12 THE EUCHARISTIC LETTER
Nothing in the world is poorer than this great Saviour who hides himself, not only under the reality of a piece of bread, but under its form and appearance, in an impoverishment and diminishment so great that a mere fragment of what seems to be bread hides him!
Medaille starts his exploration into “the poverty as lived by the members of a Little Design community” with the very mystical experience of the poverty of Jesus in the Eucharist. As Jean-Pierre says about the Eucharist: ‘The great savior hides himself in an impoverishment so great that a mere fragment of what seems to be bread hides him.’
We belong to a network of persons who desire to live intentionally in the ‘poverty of the little design’, deliberately directing our energies towards life’s enhancement. We will, in justice, put our portion of Life’s energies at the service of the whole.
We are encouraged in this new direction by the understanding coming forth in both physics and biology. “These sciences point to the realization that the part can produce the whole…. These ‘morphogenetic fields’ shape and direct the entire animate and inanimate creation. If a member of a biological species acquires a new behavior long enough, the morphic resonance will set up a reciprocal effect among all the members of the whole species. Morphic resonance can be worldwide, even cosmic. The implications are astounding! (insights gleaned from Barbara Fiand in Wrestling with God. She quotes Willis Jager, Search for the Meaning of Life)
We dare to believe that the contemplative-mystical ‘morphic resonance’ of The Little Design vision has a strong influence on our present mega-structures. When persons connect themselves to God’s field of compassion, they just become a force, a conductor of this Great Love-energy to others. It simply happens that ‘LOVE loves through them. Mercy and kindness flow through them…’ Their inner life of union with Love overflows into more loving relationships with others and with all creation. There is a constant gathering up of ‘more’ persons who bear the beams of Love.
This means, then, that Little Designers in their hidden, little, and self-emptied manner, are becoming part of changing/transforming the consciousness of our world. And all this happens in great mystery and poverty of spirit.
Can you lovingly accept that you are a ‘fragment’ of God’s love?
Comments
Two thoughts came to me as I considered the commentary and comments: First, I thought of the ancient Jewish teaching of Tikkun Olam, in which God created the world by forming vessels of light to hold the divine light. So much light was poured that the vessels shattered and the world consists of countless shards of the original vessels entrapping sparks of divine light. According to this teaching, the task of humanity involves freeing and uniting the scattered light, thus restoring and repairing the broken world to the divine image. Second, I thought of the story in which Jesus and his disciples feed the 5000, and afterward, Jesus asks the disciples to gather up the fragments of the break and fish - which appear to be without limit!
So, I am seeing all of us as being fragments of light and love, that only require us to see them as such, so that the divine image and body of Christ may be remembered, re-gathered and reunited.
Andrew Cohen uses this equation to describe evolutionary enlightenment: it is a journey from minus one (the ego) to zero (no relationship to life) to plus one (the authentic self's positive relationship to life.). This leap from something to nothing to the authentic self takes time, patience and a deep trust in the process of personal and collective evolution. ArleneK
But what if there were small groupings of all these contemplative/m ystic men and women around the world uniting, finding each other, gathering up, and networking ... then Eucharist - GREAT LOVE - would surely bear fruit in a world longing for this quality of loving and trusting to manifest. Love is the only transformative power and Source. It becomes again the paradox of our poverty becoming Wealth, our having nothing, becomes possessing all things!
With Pere Medaille, I pray,"Effect in me a miracle of love."