Today, after a morning of the Masters students involved in Ignatian prayer and reflection, we moved into a cursory look at pre-Reformation and Reformation history.
For our Institute Masters students, this initial glance, along with extensive readings, will move us to consider the creative leader within the Church in this time frame, and to consider how they applied their creativity to their age, and to the deepening of shared faith. We’ll move all the way through the Reformation into the negro slave songs, into the contemporary worship movements (and cultural music movements) of today.
It is a humbling exercise to see ourselves, our own hearts, fleshed out in previous recorded history. May we never be frustrated by the fragile historical process of human beings stretching themselves to find faith in the midst of their unique cultural context.
It’s not easy being human; it’s not easy following Jesus.
But still, it seems clear to me, there is no escape from being human, and no other way I would choose.