Shams-ud-din Muhammed Hafiz was a 14th century Persian Sufi master, prophet, mystic, and enlightened teacher who wrote love songs of God, stretching us to the edges of our understanding and beyond, bringing the treasures born of falling in love with the Divine. The keepers of orthodoxy hated him, causing him and his followers to often meet secretly to share their love songs. This only enriched his work. He calls God Friend, Lover, Gift, The Name, and so much more. It’s all intimate and close. Scandalous even! He tapped into a beloved belonging that transcends human relationships and understanding. He appears to humbly and gracefully hold the balance between the world we see and the world that it unseen. In a word, it’s relatable. And everyone loves relatable. To Hafiz, God is Someone we can meet, enter, and eternally explore. The readings this week are dedicated to this Love. All of them come from Daniel Ladinsky’s translated work of Hafiz’ poems entitled The Gift. (I recommend reading each poem three times, pausing in between each reading, allowing a deeper meaning to sink in.)
–Jim Marsh, Bread of Life Church
“How did the rose ever open its heart and give to this world all its beauty?
It felt the encouragement of light against its being, otherwise, we all remain too frightened.”
–Hafiz, The Gift
