I Lift Up My Eyes to the Mountains
AM Psalm [120], 121, 122, 123 • PM Psalm 124, 125, 126, [127]
Zech. 11:4-17 • 1 Cor. 3:10-23 • Luke 18:31-43
As you probably know, November is Native American Heritage Month in the United States. I was reminded of this celebration when an acquaintance shared an experience she had in New Mexico recently. She was on a tour led by a Native American guide. At one point in the vicinity of Mt. Taylor, the tour guide paused to raise his eyes toward the mountain peak, standing there in veneration. Then he turned back to the people on the tour and explained that Mt. Taylor is sacred to the Navajo tribe. As I read “ I will lift up my eyes to the mountains from whence cometh my help” from Psalm 121, I could see the Navajo tour guide standing there in prayer.
Coincidentally (?), when I read the passage from 1 Corinthians about building the temple of God on the foundation of Jesus, I thought of my friend’s description of the mounds she saw and learned about in New Mexico. The Native American mound building cultures would build mounds to bury their chieftains, then build temples on top of the burial mounds to honor their nature- and lineage-connected heritage.
Today some of these Native American descendants are members of the Episcopal Church. You can read more about this joining of cultures at www.episcopalchurch/indigenousministries. It will come as no surprise, then, for you to learn that Becoming Beloved Community work in New Mexico follows a “new” definition of BBC as the cosmic, sacred relationship of everything, the Great Spirit cosmic order. This morning I tuned in to a webinar on this topic led by the Rev. Dr. Bradley Hauff, the Episcopal Church Missioner for Indigenous Ministries. During this webinar I learned about defining topics taking form thanks to United Thank Offering Grants: 1) building of a Prayer Path to offset flooding through the re-planting of native trees and plants; 2) developing equine therapy programs to support kids by connecting them to their horse relatives; 3) building a box to fill with redbirds in keeping with the Cherokee story about “Follow the Redbirds”; using Native Americans to build a Cherokee Heritage Garden using the “three sisters” method of planting, ie, plant corn, beans, and squash together to work in symbiotic relationship. Caring for creation is viewed as a method of healing for those who experienced displacement trauma.
May the warm winds of heaven blow gently on your house, and may the great spirit bless all who enter. May your moccasins make happy tracks in many snows, and may the rainbow always touch your shoulder.
Written by Karen Hodges
...who grew up in Cherokee country and still recalls playing happily with a Native American girl.