Have you ever tried teaching calculus to a toddler? Of course not. I often find myself frustrated in my spiritual life because I am not further along. I mean I spend every morning in prayer, I study the Word diligently, I incorporate my faith in God into every aspect of my life, I spend time in worship, I have a personal relationship with Jesus, and I work hard at all of these things! Why do I still struggle to understand? Learning is a journey and relationships are an unfolding and we cannot speed up the process. If we jump ahead, or skip to the end, we miss the story. Jesus speaks to this in today’s gospel, “I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now. But when he comes, the Spirit of truth, he will guide you to all truth.” Jesus tells us point blank, you cannot bear it all. Like a toddler learning calculus…nope. This totally takes the pressure off doesn’t it? I wish I could say that it does for me, but I still find myself expecting to be further along on the way.
When I walked the Camino de Santiago (The Portuguese Way), I started out at a pace that was brutal. I walk fast anyway, and I had it in my mind that I was to plough through it for some reason. I was flying through my first day, with a full pack, and everyone I met along the way made the same comment when they asked where I had started, “Oh wow, you are making really good time.” By mile 15, my hips were on fire, and I was pretty miserable. I met a father/daughter couple from South Africa for my last 3 miles and the dad had walked it before. He told me to slow down. He said that pacing was very important and Americans generally tried to speed through, but he said don’t miss the walk. Slow down and you will begin to notice all the lessons of The Way. He said that our only responsibility on the Camino is to walk. We can’t get there any faster or we might as well drive. So I slowed way down and suddenly I could pay attention to what was all around me. I took more breaks to just enjoy the beauty of the small villages in Portugal and Spain. I lightened my pack so that my body was not so burdened. I listened to the wind, I stopped at every waterfall, I talked to every animal along the way, and I relished every opportunity to write. I got up each morning with an agenda to simply walk and no longer worried about when and where I would arrive. This simple shift in my thinking made all the difference in my receiving the gifts of The Way. I think this captures today’s gospel. The Holy Spirit is our guide on The Way and we go at the pace that is meant for us to pay attention, to receive, to learn, and to enjoy. If I were to have jumped ahead along the Camino I would have missed so many special moments, so many sacred unfoldings, so many sights and sounds, so many lessons, and so many whispers of the Holy Spirit. I could not have appreciated all that the Camino was without the slowing of my stride.
I’ve heard it said “there is no urgency in the kingdom.” Eternity is a long time and because of that, we can slow down our pace and surrender our urgency to know it all right now. Jesus came that we might have life to the full. He gave us a walking companion to help us discover fullness as we walk. It is meant to unfold, it is meant to be discovered, it is meant to be an ongoing relationship, and it is meant to be enjoyed. Savor the walk today. Cherish the mystery. Let the Holy Spirit set the pace. Toddlers have no business knowing calculus, and I have no business jumping ahead of my own story. It is well with my soul.
Reading 1 ACTS 17:15, 22—18:1
After Paul's escorts had taken him to Athens,
they came away with instructions for Silas and Timothy
to join him as soon as possible.
Then Paul stood up at the Areopagus and said:
"You Athenians, I see that in every respect
you are very religious.
For as I walked around looking carefully at your shrines,
I even discovered an altar inscribed, 'To an Unknown God.'
What therefore you unknowingly worship, I proclaim to you.
The God who made the world and all that is in it,
the Lord of heaven and earth,
does not dwell in sanctuaries made by human hands,
nor is he served by human hands because he needs anything.
Rather it is he who gives to everyone life and breath and everything.
He made from one the whole human race
to dwell on the entire surface of the earth,
and he fixed the ordered seasons and the boundaries of their regions,
so that people might seek God,
even perhaps grope for him and find him,
though indeed he is not far from any one of us.
For 'In him we live and move and have our being,'
as even some of your poets have said,
'For we too are his offspring.'
Since therefore we are the offspring of God,
we ought not to think that the divinity is like an image
fashioned from gold, silver, or stone by human art and imagination.
God has overlooked the times of ignorance,
but now he demands that all people everywhere repent
because he has established a day on which he will 'judge the world
with justice' through a man he has appointed,
and he has provided confirmation for all
by raising him from the dead."
When they heard about resurrection of the dead,
some began to scoff, but others said,
"We should like to hear you on this some other time."
And so Paul left them.
But some did join him, and became believers.
Among them were Dionysius,
a member of the Court of the Areopagus,
a woman named Damaris, and others with them.
After this he left Athens and went to Corinth.
they came away with instructions for Silas and Timothy
to join him as soon as possible.
Then Paul stood up at the Areopagus and said:
"You Athenians, I see that in every respect
you are very religious.
For as I walked around looking carefully at your shrines,
I even discovered an altar inscribed, 'To an Unknown God.'
What therefore you unknowingly worship, I proclaim to you.
The God who made the world and all that is in it,
the Lord of heaven and earth,
does not dwell in sanctuaries made by human hands,
nor is he served by human hands because he needs anything.
Rather it is he who gives to everyone life and breath and everything.
He made from one the whole human race
to dwell on the entire surface of the earth,
and he fixed the ordered seasons and the boundaries of their regions,
so that people might seek God,
even perhaps grope for him and find him,
though indeed he is not far from any one of us.
For 'In him we live and move and have our being,'
as even some of your poets have said,
'For we too are his offspring.'
Since therefore we are the offspring of God,
we ought not to think that the divinity is like an image
fashioned from gold, silver, or stone by human art and imagination.
God has overlooked the times of ignorance,
but now he demands that all people everywhere repent
because he has established a day on which he will 'judge the world
with justice' through a man he has appointed,
and he has provided confirmation for all
by raising him from the dead."
When they heard about resurrection of the dead,
some began to scoff, but others said,
"We should like to hear you on this some other time."
And so Paul left them.
But some did join him, and became believers.
Among them were Dionysius,
a member of the Court of the Areopagus,
a woman named Damaris, and others with them.
After this he left Athens and went to Corinth.
Responsorial Psalm PS 148:1-2, 11-12, 13, 14
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Praise the LORD from the heavens;
praise him in the heights.
Praise him, all you his angels;
praise him, all you his hosts.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Let the kings of the earth and all peoples,
the princes and all the judges of the earth,
Young men too, and maidens,
old men and boys.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Praise the name of the LORD,
for his name alone is exalted;
His majesty is above earth and heaven.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has lifted up the horn of his people;
Be this his praise from all his faithful ones,
from the children of Israel, the people close to him.
Alleluia.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Praise the LORD from the heavens;
praise him in the heights.
Praise him, all you his angels;
praise him, all you his hosts.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Let the kings of the earth and all peoples,
the princes and all the judges of the earth,
Young men too, and maidens,
old men and boys.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Praise the name of the LORD,
for his name alone is exalted;
His majesty is above earth and heaven.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
He has lifted up the horn of his people;
Be this his praise from all his faithful ones,
from the children of Israel, the people close to him.
Alleluia.
R. Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Alleluia JN 14:16
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I will ask the Father
and he will give you another Advocate
to be with you always.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I will ask the Father
and he will give you another Advocate
to be with you always.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel JN 16:12-15
Jesus said to his disciples:
"I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.
He will not speak on his own,
but he will speak what he hears,
and will declare to you the things that are coming.
He will glorify me,
because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
Everything that the Father has is mine;
for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine
and declare it to you."
"I have much more to tell you, but you cannot bear it now.
But when he comes, the Spirit of truth,
he will guide you to all truth.
He will not speak on his own,
but he will speak what he hears,
and will declare to you the things that are coming.
He will glorify me,
because he will take from what is mine and declare it to you.
Everything that the Father has is mine;
for this reason I told you that he will take from what is mine
and declare it to you."
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