Feast of Saint Bartholomew, Apostle
Do you remember the first time you experienced Jesus? Do you recall the circumstances or persons associated with your experience of coming to know him and seek him? The experience is impossible to keep to ourselves. We seek the company of others who've also experienced Jesus and share our same desire to know Jesus more intimately. And we seem to know, instinctively, that the seeking of Jesus and being sought by him is a process that happens in the context of community.
In the reading from Revelation, the angel says, "Come here. I will show you the wife of the Lamb…". The imagery of the New Jerusalem is stunning and, just as the angel, the Evangelist shares this vision with his community of seekers. In the passage from John's Gospel, Phillip tells Nathanael they have found the Chosen One, saying, "Come and see". Of course, Nathanael follows and, to his surprise, finds that Jesus
already 'knows' him and is seeking him as well. It may not occur to us, but our experiences of God are as much the result of God seeking us as our seeking God. It is this mutual seeking that underpins the very life of our spirituality.
From the very beginning of his ministry, Jesus sought out individuals to build his community of believers.
Jesus knew that an individual's journey to God must be walked with other seekers…in community.
The mutuality in our relationship with God—seeking God and being sought by God—is supported and sustained in community. This day, may we reflect on how our participation in our faith community nurtures and encourages the seeking of God and surrender to the Creator God who seeks us always.
Gail Lyman