What is faith?

Faith

“And Jesus was a sailor when he walked upon the water,

And he spent a long time watching from his lonely wooden tower,

And when he knew for certain only drowning men could see him,

He said, ‘All men will be sailors then, until the sea shall free them.’

But he himself was broken, long before the sky would open,

Forsaken, almost human, he sank beneath your wisdom like a stone.

And you want to travel with him, and you want to travel blind,

For he’s touched your perfect body with his mind.”

“Suzanne”

 Leonard Cohen

          Do you ever get a song stuck in your head; one that runs endlessly and repeats the same verse over and over for days?  It’s maddening.  I have always been prone to this sort of “hamster wheel” turning and, until relatively recently, associated it with free floating anxiety.  Now, when a song such as this one starts churning away, I try to figure out what its message is for me.

People of a certain age will remember this song from the 1960’s because it was hauntingly beautiful, and was recorded not only by Cohen, but Judy Collins, James Taylor and a slew of others.  I think it speaks to our deep need for soul connection, for something to trust and believe in.

  In Cohen’s song, “only drowning men could see him,” one recalls moments in life when one has prayed desperately for a lifeline and received it.  The crises in our lives do bring our faith, or lack thereof, into sharp focus.  During trials we are willing “to travel with him, and we want to travel blind,” allowing him to lead us safely out of troubled water.  Most of us would love to have Jesus, the good parent, holding our hand like that everyday.  I am envious of people who insist they do.  As for me, I’m not that good.    

I once had a poster of a tiny kitten hanging by one paw from a limb.  It read, “Faith isn’t faith until it’s all you’re hanging onto!”  I like to believe that faith is also the unexpected arms beneath us that catch us when we fall.  Today, I will hang onto faith and pray that I don’t let go.  I hope you will too.

                                        In the spirit,

                                        Jane