In our lesson from the Hebrew scriptures today, Moses hears God speak out of the burning bush: ". . . the place where you are standing is holy ground." All creation is holy ground, consecrated by God's love from the beginning. Wherever we are standing, or sitting, right now is holy ground, surrounded and upheld by God's steadfast love and mercy, enfolded in the Divine Presence. Holy ground is not just wherever we may be; it is true of this whole fragile earth, our island home, and indeed of the entire cosmos.

Few of us in the world today act as if we are aware of this sacred space. We desecrate the holy ground around us in all sorts of alarming ways. From time to time, something may get out attention, and we begin to try to amend our ways, to focus on our spiritual practice, to respect those who are different, to pray for those with whom we are in conflict, to bring light into darkness, to walk in peace and love, or some other practice of earth care. Then we forget, or something comes up and it's no longer convenient, or it's too much trouble, and we likely fall back into our self-centered ways. Good intentions are seldom strong enough to change our long in-grained habits.

It takes God's transforming touch to open our hearts to accept the oneness of all creation, the interdependence of us all, animal, vegetable and mineral. Humanity is not all that matters to God. As we come to reverence the holy ground on which we stand, we can begin to become aware of the beauty and intricacy of the interworkings of all creation. The recent solar eclipse awakened awe and wonder in some for the amazing detail of the Creator's design. What response will be called forth from those whose hearts were caught up by that manifestation of God's creativity? When our feet are firmly planted on holy ground, on God who is the very Ground of our Being, we can trust the Beloved to lead us where we need to go, to light the way, to make the rough places smooth, to open the doors before us, and bring us to the Promised Land of God's love. May we respond with joy and delight, with praise and thanksgiving, with "Here I am; let it be with me according to your word," as did Moses and Mary.