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| Image by Sami Keinänen
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A GREETING
As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O God.
(Psalm 42:1)
A READING
Wisdom is radiant and unfading,
and she is easily discerned by those who love her,
and is found by those who seek her.
She hastens to make herself known to those who desire her.
One who rises early to seek her will have no difficulty,
for she will be found sitting at the gate.
To fix one’s thought on her is perfect understanding,
and one who is vigilant on her account will soon be free from care,
because she goes about seeking those worthy of her,
and she graciously appears to them in their paths,
and meets them in every thought.
(Wisdom 6:12-16)
MUSIC
A MEDITATIVE VERSE
At night God's song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life.
(Psalm 42:8b)
A POEM
These flowers, bushes
the wind
these animals, the birds
the stones, the waters
the landscape
my brothers, sisters of mine
these most beautiful, kin
my dear ones, beloved
the only
this proud, beautiful grazing land
a bond
to life
- "these flowers, bushes..." by Nils-Aslak Valkeapää - Áillohaš
translated by Lars Nordström and Harald Gaski,
found on lassagammi.no, a site dedicated to the poet's work
VERSE OF THE DAY
God, the Lord, is my strength; who makes my feet like the feet of a deer,
and makes me tread upon the heights.
(Habbakuk 3:19)
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A CREATION STORY
In today’s reading, we hear a celebration of how wisdom comes to those who seek knowledge and understanding. Indigenous Knowledge Keepers from all over the world carry the traditional tales of how their communities came into being; to help make sure those stories are preserved is thus a way of seeking wisdom for all of us. For the Sami people, the land and the animals, and particularly the reindeer, also hold that wisdom. Today’s Sami people live in the northernmost regions of Norway, Sweden and Finland, in an area known as the Sapmi region. The Sami also live in the northwesterly part of Russia in the Kola Peninsula. While united by history, custom and tradition, the people face unique challenges and relationships within each country that they have been colonized by. Most of the issues impacting North American Indigenous communities have also confronted the Sami people: forced relocations, forced religious schooling, eradication of language and custom, and most challenging of all, loss of land and in some places herding rights. For the Sami people, the reindeer are the heart and soul of daily living. The Sami people have herded the reindeer for centuries, making use of every aspect of the animal. It is therefore not surprising that every part of the reindeer appears in the Sami creation story. As we hear in today’s video, the Sami believe that the world begins with a great white reindeer whose fur became the forests and grasslands, whose veins became the rivers, whose skull became the sky and whose eyes are the stars. What does the future hold for this story? In addition to the lasting impacts of colonization, the Sami people are also threatened by climate change. As a nomadic community, they are used to moving with the herds through the eight seasons of their way of life. Changing Arctic landscapes, however, means that the herds themselves are dwindling and suffering, in part due to much less snowfall. In the Sami culture everything is inter-related, including within the language. One of the Sami words for ‘snow’ also describes reindeer nutrition. The relationship of the land to the animals and the people is therefore not only critical to their wellbeing, but profoundly sacred. Today’s music derives from a tradition known as the ‘yoik’, a unique form of folk singing belong to the Sami people. The yoik conveys stories from generation to generation. Today’s poet engages some of the rhythms of the ‘yoik’ in his poetry and invites us to hear how the ‘beautiful grazing land’ is a ‘bond to life’. What can we do to uphold the sacred that is embedded in the lives of Indigenous peoples beyond those in our own lands? How does God call us to seek wisdom from the stories of others?
Go here to experience a few wordless minutes of being with reindeer.
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| Image by Billy Lindbloom |
The next devotional day is Monday, October 4th.
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LC† Stories of Creation is a project of Lutherans Connect, supported by the Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada. The devotional pages are written and curated by Deacon Sherry Coman, with support and input from Pastor Steve Hoffard, Catherine Evenden and Henriette Thompson. Join us on Facebook, follow us on Instagram and on Twitter. Lutherans Connect invites you to make a donation to the Ministry by going to this link on the website of the ELCIC Eastern Synod and selecting "Lutherans Connect Devotionals" under "Fund". Devotions are always freely offered, however your donations help to support extended offerings throughout the year. Thank you and peace be with you!
