of my vocation as a priest to (hopefully) help others along theirs. This Rambling clocks in right at about number 150 or so. I think I have at least a few more in me. I suppose I won’t run out of the things to write or say until God does. Until then, you’re stuck with me.

Tom+

Almighty God, in you are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge. Open our eyes that we may see the wonders of your Word; and give us grace that we may clearly understand and freely choose the way of your wisdom; through Christ our Lord. Amen.