Tales from the Road: Sacramento, California, January 20-22, 2023

“The Royal Priesthood,” by Cheryl Martine

This past week-end, we welcomed back into our community Rev. Patrick Kennedy and Rev. Jonah Evans to lead us into understandings and imaginations of our origins, journey and destiny of becoming, each of us, priest-kings. Together with our guides, it was as if we created a temple wherein we could grow more deeply into becoming lights in the darkness of our own souls and times; as we more profoundly unite ourselves with our True Self.

The weekend was filled with a rather extraordinary quality of heart-filled warmth, laughter, contemplative learning and an ever deepening experience of community, of our humanity. Our guides led us through a “remembering,” an imagining, of the vast horizons of our human journey weaving through the Bible from Genesis to Revelations, woven through the life of Christ Jesus and weaving into our own presence together in this time and place. We “remembered” our beginnings as One, our Fall into the darkness of materialism, and, now, our arising; our slow arduous reawakening to our heritage in the midst of this darkness - and our strivings to unite ourselves, to identify ourselves with Him who is our guide and strength on this journey.

We followed guiding, metamorphosing threads that run throughout the gospel - like the Garden in Eden, the Garden with cave at Golgotha, the city/garden of the New Jerusalem. We were led to recall that in the beginning there was One, He who breathed out into the Many. The Many have become individualized. We have become priest-kings in our own personal kingdoms, constituted of all those, living and dead, who have enabled us to become who we know ourselves to be. A community of one. That is us today, priest-kings in our own personal “kingdoms.” We were led to Him who can strengthen and guide us in our striving to weave our personal kingdoms into the New Community.

Further, we celebrated our humanity, our connectedness, as we shared Jonah and Patrick’s humility and joyful gratitude for their teachers who were present amongst us. We united with Jonah as he shared his story of his sick daughter asking: “How long will you carry me, Daddy?” “As long as you need me to” - and saw an expression of an eternal truth in everydayness. We were further moved to witness the deeply engaged listening Patrick and Jonah had for each other; a picture of what we can all strive for in our own relationships.

In so many ways, we lived and breathed, learned and worked as a community as we listened, engaged in conversation and artistic activities, prepared meals, set tables, cleaned dishes, walked together down to the river.

Thank you Patrick and Jonah. Thank you to one and all for blessing us with this time to grow together. And, looking into the future, thank you Patrick and Jonah for returning to use those gift certificates at Cafe O.

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