ORIENTATION: Embodying Spirited Life

"When have you felt most alive?" was how Rev. Jim Gonia began morning sessions, the question reminding me of a theatre/dance seminar at Luther. He gave insight on how spiritual practice can help us embody  faith. He explained grace as "God's Rootedness and Christ's Expansiveness," (the rooting and expanding parts reminding me of movement imagery I learned at Luther).  He reminded us that we have been created in God's image, God as the source of all being. He gave the definition of sin as "missing the point", living out of fear rather than out of gratitude. Having salvation means being free to live as Christ lived, with radical love. It gives us freedom to be in the broken world as it is, and go into those situations which are difficult or that we wish we were different. He described four simple practices which I will share with you, too!
Practices:
1.) Breathing: Jim Gonia talked about how the original Hebrew word for God, Yah Weh, was so sacred that people in old testament times very rarely said it. The word was meant to sound like the breath sounded, each syllable corresponding to the inhales and exhales. The word symbolized this constant connection with God as source. By simply becoming aware of our breath, we connect to the most sacred awareness.
2.) Body Scanning: While lying on our backs on the floor, we paid attention to how our body felt in each part. We noticed where we might feel ease, tension, pleasure, or pain. We let ourselves pay attention to what our bodies were telling us.
3.) Focusing: We found a position of comfort, sitting or standing. Then, we closed our eyes, and let our awareness go to a part of our body that felt in need of attention. We tuned into our breath and let our breath feed that area of ourselves. We then followed our imagination and let our heart create an image based around that feeling/need.
4.) Yoga/Spiritual Stretching: We connected a series of Yoga poses and stretches to quotes and bible verses.
These practices inspired me because they help us connect our spirits and bodies.  I am especially inspired by the ways these practices connect with what I learned as a theatre/dance major and what I hope to share through workshops at Espacio Mujeres.