Through the gracious gate of a Virgin, God visits His people. Heaven has come down to earth, so let us pause to ask the question: "What is Heaven like?" We say that the sensibilities of every land can be seen in its inhabitants. Then, surely, if we reflect upon visitors from Heaven, we shall learn something about this most wonderful Country.
We have substantial instances of this. The Archangel Gabriel appeared to both Zechariah and Mary. Joachim and Anna also encountered angels. Before them Lot received angels. Abraham and Sarah entertained Three Divine Visitors. In all of these cases, the Heavenly visitors were imposing, even overwhelming, beings. The mere sight of them necessitated words of comfort: "Be not afraid." Yes, their physical appearance was awe-inspiring, and they were possessed of extraordinary powers. Gabriel transforms Zechariah from a prideful, authority figure into respectful silence in an instant. In Sodom, the angels with a wave of their hand issue a flash of light that blinds the manic assailants around them .... and then, with another, transports Lot's family out of the city.
But their greater dominion resides in the knowledge they possess. Each of them knows the intimate life circumstances of those whom they visit. They are privy to secrets and griefs. And they are able to peer into the future — the child Mary will be spoken of by all peoples in every generation; the child John will possess the spirit and power of Eli'jah; the Child Jesus will bring salvation to His people.
Perhaps the most remarkable part is that these divine encounters are not rare, nor are they limited to the Holy Ones of history. Attested by no less an authority than the Lord Jesus is this astonishing fact: each person on earth and everyone ever born has been attended to and guarded by an individual angel.
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"Take heed that you do not despise one of these little ones,
for I say to you that in Heaven their angels always see the face of My Father who is in Heaven." (Mt 18:10) |
Now, children during the first century were regarded as being the lowliest and the least. If each of these should have the dignity of an angelic guardian, then rest assured that all humankind must certainly share in this celestial blessing.
But what can this mean within the space of our individual lives? It means that there is another being — far more powerful than we, having more knowledge than we could ever hope for, more imposing than we are in every way, who knows every little detail about us: everything we have done, everything we have thought, and and all that we are now contemplating — is our constant companion. Indeed, this Super-intelligent Being Who sees the Face of God knows us better than we know ourselves. For sadly we humans are especially frail when it comes to one thing we should excel in: knowing ourselves.
After we have grown accustomed to this reality — as reassuring as it is unsettling — we are left with a very important insight: we realize that we are understood, perfectly understood. No matter what has happened in the past, no matter how things stand today, we are completely and rightly understood by the most important Friend we shall ever have.
Now, this may not seem like much to some people. But being misunderstood can be much more than a disappointment; misunderstanding can nullify us, can subtract us to nothing. Consider the wife, perfect in her devotion, care, and fidelity, who must live under the tyranny of a suspicious husband all because a detail in the past was misunderstood. Consider the valorous man who after risking his life for others is misreported and written down as a coward. Consider the falsely accused public official, the underestimated girl, the man who is wrongly arrested and put in prison for the rest of his life. Conversely, to be completely understood affirms us right down to our deepest sanity, beyond every doubt, to the bedrock peace of honest life.
Yes, there are things our guardian angel knows that we are not proud of. But there is peace even here in making a clean breast of everything. And we regret, and seek forgiveness, and are forgiven.
Have you ever experienced true love — the love between two soul mates in which all things are shared, all faults admitted, and every shame confided — and then be accepted and approved and loved in all the power and depth of that divine force? If so, then you know what it is to be understood by an angel, Who is our loving God's ministering Presence.
The alternative is love and life that are not worthy of those exalted names. How many of us press on in the life not worth living — without real human connection and most certainly without love. We go through the motions and periodically eat too much and drink too much as if that could fill the emptiness inside. I know this life, for it was my life, an illness called "affluenza."
But one day, this numb kind of living fell away. I left the bubble life of affluent Americans, and immediately the malaise I felt for so long began to fade. Within hours I was sitting in a crowded air terminal in Haiti. Some of the chairs were broken. People sat with their caged chickens and their prepared food in paper bags. I was the only white person, yet the Haitians paid me no mind. This was the Haitian upper-class, the elite. For they could afford a ticket on a small prop plane. Yet, I saw the suffering of the world around me. I saw it as I walked to the terminal. It was desperate. It was feverish. People stooped near open fires mongst the rubble of the city. Children cried for want of food. Starving animals roamed the streets looking for anything to eat. And then the strangest thing happened: relief. I felt a relief sweep over me. I felt as light as a feather, for I was here, among them. I was in it. I had thrown my lot in with them, never again to live in the bubble (as I then understood it). I now could honestly own the truth of something that I knew every day of my life but managed not to know by a force of will: the world suffers. 800 million people go to sleep each night hungry. The world is poor; half the world's people live on slightly more than $2 a day. 80% of the world's population lives on less than $10 per day. That is the real world — not game shows with fabulous prizes, not the rich and famous and their sumptuous lives displayed on television. And finally, for the first time in my life, I was in the world. The date was March 21, the first day of Spring. And on that day, life began for me.
Soon, I would meet other people who had left the affluence of the First World. They had come to Haiti twenty and thirty years ago — religious sisters and brothers, priests and volunteers. So many of them were strikingly bright and talented and full of life. They beamed with energy. They had poured out their all and gave it to the poor never receiving anything in return. Some of them were now in their 70s and 80s continuing cheerfully in their work every day. I am humbled to say that I continue to live with two of them as we now complete our journeys on earth. (For we were separated from our ministry in Haiti.)
Today, Love is born among us. Heavenly Love. He is fully God, yet He is fully Man. Having all beauty and stature and power and knowledge, He has poured Himself into the form of a helpless, vulnerable infant. Causing many to puzzle still, He was born not in a palace nor surrounded by soft clothes and purple. But the King of Kings would be born mongst dung-stained hay and surrounded by want.
He Alone knows us perfectly. Yet, for all of that, He loves us perfectly .... and truly and faithfully. And He will never let us down, nor will He ever leave us. Through His shining eyes alone can we arrive to authenticity and integrity, and in Him alone could our lives ever make sense.
From the time we are children, we wonder about Heaven. Our self-centered desires pave its streets with gold, afford us mansions on private white sand beaches, and surround us with servants.
Yet, Heaven's real citizens and Heaven's King are nothing like that. How often have I spoken to people who have encountered loved ones from the greater life. They have appeared, I am told, in times of crisis. The Most Holy Theotokos is a Protecting Figure because we are in need of protection. The saints and angels care. And Heaven, it turns out, is a place of concern and caring. And those who follow them, the living saints on earth, continue to pour out their talents and gifts into humble lives of poverty because they care. They suffer in order to be with the suffering.
No, Heaven's citizens do not spend their days on magical private beaches. For their God so loved the world that He gave His Only-begotten Son.
Even now,
He lies silently in the night midst Angels and Archangels and all the Company of Heaven.
His royal dignity resides in His loving and caring heart.
Wise Men from the East kneel before this Kingly splendor.
And
the suffering poor stand in the cold night and draw near to Him.
In Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen.