24 August 2015 - come and see

“Can anything good come from Nazareth?”
Philip said to him, “Come and see.”

Whenever we hear about spiritual things they are shaped, to one degree or another, by human expectations. We all know a Nazareth from which, we imagine, no good thing can come. We can't be content to dwell on our past encounters. We have to come afresh to Jesus and all of his blessings. Yet that means that every time we do we risk our expectations diminishing what we can perceive and therefore what we can receive. Perhaps we catch ourselves thinking, 'Can anything good come from mass at my parish?' Maybe the music is mediocre. Perhaps the preaching is poor. It could be that the congregation lacks commitment and concentration. 'Sure,' we think. 'At some well known parish in Ann Arbor I might find something good at mass. But here?' Let us hear and truly hear the invitation, "Come and see." And what do we find? Even at the more liturgically impoverished parishes?

“Come here.
I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.”
He took me in spirit to a great, high mountain
and showed me the holy city Jerusalem
coming down out of heaven from God.

This is the heavenly reality concealed by earthly symbols which are sometimes sub-par. If we truly respond to the invitation to "Come and see" this reality is what we discover. To come and see means to leave our worldly expectations behind and let ourselves encounter Jesus anew. To shed our expectations is neither natural nor easy. Yet if we are open to it Jesus himself wants to initiate the encounter.

Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and said of him,
“Here is a true child of Israel.
There is no duplicity in him.”
Nathanael said to him, “How do you know me?”

He surprises us. His actions break the mold of the expectations which we set. He knows us. He touches our hearts in ways we do not expect and for which we do not plan. It starts on this personal level. He turns out to be real in ways that statues and stained glass are not. He is real. From here he is free to elevate our minds to perceive the deeper truths of the heavenly things and spiritual blessings which he gives.

And he said to him, “Amen, amen, I say to you,
you will see heaven opened and the angels of God
ascending and descending on the Son of Man.”

Let us join Philip in extending the invitation, first to ourselves, than to others to "Come and see." Let us join Bartholomew as one of the friends of Jesus. Let us "make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your kingdom."

Let all your works give you thanks, O LORD,
and let your faithful ones bless you.
Let them discourse of the glory of your Kingdom
and speak of your might.