• About The Sophia Center

The Sophia Center for Spirituality

~ Spanning the denominations in NY's Southern Tier

The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Tag Archives: Pennsylvania

Knowing the Way

12 Friday May 2017

Posted by thesophiacenterforspirituality in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Acts of the Apostles, conversion, destination, discipleship, I am the way, Jesus, journey, map, Pennsylvania, Pentecost, see, St. Paul, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Thomas, traffic, truth, way

apennsylvaniaI was on the internet yesterday checking driving directions to the location of the retreat center I will be visiting next week. It was astonishing how quickly I came to know not only how to get there but also how many miles I would travel depending on which of two possible routes  I take (with a map available for each) and how long (to the minute!) it would take to arrive at my destination – including the indication of how dense the traffic might be. Although this service of mapquest – or google maps or another site – is quite efficient, there was a tiny twinge of sadness associated with the exercise. I have always loved maps and figuring out the best way to reach a destination was always satisfying for me. No matter. The important thing is arriving at the destination, I suppose, even though the journey itself can be engaging and instructive if sometimes confusing.

The gospel for today finds the disciples confounded by what sounds like a riddle as Jesus prepared for his departure and was giving them instructions for how they were to live going forward. (JN 14:1-6) First he talks of going away. That in itself would be anxiety-producing enough, I suspect, for those who had been following him and been through the recent events with him. He talks about many rooms in his Father’s house and my guess is that they are confused because they were taking his words literally while he was speaking in another language! Thomas, who always needed to “see” the truth of things, seems the most frustrated when Jesus tells them they already know the way to where he’s going. I feel for Thomas when he blurts out, “Master, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way!” I doubt it helped when Jesus answered, “I am the way.”

Perhaps we need to think ahead to the time after Pentecost to pick up the story of how the disciples followed the way, solving the riddle of that confusing speech of Jesus. Examples abound, as in the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles for today (ACTS 13:26-33). My guess is that the understanding came variously and perhaps slowly for some – not always like the shocking event of Paul’s conversion. I might liken it to my trip. I read the directions and was familiar with the highway route but it will take the experience of driving there myself to truly get the whole picture and be comfortable with the way. My hope is that, in this beautiful season of flowering trees and the mountainous region of Pennsylvania that I will be traversing, I will be stunned one more time at the beauty and grateful for the opportunity of making the trip. And upon arrival I look forward to days of deepening my understanding of what it means to walk the path of discipleship.

Donate to The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Donate

Our other websites

  • Main website
  • Facebook page

Visitors

  • 103,595 hits

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 1,045 other subscribers

Recent Posts

  • The “O Antiphon” Meditations
  • Memorial to be held this Sunday
  • Mark your calendars
  • A note to readers
  • “Hope Springs Eternal…”

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.com

Follow me on Twitter

My Tweets

Archives

  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013

Blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • The Sophia Center for Spirituality
    • Join 559 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • The Sophia Center for Spirituality
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...