Whenever the unclean spirits saw him, they fell down before him and shouted, “You are the Son of God!” (Mark 3:11)

Fragmentation
recognizes wholeness.
Disintegration
cries out to
the weaver of souls.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Dancing Through Shadows” by C. Robin Janning in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

Again he entered the synagogue, and a man was there who had a withered hand. They watched him to see whether he would cure him on the Sabbath, so that they might accuse him. And he said to the man who had the withered hand, “Come forward.” Then he said to them, “Is it lawful to do good or to do harm on the Sabbath, to save life or to kill?” But they were silent. He looked around at them with anger; he was grieved at their hardness of heart and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.
(Mark 3:1-5)

Anger and grief
fuel the fire
of restoration.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Bridging the Torn Places” by Barbara Mitchell in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

“Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seed fell on the path… Other seed fell on rocky ground… Other seed fell among thorns… Other seed fell into good soil…” (Mark 4:3-4a, 5, 7, 8)

Can seeds grow legs
and scramble to a better place?

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Liberty” by Diane Walker in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

“All things are lawful for me,” but not all things are beneficial. “All things are lawful for me,” but I will not be dominated by anything. Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit within you, which you have from God, and that you are not your own?
(1 Corinthians 6:12,19)

The law says yes
but justice says no.
Rules do not rule
in the temple of the spirit.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): Nuestra Senora de Tejas (Our Lady of Texas) by James A. Mangum in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm. He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” (Mark 5:145)

Eye of the hurricane
Spreads peace and calm
into the storms of my life.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Main Channel, Yukon River” by Scott Fisher in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

They came to Jesus and saw the demoniac sitting there, clothed and in his right mind, the very man who had had the legion; and they were afraid. (Mark 5:15)

We fear the one
who comes back
from the edges of the void.
We cannot bear the knowing.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): Icon “St. John in Contemplation” by Zachary Roesemann in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

[Joseph] commanded the steward of his house, “Fill the men’s sacks with food, as much as they can carry, and put each man’s money in the top of his sack. Put my cup, the silver cup, in the top of the sack of the youngest, with his money for the grain.” (Genesis 44:1-2)

The victim becomes the perpetrator
in the game of retribution.
How long will Joseph live
from the pit?
How long will he be enslaved
to his anger?

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “The Journey Within” by Robert Epley.

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

And a large crowd followed him and pressed in on him. Now there was a woman who had been suffering from hemorrhages for twelve years.

...She had heard about Jesus, and came up behind him in the crowd and touched his cloak. (Mark 5:24—25, 27)

Isolated and alone
Woman of blood
pours herself towards
the fabric of life.

Dewdrop of hope
slips down the thread
to the woman
with outstretched hands.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Post Christmas Letdown” by Jim Wroten in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

They said, “Where did this man get all this? What is this wisdom that has been given to him? What deeds of power are being done by his hands! Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon, and are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. (Mark 6:2b-3)

Though you have wisdom
and can heal us
We have to see
your Ph.D.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Ancient of Days” by Loretta Matson in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up. (1 Corinthians 8:1b)

Filling the fragile
skin of the balloon
with great breaths of knowledge
Blowing and blowing
It POPS!!!
Bits of what might have been
rain down on the party.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “As We Forgive Those” by C. Robin Janning in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

The apostles gathered around Jesus, and told him all that they had done and taught. He said to them, “Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat. (Mark 6:30-46)

The invitation
goes out
to all
the frantic lives
“Come away
and rest.”

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “The Dove of the Holy Spirit” by Mary Jane Oliver in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one.
(1 Corinthians 9:24-25)

In this race
all receive
the prize
before they even begin.

Seen above: “Spirit Song” by Kathy Bozzuti-Jones in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

Lord, you have been our refuge
from one generation to another.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
or the land and the earth were born,
from age to age you are God.
You turn us back to dust, and say,
“Go back, O child of earth.”
For a thousand years in your sight
are like yesterday when it is past,
and like a watch in the night. (Psalm 90:1-4)

The years which seemed so long
in their days
have passed into time
speeding away.
Fragments of memories
float up like pieces
of old ships
broken on the rocks of life.
Still they carry their golden cargo.

Seen above: “Baptized into New Life” by Sheila M. Conner in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. (Romans 8:22-23)

The infant
suffers the labor pains
of her own birth.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Memory” by James A. Mangum

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.)

Simeon and Levi are brothers;
weapons of violence are their swords.
May I never come into their council;
may I not be joined to their company—
for in their anger they killed men,
and at their whim they hamstrung oxen.
Cursed be their anger, for it is fierce,
and their wrath, for it is cruel!
I will divide them in Jacob,
and scatter them in Israel. (Genesis 49:5-7)

The company we keep
The counsel we take
Curse or blessing?

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Salvation through our Ark” by Lucy Janjigian in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.

Then he charged them, saying to them, ‘I am about to be gathered to my people. Bury me with my ancestors—in the cave in the field of Ephron the Hittite, in the cave in the field at Machpelah, near Mamre, in the land of Canaan, in the field that Abraham bought from Ephron the Hittite as a burial site. There Abraham and his wife Sarah were buried; there Isaac and his wife Rebekah were buried; and there I buried Leah— the field and the cave that is in it were purchased from the Hittites.’ When Jacob ended his charge to his sons, he drew up his feet into the bed, breathed his last, and was gathered to his people.
(Genesis 49:29-33)

Home of the heart
In the ground of my people.
Where is the true home?

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Risen One” by Sommer Roman in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.

He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village; and when he had put saliva on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, ‘Can you see anything?’ And the man looked up and said, ‘I can see people, but they look like trees, walking.’ Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he looked intently and his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.
(Mark 8:23-25)

Eyes opened by love
See brothers and sisters
Where once only objects bustled by.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “God’s gonna trouble the waters” by Kathy Bozzuti-Jones in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.

The king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, ‘When you act as midwives to the Hebrew women, and see them on the birthstool, if it is a boy, kill him; but if it is a girl, she shall live.’ But the midwives feared God; they did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but they let the boys live. So the king of Egypt summoned the midwives and said to them, ‘Why have you done this, and allowed the boys to live?’ The midwives said to Pharaoh, ‘Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women; for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.’ So God dealt well with the midwives; and the people multiplied and became very strong. And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families. (Exodus 1:15-21)

Drop by drop
the water wears away the rock
The powerless collude
to overcome power.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): photograph by Chuck Kirchner in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.

If I speak in the tongues of mortals and of angels, but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. And if I have prophetic powers, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away all my possessions, and if I hand over my body so that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing. (1 Corinthians 13:1-3)

Nothing plus nothing
equals nothing
Love is the sum of all.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): "Abandoned Sled in Stevens Village" by Scott Fisher in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.

Immediately the father of the child cried out, "I believe; help my unbelief!" (Mark 9:24)

My hand tires
and cramps
around the crayon
as I struggle
to complete the picture.
Vast unfilled spaces spread out before me.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Starfire in the East” by David Orth in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.

Do 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—what is good and acceptable and perfect. (Romans 12:2)

Pushed and pulled
by the pressures of the world.
The fire of the holy
hardens the clay
to its intended shape.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “African Rhythms” by Ruth Councell.

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.

There are doubtless many different kinds of sounds in the world, and nothing is without sound. If then I do not know the meaning of a sound, I will be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker a foreigner to me. So with yourselves; since you are eager for spiritual gifts, strive to excel in them for building up the church. (1 Corinthians 14:10-12)

How are we to understand
when we do not know the language?
Especially the language of hope?

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Even the Stones Will Cry Out” by Roberta Karstetter in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author.

But the king of Egypt said to them, “Moses and Aaron, why are you taking the people away from their work? Get to your labors!” Pharaoh continued, “Now they are more numerous than the people of the land and yet you want them to stop working!” That same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people, as well as their supervisors, “You shall no longer give the people straw to make bricks, as before; let them go and gather straw for themselves. But you shall require of them the same quantity of bricks as they have made previously; do not diminish it, for they are lazy; that is why they cry, ‘Let us go and offer sacrifice to our God.’ Let heavier work be laid on them; then they will labor at it and pay no attention to deceptive words.” (Exodus 5:4-9)

Words of liberation
become words of deception
In the ears of the powerful.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Shadowbrook Leaves” by Diane Walker in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author).

Truly I tell you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little child will never enter it. (Mark 10:15)

Children
Fearful and brave
Greedy and loving
Crying and laughing
Seeing wonders all around.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Looking” by RaRa Schlitt in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author).

I look to my right hand
and find no one who knows me;
I have no place to flee to,
and no one cares for me.
I cry out to you, O LORD;
I say, "You are my refuge,
my portion in the land of the living."
(Psalm 142:4-5)

Desolate stranger
seeking solace
Surrounded by life
Alone
As a child lost in a crowd.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Dawn and Dusk” by Shin-hee Chin in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author).

“You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; but whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all.” (Mark 10:42b-44)

Ruling or serving
Who is recognized as “great”?
Whose name will I find in history books?

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “The Humble Servant” by Roger M. Beattie in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author).

Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is being renewed day by day. (2 Corinthians 4:16b)

Frailty and infirmity
Awaken the knowledge
Of our common destination.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “From the Stuff of the Stars” by Judith McManis in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author)

As [Jesus] came near and saw the city, he wept over it, saying, “If you, even you, had only recognized on this day the things that make for peace!” (Luke 19:41-42a)

If Only —
the cry comes
when all is lost.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Being Against Existence” by Marilyn Biles.

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author).

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation, who consoles us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to console those who are in any affliction with the consolation with which we ourselves are consoled by God. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)

We sit
in silence
known and knowing.
Companions in pain.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “As in the Heart” by Sommer Roman in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author).

It is God who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us, by putting his seal on us and giving us his Spirit in our hearts as a first installment. (2 Corinthians 1:21-22

Householder God
Makes a down payment on us
Trusting us to become a home.

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “St. John in Mourning” by Zachary Roesemann in the current ECVA exhibition, "Recognition & Return."

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author).

When the season came, he sent a slave to the tenants to collect from them his share of the produce of the vineyard. But they seized him, and beat him, and sent him away empty-handed. (Mark 12:2-3)

How long will we beat and kill
those who come for a share
of abundance?

Seen above (and on home-page mastheads): “Garden Wall” by Kathrin Burleson.

Readings are from Streams of Mercy: a meditative commentary on the Bible by Ann Kristin Haldors Fontaine (used with permission of the author).