“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way
and the truth and the life.’”
This past week, I have been reading
a book by Paul Elie, titled: “The Life You Save May be Your Own, An American
Pilgrimage.” In it he tells the life stories of four
American Catholics; social activist, Dorothy Day, Trappist monk, Thomas Merton,
and authors Flannery O’Connor and Walker Percy.
He describes each of their lives as being on pilgrimage. Now according to Wikipedia, the term, “pilgrimage,” has been defined as a
journey or search of moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or
other location of importance to a person’s beliefs and faith, although
sometimes it can be a metaphorical journey into someone’s own beliefs. If we take a look into the Bible, do we see
many stories of persons on pilgrimage, seeking
an understanding of this relationship they have with God. Abraham leaves his home to go to a strange
country, because he hears this divine voice telling him to do so. Moses leads the people of Israel through
the deserts and wastelands, on a very difficult pilgrimage, so they may
discover what it means to be God’s special people. And can we say that Jesus himself was leading
his Apostles on pilgrimage; going throughout Galilee and Judea,
they watched Him heal the sick; reconcile sinners, and perform wondrous
miracles. It was a pilgrimage that would
end in Jerusalem,
where the Apostles would witness the death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
I would put to you that at the moment
of our baptism, when we rose from the baptismal waters to new life in Christ;
each of us began our own pilgrimage of faith; following Jesus who is the way. Mom began her own pilgrimage of faith in such
a way; she strove to love God and love her neighbor. She, a born Catholic, fell in love with Bill,
a convert to the faith; and together they continued their pilgrimage of
faith. They raised a family which they
loved; they took care of my siblings and me; loved us, tried to share with us
the experience of faith they both had.
With the renewal of the Church that came from the Second Vatican
Council; Mom and Dad saw their pilgrimage taking a deeper, a more spiritual
turn. Mom would discover deeper prayer,
sharing these experiences with fellow pilgrims of this parish. Sadly, a couple of years ago, she found
herself traveling on this pilgrimage alone, because Dad had passed away. And the journey was becoming more difficult,
the road getting rough, darker, obstacles getting in the way. Sometimes the pilgrimage took such a toll on
her, that we know she sometimes gave into despair. But she was never alone on this journey. Jesus was with her always, walking beside her
and holding her up. He is the truth and the life; that came to her through
Scripture, and through the Eucharist, renewed her soul and gave her
strength. And through each of us, her
children, through the grace the Holy Spirit shared with each one of us, he let
Mom know, that she was loved.
And now I must share with you this belief
that I hold deep within core of my being; that through the death and
resurrection of Jesus Christ, death is not the end of the pilgrimage for her,
as it will not be the end of any of our pilgrimages; only now it will be a
journey of joy, peace and hope. We pray
that at the end of her pilgrimage, she will find that place Christ has
prepared, where she will be surrounded by the ones she loved. And we pray she will be in the hand of God;
the she will be forever in His embrace.
“Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way
and the truth and the life.’”
Eternal rest grant to her, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon her.
I'm sorry to hear...
ReplyDeleteThank you very much.
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