Liminal Space

I said to my soul, be still, and let the dark come upon you

Which shall be the darkness of God. As, in a theatre,

The lights are extinguished, for the scene to be changed

With a hollow rumble of wings, with a movement of darkness on darkness,

And we know that the hills and the trees, the distant panorama

And the bold imposing façade are all being rolled away. . .

-T.S. Eliot, “East Coker” from The Four Quartets

As I prepare to retire as Executive Director of Shalem at the end of this month, I find myself entering liminal space, a time of unknowing, when the old is being rolled away and the new has not yet come.  At this darkest time of the calendar year, I’m invited to enter the darkness of God, to allow God to work within me in ways I can’t see.  At the right time, and in the right ways, the new will emerge.  For now, my part is to wait and be open.  While I do know some of the things beckoning on my horizon, many things remain unknown. 

As I am experiencing liminal space personally, I am also aware of the liminal space of the world around me.  The old is being rolled away and the new has not yet come.  I turn to Sr. Constance Fitzgerald for guidance in this moment. 

At this time of bitter political divisions in the U.S. and around the world, of rising racism, authoritarianism, and scapegoating of immigrants, of environmental degradation, and of wars and genocide, it’s easy to wonder where God is.

Constance Fitzgerald extends St. John of the Cross’s work on the individual dark night to the societal level. In this time of societal impasse, when it seems that our human attempts to figure out solutions to our overwhelming problems only run us into brick walls and tempt us to cynicism and despair, John, Fitzgerald claims, offers a way forward. Fitzgerald claims that “paradoxically, a situation of no potential is loaded with potential, and impasse become the place for the reconstitution of the intuitive self.”

Fitzgerald believes that the insoluble crises we face are signs of transition in societal development and in the evolution of humanity. These crises provide an invitation for us as a society and a world to empty ourselves of rationally constructed answers that no longer work. The crises invite us to humble ourselves and seek deeper wisdom, wisdom that emerges from letting go, from our collective intuition, from prayer. In the words of II Chronicles 7:14, “If my people humble themselves and pray and seek my face. . .”

I find the questions we use in Shalem’s Group Spiritual Direction program helpful in praying and seeking God’s face on the level of the world as a whole.  While we normally use these questions at Shalem to focus on individuals in group spiritual direction, they translate naturally to praying for the world:

1. What is God’s prayer for the world at this time?
2. God, what do you want my prayer for the world to be? 
3. Is there anything I need to surrender to you, God, in order to join your prayer for the world? (e.g., my judgment, my political certainty, my need to solve the problem)
4. Is there anything you want me to say or do at this time?

I see signs of hope in people and groups who are listening for God’s prayer for the world, who are asking what God wants their prayer for the world to be, and who are asking what is theirs to do.  Here are a few examples that inspire me:

1. Shalem prayer gatherings
2. St. Camillus Church regular prayer vigil at Hyattsville immigration courthouse
3. The Retreat House prayer gathering for resilience in community
4. American Friends Service Committee weekly worship for peace and action hour for Palestine

May we respond to the invitation to enter the darkness of God, to allow God to work within us and within our world in ways we can’t predict or see.  May we allow God’s work in the darkness to take its time.  May we join God’s prayer for ourselves and for our world at this time of great disruption and great potential. 

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