Sunday Homily 8-10-08, 19th, Ordinary Time
Readings: 1 Kings 19, 9-13 (or 1-15); Psalm 85; Romans 9, 1-5; Matthew 14, 22-33.
1 Kings: Even though 1 Kings focuses mostly on King Solomon & his accomplishments, the latter half of the work shows how at Solomon's death the kingdom split into two hostile & petty states, Israel in the north & Judah in the south around Jerusalem.
As I have pointed out concerning prophets, Elijah condemns the behavior, especially of the rulers, and promises punishment. I am going to have all of chapter 19 read, because it is an interesting story.
In chapter 18 Elijah has had a faith duel with 450 prophets of another god, Baal, a god whom the king of Judah, Ahab honored. Elijah not only triumphs over the 450, he also kills them all. Ahab is impressed and spooked. But not his wife, the famous Jezebel. She wants to kill Elijah and tells him so.
Elijah is so afraid he runs away and wants to die. Along the way Yahweh meets up with him and invites hims to hike up the mountain of Sinai (Horeb). Here is what happens on the mountain.
The Whispering Sound
Just like Elijah and just like Jesus in the Gospel, 7 of us have been to the mountain the past two weeks. We have felt the wind, felt the earthquake, and felt the fire.
On our first day in we had to go about 6 miles from a place called Rowell Meadow to a camp area called Comanche Meadow. There was a bear box at the campsite. It was a long, hot uphill hike all day. We were carrying food for 8 days in packs that ranged from fifty plus pounds to seventy. The wind was what we did not have in our lungs.
We spent two nights at Comanche, a third night at Roaring River, and the fourth night at Upper Ranger Meadow, one of the most beautiful campsites, beautiful because it was a lush moraine with groves of pine & fir surrounded by a cirque at the head, cliffs on two sides, and the valley we had climbed out of behind. We camped as usual by a mountain stream.
Next morning we got up before dark at 5:00 and started a 2 thousand foot climb up 11 thousand foot Elizabeth Pass. We left early to take advantage of the cool early hours and to get to our next campsite in the middle of the afternoon instead of night. It was on the ascent of Elizabeth that we felt the fire, in our legs. There were steps four feet high in the trail and always up, up, and up some more. The legs & hips would scream, "Enough." But up we went steadily to the top, arriving around 11:00.
At this point one thinks, "I got it made now." No way. We had to descend 3 thousand feet in 3 miles. This is the dangerous part because it is easier to slip on a loose rock or gravel and fall down. Our packs were lighter, but here we felt the earthquake when we stepped off a step so high we had to turn sideways. Boom, you land on one foot and the earth quakes right through the bones.
Finally, about 5:00 we all reached an unplanned campsite beside a mountain stream and decided to go no further. We were all gassed and ready to set down for a two nighter in the same campsite.
This was how we felt in our bodies the wind, the fire, and the earthquake. Unlike Elijah, for me, God was in all three. Connected to all was beauty, exhilaration, and the awareness of the privilege it is to be able to hike through such remote high sierra spectacle.
For me also there was the whispering sound, the small voice. Almost every day we would hear the sound of a jet flying overhead, perhaps heading to or from Oakland-San Francisco. Frequently, I would search the sky, following the sound trail to find the tiny silver tube hurtling through the heavens. Almost never did I see them When I did see one, it was so small, so insignificant. Yet, I knew that inside that little dart people like me were snoozing, reading, looking at the mountains below them, and totally unaware of me. I had been in those darts and would be in one again in a few days. I had such a feeling of smallness in the universe. A blessing.
The blessing was doubled Thursday when I got into one of the little darts, which at Fresno looked pretty big. I ended up in row 19 and in row 17 was a young family with a little boy about 4 or 5 and a little girl just learning to walk. The little boy busied himself with stuff in his seat next to his father. But the girl needed to move around, which the parents allowed. She walked up the aisle, she crawled down the aisle. And the parents watched over her, as did we all. The gentleness of the parents juxtaposed upon my reflection that I was in the little insignificant dart moved me. I could see me from below searching for this little dart by following its sound and I could likewise view the treasure of the family.
Once I told the husband and once I told them both that I admired they way they played with their kids.
Jesus went up the mountain to pray. Elijah went up to meet the lord. We 7 went up the mountain. Unlike Elijah I found him in all the elements, the wind, the fire, the earthquake, and the whispering sound.
Where do you find him?
AUDIO: http://mysite.verizon.net/reso7rjy/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderfiles/2008-08-10.mp3