I was sitting
comfortably in the plane seat as we taxied to the runway for the takeoff. I was heading home again after a couple days
away for a conference. The pilot’s voice
came on the intercom to tell us the weather back home was not as nice as the
weather we were leaving. That was ok,
since I already knew it.
And then the
pilot told us that after taking off, he would be climbing to 37,000 feet, which
would be our cruising altitude for the flight home. I did not think much about it in the
moment. I have flown enough that the
altitude for the “cruise” does not concern me.
But then, I began to ponder it.
I am the kind
who still finds it remarkable that so many people can be in this machine with
two wings that speeds down a runway and then gently leaves the ground and begin
a climb into the air. I really have no
conception of how much one of those creatures weighs, but I know it is a huge
number. Slowly, this metal bird
climbs. The cars on the roads below
begin to look like toys. Buildings
resemble matchboxes. Size becomes warped
as the altitude gets higher and higher.
As we reach
37,000 feet, it is easy to sense the plane leveling off. Even though the pilot’s voice announces that
we have reached cruising altitude, I already know it. That is when I begin to think about just
where I am. I know 37,000 feet is a big
number, but it staggers me when I translate it into other terms. I realize I am literally seven miles high! It occurs to me that my drive from home to my
building on campus is only three miles.
Seven miles is more than the countless “10Ks” I have run (6.2 miles).
While this
may be interesting, you might be asking what this has to do with
spirituality? Quite a bit, when you
think about it. So let’s pursue some of
the things this image can teach us.
In the first
place, the flight home is just that: it is a flight and not home. The flight may last a couple hours. Even if I fly to China, the flight only lasts
13-14 hours. We don’t live on the
plane. We live at home. One might say the flight is the means and
home is the end.
A different
way of saying the same thing is that life is not lived “on a high.” Certainly I and, I assume, all of us like
those moments in life that we call “highs!”
Many of them are very special times when life does not get any better
than that. They can be predictable
events like births or graduations or the like.
Some of these we build up to, work hard for, and genuinely enjoy when
they happen. Other “highs” may come
serendipitously.
What’s true
of all these “highs” is they don’t last forever. In fact, many of them don’t last very long at
all. They are like the 37,000 feet
flight. You go up and then you come back
to earth! Most of life is lived on the
ground---in normal and routine ways.
Most of us experience life when we are not “high.” And that’s ok.
But that is
precisely where spirituality enters the picture. Of course, there can be “highs,” spiritually
speaking. We may be able to go to the
mountaintop and see God. Or we may even
be graced and find ourselves on the mountaintop. But just like Moses, we will have to come
down. Nobody lives on the
mountaintop. In fact, most of us don’t
even get to visit very often. Most of us
don’t fly at 37,000 feet every day either.
What
spirituality offers is a way to live on earth and to live there in meaningful
ways. Spirituality offers a way to be at
“home” in the ordinary---the routine and the normal---of our lives. Spirituality offers connection, community,
and communion to all who have that heart’s desire. Spirituality provides connection. It helps us connect to the Spirit of the universe. Sometimes this Spirit is called God or by
other names. Names do not matter. Being connected does. That is what spirituality does. It is a great antidote to being
disconnected. Connection brings us down
from 37,000 feet and plants our feet on the ground and our heart in the heart
of the Spirit.
Spirituality
also provides community. Community is
the guarantee that we are not alone and that life does not have to be
lonely. Community is where we discover
others care about us and will even serve us.
And conversely, community is where we also care about others and choose
to serve them. The mutuality of
community sometimes feels miraculous.
Finally,
spirituality offers communion. The Spirit nurtures our spirit through
connection. The community nourishes our
spirit in multitudinous ways. Sometimes
it is literal food and drink. More
often, we are nourished in metaphorical ways.
Jesus invited us to drink from deep wells. The Israelites ate manna, the gift of
heaven. We, too, will be able to commune
and be in communion with God and with all God’s children in our community.
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