Trust Archives < For Better or For Worse

The Long Road to Emmaus

Now that very day two of them were going to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus, and they were conversing about all the things that had occurred. And it happened that while they were conversing and debating, Jesus himself drew near and walked with them, but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him. (Luke 24:13-16)
   It’s actually only a seven-mile walk, but sometimes I feel like I’ve been walking a road like this one for seven years or seventy years! In spite of knowing better, in spite of having heard all the facts and all the news, the good news, I still manage to walk along the long road of life at times deaf, dumb, blind, and stupid!
   I should know better, I really should, but feelings and distractions can sneak up on us and distract and even overwhelm us from time to time. Crazy, isn’t it? He’s ever walking with us, but we can be so caught up in our so many distractions and preoccupations that we barely notice, we forget what we should know better, and we wonder where He is.
   He’s with you, Dummy! Open your eyes and ears and heart—and really see!
   I remember a popular romantic song of Dinah Shore in 1944, “I’ll Walk Alone”, especially the verse, “…to tell you the truth, I’ll be lonely…”
   Walking along the road of life, we are never walking alone, although we may feel like we are. The Lord is always with us whether we remember it or not!
   How can that be? Never mind, you don’t have to know how or why; you just have to remember and know that it’s true!
   Faith isn’t fantasy or make believe—it’s truth, even though it may seem hard to believe and can be hard to keep in mind and follow. It’s trusting what has been handed down and entrusted to us—even though it may seem to be naiveté to some others.

   “I Never Promised You a Rose Garden” is the title of 1964 book and a 1977 movie based on it. That would make good title for a story about each us as we travel along the long road of our lives.
   A rose garden sounds like a very promising destination, even though the beautiful flowers are surrounded by thorns! In a way that’s what makes the simile so accurate—there are obstacles and thorns along the way of everyone’s life.
   Each of our roads has its challenges and difficulties, and the way is often hard, even painful. But, it’s worth it, even worth dying for it.
   Remember, Jesus taught the crowd and his disciples:
   Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and that of the gospel will save it. What profit is there for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? (Mark 8:34-37)
   To succeed in anything requires dedication, practice, and hard work. Think of making the team in school, getting a degree from college, winning a medal in the Olympics, making a lot of money in a job, being elected to high office—whatever the achievement, it has its costs and its sacrifices.
   No wonder that eternal life has its demands and costs, or that they may exceed any and every other price you have ever paid before.
   Remember, the Lord also said:
   This is my commandment: love one another as I love you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. (John 15:12-14)

23 April 2023

DDP

It’s the one daily exercise that we hardly ever miss. In fact, it’s the one daily routine that’s hard to skip, even if we want to.
   Sooner or later, every day of our lives we tire and need rest. We usually try to find a secure and reasonably comfortable place and then surrender our consciousness, but no matter what we intend, it usually happens anywhere, anyhow, no matter what our intentions, sooner or later!
   Of course, it’s falling asleep—but, in a way, falling asleep is DDP, a kind of Daily Dying Practice. Of course, we don’t call it that, but, in effect, it really is something like that.
   Mysteriously, daily we somehow surrender our consciousness, some healing processes takes place in our bodies, and then we return to consciousness, we wake up.
   It’s curious, why in the world would we consider “resurrection” as something strange and mysterious, when, in a way, it’s so similar to our daily routine?
   Dying and sleeping, reviving and awaking—they’re similar and easy to confuse.
   Not everyone would agree to this. Some, trusting only in medical science and scientific observation, would deny that any revival from death is possible; others, trusting additionally in divine revelation and religious belief, would disagree.
   In any case, we all engage in the same daily, somewhat deathlike, process, willy-nilly, which we identify as sleeping.
   And, as a matter not merely of science but also of faith, religious believers see dying as a kind of sleeping from which there is an ultimate future awakening or resurrection.
   Unique historical data supporting this confidence and belief is associated primarily with what we have come to call the “resurrection” and “ascension” of Jesus.
   In any case, health and exercise conscious folks that we are, we need to be sure that we’re following a good DDP routine.

   First, before putting out the light and falling asleep, remember that this could be your last day! Presuming that it is, give thanks to God for the day (and all the past days) and all the good things, graces, and blessing that you receive.
   Then, give thanks for all the people, near and far, who have loved, guided, and strengthened you recently and all through your life—and commend to God all those who are now part of your life and who may be relying on your help and support.
   And, examining your conscience, don’t forget to ask God to forgive your impatience, exaggerated self-concern, and other failings and beg his favor and grace for those you know to be in need.
   Don’t be afraid to close your eyes and drift away. You can be fearless: you’re not going to fall off a cliff, you’re not in any ultimate danger, and there will be a tomorrow—though it may not be like all the thousands of tomorrows that you have experienced to date. Remember, God is love and loves you!
   Grateful—concerned for others—without fear of what comes next: these all parts of “dying practice.”
   Waking up, the first reaction should be more gratitude—gratitude for the new day or for the startling, never previously experienced, new stage of life, whichever the case may be.
   This is Daily Dying Practice: awareness, gratitude, contrition, trust. Like all exercises, if you practice them each day, they become like second-nature, and the stronger and more developed you become.
   And, beware of the deadly opposites that can make you sleepless—fear, absorption in self and self-regret, and clinging to the past.

8 January 2023

Surrender to God . . .

Committe Domino viam tuam, et ipse faciet.” (Ant. 1, Office of Readings, Tuesday, Week II, of The Liturgy of the Hours according to the Roman Rite).
In the approved English edition, it’s translated as, Surrender to God, and he will do everything for you.

Surrender. 1. to yield (something) to the possession or power of another; deliver up possession of on demand or under duress. 2. to give (oneself) up, as to the police. 3. to give (oneself) up to some influence, course, emotion, etc. 4. to give up, abandon, or relinquish. 5. to yield or resign (an office, privilege, etc.) in favor of another. 6. to give oneself up, as into the power of another; submit or yield.

I like the translation of the antiphon. It could have been something more literal like, Commit your way to the Lord . . ., but Surrender to God . . . (The Grail translation) is much more evocative and emotional.
The antiphon introduces the first part of Psalm 37, which is filled with great advice relating to this total surrender:

    – Do not fret because of the wicked; do not envy those who do evil . . .
    – If you trust in the Lord and do good, then you will be secure . . .
    – If you find your delight in the Lord, he will grant your heart’s desire.
    – Commit your life to the Lord, trust in him and he will act . . .
    – Be still before the Lord and wait in patience . . .
    – Calm your anger and forget your rage; do not fret, it only leads to evil.

We’re usually continually caught up in a myriad of distractions, concerns, worries, plans, frustrations, regrets, disappointments responsibilities, and other such like.

    What a relief it can be to just surrender. No, that’s not a copout nor a failure nor an irresponsibility. Surrendering to God is an honest admission that we are but limited creatures who inevitably are inadequate without divine help.
    Not surrendering to God is
delusional, foolish, and self-destructive. God is not an enemy, but a friend. All that is good and meaningful and satisfying about our lives is rooted in our conformity with the designs of our maker.
    Surrendering to God, to the one whose love created and sustains us, is not a relinquishing of our life and liberty but a fulfillment.
    What an illogical, if not insane, course of action it is to try to live our lives ignoring our creator’s will.
    Surrendering to God is not a negative act but a positive one. It enhances and expands our lives. It requires courage, strength, generosity, and wisdom. It’s not for the weak, fearful, foolish, for the spiritually deaf, dumb, and blind.
    The Latin verb, committo, committere, also lies behind our English word, commitment, meaning an act of pledging or engaging oneself; dedication or allegiance; consignment or confinement.
    Somehow or other, commitment has a sort of legal flavor, somewhat abstract, associated with obligations and responsibilities.
    On the other hand, surrender sounds more like an act of heart than just of head, a total giving of all that one is, not just an acceptance of one more duty or responsibility.
    Lord, give me the wisdom, strength, and courage to surrender to you!

4 September 2022

To Be or Not to Be . . .

Hamlet’s reflection about suicide and death, at least the first words of his soliloquy, are very familiar to most English speakers. But, it’s not just a reflection about death and dying—it’s also a reflection about life and living.
   Notice, it’s not about “to live” or “to do” or “to work” or “to endure” and the like—it’s about “to be”.
   You and I, we did not choose “to be”. For better or for worse, we are. Although we can choose to die, we cannot, literally, chose “not to be”; it’s too late for that.
“To be” is more or less a way of saying “to exist”. It’s a fact, It cannot be totally undone, although it seems as though it can be ended.
   It’s understandable that sometimes our life can seem unbearable. At times, we may feel lost, bewildered, confused, overwhelmed. We may suffer loneliness, misunderstanding, helplessness, failure.
   We can succumb to wishing and seeking not to live any more, but we can’t erase our history to date.
   If we haven’t become famous, important, popular, powerful, beautiful, wealthy, or the like, it makes no difference. We’re not called upon to be this or that. We’re fundamentally meant “to be”. It’s alluded to in a popular hymn:

     “Glory to God, Glory,
     O praise Him, alleluia.
     Glory to God, Glory,
     O praise the name of the Lord.”

In a society where achievement is an important value, it’s important to realize that the most important value of all is simply to be the person God made us to be and wants us to be.
There’s no competition to be the tallest mountain, the brightest sunrise, the sweetest flower, the swiftest river. Why should we compete with any other rather than be glad to be who and what we are?

   My challenge is to be me, not to be you. Each of us is a unique creation, a unique collection of gifts and talents, meant to make a unique contribution to the world in which we live.
   I have to strive to be the person God wants me to be, not who anybody else wants me to be. I have to sing my song, whether anyone else hears it or not. I have to blossom and bloom, whether anyone else sees me or not.
   I have a role to play in the world, whether noticed or unnoticed. There are things that, if I don’t do them, they will never be done. There are people who, if I don’t love them, may never know love.
   Every single one of us has a purpose, a destiny, a mission that is unique and irreplaceable. The choice is not so much “to be or not to be” in the sense of living or dying—it’s more to be what each of us is meant to be, to fulfill the unique destiny that each of us is challenged with.
   Poor confused, bewildered, torn, and frustrated Hamlet, the dead king’s son. Just because you are a king’s son doesn’t necessarily mean that you will inherit his kingdom. Just because you are a victim of others’ greed and passion doesn’t necessarily mean that you must avenge their victims and right their wrongs.
   Shakespeare’s play is entitled “The Tragedy of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark”. It’s a tragedy because it deals with a serious and sad theme about a person destined to experience downfall and destruction through a character flaw or conflict with the overpowering force of fate.
   Be! Live out your life story. But, be careful! Don’t let your story become a tragedy!

19 June 2022

Reaching for the Realm of God

   Come, let us build ourselves a city
   and a tower with its top in the sky,
                      (Genesis 11:4)

No, this wasn’t what originally inspired the tall buildings of New York or other modern cities, even though their tall constructions are often called “skyscrapers”.
   Remember, the story of the Tower of Babel has a worldview that the earth is flat and that the highest heaven (sky) is the realm of God.
   The aspiration to be able to build high enough to reach the realm of God was the heighth of presumption—and, in the story, linguistic confusion, misunderstanding, and being dispersed over all the earth was the price to be paid for this presumption.
   Beware! Often the attempts to deepen our knowledge of matters of faith run the risk of a similar sort of presumption. We tend to think that our construction of sophisticated ideas that narrow slightly the parameters of the mystery we are trying to better understand actually may explain the unknown.
   It’s like the tale of the blind men and an elephant. They never had encountered an elephant before, but by touching it they attempted to describe it. But each touched only one part of the elephant. None of them could describe the whole creature.
   Theological concepts and constructions like matter, form, person, foreknowledge, substance, accident, body, soul may help us to understand and explain a part of what we believe—but which in its totality is beyond our abilities.
   All this doesn’t mean that theology is inappropriate or a waste of time. But be careful not to deceive yourself that by learning a little you’re building so high that you’ll will actually be able to attain the fullness of the knowledge of God.

   Scientific knowledge is very different from faith. Science is concerned with the tangible, the observable, the measurable, the provable aspects of the created world and universe and all that is in it.
   Faith doesn’t disparage science, but is more concerned with revelation, confidence, and trust.
   God speaks through all the beauty and wonder of his creation, but he also communicates through the revealed word, tempered by the understanding and limits of understanding of those who were inspired to speak and write it.
   Most of us, if we take a flight from one place to another have hardly any knowledge or training in flying a plane—but we trust in the training and skill of the pilots, even though the technical details escape us.
   There are multitudinous details to our religious lives that we can thoroughly understand since they are human customs, traditions, rules, and regulations.
   But the principal things we believe are beyond our complete understanding. In this, we’re like one of the blind men encountering the elephant. We understand something, some component or aspect—but understanding and explaining everything is beyond us.
   For example, the nature of God, the Trinity, the identity of Jesus, the resurrection, the functioning of the sacraments, creation and evolution, infallibility, the inspiration of the Bible, providence, destiny, death, life after death, to name just a few.
   Of course it’s legitimate to build bigger, better, and taller towers—but they’ll never reach the realm of God.

22 May 2022

Building Faith

Building faith has some similarity to other kinds of construction. It takes initiative, imagination, skill, science, professionalism, commitment, collaboration, hard work, trial, error, patience, perseverance, endurance, toil, toll, tools, and teamwork.
   Most constructions start with a rough sketch, then a detailed design, then the architectural drawings, and finally the detailed plans.
   Architects don’t construct; that’s the job of engineers and skilled and experienced technicians. Many diverse and specialized workers are needed to complete the job.
   The growing construction is constantly being monitored, and original plans may need to be adjusted and revised in light of lived experience.
   And, you know how architecture can be. The style of many a great work may become dated; the artistic standards may change and fluctuate. But, no matter what, the construction must be apt to serve its primary purpose—and even reasonably compatible with other, nearby, and similar buildings.
   Faith is one of those great enterprises that take more than one lifetime to complete. That means that at times it’s hard to discern where things are going, what is the importance of certain aspects of it, what the completion really will look like.
   The foundations of faith are necessary to support the whole building, but they’re not meant to be the be-all and the end-all of the construction. Homes may have basements, but they’re not usually designed to be the preferred living quarters.
   Foundations must bear the weight of what is yet to come, and the construction needs to continue.
   In the Bible there’s a warning about building, the Tower of Babel: some things are ill-planned and exceed the possibilities of human construction.

   Our personal faith is a never-ending construction. Collectively, faith is an enterprise so vast and complex that it gradually is shaped and grows over interminable generations.
   The fruit of centuries of endless reflections, revisions, and development, it exceeds any one merely human plan or model.
   Faith grows, so to speak. It has foundations, continual construction following the plans of the creator, and occasional revisions and reconstructions when we workers mistakenly misconstrue or don’t follow precisely the plans.
   Faith not only grows. Faith evolves. Faith develops. Faith challenges.
   Looking back, we may realize that we learned some things in a childish way. That doesn’t mean that they were wrong or bad, just that we needed to develop from a childish faith to an adult one.
   Some prayers and religious practices that used to be very important to us once upon a time may not be quite so important now. They had a value in our spiritual growth, but in some ways we’ve outgrown them.
   The Spanish poet, Antonio Machado, wrote: “Caminante, no hay camino, se hace camino al andar”, which could be translated as, “Wayfarer, there is no way; you make your way as you walk.”
   That’s not a good description of a life of faith, since it leaves out the action of God in our lives. But, it’s a reminder that each of us must make our own way through life with the help of God.
   We have foundations for our faith from long ago, we have updates and models galore, we just need to risk it and live it!

17 April 2022

Inactive, Dormant, Dead

…it is the hour now for you to awake from sleep. For our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed; the night is advanced, the day is at hand. Let us then throw off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. (Romans 13:11-12)

   Sleep. It is a strange thing we do for more or less one-third of every day of our lives. It involves the suspension of voluntary bodily functions and of consciousness. It also is a vital necessity; without this resting, we die.
   Sleep also has metaphorical meanings. When we’re careless or not alert we seem to be allowing our vigilance or attentiveness to lie dormant. We also use the word to describe lying in death.
   In his letter to the Romans, St. Paul is sort of switching meanings of the word. He consider the living of our present lives as being asleep (night) and death as an awakening to the fulness of life (day).
   Further, still using this metaphor, he urges us to truly wake up—to cast off the lingering remnants of our night’s dreams and get dressed with the armor of light, ready to live the new, great day.
   It’s beautiful imagery. But, it’s not merely imagery, it’s the confidence, in faith, of our real destiny, of God’s ultimate plan for our lives.
   St. Paul is not giving a technical, scientific explanation of a kind of metamorphosis. But he is asserting what he believes to be a certain fact.
   It’s a familiar process, in a way. We know many things for certain, even if we have hardly any idea at all of how to explain them. We trust the knowledge, integrity, and truthfulness of others all the time.
   Some would relegate faith to the category of wishful thinking, imagination, or impossible dreams, but it, too, relies on the knowledge, integrity, and veracity of others.

   When St. Paul says, “the night is advanced; the day is at hand,” he’s talking about the end of our present, limited stage of life and about our future one, when we wake up to the fulness of life God has in store for us.
   Look, if you know you’re leaving very early tomorrow morning for a wonderful vacation, you’ll certainly try to have your bags packed today before you go to sleep and the clothes you’re going to wear tomorrow selected and ready.
   Shouldn’t we do the same when we remember that “our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed”?
   Why is it that we are so illogical about the awaking from the sleep that St. Paul is talking about? Any day could be our last day before we die—that is, any day could be the last day we are asleep until we awaken to the wonder of what God has in store for us.
   So, so to speak, always have your plans made, your bags packed, your travel documents in order, and everything in readiness for a great departure as soon as you wake up!
   If all you worry about and plan for are details of things you want or feel you need to do tomorrow that you couldn’t complete today, you’re actually just rolling over and asking to be left alone to sleep some more—and missing out on all that could have been, if only you had remembered what the really new day was offering.
   We know not the day nor the hour, but the end of the night (of our present lives) always may be sooner than we expect or have planned for. That’s why our best course of action is to do the best we can every day of our lives, and treat every day of our lives as though it were the last.

9 January 2022

Sing Alleluia!

Let us sing alleluia here on earth, while we still live in anxiety, so that we may sing it one day in heaven in full security…
   Even here amidst trials and tribulations let us, let all, sing alleluia. “God is faithful”, says holy Scripture, “and he will not allow you to be tried beyond your strength”, So let us sing alleluia, even here on earth…
   O the happiness of the heavenly alleluia, sung in security, in fear of no adversity! We shall have no enemies in heaven, we shall never lose a friend. God’s praises are sung both there and here, but here they are sung in anxiety, there, in security; here they are sung by those destined to die, there, by those destined to live for ever; here they are sung in hope, there, in hope’s fulfillment; here they are sung by wayfarers, there, by those living in their own country…
   You should sing as wayfarers do—sing, but continue your journey. Do not be lazy, but sing to make your journey more enjoyable. Sing, but keep going. What do I mean by keep going? Keep on making progress. This progress, however, must be in virtue,…true faith and right living…
(Saint Augustine)

   (“Alleluia” or “hallelujah” comes from the same Hebrew word meaning literally “Praise Yahweh”—i.e., “Praise God” or “Praise the Lord.”)
   Maybe here and now is not entirely a matter of anxiety, trials, and tribulations. but it may not be much to sing about! But, that’s the whole point. What is difficult to bear, to endure, is helped by the prospects of things getting better, of great expectations.
   We’re not stuck in the mud, imprisoned in in helplessness, doomed to a life of emptiness, meaninglessness, hopelessness, grief, and pain.

   We’re en route, we’re on our way to a promised land. We’re strengthened by our anticipations. We struggle on in hope.
   No matter what, we sing in our hearts—we sing alleluia! We thank and praise God because we trust that he will not let us be tried beyond our strength, we trust that God has a destination for us to hope for, we endure as we journey to the promised land.
   How can I sing with so many anxieties, trials, adversities, insecurities, difficulties, and even enemies? That’s the whole point!
   You may sing, praise God, with thanksgiving for life and so many present good things—but the greatest joy and gladness lies in the trust that you have a wonderful future and that, slowly but surely, no matter what, you are on your way there.
   The great temptation of hopelessness is well described by Shakespeare in Hamlet’s famous soliloquy:

To be, or not to be: that is the question:
Whether ’tis nobler in the mind to suffer
The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune,
Or to take arms against a sea of troubles,
And by opposing end them? To die: to sleep;…
To sleep: perchance to dream: ay, there’s the rub;
For in that sleep of death what dreams may come
When we have shuffled off this mortal coil,
Must give us pause: there’s the respect
That makes calamity of so long life;…

Alas, poor Hamlet—you never learned to sing alleluia.

2 January 2022

Ransomed, Healed, Restored, Forgiven

Praise, my soul, the King of heaven;
To his feet your tribute bring;
Ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven,
Evermore his praises sing . . .
(from Lauda Anima)

To be clear about the conditions referred to when we sing the hymn, we’re praising God because we’re totally and completely liberated, exonerated, and once again given a fresh start. We use powerful words:
   Ransomed: 1. redeemed from captivity, bondage, detention etc., by paying a demanded price. 2. delivered or redeemed from punishment for sin.
   Healed: 1. made healthy, whole, or sound; restored to health; free from ailment. 2. brought to an end or conclusion as conflicts between peoples or groups, usually with the strong implication of restoring former amity; settled; reconciled. 3. freed from evil; cleansed; purified.
   Restored: 1. brought back into existence, use, or the like; reestablished. 2. brought back to a former, original, or normal condition, as a building, statue, or painting. 3. brought back to a state of health, soundness, or vigor. 4. put back to a former place, or to a former position, rank, etc.. 5. given back; made return or restitution of (anything taken away or lost). 6. reproduced or reconstructed (an ancient building, extinct animal, etc.) in the original state.
   Forgiven: 1. granted pardon for or remission of (an offense, debt, etc.); absolved. 2. gave up all claim on account of remittance of (a debt, obligation, etc.). 3. granted pardon to (a person). 4. ceased to feel resentment against: 5. canceled an indebtedness or liability of.
   If ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven, we’re in really good shape. All that pulls us back or pulls us down is gone and over with. There are no more claims upon us, no more unpleasant consequences to face.

   There is nothing to fear any more. The guilt and paralysis is gone. The slate is wiped clean. We have a fresh start.
   Truly, it is appropriate to sing songs of praise and gratitude—to move on with great expectations because of the mercy, pardon, and promise of the Lord.
   You know what? Much of the time we don’t do it! We don’t praise God, with free hearts and spirits, delighting in a new start. Perversely, we often have a fatal fascination with our weaknesses, failures, and losses.
   Why are so drawn to look into the mirror of our life—of our limited, flawed life with its history of missed opportunities and poor performances, of nursing of wounds to pride and ego, of lamentations of our many and constant failures, of damages done great and small, of withdrawals and self-defeats?
   Face it! We are all limited and weak creatures. Except for a special grace of God, our lives are imperfect, riddled with exaggerations, evasions, misrepresentations, failures, mistakes, and faults.
   God knows! He knows us, better than we do, and our responsibility for our frequent blindness, indifference, pretense, falsification, and selfishness.
   God forgives! Even so, we often find it hard, if not impossible, to forgive ourselves with our wounded pride.
   God made us to be what we are, human creatures. God is not blind to our failures, but God is merciful.
   What foolish pride it is that we never cease looking at ourselves and our weaknesses and rarely look at and sing the astoundingly generous and undeserved pardon, mercy, and love of God, who repeatedly ransoms, heals, restores, and forgives us.

26 December 2021

Getting in Touch with God

For millennia, god-seekers would go to special places better to communicate with a particular god. Often they would go to a special building dedicated or consecrated to the worship or service of the god.
   It was not only dedicated to the particular god but also was considered the principal place for the public and private worship of that god in the neighborhood, town, province, or country.
   It was often referred to as the house of the god, as though the god lived in that place—or at least that a believer could especially get in touch with the god there.
   And, there was a tendency to presume that if the special building, the temple, was bigger and more beautiful than most others, access to the god would be easier and better.
   According to the Bible, a god got in touch with Abraham, and Abraham dutifully did what the god asked of him. His immediate descendants worshiped that same god as their family god, known first as the God of Abraham, then the God of Abraham and Isaac, then the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel.
   Moses encountered this god of the Israelites, first in the experience of the burning bush and then later on the mountain. This god of their ancestors made a covenant with them to be their god and they, in turn, to be his people.
   He promised to lead them through Sinai to a promised land of plenty and instructed them how to worship him.
   At first it was on the mountain, then later where the ark, the portable precious container for the stone tablets of the covenant, was kept.
   Hundreds of years later, the Israelites now living in the promised land, it fell to Solomon to build a temple to house the ark, the privileged place of communication with their god, and to provide a place for sacrificial worship of him.

   Although one of the commands of the covenant was not to have any other gods before the God of Israel, many years later prophets began to teach that not only should the Israelites not worship any other god but also that no other god really exists!
   That temple of Solomon, destroyed, then later rebuilt, and still later expanded, was finally and definitively destroyed by the Romans.
   The faithful descendants of the early Israelites, then known as Jews, never had a temple again—but they assembled for learning and praying in local buildings, called synagogues, thereafter.
   The early Jesus-followers, initially Jews all, followed this same tradition, assembling for learning and praying, for “the breaking of the bread,” in local gathering places, later known as churches.
   Hundreds of years later, when Christianity was established as the official religion of the Roman Empire, churches began to be considered more like temples, in the sense of a special building for worshiping a god.
   For us, is a church the only place to get in touch with God? No, the church is a special, assembly place, but individual worshipers can get in touch with God anywhere his presence can be discerned or manifested.
   Since the one God is the creator of all things and people, that actually means everywhere, in everything, and through everyone. God can be found and seen in all his works, in all the wonder of his creations and creatures.
   It’s challenging to realize that everyone and anyone, no matter how unlikely they may seem, may manifest something of God to us and that we may be able to get in touch with God through them.

19 December 2021