Awakening to Wholeness is a series of prompts, reflections, and teachings about how holding the tension of opposites can help us to heal division and experience wholeness. If you feel moved to share your own reflections, we invite you to email us with the subject line “Wisdom of Opposites” or tag us on social media with #EHoPWisdomOfOpposites.
This is a guest post by EHoP community member Dianne Schlichting, in response to “Really Somewhere, Not Really Anywhere” by Christine Luna Munger.
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Today is the feast of the Transfiguration, and as I read “Really Somewhere, Not Really Anywhere,” I was struck by the tension of this set of opposites. Peter, James, and John are taken by Jesus to be present as he is transfigured before their eyes, as he converses with Elijah and Moses. In that moment of grace, their eyes are open, and they “see” who has been with them each and every day: Jesus. Their ears were also graced to hear a Voice: “This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.” Again, the grace of the moment allows the disciples to hear, and then the moment passes. They look around and see Jesus, their friend.
It is as if Jesus were really somewhere and also not really anywhere. Hidden and revealed, yes, but the seeing by the disciples could not be sustained. Perhaps, the experience was even unbelievable to them. I can hear them asking, “What really happened?” or “Did you see what I think I saw?” or again, “Was He really there—and not there—at the same time?” I was also reminded of the story of Emmaus: Jesus appears, walks with the two disciples, teaches them, breaks bread with them and then—He is not there!
We sometimes receive a special grace to SEE, to HEAR and to KNOW the Presence of the Holy One, but when we are inattentive, the One who walks beside us at all times is NOT SEEN. If I look carefully and listen attentively, I can know and experience God’s presence beside me in the swaying of a tree, the song of a cardinal, the croaking of a bullfrog, the laughter of a child. You get it because you, too, have known the Holy One’s Presence in your life, knowing Presence is really here (Somewhere) and not always noticed (Not Really Anywhere) at the same time. Right?
I end with a quote by Thich Nhat Hanh: “The mind can go in a thousand directions, but on this beautiful path, I walk in peace. With each step, the wind blows. With each step, a flower blooms.”
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Dianne Schlichting
Dianne is a member of EHoP; she and her husband John value the opportunity to share contemplative prayer and outreach with others who make the House of Prayer their spiritual home. Dianne is a wife, mother, and grandmother who loves spending time in nature, especially canoeing with John.
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