The Trail to Encounter Jesus

"Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls." | Jeremiah 6:16

As we have been preparing to make a move into our new friary, one of the big summer projects has been preparing a prayer path, a walking trail that would include places for prayer, meditation, and the stations of the cross. While it is not a seven-mile walk as depicted in the road to Emmaus narrative of Luke, it would still provide enough length to hopefully encounter Jesus. As we continue this project, the expectation is that many people can come to pray, meditate, and find Christ; to encounter Jesus in their longing and yearning, to find clarity and truth in their desire for the Risen Lord. 

All through scripture we hear countless stories of people encountering Jesus on the road. Both men and women had encountered Christ in powerful ways. Blind men were given sight, faith was restored in the crowds and the men that encountered him on the road were suddenly asked to take up their crosses and follow after. For much of Jesus' life, those ministry moments happened while he was on the go; on the roads and trails. Walking in those days not only got you from place to place, but it represented a learning opportunity, a time of discovery and change; a chance to venture into new territory. For many, traveling proved to be a life-changing experience, certainly if one happened to encounter the voice of Jesus coming from the Heavens as was seen in the life of St. Paul for example. (Acts 9:3)

Everywhere Jesus went, he had met someone who happened to be on the exact same road, waiting for him in the hopes of seeking some kind of newness in their lives. In the Gospel of Luke, there is a story that describes Jesus, James, and John walking on a road, traveling from village to village. During their journey, they encountered a man who sought so badly to follow Jesus. Moved with zeal, this man cried out to Jesus, "I will follow you wherever you go." (Luke 9:57) In this story, Jesus invites them to himself, he invites them to continue wayward on the trail by saying "follow me." 

"Walk in the way of love. . . " | Ephesians 5:1

In the Gospel of Luke, two men were walking toward Emmaus and they encountered Jesus without even knowing it was him. Saddened by the news of his death, distraught, spiritually confused and probably questioning everything they had come to believe, these guys went on a seven-mile walk back to Jerusalem so that they could confirm the news of his resurrection. Still, they encountered Jesus on the trail and they felt that their hearts were burning within them; completely filled with a flame of faith that had come from the presence of the risen Lord among them. (Luke 24:32) 

In Matthew, when the blind men who were sitting at the roadside begging had heard that Jesus was approaching, together they shouted out to him, "Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!" They had encountered Jesus on the roadside. We are told that Jesus was moved with compassion and healed them. (Matt 20:30-34) Perhaps these experiences of Jesus on the trail shed light on the reasons why these people were on the trail in the first place. It was a place of conversion, a place for prayer, recollection, and was symbolic of "beginning again." 

Scripture is filled with metaphors on the trail because it marked the direction toward spiritual perfection, eternal salvation, justice and righteousness. It was where one found God, while fending off the snares and traps of the enemy. The psalms are rich in this regard, as it says "teach me your ways, Lord so that I may walk in your truth." (Psalm 86:11). 

"Direct me in the path of your commands, for there I find delight." | Psalm 119:35

   

In all of these accounts, the symbolism of one being on a trail perhaps points us to a personal longing for change and desire to encounter Jesus or to encounter something far greater than what is already known. It marked a journey toward something new, and as we've seen its constantly used as a metaphor for the spiritual journey. This journey begins when we are driven by hope in order to seek the truth. The two on the road to Emmaus, hoped for things to be different, they hoped and wondered about the news of Jesus risen from the dead. They sought the truth. The blind men sought to see, yes, but also to see things differently. They said, "have mercy on us!" 

The beauty too is that as we long to encounter Jesus on our journey, indeed, we will. As we enter onto the trail with the desire to find Jesus, to find the truth, we are also yearning to find clarity, to discover and to begin again with a renewed sense of our identity. We go there to walk and to pray; to be transformed. Jesus asks us the same question that he asked the two blind men, "What do you want me to do for you?" Perhaps the trail is where that question starts to be answered. Like the blind men, we can say to Jesus, "Lord, we want to see!" (Matt 20:32)

The Holy Porter: St. Conrad of Parzham

Throughout his life St. Conrad was known by many to be a man of "interior composure," a man who was so intensely focused on the presence of God. His whole day was centered on prayer. He was a holy porter who opened the door for many and a man who shared the peace of God to all who came to it. He answered the friary door for 41 years of his life, offering his time, his prayers and yes, even Scheps, the famous Bavarian beer that was brewed by the friars to be a kind of food.

As I thought back on his life, there were few things that I felt God was asking me to remember. Three things specifically, peace, patience, and presence. All of them were made even more clear to me from a dream that I had: I was sitting on the sidewalk at a nearby lake, sort of on the bridge of the dam. Brother Brandon and I were playing music as people walked by. It had been one of our future ministry ideas to be the busking brothers, where we would create this band, play music and preach to people on the street. I remember encountering all kinds of people, taking pictures in between songs, laughing and smiling, it was a good time! But suddenly things changed, I remember seeing an angry man walk up to us. He began questioning what we were doing, shaking his head his face grew red. Then all of sudden, he grabbed the neck of my guitar and flung it over the dam of the lake. . . I remember looking over the railing, watching it hit the floor and explode into a thousand pieces. When I woke up, I asked a question that could be important for all of us on the journey of faith - "How am I responding to the situations that God puts before me?" With anger, with resentment, maybe frustration? 

Porter of Peace

The thing is that St. Conrad responded with peace. In times of great trial and pain, he was a porter of Peace. He opened the door and gave peace to everyone he encountered. His love for the people came from the peace he had gained from countless hours of prayer and with it came mercy, forgiveness, and brotherhood. To be at peace is to be free, in a state of mind where nothing disturbs you. It means tranquility with the situation or scenario at hand. It is believing with your whole heart that God has everything under control. The life of Conrad showed him to be a man of complete interior composure, one who was always surrounded by silence. I thought of all the different things that disrupt my peace. When that happens, how do I respond? I was surprised to know that the next part of my dream was a burning desire to talk with this guy, and make peace.

Porter of Patience

Part of being calm and at peace involves being patient. We often want to move to the end so quickly that we forget all the graces and God-moments that are in between. I know for myself, I want things to happen right away, as soon as possible. So much that it's one activity after another without any tranquility to think about what is happening within them. Certainly, the life of St. Conrad involved a patience that allowed him to find God as he moved from one task to another, as he moved from his cell to the friary door. Being patient involves waiting, a type of silent endurance that is contrary to frustration or anger.  It's said that the neighborhood boys would test Conrad's patience by ringing the friary doorbell nine

or ten times, and each time he would visit the door as he usually did. Instead of growing angry, he would proclaim "It doesn't matter, I will come out 20 times in God's name, as long as my feet carry me." 

Porter of the Presence of God

Opening the door to many people who came to visit in a way, was him opening the door to the presence of God. He was surrounded by God's presence in his life, and he recognized it in every situation of his life. This led him to a personal encounter with God. In every moment of his life, he found the Spirit of God. Whether it was in his cell, in the chapel, silent walks, and pilgrimages, he saw the presence of God in every individual. Like a divine appointment and because of that he was able to turn his heart to everyone he met. St. Conrad had the eyes of faith, he saw Christ in every person and situation. For him, life was about 'seeing' God active in his everyday life. As I was thinking about this, I remembered another part of my dream. Just before my guitar had been flung over the edge and shattered into a thousand pieces, we were singing a song with the words, "We want to see Jesus, lifted high," and I realized that much of my life needs to have that element, the element of wanting to see God in everyday life. When we look at the life of Conrad, I think that's also something he wanted, to see Jesus lifted high yes, but also to see him in every moment and in every person. 

So the question is asked again, "how am I responding to the situations that God puts before me?" Like St. Conrad, let us answer by responding to the presence of God as a people who are porters of peace and patience like he was.

+ Br. Vince Mary

Let God Enter, Let Him Love.

A reflection for World Day of Consecrated Religious:

Today, Jesus is presented to the altar of God in the Temple. This comes at one of the weakest times of Jesus' entire life. He’s not able to speak for himself, he can’t walk. He’s a baby, young, physically weak, and completely vulnerable. I think the state that Jesus is in can help us to understand what it really means to be presented to the Lord, to be consecrated to the Lord even in the frailest, weakest, most vulnerable times of our imperfect lives. 

It's clear that God seems to be very particular with who he calls and who he anoints. As you know, there’s a common theme with the Lord calling the weak and the vulnerable. You might say that God has a knack for picking the ones who seem to be less capable. But he chooses them precisely so his Glory can be revealed, making the words of Isaiah ring true -- "He gives power to the faint, abundant strength to the weak." (Isaiah 41:29) He chooses the poor, the broken, the hurting, he chooses the lesser - those who cannot love themselves.

"He gives power to the faint, abundant strength to the weak."   

-Isaiah 41:29

The fact is that we are all imperfect people. We are all weak in some way, vulnerable, hurting and broken. Like many biblical figures, we doubt the person that God can help us become. We are afraid to love God and afraid to love ourselves. We are in fact, afraid of our own tendency to love imperfectly. But there’s hope because as a people of faith, we are called to re-enter into a relationship with God, to be re-consecrated, and re-presented to Him. That means accepting the love of a God who perfectly loves our imperfections. This does not mean that God is okay with our sins, and shortcomings; rather, that He loves us despite of them.

"We are in fact, afraid of our own tendency to love imperfectly."

As I was reflecting on my life as a consecrated religious, I began to think of my journey as lived inside of a large church. At the front of the Church, there is the sanctuary and Jesus awaiting in the tabernacle. Throughout the course of our lives, we position ourselves at different parts and places of this massive church. Some days we might be at the very front, in the sanctuary. We are praying every day, going to mass, doing all the right things and we feel God present in our lives. Other days we might be in the very back of the church, in the very corner, far away - maybe even outside! Sometimes we are hiding on the sides, ashamed and afraid to be seen. We are not concerned with what is happening in front of us. Or, we are in the middle, in the safe-ground. Not too far upfront and not too far in the back. We're comfortable with where we want to be and that's that. We are satisfied with being in the middle ground. "This is my spot, this is where I sit, I'm good, I don't need to do anything else, I am here."...Perhaps this is your life, moving from pew to pew. Regardless, wherever you sit, God is asking of one thing; he's asking for your heart. For your presence. And one thing is certain, we have to approach the altar in order for us to give it freely. Come up and re-present yourself to the Lord with open hearts! Lift up your hearts! Lift up your doors. Just like the psalmist says:

"Lift up! O gates, your lintels; 

reach up, you ancient portals,

that the King of Glory may enter!”

I have found that the greatest freedom in consecrated life comes from opening up the gates of everything that I am and letting God in on it. As the prophet Malachi puts it, there will come a day when the Lord will come and sit in this temple and refine and purify his servants. Jesus would like to purify and refine you. You are that temple, and Jesus wants to transform everything that you don't like about yourself, those imperfections, all the sins, the flaws, the fears, and insecurities - Jesus wants to purify it. For the consecrated religious, we are presented to the Lord in freedom, resting in the sure hope that He will make himself known in the midst of every imperfection and weakness that we know we have. Out of love, we surrender ourselves, we cease any resistance and simply let God love.

"...in order to profess a life consecrated to God, I have to first profess that I am human."

I’m very blessed to be able to look back on the life that I’ve lived as a consecrated religious and see all of the incredible ways that God has been present to me. The people, the places, the ministry opportunities, everything has been an adventure of faith and it would have never happened if I had not given God permission to love what I could not. It has occurred to me that in order to profess a life consecrated to God, I have to first profess that I am human. That means admitting to myself that I don't have all the answers, I don't do everything right, I'm not a perfect human being and because of that, I need God. We need God.

It doesn’t matter who are you, what you’re doing, or what you have done. I can promise you that the Lord today is asking for your heart. He wants to replace all of those imperfections with love. Today we're called to receive God, to be re-consecrated to God, to be re-presented to God. Let Him Enter, the King of Glory.

+ Br Vince Mary

Christian Championship

Not too long ago we celebrated the life of St. Sebastian, an early Christian martyr who was put to death because of his faith. He was tied to a post, shot with arrows, and left to die. However, he was healed with the help of the later Saint Irene, who took him into her home and bandaged his wounds. Once at full health, Sebastian courageously met the Emperor in a small passageway. He had overcome his own pain, his own weakness and was condemned to death a second time. He was beaten to death with cudgels and thrown into the town's sewer. 

(1480) tempera, oil on canvas;
"Saint Sebastian" by Andrea Mantegna

Reflecting on the life of Sebastian and the words of the Psalms, I began to think about our lives as champion Christians, a people of faith who persevere and run with joy, the course that has been set for us. We're called to be champions. One might say that to be a Champion means to conquer. It means to defy the odds, to surpass all other rivals and be in the end, victorious; the last one standing. Champions are those who have lived courageously, fought with strength and persevered in times of difficulty, they overcame. The champion is moved to be victorious, he’s moved to defeat everything that stands in his way, in order to obtain a prize worth cherishing forever. The champion is an athlete and not only an athlete but a person who sees with clear vision his purpose, he understands he has been made to accomplish, to achieve and to succeed. Above everything, a champion is a person who longs for victory using every ounce of energy that has been built up inside. 

Now you might notice that there are striking similarities between this champion athlete, and the champion Christian because to be a Christian is to be an athlete, and to be a champion Christian is to accept the invitation into the true championship with Jesus Christ, the true Victor!

You might be surprised to know that you are an athlete, you are a runner of the race and you have been endowed with a special gift of strength and courage. We are athletes for Christ, as St. Paul puts it, striving to obtain the eternal prize of salvation. We are a Christian people who have been gifted with a purpose in life, a meaning, and an objective to reach that everlasting prize. It’s the imperishable crown that St. Paul speaks about in 1 Corinthians. The strength of the Christian champion has its roots in God almighty. Since he gives us all that we need to move forward, he strengthens us when we are weak, he trains us, and he pushes us to pursue everything that he has in store for us. 

“Every athlete exercises discipline in every way. They do it to win a perishable crown, but we an imperishable one” -1 Corinthians 9:25

Photo by Holger Link via Unsplash

Since we are sharers in the championship that Christ has already won, we are also gifted with immeasurable strength and courage that is necessary to overcome any blockade. Those moments in our lives that instill doubt or spiritual soreness, slothfulness or acedia. These are things that keep us from moving forward with the hope that we will soon wear the winner’s crown, the imperishable one. We doubt ourselves and we give in to the voice that tells us we will never reach the end. Slowly we slip into modes of hopelessness and mediocrity; we lose sight of the goal! However, we are built to be champion Christians, champion athletes. We are called to overcome, called to push through our doubts, to persevere with strength and hope in moments of uncertainty.  We have been given a spirit of courage and endurance, a spirit that aids us in our weakness. 

“Do not grow slack in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, endure in affliction, persevere in prayer.” -Romans 12:12

Remember that you've been called into a true championship with Jesus. You have been invited to complete the task and he has given all that you need to do it. The psalms tell us that the Champion is one who "joyfully runs its course." (Psalm 19:5) and St. Paul adds that as runners, we should run to win. Not aimlessly, or carelessly, but with conviction, confidence, and courage. 

"...Run as to win." -1 Cor 9: 24

In those moments when our zeal seems to be gone, hope shattered or our strength seems to be getting slim, we should turn to the words that have been written down for us. He reminds us to be strong and courageous! (Joshua 1:9) To fight the good fight of the faith! (1 Tim 9:11) To rejoice with hope, endure affliction and persevere in prayer! (Rom 12:12) This is the heart of a Champion, to look beyond our struggle and pain, see our own destiny of Glory and be moved to obtain it. This is the heart of a champion, and it’s the heart of a Christian, to persevere with courage in order to hold the eternal prize of glory.

+Br. Vince Mary