Shared Sacredness of Tradition: Honesty

Gwayakaadiziwin (Honesty)

Honesty is represented by either the raven or the sasquatch or bigfoot called Kitch-Sabe.  They both understand who they are and how to walk in their life. Long ago, there was a giant called Kitch-Sabe. Kitch-Sabe walked among the people to remind them to be honest to the laws of the creator and honest to each other. The highest honour that could be bestowed upon an individual was the saying "There walks an honest man. He can be trusted." To be truly honest was to keep the promises one made to the Creator, to others and to oneself. The Elders would say, "Never try to be someone else; live true to your spirit, be honest to yourself and accept who you are the way the Creator made you."

Gwayakaadiziwin means to live correctly and with virtue, this is to live with integrity. To speak and act truthfully in everything.

Integrity begins with being honest with ourselves. When we know we have sinned and wish to pray and ask for God’s forgiveness, we first must take time to examine our conscience and look at ourselves, our life and our thoughts and actions to prepare for offering genuine confession and repentance. When we can be honest with ourselves, we can be honest with others and encourage them in living lives of integrity as well.Throughout Scripture we are encouraged to live lives of integrity, King Solomon writes, The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity. (Pr 11:3) andWhoever walks in integrity walks securely, but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out. (Pr 10:9)

Saint Paul offers this instruction in his letter to Titus, “Show yourself in all respects a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity, gravity, and sound speech that cannot be censured; then any opponent will be put to shame, having nothing evil to say of us.” (Titus 2:7-8) Living life with honesty and integrity takes courage and wisdom. As we strive to live in a Christ-like way, we will find we receive graces of these gifts to help us speak and act righteously and walk upright and in truth.

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A prayer for the courage to speak, act and live in Honesty with ourselves and others,

God our Creator, thank You for Christ our Lord, Who was the perfect example of a man with a godly character and integrity of spirit. We long to be more like Jesus in our actions and attitudes. We pray that You guard our hearts, strengthen our character, teach us Your ways, uphold us with Your righteous hand and develop in us grace and integrity.

Help us be true to Your Word and righteous in all our doings. Be our help to conquer the temptations, tests and trials that will come our way, in a manner that is pleasing to You. Help us be diligent in our work, faithful in our witness, loving to those with whom we come in contact and trust You for Your right timing and direction.

Grant us Your grace so that we may speak the truth in love. Enable us to grow in sincerity and wisdom in the light of Your perfect love, so that we may be fruitful in Your service, grow in grace and be increasingly conformed into the image of Christ.

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, pray for us! Servant of God Nicholas Black Elk, pray for us!

Shared Sacredness of Tradition: Humility

Dabasendiziwin, (Humility) To recognise and acknowledge that there is a higher power than man known as the Creator is to be deemed truly humble. To express deference or submission to the Creator through the acceptance that all beings are equal is to capture the spirit of humility. The expression of this humility is manifested through the consideration of others before ourselves. The Wolf became the teacher of this lesson. He bows his head in the presence of others out of deference, and after hunting, will not partake of the food until it can be shared with the pack. His lack of arrogance and respect for his community is a hard lesson, but integral in the Indigenous way.

As followers of Christ, our ultimate example of humility comes from Jesus and his sacrifice for us all on the cross. God’s love for us is shown in how He put our need for reconciliation to Him and need for salvation first by giving us His only begotten Son. Saint Paul instructs us in his letter to the Philipians, “Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death— even death on a cross. Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name…” (Philipians 2:5-9)

Humility in the Bible is presented as the practice of meekness, obedience to God, respect of self and others, and modesty.  To be humble is to put others' needs before our own, willing the best for the other, sacrificing our needs, feelings, time and talent for the love of others. To be humble is to have gratitude for all the Lord has blessed us with and share blessings with others. 

Saint Paul admonishes us, As God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience. Bear with one another and…forgive each other; just as the Lord has forgiven you…clothe yourselves with love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. (Colossians 3:12-15)

—-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A prayer for living humbly and willing the best for others each day,

Creator God, we thank You for the example of true humility that is seen in the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ, Who despite being God incarnate, lived His life in humble submission to You, learning to be obedient by the things that He suffered. We thank you for examples of humility we see in the lives of the Saints such as Saint Kateri Tekakwitha.

Thank You that in union with Christ we have the mind of Christ, as we also submit to the leading and guiding of your great Creator spirit. 

Help us to develop the beautiful spiritual fruit of humility that is so important in the lives of all Your children, if we are to grow in grace and to mature into a deeper knowledge of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus.

Help us not to do anything out of selfish ambition or vanity, but rather may we develop the godly grace to regard the needs and desires of others as being more important than our own. Teach us to pray, to live as Christ lived, through the Holy Spirit and to Your praise and glory.

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, pray for us! Servant of God Nicholas Black Elk, pray for us!

Shared Sacredness of Tradition: Courage

Zoongide’ewin (Courage)

Bravery is represented by the bear.  The mother bear has the courage and strength to face her fears and challenges while protecting her young. To face life with courage is bravery.The Bear provides many lessons in the way it lives, but courage is the most important teaching it offers. Though gentle by nature, the ferociousness of a mother Bear when one of her cubs is approached is the true definition of courage. To have the mental and moral strength to overcome fears that prevent us from living our true spirit as human beings is a great challenge that must be met with the same vigour and intensity as a mother Bear protecting her cub. Living of the heart and living of the spirit is difficult, but the Bear's example shows us how to face any danger to achieve these goals. Trials, trouble and tribulation in this world are a promise. Jesus tells us this in John’s Gospel, he also offers words of comfort we can take confidence in, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

We can grow in courage as we grow in love and trust of the Lord. We know from Scripture that the Lord has plans for our lives, plans to bless us. As we trust in Him, we will find we stand on a firm foundation with confidence and fortitude to face any challenge that comes our way. The Psalmist writes this of trust and a courageous spirit, “He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord.” (Psalm 112:7) and Saint Paul offers this reminder and encourages us by saying, “For God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.” (2 Timothy 1:7)

The Anishnaabe word for this Teaching of Courage is Zoongide’ewin  To live with a solid, strong heart, to face fear, danger and changes with courage and confidence. Through faith and trust in God our Creator, we can grow in this gift of courage.

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A prayer for an increase in Courage so we may face fears and challenges with strong hearts,

Creator God, thank you, for the examples of holy men and women of faith, who have been given courage to carry out the duties that You called them to do. We know that without You we can do nothing, but believe that we can do all things through Christ Who gives us strength and courage.

We pray you develop in us wisdom and courage to live our Christian life as light in a darkened world, whatever the cost. Give us courage to open our mouths and speak the truth to whomever we may come into contact with. To be peace-makers working toward Reconciliation, Healing and Hope.

God, you have called us to reflect Your light and to share your Love. May we be inspired by Your Holy Spirit to speak out Your Word of truth, in grace and love. May we become a mirror that reflects You so completely in all we say and do, that Christ may be seen in us, to Your praise and glory.

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, pray for us! Servant of God Nicholas Black Elk, pray for us!