• Diocese of Southern Ohio
  • CONTACT
  • ABOUT
  • Who We Are
    • Karl Stevens
    • Jane Gerdsen
    • Monica Payne
    • Jed Dearing
  • Reflections
    • Praxis Core Tenets
    • Articles
    • 2016 Pilgrimage to England

Praxis Communities

  • Communities
    • Intentional Communities
    • Young Adult Communities
    • Campus Ministries
    • Worshiping Communities
    • Arts Communities
    • Learning Communities
    • Spiritual Directors
  • Resources
    • Beer & Hymns
    • Flash Compline
    • Moveable Feasts
    • Pub Theology
    • Podcasts
    • Yoga
July 26, 2017 by Praxis

Midwives – A Reflection from Karl Stevens

Our own Karl Stevens, continues to blog on his website Prayerbook Art, where you can purchase his amazing art as well! His latest post is called “Midwives” and is a beautiful reflection on the work of the midwives in the Book of Exodus, which we are reading this year for our diocesan “Big Read” and also on what we are being called to midwife in our own spiritual lives. Here are his words:

Midwives

Birth has always been perilous. For most of our history, conceiving meant reconciling oneself with the possibility of death, even in the act of bringing forth new life. Death and life sat very close together on the birthing bed. Midwives, or wise women, would accompany women in labor into that liminal space between life and death, and would guide them through it with their rituals and plant lore and coaxing hands. They have always been the ones who ensured the human future.

The midwives in Exodus have names, Shiphrah and Puah. Pharaoh is known only by his position, not by his name. His dominance would suppress life and bring about death. He is the opposite of a midwife. When the midwives oppose him, it is life opposing death, the named and specific opposing the general and indifferent.

The spiritual life is about putting away the old and welcoming the new. It is about coming through death into new life. It is about discovering ourselves – finding our true names. And it is about standing with God in opposition to dominance and indifference. This is a journey we undertake many times. Again and again, old selves die so that new selves can be born. It is always perilous. And it is when we are faced with this peril that we might cry out for a midwife. We might hope for someone wise to come and aid us with rituals and lore and kindness.

What has died in you?  Do you feel the empty spaces where the dead thing used to be?

What has been trying to be born in you?  Are you struggling with a new birth of self?

Who are the midwives in your life right now?  Who is helping you?

Check out Karl’s other art and reflections on the Prayerbook Art site!

Related Posts

Young Adult Gathering 2016
“What we are sculpting is ourselves” – Duane McDiarmid on Art & Action
Soul Collage

Learning to Be a New Kind of Artist: A Week at the “Art as a Spiritual Connection” Summer Camp
Art Camps
Embarking on the Journey

Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare on GooglePlus
Posted in arts communities, Featured, Reflections and tagged with Art, Bible Study, new thing, Spirituality, theology. RSS 2.0 feed.
« Campus Ministry Grants 2017
Tune My Heart to Sing Thy Grace »

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Featured Posts

  • Young Adult Gathering 2019: Telling the Story of God With Us November 23, 2019
  • Rearranging the Furniture: A Theology of Praxis March 25, 2019
  • Understanding the Vision of Beloved Community March 25, 2019
  • The Church – A Video Series January 24, 2019
  • Young Adult Gathering 2018: Come Again with Joy December 3, 2018
Praxis is maintained and edited by the Fresh Expressions communities of the Diocese of Southern Ohio. Questions about writing for Praxis or about any of the content that appears on these pages should be submitted to praxiscommunities@gmail.com.

© 2013 Praxis Communities

All content © 2021 by Praxis Communities. Emporia WordPress Theme by Graph Paper Press