Blessed are Those Who Mourn

The garden is looking phenomenal these days with the harvesting of healthy looking eggplant, cucumber, kale, herbs, nasturtium seeds and more. This past week, Bob played music at the Open Garden on Friday and the children sang along to The Garden Song: “Inch by inch, row by row, Gonna make this garden grow, All it takes is a rake and a hoe, And a piece of fertile ground” to much applause following the song by all. I continue to feel a sense of awe and wonder inside the gates of Garden Church with the life and activity taking place.

As of the writing of this, I am hearing the sound of a Mourning Dove outside that has been cooing from tree to tree near my office here since this past Sunday. In the Swedenborgian tradition, this is what we call spiritual correspondence with the natural world. There is a deep connection to our spiritual awareness and how this relates to the natural world of God’s creation that touches the transcendent. This dove also reminded me that our culture here in the United States has little room for authentic and deep grief and mourning. There is healing through feeling.

This week I will be speaking on the topic of from the Sermon on the Mount where Jesus says, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted”. There is deep comfort indeed in the expression of

grief and its power to heal and spiritually transform us. Come and join us as we explore this topic in greater depth together.

Summer Blessings,

Rev. Dr. David Brown