Journal of An Alien Street Priest:

"You can measure your worth by your dedication to your path, not by your successes or failures." Elizabeth Gilbert

Luke 24:46-53

Today we celebrate the Ascension of Jesus into heaven and in two weeks Pentecost.

For the modern world that is confusing and unbelievable. Yet when you understand that the Jewish mind functions in myth, and not literal understanding one can see that for them Jesus became the Cosmic Christ, the One who dwells within them in the form of the Spirit.

As time has moved through the ages, this Cosmic Christ continues to evolve into seeing all spiritualities that practice the love of humanity as reflections of the One Divine Spirit.

Today I sit outside a cafe on Polk Street, drinking tea, around me are people, playing with their dogs, shopping, and simply hanging out and my mind returns to coming here in 1994.
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The street was full of lower-end gay bars, young boys hustling, drugs were plentiful, and as time has moved onward we have come to now, and all has changed. The same with the Haight.​

Several years ago a group wanted to paint a mural of the old Polk, the bars, and the hustling, to recall a part of queer history, and the merchants association refused, they do not acknowledge that period.

In so doing they erase history, and more importantly the lives of those who were struggling with coming out in a period of hatred. They forget about the youth, the drug addicts. The same in the Haight.

The City continues to put out its millions to "solve the problem." The problem continues and worsens.

Our ministry continues to be the Cosmic Christ to people on the street--food, pastoral care, needles, condoms, socks, and other supplies; we continue to minister without pushing religion or belief, but in love, respect, and care. As St. Francis once said, "Preach the Gospel using as few words as possible."

During the past two years, we have held the hands of people dying of the coronavirus; three young men who were stabbed and shot and saw the face of one shooting himself on zoom. We see people without food, and without real friends. I can understand the Apostle Paul's words: "I have faced dangers from believers and non-believers, I have faced dangers on the deserts, the seas, and the streets. I have endured many sleepless nights. I have endured pain from injuries. I have gone without food. I have shivered in the cold without enough clothing to keep me warm. (from 2 Corinthians 11: 22).

And from these years and experiences what we have learned and attempt with  our heart to practice:

   First, not to place our expectations on others, we walk with them where they are;

    Second, to have no expectations of the government;

   Third, we have to suffer with people on their journeys in order to find life on ours;

   Finally see in each one the face of the Cosmic Christ, whose lives are at times touched by evil, but new life can come in love; and

   finally: "You can measure your worth by your dedication to your path, not by your successes or failures." Elizabeth Gilbert.

Our prayer in the coming days is that we will love each person without judgment,  seeing the positive, and the negative, the good and evil, and loving each as a precious child of God. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!
LGBTQ Pride will be on June 25 and 26th, and we will be in charge of the Accessibility Booth. If anyone would like to volunteer please let us know.

Pride is important this year. What we forget as each generation moves forward is many of the gains of the former are lost; We need to keep before the eyes of the world the equality of all and understand laws alone do not change the hearts of people. For only when hearts are transformed through our own witness of love can lasting change occurr.

We are Truly Beggars!

We are truly beggars. Money is low! Socks are donated, but expenses regarding food, condoms, car upkeep gas, and our own living expenses have risen. So please find it within your heart to give!

You may give through Paypal; our website: www.temenos.org, or mail: P.O. Box 642656, San Francisco, CA 94164!

We also have for sale the One God of the Abraham Faith Symbol for $100.00!

Love One  Another All The Way!
Gospel Jn 15:9-17

Jesus said to his disciples:
“As the Father loves me, so I also love you.
Remain in my love.
If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love,
just as I have kept my Father’s commandments
and remain in his love.

“I have told you this so that my joy might be in you
and your joy might be complete.
This is my commandment: love one another as I love you.
No one has greater love than this,
to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.
You are my friends if you do what I command you.
I no longer call you slaves,
because a slave does not know what his master is doing.
I have called you friends,
because I have told you everything I have heard from my Father.
It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you
and appointed you to go and bear fruit that will remain,
so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he may give you.
This I command you:  love one another.”
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In 1948, the author Camus addressed Christians at a Dominican monastery. He had a complaint and a yearning. It seemed to him that as the preparations for war (World War II) were undertaken, as the bloody toll of victims grew, as a fear spread, the church remains unconscionably silent or spoke only in the abstract and obtuse style. He, by turn, was candid and blunt:

"For a long time during these frightful years I waited for a great voice to speak up in (the Church), I an unbeliever? Precisely. For I knew that the spirit would be lost if it did not utter a cry of condemnation when faced with force. ..What the world expects of Christians is that Christians should speak out, loud and clear and that they should voice their condemnation in such a way that never a doubt, never the slightest doubt, could arise in the heart of the simplest person. That they should get away from abstraction and confront the blood-stained face history has taken on today. The grouping we need is a grouping of people resolved to speak out clearly and to pay up personally."

These words are as true today, as they were during the 1940s, the Church (all churches, the Universal Church) remains silent. Around our church buildings lie people sleeping, and their doors are shut to them at night; the Church says very little to the government; the rich grow richer, and the poor grow poorer, and where is the voice of the Church?

I have been asked, "Why do you still love the Church?" LOL! Great question. I wonder that myself! I have been mistreated, hounded, and severely hurt by the institutional Church. Dorothy Day once said: "The Church is both a whore, and our mother."

Dorothy recognized that the Church is a group of human beings and through her brokenness, Christ shines, even at the worst of times. My experience with the Church both personally, and professionally is more negative than positive, but the Church taught me the Scriptures, the tradition, and also about using reason and experience to steer through those things within the Church that condemn and hate; Most importantly through the Church, I have learned that we are to learn to "love one another."

Through the years I see the love of Christ given to those in most need through others, and they are the Church, whether they are believers or not.

So rather than condemn the Church, whether you are a believer or not, be the Church, be the Body of Christ opening doors of  buildings for the homeless, criticizing the government for the wars we are always involved in.

With the recent massacre in Buffalo what comes to my spirit is much sadness that racism and hatred continue; And that we who call ourselves the Church need to step up and put our lives on the line in our interactions.

We need to let down the barriers we put up in communicating with people, and reach out and love others; on my body, I bear the marks of that communication, sometimes it is painful, but it brings such new life to us when we do. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!
Fr. River Damien Sims, sfw, D.Min., D.S.W.
P.O. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
www.temenos.org
415-305-2124

Remembering Stardust
By. C.D.Baker
A Book Review and Reflections

There is a saying in Vietnam, which goes something like this: One can break a rock with an egg, meaning that if one is patient enough to suffer in one's own struggle, the rock that keeps one from moving will break.

C.D. Baker in his story, Remembering Stardust, tells of a young man Oliver Good, living in a small Pennsylvania town from 1965-to 1966, during his Junior and Senior years in high school.

Oliver is raised in a fundamentalist Christian home, by a domineering father, and passive-aggressive stepmother.

​Oliver was tormented by nightmares of hell over masturbation and his sexual thoughts; he was "saved" at an early age; the minster tried to force him to give out fundamentalist literature in the hardware store he worked in, where the son of the owner was gay; and ultimately he was seen hugging an older woman and rumors flew of their relationship. His church, family, and the community turned on him.
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Slowly through the love of a Native American woman, and the love and care of his queer friend and friend's father, we see the rock of fundamentalism--its judgment and narrowness begin to crumble and Oliver discovered there is more to life than fear. Oliver came to see a more Cosmic Christ, inclusive of all religious expression, non-judgmental, and loving of everyone.

This story is a universal story of the journey of life, as we journey towards wholeness. Some of us get stuck at the beginning, others in the middle, but the ultimate goal is the acceptance of all of humanity, loving all, and caring for all.

The Cosmic Jesus is the sum of all religious practices of love and offers each one of us kindness. The Cosmic Christ is the pure manifestation of God's kindness and caring. There is no judgment in this Jesus, whose reflection is like that of the rainbow of spiritual expressions of love.

Oliver's story is my story. Raised in a fundamentalist community, where the Bible was the "true and absolute Word of God", and finally when the rock slowly crumbled in my coming out, I found freedom.

In that freedom came those with their chief weapon: The Bible, "the true and only Word of God," telling me that one must believe in Jesus, be saved." One can not be queer, or different, but conform to "their" perception of the Bible.

Through the years of seeing young and old go through the same experience, I seek to show them the Cosmic Christ, the one who loves them without judgment.

Recently I was hurt emotionally by an individual spewing out that same fundamentalist bull shit and the thought came, why not take off my spurs and retire to Palm Springs.

Well sitting, looking across the street in Palm Springs last week there was a homeless guy sleeping, I later encountered another homeless young man, mentally ill, and I knew my call was to leave my spurs on.

This is an excellent book calling us to leave our fears behind, calling us to move out into the world of the stardust, a world of caring, expecting nothing in return. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!
These words have guided me through the years. Each time I look into the eyes of one person fed, clothed, or given a needle, I find myself "willing to lose a lot, or suffer a lot, or die a little, even."

For I see the face of Jesus, hearing Dan's words, "If you are going to follow Jesus, you had better look good on a cross."

And in looking at the face of Jesus, (homeless individuals, gang members, people in prison, and on death row), several thoughts have come to mind.

First Peggy Donovan reflected: "Each of us is the Word of God spoken only once," meaning we have only one life to give, and so be "The Word of God".

Secondly, God is love, in each one of us, a piece of love can be found. I have faced some of the craziest and most dangerous people, and in each one love radiates. In each person encountered rather than seeing the dirt, the anger, one sees love. Jesus is but one reflection of love.

We see that love when we walk with people one on one, talking, and caring for them, "For when you look into his eyes you will be willing to lose a lot."

During these past months of illness, being beaten and threatened, the words of  Christ are a reminder:

“I tell you the truth, when you were young, you were able to do as you liked; you dressed and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and others will dress you and take you where you don’t want to go.”
19 Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God.

I realize my time is short and so my prayer[ is that each one of us will take that road in whatever occupation we work, for in the sacredness of all work as taught by St. Joseph, we can be "willing to lose a lot, or suffer a lot, or die a little, even,” in giving to the homeless, the thirsty, the stranger, those in prison, mentally ill, and those naked.
Fr. River Damien Sims, D.Min., D.S.T.
Temenos Catholic Worker
Society of Franciscan Workers, Inc
Po. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
www.temenos.org
415-305-2124
"You can measure your worth by your dedication to your path, not by your successes or failures."
Elizabeth Gilbert

"Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It's a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity."
Pema Chödrön

"The most fundamental harm we can do to ourselves, is to remain ignorant by not having the courage and the respect to look at ourselves honestly and gently."
Pema Chödrön

"Self-esteem is the commitment to treat yourself in a kindly, loving manner when you're alone.  This is an active process that requires effort and energy."
David Burns, Intimate connections, 1985

Feed My Sheep!
Fr. Daniel Berrigan
​St. Joseph the Worker

John 21:15-21
​
15 After breakfast Jesus asked Simon Peter, “Simon son of John, do you love me more than these? ” “Yes, Lord,” Peter replied, “you know I love you.” “Then feed my lambs,” Jesus told him.

16 Jesus repeated the question: “Simon son of John, do you love me?” “Yes, Lord,” Peter said, “you know I love you.” “Then take care of my sheep,” Jesus said.

17 A third time he asked him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Then feed my sheep.

18 “I tell you the truth, when you were young, you were able to do as you liked; you dressed and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and others will dress you and take you where you don’t want to go.”

19 Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God. Then Jesus told him, “Follow me.”

20 Peter turned around and saw behind them the disciple Jesus loved—the one who had leaned over to Jesus during supper and asked, “Lord, who will betray you?”
​
21 Peter asked Jesus, “What about him, Lord?”
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Daniel Berrigan was one of the individuals who inspired my call to ministry. He wrote:

“Sometime in your life, hope that you might see one starved man, the look on his face when the bread finally arrives. Hope that you might have baked it or bought or even kneaded it yourself. For that look on his face, for your meeting his eyes across a piece of bread, you might be willing to lose a lot, or suffer a lot, or die a little, even.”

Daniel Berrigan
These words have guided me through the years. Each time I look into the eyes of one person fed, clothed, or given a needle, I find myself "willing to lose a lot, or suffer a lot, or die a little, even."

For I see the face of Jesus, hearing Dan's words, "If you are going to follow Jesus, you had better look good on a cross."

And in looking at the face of Jesus, (homeless individuals, gang members, people in prison, and on death row), several thoughts have come to mind.

First Peggy Donovan reflected: "Each of us is the Word of God spoken only once," meaning we have only one life to give, and so be "The Word of God".

Secondly, God is love, in each one of us, a piece of love can be found. I have faced some of the craziest and most dangerous people, and in each one love radiates. In each person encountered rather than seeing the dirt, the anger, one sees love. Jesus is but one reflection of love.

We see that love when we walk with people one on one, talking, and caring for them, "For when you look into his eyes you will be willing to lose a lot."

During these past months of illness, being beaten and threatened, the words of  Christ are a reminder:

“I tell you the truth, when you were young, you were able to do as you liked; you dressed and went wherever you wanted to go. But when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and others will dress you and take you where you don’t want to go.”
19 Jesus said this to let him know by what kind of death he would glorify God.

I realize my time is short and so my prayer[ is that each one of us will take that road in whatever occupation we work, for in the sacredness of all work as taught by St. Joseph, we can be "willing to lose a lot, or suffer a lot, or die a little, even,” in giving to the homeless, the thirsty, the stranger, those in prison, mentally ill, and those naked.
Fr. River Damien Sims, D.Min., D.S.T.
Temenos Catholic Worker
Society of Franciscan Workers, Inc
Po. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
www.temenos.org
415-305-2124
"You can measure your worth by your dedication to your path, not by your successes or failures."
Elizabeth Gilbert

"Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It's a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity."
Pema Chödrön

"The most fundamental harm we can do to ourselves, is to remain ignorant by not having the courage and the respect to look at ourselves honestly and gently."
Pema Chödrön

"Self-esteem is the commitment to treat yourself in a kindly, loving manner when you're alone.  This is an active process that requires effort and energy."
David Burns, Intimate connections, 1985

The Great Digital Commission
​By Reverend Caleb J. Lines
A Book Review

Attendance in US churches continues to sharply decline. This book offers a theological reflection on social media, the positive and the negative in addressing that decline.

The Great Digital Commission offers a commentary on how the present mainline churches are older, and set in their ways, and fails to offer an open and affirming message to the "none" generation.

One of the areas which the book fails to address is that of ministering to the homeless, youth, and elderly.
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Homeless individuals have very little access to social media because they have little access to smartphones and computers. Secondly homeless seem to be secondary in being addressed because they are not "monetary paying", and "clean" individuals.

Youth and the elderly are simply put on the sidelines.

Peg Donovan comments: "Each of us is the Word of God spoken only once,"  and Ignatius of Loyola said, "I trust my experience over Scripture and Tradition any time".

We are the "Word of God" spoken "once" and in speaking that word digital media is only one aspect, what is most important is through our personal contact, a contact that speaks of Love, not a judgment to ALL PEOPLE."
Fr. River Damien Sims, D.Min., D.S.T.
Temenos Catholic Worker
Society of Franciscan Workers, Inc
Po. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
www.temenos.org
415-305-2124
"You can measure your worth by your dedication to your path, not by your successes or failures."
Elizabeth Gilbert

"Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It's a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity."
Pema Chödrön

"The most fundamental harm we can do to ourselves, is to remain ignorant by not having the courage and the respect to look at ourselves honestly and gently."
Pema Chödrön

"Self-esteem is the commitment to treat yourself in a kindly, loving manner when you're alone.  This is an active process that requires effort and energy."
David Burns, Intimate connections, 1985

Luke 24:1-12

At daybreak on the first day of the week the women who had come from Galilee with Jesus took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb; but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were puzzling over this, behold, two men in dazzling garments appeared to them. They were terrified and bowed their faces to the ground. They said to them, “Why do you seek the living one among the dead? He is not here, but he has been raised. Remember what he said to you while he was still in Galilee, that the Son of Man must be handed over to sinners and be crucified, and rise on the third day.” And they remembered his words. Then they returned from the tomb and announced all these things to the eleven and to all the others. The women were Mary Magdalene, Joanna, and Mary the mother of James; the others who accompanied them also told this to the apostles, but their story seemed like nonsense and they did not believe them. But Peter got up and ran to the tomb, bent down, and saw the burial cloths alone; then he went home amazed at what had happened.
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I received an email from a friend describing her confusion about Easter and in a few words: "Easter" was originally designated the Jewish Passover, but as the early Christians tend to do they adopted festivals to shape it in their own belief system. It has to do with the moon cycles as well; The Bible says three days for the resurrection--and technically it is three: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday; The Lord's Supper and the washing of feet: The Gospels were written by four different writers. Each with his own interpretation of the story--the washing of feet symbolizes our service to others and is attached to the Lord's Supper stories. So the early Christians placed these two stories together in order to remind us of sacrifice and service. Four different people, four different views of the events.

One must take the reading of Scripture through a mythological approach--a story told to provide a universal understanding of the truth.
"He died for our sins." Sin is wrong. I spent my adolescence praying every night to be forgiven of "masturbation," when in reality that phrase means the wrongs we do in loving our neighbor; "he died for our sins" means the universal of sins of war fair, destruction our climate, and natural resources; and of not loving our neighbor--how we treat others.

The reality of some of these passages has been interpreted through time in ways detrimental to human beings.

As Donn Hall points out the Easter story's interpretation by the Church, has driven him away from Christianity through her condemnation of homosexuality:

As a former Christian Minister, I face Easter with a bit of trepidation, mixed with emotions and discomfort. Not because I feel "convicted" by the Christian Easter story, but rather pain because the religion of my youth was a source of brutality and rejection of the LGBTQ+ community. To me, the Christian imagery of the cross represents not "salvation" (as if I needed it), but rather a symbol of the violence of prejudice against the LGBT+ community and all others throughout history that didn't fit into religious/socially imported "norms". So during this Easter season, I choose to remember the victims of religion and of societally imposed "norms" and not the traditional Easter Story."

This same interpretation of the Christian story drove the young man who painted the photo above to suicide, and so many others before him and after him.

The Easter narrative is a story of Jesus being led to death resulting from his offending the ruling powers by preaching a new way of life--the Kingdom of God. Many who are believers in other traditions have met the same fate.

The resurrections are symbolic of God saying a big "Yes" to the reign of God here and now and Jesus leads us forward to fight for that reign--a Kingdom on earth in which all are fed, loved, cared for, a Kingdom of peace, where all is well.

The Easter story is not about the discrimination of anyone for their beliefs, sexuality, or being of a different race/societal background.

In fact, Jesus never formed a religion. Jesus gave one commandment: 'Do unto others as you would have them do unto you; 'Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all they soul, mind and strength, and thy neighbor as thyself," and summed up in Matthew 25:31-43--
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The Final Judgment

31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36 I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37 Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39 And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40 And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers,[a] you did it to me.’

41 “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42 For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43 I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’


Recently I was asked: "How can you wear a cross, a habit, and/or clerical collar and not symbolize the superiority of Christianity?"

As one walks around San Francisco, we see the rainbow of colors of various spiritual paths--in their dress; when one has a haircut in various shops of Asian proprietors we see a statue of Buddha on the floor with candles and food.

We have these symbols on or around, ourselves, expressing our faith in the form of the God who supports and sustains us.

St. Leo once said: There are many streams, flowing into one River: and from the book of Ecclesiastes: All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; unto the place from whence the rivers come, is empty.

We all are flowing into the same River, let us respect each individual's stream. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!

------------

Fr. River Damien Sims, sfw, D.Min., D.S.T.
P.O. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
www.temenos.org

TENDERLOIN STATIONS OF THE CROSS Good Friday/April 15, 2022 Noon-2:00 p.m.

A Walk of Reflection on Bearing the Cross of Thorns-Our Haunting of Our Treatment of Native Americans

We Begin in front of City Hall-Polk Side

Will Pray and Feed Anyone Who is Hungry

Sponsored by Temenos Catholic Worker
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For More Info: Fr. River Sims, D.Min., D.S.T. 415-305-2124, Temenos@gmail.com
​
(We need seven more volunteers to read parts, please contact Fr. River if interested.)
​

Mending Into A Beautiful Broken Pot
​Luke 14:22-15:23

Several years ago I participated in an anti-racism workshop in which the curriculum was for youth. One lesson explored the art of different cultures. I was intrigued by Kintsugi, a type of art that originated in Japan. Practitioners take broken pottery and put the pieces back together, using lacquer dusted or mixed with gold, silver, or platinum. The parts are whole again. And even you can still see the broken pieces. every piece that I have seen mended in this way is beautiful, a broken pot made more beautiful by its brokenness.

On Palm Sunday we know that brokenness is to come. Jesus will be broken on the cross, buried, and finally rise again; the disciples will be broken by grief that they see as broken beyond repair.

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I have been broken in the last year, by an assault and, an accident resulting in a broken body, and the coronavirus has left effects of having trouble and remembering tiredness.

I have seen death after death and gave the Sacrament of Reconciliation to a young man night before last. On the street, we give food to people of all ages who have no housing, are mentally ill, and are without family.

But mending is to come. In the long ago, and over and over again in our lives there is always breaking, mending, and ultimately the promise of resurrection that transforms that brokenness into beauty. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!

​Fr. River Damien Sims, sfw, D.Min., D.S.T.
P.O. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
www.temenos.com
415-305-2124

Salvation
 
By what are you saved? And how?
Saved like a bit of string,
tucked away in a drawer?
Saved like a child rushed from
a burning building, already
singed and coughing smoke?
Or are you salvaged
like a car part -- the one good door
when the rest is wrecked?
 
Do you believe me when I say 
you are neither salvaged nor saved,
but salved, anointed by gentle hands
where you are most tender?
Haven't you seen
the way snow curls down
like a fresh sheet, how it
covers everything,
makes everything
beautiful, without exception?
 
~ Lynn Ungar ~
 
(Blessing the Bread)

Tis A Gift to be Simple

"Then Jesus called the children. I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn't receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it."

"Tis the gift to be simple," is a summary of one of the main requirements "to receive the Kingdom of God like a child."

St. Francis lived his life as a child, simple in all things, caring for people, loving nature, and most importantly giving his total trust to Jesus.

Through the years one can either become hardened as we experience tragedy, and the living reality of life, or approach life as a child with wonderment, flexibility, creativity, forgiveness, holding no resentments and trusting in God.

I have a friend who when angry will say to me, "You are just a child." Personally, it is the highest compliment I have ever been given.
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A psychologist friend told me at the beginning of this ministry my life would be like standing on a railroad track with twenty-four trains racing toward me at one time. And it has: slander, threats, being beaten up, attempts on my life, and personally the worst is becoming hardened against people. Each day I try to become more childlike.

Harry, I now invite you to become more simple, more of a
child by:
  1. Approaching life with wonder. Look at nature and humanity with a sense of wonder, seeing the goodness of all, and the glory of God in all. Have a wonder of people in which their faults fall away and love them, see their beauty.
  2. Secondly, being flexible. Children are never set in their ways, as people, and situations change, they change, always open to new ideas. Become a chameleon, be flexible.
  3. Forgive: Children are simple, when harmed they forgive, do not hold grudges. Forgiveness is the key to living a full life and becoming like a child. Forgiveness brings us richness and joy in life.
  4. Be simple like a child and do not seek and use power. A young man said recently to me, "You are not like other people who come out here to help or save us, pushy, and thinking they know everything." You are our friend, and walk with us, you are one of us.

That was the highest compliment I have received in a long time, and the message is to be simple, live like a child, do not use your power. Walk with people as equals.

Finally, I leave you with these words as you walk as a child, words by Don Miguel Ruiz:
​Fr. River Damien Sims, sfw, D.Min., D.S.T.
P.O. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
www.temenos.org
415-305-2124
Salvation
By what are you saved? And how?
Saved like a bit of string,
tucked away in a drawer?
Saved like a child rushed from
a burning building, already
singed and coughing smoke?
Or are you salvaged
like a car part -- the one good door
when the rest is wrecked?
Do you believe me when I say 
you are neither salvaged nor saved,
but salved, anointed by gentle hands
where you are most tender?
Haven't you seen
the way snow curls down
like a fresh sheet, how it
covers everything,
makes everything
beautiful, without exception?
~ Lynn Ungar ~
(Blessing the Bread)

TENDERLOIN STATIONS OF THE CR0SS
Good Friday/April 15, 2022
Noon-2:00 p.m.
A Walk of Reflection on Bearing the Cross of Thorns-Our Haunting of Our Treatment of Native Americans.

We Begin in front of City Hall-Polk Side.

Will Pray and Feed Anyone Who is Hungry.

Sponsored by Temenos Catholic Worker
For More Info: Fr. River Sims, D.Min., D.S.T. 415-305-2124, Temenos@gmail.com
​
(We need seven more volunteers to read parts, please contact Fr. River if interested.)
Whether you are able to physically fast during Lent and to follow through during the season of Ramadam does not matter. Due health reasons I can no longer go without eating a little something every three or four hours, but there are more important ways of fasting

Ramadan Begins On April 2, 2022, and ends on May 1, 2022--An Explanation:

Why are more than a billion people around the world abstaining from eating, drinking, smoking, and sex from dawn to sunset this month? They are Muslims who are fasting during the holy month of Ramadan.

Fasting is one of the Five Pillars of the religion of Islam and one of the highest forms of Islamic worship. Abstinence from earthly pleasures and curbing evil intentions and desires is regarded as an act of obedience and submission to God (Allah is the Arabic word referring to “the one God”) as well as an atonement for sins, errors, and mistakes.
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Called Ramadan (or Ramazan), Muslims fast during this month from the moment when it first starts to get light until sunset. They fast as an act of faith and worship towards God, seeking to suppress their desires and increase their spiritual piety. Fasting together as a worldwide community (Ummah) affirms the brotherhood and equality of man before God.

When Is Ramadan?
Muslims follow a lunar calendar which is approximately 10 or 11 days shorter each year. The month of Ramadan is the ninth month and officially begins with a combination of the sighting of the new moon and astronomical calculations. Some Muslim authorities rely more heavily on the physical sighting of the new moon than on scientific calculations. An Imam (Muslim holy man) will declare the exact time of Ramadan just prior to its commencement. The fasting period ends upon the sighting of the next new moon, which occurs after 29 or 30 days.
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In 2022, Ramadan begins in the entire U.S. on April 2 and concludes on May 1. In some other parts of the world, it begins on slightly different dates. The exact date is not the same in all parts of the world because the actual time when the “new moon” begins varies around the world.

What’s Ramadan All About?
The name Ramadan is derived from the Arabic word ramida or ar-ramad, denoting intense scorching heat and dryness, especially the ground. From the same word there is ramdaa, meaning “sunbaked sand” and the famous proverb kal mustajeer minar ramadaa binnar — to jump out of the frying pan into the fire. Some say it is so called because Ramadan scorches out the sins with good deeds, as the sun burns the ground.
Ramadan brings out a special feeling of emotional excitement and religious zeal among Muslims of all ages. Though fasting is mandatory only for adults, children as young as eight willingly observe fasting with their elders. Children look forward to the excitement of sighting the moon and eating special meals with their families. Adults appreciate the opportunity to double their rewards from God and seek forgiveness for past sins. As Ramadan emphasizes Muslim brotherhood and community, all feel a particular closeness towards their Creator and amongst their family and friends.

Muslims must adapt themselves both physically and emotionally during these 30 long days of fasting. A typical day of fasting begins with getting up early, around 4:30 a.m. and sharing a meal called sahur together before the fast begins at dawn, about 5:10 a.m. As dawn breaks, Fajr, the first of five daily prayers is offered.

As the day proceeds, fasting Muslims are constantly bombarded with messages from their stomachs that it is time for breakfast, snack, lunch, and so on. And each time, Muslims remind themselves that they are fasting for the sole purpose of pleasing God and seeking his mercy. They offer the second and third prayers during early and late afternoon, respectively. Fasting helps one to experience how a hungry person feels and what it is like to have an empty stomach. It teaches one to share the sufferings of the less fortunate. Muslims believe that fasting leads one to appreciate the bounties of God, which are usually taken for granted – until they are missed!

Throughout the day Muslims are encouraged to go out of their way to help the needy, both financially and emotionally. Some believe that a reward earned during this month is multiplied 70 times and more. For this reason, Ramadan is also known as the month of charity and generosity.

Ramadan Is More Than Just Fasting
To a Muslim, fasting not only means abstaining from food, but also refraining from all vice and evils committed consciously or unconsciously. It is believed that if one voluntarily refrains from lawful foods and sex during Ramadan, he will develop self-restraint and be more able to avoid unlawful things and acts the rest of the year.
The fast is broken at sunset. The Prophet Muhammed recommended breaking the fast with a meal of dates. Muslims are urged to invite others to break the fast with them. These gatherings are called iftar parties.

Just after breaking the fast but before dinner, Muslims offer the fourth of the five daily prayers, which is called the Maghrib prayer. After dinner, Muslims go to their houses of worship, called mosques, to offer the Isha prayer, which is the last of the five daily prayers. The day ends with a special voluntary prayer, the Taraweeh, offered by the congregation reciting the Qur’an, the holy book of Islam.

Closing the Month Off
The last ten days of Ramadan are considered highly blessed, especially the 27th night which is called laylat al-qadr – the “Night of Power,” or the “Night of Destiny.” It is believed that on this night the prophet Muhammed received the first revelation of the Qur’an. For many Muslims, this 10-day period is marked by a heightened spiritual intensity, and they may spend these nights praying and reciting the Qur’an.

After 30 days of fasting, the end of the month of Ramadan is observed with a day of celebration called Eid-ul-Fitr. On this day, Muslims gather in one place to offer a prayer of thanks. It is traditional to wear new clothes, visit friends and relatives, exchange gifts, eat delicious dishes prepared for this occasion, and wait patiently for the next year.

Christians and Fasting
In the Bible, we do not find anyone method of fasting required of us, but the Lord Jesus did say, however, “when you fast…” (Matthew 6:16), seeming to assume that His followers would imitate His own example. We fast as an outward symbol of our devotion to God, being willing to deny ourselves food for His sake. Fasting adds intensity to our prayer and often leads to breakthroughs. We do not fast to convince or persuade God, but rather to identify with His broken heart and with His desire for all mankind to know Him.

“Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to lose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out?” (Isaiah 58:6-7)
The name Ramadan is derived from the Arabic word ramida or ar-ramad, denoting intense scorching heat and dryness, especially the ground. From the same word there is ramdaa, meaning “sunbaked sand” and the famous proverb kal mustajeer minar ramadaa binnar — to jump out of the frying pan into the fire. Some say it is so called because Ramadan scorches out the sins with good deeds, as the sun burns the ground.

Ramadan brings out a special feeling of emotional excitement and religious zeal among Muslims of all ages. Though fasting is mandatory only for adults, children as young as eight willingly observe fasting with their elders. Children look forward to the excitement of sighting the moon and eating special meals with their families. Adults appreciate the opportunity to double their rewards from God and seek forgiveness for past sins. As Ramadan emphasizes Muslim brotherhood and community, all feel a particular closeness towards their Creator and amongst their family and friends.

Christians and Fasting
In the Bible, we do not find anyone method of fasting required of us, but the Lord Jesus did say, however, “when you fast…” (Matthew 6:16), seeming to assume that His followers would imitate His own example. We fast as an outward symbol of our devotion to God, being willing to deny ourselves food for His sake. Fasting adds intensity to our prayer, and often leads to breakthroughs. We do not fast to convince or persuade God, but rather to identify with His broken heart and with His desire for all mankind to know Him.

“Is this not the fast that I have chosen: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the heavy burdens, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and that you bring to your house the poor who are cast out?” (Isaiah 58:6-7)

TENDERLOIN STATIONS OF THE CROSS

Good Friday/April 15, 2022
Noon-2:00 p.m.

A Walk of Reflection on Bearing the Cross of Thorns-Our Haunting of Our Treatment of Native Americans
​
We Begin in front of City Hall-Polk Side
Will Pray and Feed Anyone Who is Hungry
​
Sponsored by Temenos Catholic Worker
​
For More Info: Fr. River Sims, D.Min., D.S.T. 415-305-2124, Temenos@gmail.com
(We need seven more volunteers to read parts, please contact Fr. River if interested.)
Sometimes the question determines the answer. In John 7 Jesus preaches in Jerusalem on the Feast of Tabernacles, the question from his hearers is not, "Is this true?" Instead, they are asking questions to show their knowledge of who the Messiah is, and question the invalidity of Jesus since he is from Galilee.

Rather than listen we doubt, we question, and place our own values on others. They do not see the purpose of Jesus, stemming from his relationship with God.

Often it is suggested I move to another town, and cook again large meals. When that happens I know I am not being listened to. First of all, many years ago I took a vow of "stability", where I would stay in San Francisco, and serve, and secondly, I have cooked large meals, and have been led to move in other directions. People place their wishes on my shoulders. We need to listen, not advise or judge. Bell Hooks tells us: The choice to love is the choice to connect--to find ourselves in the other." We have to enter into and let others enter into our lives to truly connect, true love is not telling others how to live their lives, but listening and allowing them to find their own way.

Only in listening can others become themselves, and find the answer to their questions.

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Our purpose from the beginning is to be in a relationship with God, to be God's child. The Westminister Confession declares our purpose: "Glorify God, and worship him forever." What we do at work, be it washing dishes to being President of the United States, is sacred following that purpose. Each of us is precious in God's eyes, our purpose is simply to love Him/Her. Our purpose is simply to let God love us.

I became aware of my purpose at nine years old, as my parents shared of loving God, seeing God in all things, and at twelve, when the presence of God was felt in my heart, calling me to ministry, it was solidified even more so, when I became  "a priest forever in the Order of Mechsidek."

The stole and Bible above are symbols of the journey of walking the road less traveled. The stole was given to me on my ordination to the priesthood, with the words: "This stole has been made from blankets of men who have died of AIDS, and in this ordination, you have chosen a road few walk, of ministry with street youth, in particular queer youth."

One, sunny warm day walking down Polk Street, a young, homeless boy of fifteen, in the summer of 1998 yelled my name and handed me this "Bible, with the Book of Common Prayer", saying, "I have learned from you that it is ok to be gay, and this Bible is my gift." He had stolen the Bible, which I treasure to this day.

​Both symbolize personally  "salvation" comes not through beating the Bible on a person's head, but truly listening and seeing salvation in all spiritual expressions, and within.

My friend Cindi Vian summarizes salvation in this poem she gave to us:

Salvation
 
By what are you saved? And how?
Saved like a bit of string,
tucked away in a drawer?
Saved like a child rushed from
a burning building, already
singed and coughing smoke?
Or are you salvaged
like a car part -- the one good door
when the rest is wrecked?
 
Do you believe me when I say 
you are neither salvaged nor saved,
but salved, anointed by gentle hands
where you are most tender?
Haven't you seen
the way snow curls down
like a fresh sheet, how it
covers everything,
makes everything
beautiful, without exception?
 
~ Lynn Ungar ~

​(Blessing the Bread)

The Road Not Taken--Redirecting the Questions!

The Road Not Taken
By Robert Frost
​
Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

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And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.
John 7:1--2, 10, 25-30
New Living Translation

After this Jesus traveled around Galilee. 2 He wanted to stay out of Judea, where the Jewish leaders were planning his death.


10 But after his brothers left for the festival, Jesus also went, though secretly, staying out of public view.

Is Jesus the Messiah?
​
25 Some of the people who lived in Jerusalem started to ask each other, “Isn’t this the man they are trying to kill? 26 But here he is, speaking in public, and they say nothing to him. Could our leaders possibly believe that he is the Messiah? 27 But how could he be? For we know where this man comes from. When the Messiah comes, he will simply appear; no one will know where he comes from.”

28 While Jesus was teaching in the Temple, he called out, “Yes, you know me, and you know where I come from. But I’m not here on my own. The one who sent me is true, and you don’t know him. 29 But I know him because I come from him, and he sent me to you.” 30 Then the leaders tried to arrest him; but no one laid a hand on him, because his time[c] had not yet come.

Traveling The Thin Spaces With the Communion of Saints!

Today Geo, who hangs on Haight Street, called and invited me to meet him at a piazza place on Haight. Arriving there were four other Haight Street guys and one girl. They wanted to celebrate my birthday.

As we talked and laughed, one item of humor was being approached by a City Outreach Worker asking if each wanted to start the process of getting off the streets.  He called them "homeless," and Geo told him, "We are not homeless, we always have a place to sleep."

The truth is these guys, as many others on the street, have a different view of life than the majority of the mainstream.  We have to meet them where they are.

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Geo for instance sees being homeless as having no friends or sense of meaning in life, has a lot of friends, and meaning in his life, so he is not homeless.

This has been the heart of our ministry for over twenty years I have practiced, walking with them on their level, not trying to "help" them, but simply walking with each one, and letting each one make their own choice.

George Bernard Shaw, in saying "The reasonable man adapts himself to the world. The unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself."

In the article where this quote was found the author commented that the unreasonable man often creates chaos, which evolves into creativity.

I am one of those unreasonable men, and out of these twenty-some years, there has been much creativity, and much joy. I am found difficult to work with, largely because as things change, so do I, simply walking with each person in the chaos of changing.

Today was my mom's birthday and in thinking of her I thought of how unreasonable she was, and in the chaos which followed, was created.

Saturday is my birthday, much sadness surrounds me, for on this day one year ago, I witnessed on zoom a young friend's suicide.

And yet in this sadness, there is much joy, as I walk the thin line surrounded by the Communion of the Saints-- my mom, my dad, Shane,  Zach, Dorothy, Damien, Francis, and the hundreds of kids who have died these years. I have learned you never that used to violence and death, but one learns to see it simply as a part of life, and God in the midst.

My friend Matt Frederick wrote in one of my many  Bibles:

River, why else do think I'm here? You got me through some sh. .t and hard times. Happy almost  . ."120th" birthday; you've helped so many unfortunate people, and you still took time to mentor me. I didn't know I needed you, but looking back, life wouldn't be nearly so rich without you. Thank you."

Simply walking with others has led to a very, very rich life, filled with chaos,  sorrow, pain, and so much joy! Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!

The Silence of Calvary--People!

John 4:5-42
The Message
4-6 To get there, he had to pass through Samaria. He came into Sychar, a Samaritan village that bordered the field Jacob had given his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was still there. Jesus, worn out by the trip, sat down at the well. It was noon.

7-8 A woman, a Samaritan, came to draw water. Jesus said, “Would you give me a drink of water?” (His disciples had gone to the village to buy food for lunch.)

9 The Samaritan woman, taken aback, asked, “How come you, a Jew, are asking me, a Samaritan woman, for a drink?” (Jews in those days wouldn’t be caught dead talking to Samaritans.)
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10 Jesus answered, “If you knew the generosity of God and who I am, you would be asking me for a drink, and I would give you fresh, living water.”

11-12 The woman said, “Sir, you don’t even have a bucket to draw with, and this well is deep. So how are you going to get this ‘living water’? Are you a better man than our ancestor Jacob, who dug this well and drank from it, he and his sons and livestock, and passed it down to us?”

13-14 Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks this water will get thirsty again and again. Anyone who drinks the water I give will never thirst—not ever. The water I give will be an artesian spring within, gushing fountains of endless life.”

15 The woman said, “Sir, give me this water so I won’t ever get thirsty, won’t ever have to come back to this well again!”

16 He said, “Go call your husband and then come back.”

17-18 “I have no husband,” she said.

“That’s nicely put: ‘I have no husband.’ You’ve had five husbands, and the man you’re living with now isn’t even your husband. You spoke the truth there, sure enough.”

19-20 “Oh, so you’re a prophet! Well, tell me this: Our ancestors worshiped God at this mountain, but you Jews insist that Jerusalem is the only place for worship, right?”

21-23 “Believe me, woman, the time is coming when you Samaritans will worship the Father neither here at this mountain nor there in Jerusalem. You worship guessing in the dark; we Jews worship in the clear light of day. God’s way of salvation is made available through the Jews. But the time is coming—it has, in fact, come—when what you’re called will not matter and where you go to worship will not matter.

23-24 “It’s who you are and the way you live that count before God. Your worship must engage your spirit in the pursuit of truth. That’s the kind of people the Father is out looking for: those who are simply and honestly themselves before him in their worship. God is —Spirit. Those who worship him must do it out of their very being, their spirits, their true selves, in adoration.”

25 The woman said, “I don’t know about that. I do know that the Messiah is coming. When he arrives, we’ll get the whole story.”

26 “I am he,” said Jesus. “You don’t have to wait any longer or look any further.”

27 Just then his disciples came back. They were shocked. They couldn’t believe he was talking with that kind of a woman. No one said what they were all thinking, but their faces showed it.

28-30 The woman took the hint and left. In her confusion she left her water pot. Back in the village she told the people, “Come see a man who knew all about the things I did, who knows me inside and out. Do you think this could be the Messiah?” And they went out to see for themselves.

It’s Harvest Time

31 In the meantime, the disciples pressed him, “Rabbi, eat. Aren’t you going to eat?”

32 He told them, “I have food to eat you know nothing about.”

33 The disciples were puzzled. “Who could have brought him food?”

34-35 Jesus said, “The food that keeps me going is that I do the will of the One who sent me, finishing the work he started. As you look around right now, wouldn’t you say that in about four months it will be time to harvest? Well, I’m telling you to open your eyes and take a good look at what’s right in front of you. These Samaritan fields are ripe. It’s harvest time!
36-38 “The Harvester isn’t waiting. He’s taking his pay, gathering in this grain that’s ripe for eternal life. Now the Sower is arm in arm with the Harvester, triumphant. That’s the truth of the saying, ‘This one sows, that one harvests.’ I sent you to harvest a field you never worked. Without lifting a finger, you have walked in on a field worked long and hard by others.”

39-42 Many of the Samaritans from that village committed themselves to him because of the woman’s witness: “He knew all about the things I did. He knows me inside and out!” They asked him to stay on, so Jesus stayed two days. A lot more people entrusted their lives to him when they heard what he had to say. They said to the woman, “We’re no longer taking this on your say-so. We’ve heard it for ourselves and know it for sure. He’s the Savior of the world!”
This week is my birthday week. I am always asked "How old are you?", and I always, pretty much lie. The reason is I do not want to be judged by my age.

The life expectancy during the time of Jesus was 30-35, so Jesus was an old man when he died--he was an old man! I do not want to be judged or be asked, "When are you going to retire?" When I was 30 I was told by a CEO of a youth agency: 'You are too old to work with youth," well we see how that turned out.

Every time I have been in Florida and gone to Walmart and observe all the grey-haired workers I tell myself," I can always get a job here."

Looking back to my first church, an older man very successful businessman, working full time, gave this advice: "Never tell anyone your age, in fact, forget about the number, and keep working, and your life will be full." He dropped dad at 102, working.
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I tell people if they really want to know my age  to wait until my ashes are placed at St. Luke's and go by and look at the engraving which will say:
"Fr. Christian River Damien Sims, D.Min., D.S.T., "a priest forever in the order of Mecliesdek," date of birth and date of death."
I love celebrating my birthday in the spirit of Fr.  Henry Nouwen:
 
"Birthdays need to be celebrated. I think it is more important to celebrate a birthday than a successful exam, a promotion, or a victory. Because to celebrate a birthday means to say to someone: "Thank you for being you." Celebrating a birthday is exalting life and being glad for it. On a birthday we do not say: "Thanks for what you did, or said, or accomplished." No, we say: "Thank you for being born and being among us."
On birthdays we celebrate the present. We do not complain about what happened or speculate about what will happen, but we lift someone up and let everyone say, "We love you."
In the devotional book, The Silence of Calvary, Meditations on Good Friday, by Christopher Webb, he writes of the people around Jesus, that faithful week.

The week began with crowds hailing his entrance into Jerusalem--and as the week continued the crowd became smaller and smaller. Like all others who came to Jerusalem preaching a new Kingdom Jesus was judged by the kind of Kingdom, he was bringing. The great majority wanted a political kingdom, where all would be well. Jesus came pronouncing a far different kind of Realm--one of love and grace.

Walking  passed James (in the photo above), giving him food, and a smile, I remembered three quotes which are my guides:

"You can measure your worth by your dedication to your path, not by your successes or failures." Elizabeth Gilbert.
"Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded.  It's a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity." (Pema Chodron)

"The most fundamental aggression to ourselves we commit the most fundamental harm we can do to ourselves is to remain ignorant by not having the courage and the respect to look at ourselves honestly and gently." (Pema Chodron)
​
And so when my spirit enters into the presence of Jesus, looking into those  eyes, my prayer is that like among those who came into Jerusalem singing praises to Jesus, to be one of the few who heard his voice, seeking to follow him into his Kingdom of peace, love, and justice, to hear  saying, "Well done my good and faithful servant, enter into my Kingdom." For like Dorothy Day all I can say is "I tried," and I keep trying into this next year. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!"
 "You can measure your worth by your dedication to your path, not by your successes or failures."
Elizabeth Gilbert
Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It's a relationship between equals. Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity.   
(Pema Chödrön)  
.es, the most fundamental harm we can do to ourselves, is to remain ignorant by not having the courage and the respect to look at ourselves honestly and gently.” (Pema Chödrön) ​
​Self-esteem is the commitment to treat yourself in a kindly, loving manner when you're alone.  This is an active process that requires effort and energy.
​
-- David Burns, Intimate connections, 1985.

The Tenderloin Stations of the Cross During the Covid19 Pandemic And Our Bearing the Cross of Thorns

Anyone interested in participating in reading on Good Friday, April 15, 2022, please contact me!

Haunted by ZOOM! The Freeing of Forgiveness--IT HEALS US!

A Story About Forgiveness—Matthew 18:21-35 (The Message)
21 At that point Peter got up the nerve to ask, “Master, how many times do I forgive a brother or sister who hurts me? Seven?”
22 Jesus replied, “Seven! Hardly. Try seventy times seven.
23-25 “The kingdom of God is like a king who decided to square accounts with his servants. As he got under way, one servant was brought before him who had run up a debt of a hundred thousand dollars. He couldn’t pay up, so the king ordered the man, along with his wife, children, and goods, to be auctioned off at the slave market.
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26-27 “The poor wretch threw himself at the king’s feet and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ Touched by his plea, the king let him off, erasing the debt.
28 “The servant was no sooner out of the room when he came upon one of his fellow servants who owed him ten dollars. He seized him by the throat and demanded, ‘Pay up. Now!’
29-31 “The poor wretch threw himself down and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ But he wouldn’t do it. He had him arrested and put in jail until the debt was paid. When the other servants saw this going on, they were outraged and brought a detailed report to the king.
32-35 “The king summoned the man and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave your entire debt when you begged me for mercy. Shouldn’t you be compelled to be merciful to your fellow servant who asked for mercy?’ The king was furious and put the screws to the man until he paid back his entire debt. And that’s exactly what my Father in heaven is going to do to each one of you who doesn’t forgive unconditionally anyone who asks for mercy.”
-------------------------------------------------------
A year ago on March 26, on my friend Rio's birthday, Sean (not his name) from another state zoomed him before his birthday dinner in Palm Springs. The day had been beautiful, sunny, hot, a great day for a hike and swimming all day, and a birthday dinner with friends.

All that changed in an instant as the seventeen-year-old shared of telling his friends he was pan-sexual in his small conservative town.

Rumors flew, and as in small towns, rumors tend to become truth. They caused much pain, a sense of isolation.

As his fourteen-year-old brother sat by him, and I talked to him, he pulled his dad's gun out and blew his head off in an instance. The blood-spattered all over the screen.

Rio went into shock, seeing the parents rushing in and discovering all that had happened.
​
The year followed has been a blur much of the time. With a great therapist, the pain has moved into the piece of rough wood of his ministry being carved into the beauty of service.

And most importantly has come the fresh air of forgiveness of self, and of others, finding peace. He will always be haunted, and he will see the smiling face of Sean in the Great Cloud of Witnesses calling him forward in ministry. Forgiveness frees! Holding grudges, hate, resentment destroys!

Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!
------------------------------
Fr. River Damien Sims, sfw, D.Min., D.S.T.
P.O. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
www. temenos.org
415-305-2124

Haunted by the Pandemic Through Thin Places!

Gospel Lk 16:19-31
Jesus said to the Pharisees:
“There was a rich man who dressed in purple garments and fine linen
and dined sumptuously each day.
And lying at his door was a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores,
who would gladly have eaten his fill of the scraps
that fell from the rich man’s table.

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Dogs even used to come and lick his sores.
When the poor man died,
he was carried away by angels to the bosom of Abraham.
The rich man also died and was buried,
and from the netherworld, where he was in torment,
he raised his eyes and saw Abraham far off
and Lazarus at his side.
And he cried out, ‘Father Abraham, have pity on me.
Send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue,
for I am suffering torment in these flames.’
Abraham replied, ‘My child,
remember that you received what was good during your lifetime
while Lazarus likewise received what was bad;
but now he is comforted here, whereas you are tormented.
Moreover, between us and you a great chasm is established
to prevent anyone from crossing
who might wish to go from our side to yours
or from your side to ours.’
He said, ‘Then I beg you, father, send him
to my father’s house,
for I have five brothers, so that he may warn them,
lest they too come to this place of torment.’
But Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets.
Let them listen to them.’
He said, ‘Oh no, father Abraham,
but if someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.’
Then Abraham said,
‘If they will not listen to Moses and the prophets,
neither will they be persuaded
if someone should rise from the dead.’”

​---

Thin places are spaces of mystery and encounter where we meet God in ourselves, in others, and in the wider world. In each person's life are thin places where we experience God's presence in a powerful way that stirs the soul. Entering thin spaces is an opportunity that we do not normally have--to slow down, to pause, to look with fresh eyes, and to recover a sense of wonder about the world. In these thin spaces we are broken open, and we encounter ourselves, our relationship with ourselves, with others, and with God, in a deeper and more authentic way. Truth makes its home in these broken-open spaces, and we often receive a gift of new insights and memories. And we become more understanding, compassionate, and authentic, we open up to new ways of seeing, fresh avenues of thinking, and ultimately being transformed into new ways of being.

Today on the second anniversary of the lockdown, of the pandemic closing everything down, I look back and see the thin spaces that I have walked and continue to walk.

The photo above is that of two canes I use-one with the head of a bird, the other a dragon, both symbols of my life. The canes are symbolic of my brokenness, and the healing that comes through those splinters. They remind me of Jacob being wounded in the hip by God, Jacob a dishonest, conniving rascal, who was used by God. He reminds me of my own weakness, and God using them for his glory.

The pandemic haunts almost everyone that I know, young and old. And during these years personally, I have never felt alone. Three learnings in these thin places have come to mind:

---

Trust as a Thin Place

Through holding the hands of people dying, my own sense of worry about catching the disease, the suicide of a young friend in front of me on zoom, my injury, leaving me with a limp, and having the coronavirus myself with the side effects of having spots in my eyes, being dizzy, and difficulty in remembering, I have learned to pray the words of St. Ignatius, as an act of trust and the knowledge that it is only God that holds me safely in his hands:

"Take Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my entire will, all that I have and possess. Thou hast given all to me. To Thee, O Lord, I return it. All is Thine, dispose of it wholly according to Thy will. Give me Thy love and thy grace, for this, is sufficient for me."

---

Finding the Gifts of God in All Things

I have learned to find the gifts of God in all things. Through pain, grief, and fear, one learns to simply trust; in dizziness, illness, pain, mistakes, and threats, there is only God to trust. That is the greatest gift of all.

Through seeing and being faced with death, violence, and hatred, one comes to see the gifts of God in loving each person, regardless of their actions. One comes to see each individual as the wounded Christ.

---

Leaning Into the Mercy of God

Sometimes the decisions we make in life or experiences that happen to us through no fault of our own can bring us low and to the edge of despair.

Thin places are often wild, messy places of rawness and beauty where God is waiting to renew and restore us. And in this journey we find encouragement to confront whatever we might find in our thin places and move forward with

God's grace. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!

Stations of the Cross During COVID19 Pandemic 

And Our Bearing the Cross of Thorns
​
Introduction—Fr.River Sims, D.Min.
“Haunting. .Is the relentless remembering and reminding that will not be appeased by settler societies assurances of innocence and reconciliation. Haunting is both acute and general; individuals are haunted, but so are societies. The United States is permanently haunted by the slavery, genocide, and violence entwined in its first, present and future days. Haunting aims to wrong the wrongs, a confrontation that settler horror hopes to evade. Eve Tuck and C. Ree”

​Read More...
The past two years of the pandemic has gracefully allowed us to walk the thin lines, breaking ourselves open to the pain around us.

As we walk through the streets of San Francisco, in particular the Haight and the Tenderloin, we are very award of the suffering of individuals who are homeless, and their enslavement by our neglect.

Walking by Mission Delores and St. Boniface Churches we become are aware of the enslavement of the California Native Americans, and the inability of Franciscans to acknowledge that cross of thorns.

We are award of the neglect of the church towards homeless individuals. “There are roughly 380,000 churches in the US. On any given night there’s likely  554, 000 people living unsheltered in America. That’s less than 1.5 people per church. Math doesn’t life but it does incriminate. (James Neal”). The church is haunted by homelessness.

And so as we walk the Stations of the Cross, let each of us look deep within our souls and see our lives haunted, and it’s damage, and grasp the Cross, to free us from being haunted, opening our lives to new paths.

“Teach Your Children
What we have taught our children
That the earth is our mother.
Whatever befalls the earth
Befalls the sons and the daughters
of the earth.
We did not weave the web of life,
We are merely a strand in it.
Whatever we do to the web
We do to ourselves.”

Chief Seattle (1786-1866)
----------------------------------------

The First Station: Jesus is Condemned to Death—Kevin Frederick, Esquire

We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(Mark 14:61-64)

LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, at the beginning of this Lenten season, ashes are placed on our forehead and reminding us that we are dust and to dust we shall return. The Coronavirus has made us realize this very clearly. We are nothing but dust. We feel our helplessness in the face of this virus which we cannot even see. Humanity is condemned to death. But we are
not afraid, O Lord You have already conquered death by rising again. O Lord Jesus, help us to trust in you during this difficult time in our history. May we remember our homeless brothers and sisters as they are condemned by our apathy, and suffer on the street, and our Native American brothers and sisters, who are suffering from our neglect greatly during this time. Amen.

The Second Station: Jesus Carries his Cross: Ms, Kathy Carpiaux
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
John 19:14-17)

LET US PRAY: Lord, you take upon yourself the burden of the cross all that weighs us down. Give us the strength to walk onward, uncrushed by the weight this pandemic has placed upon our shoulders. May we help others to endure in the trials and suffering of their lives, with undefeated joy. May we walk with our homeless brothers and sisters, our Native American brothers and sisters and all minorities, and serve them as equals, seeing their pain.  We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen.

The Third Station: Jesus Falls for the First Time:Matthew Frederick, Esq.
 We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(John 15: 18-20)

LET US PRAY: Jesus, when we fall and feel discouraged, may we know that you are especially close to us, bearing our shame and giving us the strength to stand up on our feet and   begin to walk again. Make our hearts tender toward all those who fall under the weight of this cross. May we feel the weight of our Native American brothers and sisters as well as all homeless and minorities and open our eyes to their suffering; Grant us renewed charity and unity during this worldwide crisis. May the desire for holiness burn within us. We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen

The Fourth Station: Jesus Meets His Afflicted Mother:Ms. Cindy Reinert
 We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All:  Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(John 19:25-27)

LET US PRAY: All suffering is embraced by God when Jesus and his mother meet on the way of the cross. Jesus is every, Native American, homeless and minority person; Mary is every parent grieving for his or her child. Lord be close to all who lose or become distant from people they love. During this pandemic draw all of  closer together as one family, let barriers fall down and closer relationships form. We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen.

The Fifth Station: Simon of Cyrene Helps Jesus to Carry His Cross: David Alben
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world
(Mark 15:20-22).

LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, may I be unashamed to accept help when I need it, and may I be eager to offer it when others have needs. May our mutual dependence be a source of joy and an occasion of grace, knitting us together in the community of your love. As we walk these streets we pray for our eyes to be open to the needs around us on every corner.  We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen.

The Sixth Station: Veronica Wipes the Face of Jesus:Fr. Stephen Bartlett-Re
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(Matthew 25:37-40)

LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, may I see with your compassion and smile with your radiance, so that your unfailing tenderness is made flesh and blood in me. May I always be alert to those who feel invisible and despised. May I help them to recognize that they are your brothers and sisters sharing in your dignity and are equal with us.  We implore special graces for Native Americans, homeless people, and all minorities.  We ask you to provide for the employed and the unemployed, for the economic
needs of all people during this worldwide crisis. We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen.

The Seventh Station: Jesus Falls for the Second Time:
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(Isaiah 53:4-6)

LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, lift me to my feet when fear of the virus brings me down. When I feel battered by the storms of life, with neither the energy or strength to carry on, then may I know that you, the strong Son of God, will bear me onward until I arrive at home in God. Open our eyes to our continued guilt and participation in the haunting of Native Americans and all minorities.

We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen.

Eighth Station: Jesus Meets the Women of Jerusalem:
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(Luke 23:27-29):

LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, give me a new heart of flesh so I may rejoice with those who rejoice and share sorrow with those who are saddened. Peel away the shell of my selfishness that holds others at a distance, so I may be one with their lives, free to act with your own
spontaneous generosity as I help and serve those affected by coronavirus. Dress us in the armor of your protection. We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen.

The Ninth Station: Jesus Falls for the Third Time:
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(Psalms 118:25-28)

LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, after so many falls, let me not lose hope for happiness and holiness. If you are with me, then I am not doomed to be stuck in the endless repetition of my failures. May your grace arise in the wilderness of my heart. Grant a new beginning even today. May your grace arise in our awareness of how our Native American, and minority brothers and sisters have been pushed aside, mistreated, and abused.  Help your people to arise beyond what is physical to see the spiritual dynamic at work in the present crisis that besets the world. We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen.

The Tenth Station: Jesus Is Stripped of His Clothes:
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(Matthew 27:34-35)

LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, I fear to be seen as I am, with my foolish fears and hidden failures. I would be ashamed and wish to hide, like Adam and Eve. But for us, you have been stripped naked and borne the jeers of the world. Our homeless, and Native American brothers and sisters, and all minorities bear the jeers of the world every day. Comfort those who feel despised. Clothe me with your love, please. Clothe humanity in your garment of love. We pray for a swift end to this
pandemic. Amen.

The Eleventh Station: Jesus is Nailed to the Cross:
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(Luke 23:33-34)

LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, your life had seemed so full of promise, and yet it ended in the disgrace of the cross. Embrace all those who seem to be utter failures. Embrace our Native American and homeless and minority brother and sisters in their feelings of abuse, neglect, Embrace us as we see our fault in that abuse, and move us to walk forward in the light of ending that abuse.  And as you are close to us in these dark moments in the history of the world, so may we share with you in the radiance of your resurrection. As we journey our way of the cross now, help us to focus on the light at the end of the tunnel—resurrection. We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen.

The Twelfth Station: Jesus Dies on the Cross:
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.


All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(Luke 33:44-46)

LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, be with us in the hour of our death. May those who feel abandoned by God know that he is closer than we can imagine. May those who feel that there is no God at all discover his intimate presence. Before our death, inspire us to offer reparations given
to  our Native American, homeless and minority brothers and sisters that we may be well prepared for our particular judgment. We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen.

The Thirteenth Station: Jesus is Taken Down from the Cross:
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(John 19:33-34, 38)

LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, now you are lowered from the cross into the hands of those who loved you and who stayed by your side to the end. May we have the courage to remain  faithful to you despite the difficulties and fears we are experiencing right now. Grant, us to be faithful to you and our homeless, minority, and Native brothers and sisters. We pray for a swift end to this pandemic. Amen.

The Fourteenth Station: Jesus is Placed in the Tomb:
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(Matt 27:59-60)
LET US PRAY: Lord Jesus, now you are laid to rest in the tomb. May we rest in your love, confident that even when the future is obscure, we nestle in your Father’s care. Grant us patient endurance until we hear your final summons to the fullness of life. Graciously calm our fears, and increase faith, hope, and love. We pray for a swift end to this pandemic and we pray for our homeless brothers and sisters who suffer on the street from the Pandemic. We pray for our Native American brothers and sisters who suffer on their reservations with the disease and poverty. Please
impart your divine wisdom to our medical experts that a cure for the COVID-19 virus is soon discovered. Amen.

The Closing Station: The Resurrection of Jesus:Fr. River Sims, D.Min.
We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

All: Because by your holy Cross, you have redeemed the world.
(Mark 16: 1-6)

LET US PRAY:
I believe in God,
the Father Almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died and was buried;
He descended into hell;
on the third day He rose again from the dead;
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father Almighty;
from there He will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Holy Catholic Church,
the communion of Saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting. AMEN
​
Hopi Prayer for Peace!
“Great Spirit and all unseen, this day we pray
and ask: You for guidance,
humbly we ask you to help us and our fellow men and women to have recourse  to peaceful ways
of life, because of uncontrolled deceitfulness
by humankind.
Help us all to love, not hate one another. We
ask You to be seen in an image
of Love and Peace. Let us be seen in beauty,
of the colors of the rainbow. We
respect our Mother, the planet, and our corn
fields, with our loving care, from Her breast.
we receive our nourishment.
Let us not listen to the voices of the two-
hearted, the destroyer of mind,
the haters of self-made leaders, whose lusts
for power and wealth will lead
us into confusion and darkness. Seek visions
always of world beauty, not violence not battlefields.
It is our duty to pray always for harmony
Between humanity and earth, so that the
earth will bloom once more. Let us show our
emblem of love and goodwill for
all life and land.”(Contributed by: Billie Campbell)
--------------------
Fr. River Damien Sims, sfw, D.Min.
P.O. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
www.temenos.org
415-305-2124

Counting the Stars!

Luke 9: 28-36
In our journey towards God, we experience high moments, spots when we find ourselves on holy ground and God shows himself. That was the state of Peter as he witnessed the transfiguration of Jesus: 'Lord let us build here three dwellings, for you, for Moses and for Elijah.' Peter wanted the party to go on forever. Jesus brought him down to earth, led him down the mountain, and told him to stop talking about the vision and instead be ready for the cross.
   
Read More...
 Three times have I experienced the transfiguration in my life: around a campfire, during a church camp time, I clearly felt the presence of Jesus, hearing his call to ministry; my ordination; and in the Cathedral in Los Angles where the presence of Our Lady of Guadalupe summoned me off the street, back into ministry. Each time the summons was to go "wait tables", and move towards the cross.
    During this past year of injury, assault, the coronavirus, vertigo, exhaustion, I hear the summons to move towards the cross, to take the road of Calvary.
    There were many people who came to hail Jesus on Palm Sunday, in the end, they turned on him because he did not fulfill their dreams. 
    On this Feast of the Transfiguration  you are invited to take up the cross, and with the "Stations of the Cross" below  you may pray each day a Station, and focus on the mystery of Calvary:

​

Work/Prayer/Weeping!​

Luke 6:27-38

​Through the past two years seeing so much pain, fear, and death; each day as I walk out my door and talk to people I know and love sleeping and living on the street, I weep, a lot. My heart breaks open, and in the weeping, I am pushed into working my ass off to ease their pain and driven to prayer.

We are dust and to dust, we shall return. We leave our small mark in our work, but for the most part, it soon will be erased, about as soon as these words will be forgotten; I will feed someone, and spend time listening, and it soon will turn into dust.
Read More...
But our work matters. Be it drudgery or joy for in doing it well the work adds to the truth and goodness in the world. Our work pushes back the darkness. Our work weaves us together, for we are all vulnerable and dependent on one another. I know nothing about cars, Bob my mechanic repairs my van, without him I could not drive.

Leslie Warren writes that not only our bodies but our work, as well will be raised up on the last day:

"All the faithful labor of God's servants which time seems to have buried in the dust as failure will be raised up, and found to be transfigured in the New Kingdom."

We take up our work knowing that through its practice,  we participate in the eternal work of God.

The practice of prayer becomes a compulsive force binding our participation in God's work.

The Christian story dares us to believe that the work of prayer is not so far away from the gift of working in the sewer. Prayer pushes us into knowing that all work is holy.

Along with prayer and work, we are given the gift of weeping. The gift of weeping pushes me to seek to ease the pain on the streets and in the alleys. The gift of weeping is a force that propels me to listen to people in their pain.

The gifts of work, prayer, and weeping tie us together into hearing the words of Jesus, and to practice them:

Gospel Lk 6:27-38
Jesus said to his disciples:
“To you who hear I say,
love your enemies, do good to those who hate you,
bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
To the person who strikes you on one cheek,
offer the other one as well,
and from the person who takes your cloak,
do not withhold even your tunic.
Give to everyone who asks of you,
and from the one who takes what is yours do not demand it back.
Do to others as you would have them do to you.
For if you love those who love you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners love those who love them.
And if you do good to those who do good to you,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners do the same.
If you lend money to those from whom you expect repayment,
what credit is that to you?
Even sinners lend to sinners,
and get back the same amount.
But rather, love your enemies and do good to them,
and lend expecting nothing back;
then your reward will be great
and you will be children of the Most High,
for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.
Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.

“Stop judging and you will not be judged.
Stop condemning and you will not be condemned.
Forgive and you will be forgiven.
Give, and gifts will be given to you;
a good measure, packed together, shaken down, and overflowing,
will be poured into your lap.
For the measure with which you measure
will in return be measured out to you.”

Miracles!

Then Yeshua came down with them and stood on a level place. A large crowd of His disciples and a multitude of people, from all Judea, Jerusalem, and the coastal region of Tyre and Sidon,
18 had come to hear Him and to be healed of their diseases.

​Even those disturbed by defiling spirits were being healed.

​19 Everyone in the crowd was trying to touch Him, because power flowed from Him and He was healing them all.
Read More...
20 And looking up at His disciples, He said, “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours is the kingdom of God.

21 Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.

22 Blessed are you when people hate you, and when they exclude you, and revile you, and spurn your name as evil on account of the Son of Man.

23 Rejoice in that day and jump for joy! For behold, your reward is great in heaven! For their fathers used to treat the prophets the same way.”

24 But woe to you who are rich, for you are receiving your comfort in full.

25 Woe to you who are full, for you shall be hungry. Woe to you who are laughing now, for you shall mourn and weep.

26 Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets the same way.

--------------------------
The theologian Karl Rahner, SJ was once asked whether he believed in miracles. His answer, 'I don't believe in them, I rely on them to get through each day.'

Miracles are always present within our lives, ones of birth, love, and hope. Miracles of people letting go of hurt, hate, resentment, and giving forgiveness. A miracle is not always against nature--it is something that causes faith and love.

    People ask me "How have you done this work for so long, and not burned out?" The answer is simple--the little miracles that come my way.

    The miracle of my friend Matthew coming into the City and taking me out to dinner on Friday night; the miracle of seeing a young woman, acting out in her mental illness, becoming calm as we spoke; the miracle in sharing with a young person last night, overcome with her fear of a judgmental God, the amazing grace of God's love and forgiveness; the miracle of having compassion, when there is little compassion around us (Mark 8:1-10); the miracle of continuing to see each person as a child of the living God. It is difficult constantly being criticized, hated, spit upon, but the little miracles overshadow all with God's goodness and bring purpose and meaning.

    Our reading of the Beatitudes on Sunday is the center of our miracles, the center of seeing goodness in others.

    Happy are unhappy, Jesus seems to be saying!  What can he mean? 'Blessed' is the condition of being righteous before God, of living as one should before God. The poor are not only those who are economically poor but include those who have been marginalized in any way in society. They are blessed because God is on their side, as opposed to the 'rich' who often hold them in contempt and oppose them. Jesus is appealing for love and respect for all those who are outside one's social milieu. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!

------------------
​
Fr. River Damien Sims, sfw, D.Min., D.S.T.
P.O. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
www.temenos.org
415-305-21224

A Book Review

Common Spaces Between Us
Nurturing the Good in the Midst of Difference by Melynne Rust
Polarization occurring in the United States today is not only a social concern, it is also a spiritual condition of the heart. How can we connect with each other in the midst of our differences, when deep in our hearts we might harbor shadows, which brings judgment and fear.
Read More...
Rust explores that question in her book. She takes the readers to a diverse college campus where she served as chaplain and gives us short stories of how her ministry was practiced in a pluralistic manner.

She worked with fundamentalists, Muslims, atheists, and doubters.

Rust shared her fears, and yet she pushed ahead, and discovered that "spiritual referred to that part of us--our spirit-that seeks connection, meaning and purpose. .and that the Eucharist is "an experienced of the ordinary."*

Melynne ultimately discovered that true connectedness and spirituality occur when we embody practices that recognize honor, and nurture the good--in both ourselves and others in the common spaces between us.

​Call Up Samual!

"Behold there was a woman in Endor, a medium. So Saul disguised himself. .and asked: "Please conjure up for me a ghost..Call up Samual. ."(I Samual 28:7-13)
My very first sermon was based on this passage, I preached at Grace United Methodist Church, in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, my parents beamed with such pride.
Read More...
So many years later as I sat with my friend Matthew,as we both always do after we eat, sitting for several hours, Matt was viewing the internet on his phone, me reading, or today just looking out at the hills at BJ's, North Gate Mall, Marin, my feelings were sadness and my mind viewed the years. There was a sense o foreboding, sadness. Ghosts were fluttering around me.

North Gate is soon to be torn down, malls are now in the past, new housing built, and all left will be my memories of hanging out with kids, many long gone, being present, listening. I have witnessed and experienced, much joy and pain, hanging out atNorth Gate. The ghosts of North Gate hang around me.

I now transitioned to Polk Street, twenty-plus years ago, and view my ministry. There are so many ghosts both then and now.

I have viewed so much pain, and death, hundreds of young men and women. Walked with them, held their hands as they died, and buried them. Now on the gentrified street are countless older homeless individuals, suffering from neglect, homelessness, hunger, and lack of caring. People walk by as if they do not exist. The ghosts, hover around me. They hover and bring much darkness and pain.*

And finally, we go to Haight Street, with young men and women, who basically smoke pot, LSD, etc. Why are they there, all sorts of reasons, family problems, sexuality, or simply choose to live the life. There is so much tragedy, being beaten, abused, and murdered. So many nights called out to be with someone hurt or dead; so many have Itaken to the hospital and sat for hours in the emergency room waiting. The ghosts move around BJ's laughing at me.

I am reminded of being told many years ago, "You have been given a gift of letting people into your life, to truly enter in and feel at home, and you in theirs, and if you choose to use it, will bring you much pain and even more joy;" over my desk, there is a small drawing of a character worn out, with a red heart in his center, with the title, "counselor", sent years ago, reminding me of the pain, and joy experienced every day.

Now I simply live in the moment, I walk with a cane, pulling a wagon; my bones hurt; and I remember the words of an anonymous author: The smallest deed is better than the greatest intention," and so hear the voice of Dorothy Day saying, "I will continue to try." *

The ghosts that surround me are always dispelled when I call up Jesus, whose radiance is that of life, found in caring and loving.

Call up Jesus, giving our lives in love, being his presence! Kindle your heart, no matter what or who you believe in! Go out and give of your time and money to the Joe's, and the Sharon's who sleep on the street corners, who are cold, sick, and scared.! Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!

​A Book Review

The Emptied Christ of the Philippians
Mahayana Meditations by John Keenan
"He emptied himself." (Philippians 2:7).
​
Before the gospels were written, long before the creeds of the Church hammered out, Christ followers in Philippi sang a hymn of the Christ who "although he was in the form of God. .emptied himself taking the form  of a slave being born as are all humans." 
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A problem arose when this "emptied Christ" did not fit neatly into later theologies of the church, shaped by Greek thought concerned with being and essence.

In Philippians, Paul struggles, stumbling over his own awkward words to express his hope, his eschatological faith, that he might, "gain Christ and be found in him. . .and participate in his sufferings by being conformed to his death, if in some way I may reach to what goes beyond the resurrection from the dead."

This book seeks to move us out of a less empirical world of thought than our western heritage offers, into the thinking of Mahayana Buddhism, guiding us towards an awareness of a truth in the Christian faith that is more profound than anything reducible to historical "facts" or even to human language.

The Mahayana Buddhist theology calls its followers to live in the present, the now, there is nothing else.

The heart of this book can be found in Philippians 2:7: "He Emptied Himself." For in that verse we find the theme of Christian theology: we are called to practice the sacrament of service and not be concerned over the past or worry about the future and live a life of unconditional love.

Through emptying ourselves we see that the world in which our lives are in constant search of money, of a better life, is futile, for our lives move towards death, and we suffer throughout life. Emptying ourselves we grasp this suffering and gain that in letting go of ourselves and serving others we find meaning and purpose.

I look back through the years and find my life was about gaining a reputation (which flows up one minute and down), material security, and being loved. All of which is futile. Only in service, of working at emptying my life have I found hope

and peace.

In Philippians 2:13, Paul calls us to work out our salvation with fear and trembling," meaning to work at emptying ourselves, to the service of others.

Walk the streets and you will find the result of our centering on ourselves, striving to gain "better life," and look within yourself, and ask yourself the question, do I look away from those on the street because each person we see calls to our own fear of suffering. 

Paul calls us to look at others, see we all suffer, and empty our lives in service. Deo 'Gratias! Thanks be to God!

A Journey on the Edge!

Reflections Given to High School Students!
​My name is River, I am a priest, our non-profit is Temenos Catholic Worker,  and my information is on the handout you have been given.

I started literally by moving into my apartment on Polk Street, and handing out food, becoming friends with the young adults on the street. At the time on Polk, they were young homeless prostitutes, and today it is older homeless people, using drugs; on the Haight, they are all young homeless youth, from broken homes, homes where they are not wanted, many born of homeless parents, others simply for the freedom of not being told what to do. They mainly smoke dro, acid, and LSD. In the summer we have what is called "summer punks," they come from home or college, simply to be free and at the end of the summer return to their lives.  They are out there for a million reasons.
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My work is being on the streets and simply being a listener, without judgment, without expectations of my friends; I am their friend, whom they can come to when they are sick, depressed, or just simply to hang out.

Carl Rogers once said: "I don't try to control the sunset, I watch with awe as it unfolds. " He also said; "The good life is a process, not a state of being, it is a direction, not a destination."  For many, it is a good life. For others, it is the best life they can have.

On New Year's Eve, I attended a party in Marin on the beach with a bond fire, and all the trimmings of what high school, college students love doing, many are my friends.  Their problems, and their actions--smoking pot, drinking, etc, are no different than the guys on the street, they simply have places to live and families who care for them. They are simply adolescents, young adults on their journies.

Success isn't measured by money or power or social rank, race, creed, color, religious background, but simply by inner peace, and never giving up through hell or high water.

What works for me, what is effective for me is to be a listening ear, a good friend, walking with each one on their journey, and seeing where it leads.

In each person--the gang banger, murderer, thief, and all I look in their eyes and can see the beauty, that is present, and see the broken body of Christ.

And if someone tells me how to live my life, and I have a hunch if I or someone else told you, you would tell them like I do, to "rub their di..k's with sandpaper."

I came here with nothing, and when I die will leave here with nothing, and in between, I beg and sometimes work to do the joy of this work. I  journey on the edge.

My invitation to you is to see the beauty and goodness within yourselves and share that beauty, that goodness with others, and you will see the world change. Deo Gratias! Thanks be to God!
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Fr. River Damien Sims, sfw, D.Min., D.S.T.
P.O. Box 642656
San Francisco, CA 94164
415-305-2124
www.temenos.org
punkpriest1@gmail.com
snap chat: riodamien2
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Please feel free to contact me at any time.

Volunteers are welcome if they have vaccination and booster.;

Good Friday, 2022, Stations of the Cross through the Tenderloin, with participants being housed and unhoused youth, if you are interested, give me a call;

San Francisco LGBTQ Pride, June 22-23
​We host the area where older, and people with disabilities sit, Good view of events. Pay: $20.00 an hour.
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Haight Street Christmas 2021
Haight Thanksgiving, 2021

The Haunting

Haunting. . .is the relentless remembering and reminding that will not be appeased by settler society's assurances of innocence and reconciliation. Haunting is both acute and general, individuals are haunted, but so are societies. The United States is permanently haunted by the slavery, genocide, and violence entwined in its first, present, and future days . . .Haunting aims to wrong the wrongs, a confrontation that settler horror hopes to evade. (Eve Tuck and C. Ree)

Recognizing God’s Own

Recognizing God’s Own Wisdom 3:1-9; Romans 5:5-11; John 6:37-40 ————————– Recently, PBS explored Inside the Animal Mind, exploring the awareness of animals in the face of death. In remarkable photography elephants re- turned to a previous encampment where they tenderly touched the skeleton remains of their fellow elephants who have passed. Each year on All […]

Heaven Begins Now

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Clarification

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November Newsletter Temenos Catholic Worker, Day of Dead

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A Long Retirement!

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​Judgment Diminishes Our Humanity

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Mercy Bone Deep!

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Giving in Friendship

Giving in Friendship     Last night sitting outside an  Italian restaurant down the street, it was getting ready to rain, and  I watched the cars pass,  reminding me of Puerto Vallario when Matt and I went visiting a couple of years ago, and the cars drove continually up and down the street, and I remember the […]

Inside and Out

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Measuring Our Lives by Productivity

Measuring Our Lives By Productivity Is A Killer!     Around 3:AM on Tuesday night, my phone rang, and Jimmy was at the door requesting some socks and food.    In reality, he simply wanted someone to listen to him. And so for the next hour, I listened. Jimmy is 50 and has lived on the streets, […]

Hanging on the Haight!

Hanging on the Haight!     This week our daily readings will be from the book of Luke, and as I walked down the Haight yesterday evening his stories of the Prodigal Son, and many others, emphasizing the care for the homeless, and the disadvantage became a living reality.    Come with me on a brief journey of […]

The Call of the Child

A Reflection on A Call of the Child Cultivating Peace in a Climate of Conflict by Bruce McKibben Romans 4:1-8; Luke.12:1-7 St. Teresa of Avila     This book is a jewel. At first glance, we see the language of a conservative, and as we read we see a diamond reflecting in the sun.     The […]

Evil Twins

Evil Twins!   “I’ve had it with you, you’re hopeless! You Frauds! You keep meticulous account books, tithing on every nickel and dime you get, but manage to find loopholes for getting around basic matters of justice and God’s love. Careful bookkeeping is commendable, but the basics are required. 43-44 “You’re hopeless, you Pharisees! Frauds! You […]

Reflection on the Breed of Heaven by Kris Brower

A Reflection on The Bleed of Heaven or Luke and Me by Kris Brown         Kris Brown takes us in The Bread of Heaven on a gentle and moving spiritual journey. At the core of this book are powerful readings and poetic readings of texts and equally insightful and poetic accounts of her life.  […]

Questions! Questions! Questions!

““Questions, Questions, Questions! Joel 3:12-21; Luke 11:27-28 “While Jesus was speaking, a woman from the crowd called out and said to him, “Blessed is the womb that carried you and the breasts at which you nursed.” He replied, ” Rather, blessed are those who hear the word of God and observe it.”     There are always […]

All for the Sake of Love (God Is Not A Working Number)

All For the Sake of Love (God Is Not A Working Number)! Mark 10:17-30      I just asked Siri for “God’s phone number, and received such numbers as “God’s Gym,” but no phone number where God can be contacted.     Institutional churches are dying. Driving through parts of Tennesee and Missouri I found that mainline […]

Ask, Seek, Knock!

Ask, Seek, and Knock! .. .” And I tell you, ‘ask and it will be given to you, seek and you will find, knock and it will be opened to you. .” Luke 11:9-10.     Reading this text we can take it literally and be disappointed- Jesus will give us everything we ask, and when […]
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