I recently read an inspirational piece about pilgrimages. The piece talked about going to special places of our ancestors. That makes sense, Jung believed that our ancestors were there with us, always. We carry their heritage within our very being. I think that this is true, it has been my life experience.
I have certain places I feel deeply about. One, of course, is the Abbey of Gethsemani in Kentucky. I have described it before as a place of thunderous peace. The love of God permeates every room and the trails around the Abbey. I always feel like I cannot even call out to anyone, it would just seem, well, rude.
There are other places. The town of Vine Grove, Kentucky is another of those places. It is where my mother and aunts and uncle grew up. My grandfather was the station master there. I visit there and just feel like I am part of the place. My mother, grandfather and grandmother are all buried there, in a cemetery next to the railroad tracks. Another place is my hometown of San Antonio, especially the neighborhood I grew up in. The memories that return when I am in that place are powerful.
We all have our places, the Irish call them the “thin places” where heaven and earth just seem to be all in one. At church, we are hearing a series about Sacred Ground. Moses had to take his shoes off. I feel that way at the Abbey and, come to think of it, at the cemetery. I daresay, when I finally get to go to Ireland, home of the Fitzgibbons, I will feel the overwhelming presence of all those ancestors who went before me.
So where is your sacred ground? Where do you go that you suddenly feel in touch with all that you are and all that the Sacred One is in you? Seek that place out often. For Christ, it was the “wilderness”. Where is it for you? Spend time there, you will be forever grateful. And, you never know, you just might be changed.
TMM