Izmir

One hour of sleep on the plane, one hour in the Munich airport and another 30 minutes on the last flight.  Good to be at this hotel!  Our tour guide, Bulent Soysal, is a semi-retired professor of archeology, perfect for this trip!  Izmir is a bustling city of over 3 million, built around a small bay.  Weather is slightly overcast, low 70s and a little humid.  As I write this, the rest of the group is on their way to Dulles.  I am anxious to greet them and welcome them to the World of Paul!

Portland airport

Friday, 5:30 a.m.

As I sit here with my laptop at this airport coffee shop, I am reminded of John Dominic Crossan's book on the Lord's Prayer.  (BTW, I ordered 2 cases of the book yesterday for our prayer triads this summer so we should have them in the office when we return.  Just $15.)  Dom begins the first chapter with a contemplation on outlets in airports.  As one who flies just about every week, he is convinced that airports have people whose job it is to place outlets in the hardest to find location possible.  He notes that his powerful laptop (an Apple of course!) requires electricity to recharge.  He uses that as a metaphor for prayer:  In that metaphor we are all laptops, and prayer is about empowerment by participation in and collaboration with God.

Dom invites us to think about electricity as a metaphor for God.  This God-as-Electircity is always there, whether discovered or not.  Even when found, my human freedom allows me to connect or not connect.  It never forces itself upon me ... 

Furthermore, God-as-Electricity is equally available to all comers.  You do not have to merit it by your action or deserve it by your character. You can be rich or poor, young or old, gay or straight, female or male, or anything else you can imagine. 

Finally, God-as-Electricity works just as well for gam and movie players, cell phones, and digital assistants; it even works equally well for Apples and PCs.  All we laptops have to do is find an outlet and plug ourselves in; empowerment is the the free gift of God-as-Electricity.

I imagine God-as-Electricity and think of prayer as empowerment by participation in and collaboration with God.

This pilgrimage is not about seeing fabulous sights and having a great time together, nor is it just about seeing the "World of Paul".  We'll do all that and more.  We call it a "pilgrimage" and not a tour precisely because it is about connecting with that power source and recharging our batteries.  Of course there are many place one can go and lots of ways to do that.  On this pilgrimage we are seeking to connect with that source that we might be charged to engage the world as Paul tells that community in Rome, the seat of Roman power over the world, so that you will "not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God."  (Rom 12:2)

And so we begin, with our own "power adapters", to establish that connection with "God-as-Electricity".

Time to head for my gate.  BTW, on the back of the column between "Flying Elephants" and "Coffee People", you'll find that elusive outlet. 

You can find our itinerary here, click on "Worldwide Pilgrimage" below:

Worldwide Pilgrimage

Introduction to the 2011 World of Paul Pilgrimage