Friends,

Yesterday (December 1) marked the 93rd anniversary of Charles de Foucauld’s martyrdom in the Saharan desert in Algeria.  Foucauld lived in the desert for fifteen years, attempting to imitate the life of Jesus in its simplicity, solitude and prayerful witness.  He had gone into the desert, hoping to find both converts to the Christian faith and fellow pilgrims willing to join him in his desert isolation.  He died without one convert or student.  Years later, well after his death, a community of Little Brothers and Little Sisters of Jesus, emerged that still carry on his desert quest and simple life.

When I consider Advent as a time to begin again, to watch again, I am reminded that Foucauld remained faithful where many would have given up because no one was showing up.  We are called to watch and wait in this season.  Our watching and waiting is not simply a stage direction given to us who know how the Christmas pageant will turn out (“Look, a baby!”).  Our watching and waiting is also happening in real time and what new thing will emerge is not yet known to us.  For that kind of work, it is helpful to follow Foucauld’s witness and to stay connected to a community, like the community of faith that surrounds us at All Souls.

During this Advent season, I will also offer my reflection on sabbatical on Thursday, December 10th at 6:30 p.m. in the nave at All Souls.  The reflection is entitled, “With Thomas Merton in America”.  Lewis Sorrells will have some Thomas Merton books available for sale at the conclusion of the evening.  I hope you will be able to attend.

In thinking of Foucauld and his faithfulness, let me conclude with a quotation from Merton’s Raids on the Unspeakable

“Do not depend on the hope of results, when you are doing the sort of work you have taken on, you may have to face the fact that your work will be apparently worthless and even achieve no worth at all, if not perhaps, results opposite to what you expect.  As you get used to this idea, you will start more and more to concentrate not on the results, but on the value, the rightness, the truth of the work itself.”

Have a blessed Advent,

Brian +