It’s been a while since I last wrote, the 8th of March to be exact. I had just ended a 3-day silent retreat and was writing about the an icon called the Trinity. And today, I am just ending the first day of an 8-day silent retreat at Eastern Point Retreat House in Gloucester, MA.So where did the last seven months go? COVID-19!
This quote is from my first blog of 2020, written in my hermitage at Pacem in Terris –
I am now a couple of weeks into my unknown pilgrimage and I thought I would clarify why I am actually calling this adventure an “Unknown Pilgrimage.” Let me start with the work pilgrimage. According to Merriam-Webster a pilgrimage is the journey a pilgrim is one and a pilgrim is one who is traveling to a sacred or holy place.
The pilgrimage I am on this year is one to know both myself and God in a deeper, richer, more intimate way. This pilgrimage may include physical travel, but will defiantly involve an inward journey to my soul. The thing that makes pilgrimages tough is that they take us away from our normal routines and force us to encounter God (and ourself) in places where we might not feel at ease. It is in this uneasiness that God can do His transformational work.
These last seven months have been a time of desolation. God has felt so far away. My desire to continue this “Unknown Pilgrimage” melted away when the 8-day silent retreat, which was to start on my 60th birthday fell victim to Covid. I got away to Ely, but even there I felt all alone. Seeking but not finding God. I think my work reorganization killed that retreat.
Political angst, calls for racial equality, and Covid quarantine filled the summer. I got a camper built. Broke it in on an 8-day trip to the Black Hills in South Dakota with my wife and 9-year old grand daughter.
And now I am here, at Eastern Point pondering two questions. First, “What are you doing here?” and “What do you want me to do for you?” The first question was asked by God of Elijah in the cave at Mt Horab and the second of the blind man by Jesus as he enter Jerusalem for the final time.
Neither of these question are new to me. Both of these questions can be answered on a number of levels.
In my next blog post I will explore these two questions more fully.