Connections to Infinity

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today point to a connectedness that is in the mystical realm where we may experience God in mercy and joy as recipients of grace that continues to restore creation. In the Book of Exodus, Moses describes learning the depth with which God maintains His people in spite of rejection. The religious authorities in the Gospel of John are blind to the evidence of Jesus connection to the Father. Jeanne Schuler shares the concerns of John Kavanaugh, S.J., about the idols of consumer society. She reminds us that persons are known by the company they keep.  Good friends witness to our strengths and help us to face our weakness. Don Schwager writes that God reveals himself to the lowly of heart through the gift of the Holy Spirit, who opens our ears so that we may hear his voice and he fills our hearts and minds with the love and knowledge of God. He quotes Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430 A.D.) Friar Jude Winkler identifies some chutzpah in the intervention of Moses with God around the Golden calf. Jesus is that which God had always intended. This revelation of the Father is witnessed by Moses and the works of Jesus. Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, quotes Joanna Macy who vividly reconnects our seemingly separate selves with nature, both present and past. Father Richard offers thoughts on the consequence of expanding our self-interest to include other beings in the body of the Earth, This widens our window on time. It enlarges our temporal context, freeing us from identifying our goals and rewards solely in terms of our present lifetime. The life pouring through us, pumping our heart and breathing through our lungs, did not begin at our birth or conception. Like every particle in every atom and molecule of our bodies, it goes back through time to the first splitting and spinning of the stars. The mystical power of the Word includes the ability to speak to us about today. It is the one year anniversary of the death of my nephew, Shawn and phrases from the commentators today resonate with his short, 30 year life. He discovered some of the shallowness in the idols of consumer society as he experienced good friends who witnessed to his strengths and helped him to face his weaknesses. The chutzpah of Moses reminds us of his wisdom and wit in interactions with people. He drew strength from his connections to nature in the mountains, on the lakes and by the sea and from this strength  expanded his self-interest to include other beings. His atomic and molecular connection to the universe goes back through time to the first splitting and spinning of the stars and continues in the mystical domain that is near enough to influence our lives for good today.