A friend once told me of a wondrous
encounter in a church garden. He was going through a dark and desolate time.
Although not a Catholic, in fact not raised to any particular spiritual
practice, he had taken to slipping into noon Mass at a local parish church. He
stayed in the back, just listening, trying to let go the pain he was
experiencing. One day when Mass had ended he lingered in the garden, feeling a great
need for further communion. He sat on a bench, lost in thought. Suddenly, he
had a feeling, a powerful physical sensation, that Jesus and Mary stood just
behind him. He did not turn around, yet saw, knew, that Mary reached out her hand to him in an unmistakable
gesture of comfort and benediction. The moment stretched out beyond the
confines of time. When he eventually went on his way it was with a lighter step
and a freer heart.
Was
this faith germinating in fertile ground? Was this a powerful imagination
playing its part in emotional survival? Was this truly a revelatory experience,
or simply hope finding its natural expression in a moment of deep despair? I
cannot say. My friend continues his journey, a true pilgrim. He has built a
faith from his wanderings, a bit unconventional but a strong, viable, authentic
faith nonetheless. What is your story?
Felipe O'Riley
www.AmericanMadonnas.com
www.AmericanMadonnas.com
