New Symbols of the Holy

When the church had disappeared in the rear view mirror and the farm grew larger out the front windshield, I found myself thinking often of the Old Testament prophet, Ezekiel.  He was moved by God from a priestly ministry in the Temple of Jerusalem to a prophetic ministry by the River Chebar. (Ezekiel 1:1)  His training prepared him for service midst the holy things of the Temple, but when he found himself at the River Chebar all the signs of the holy were gone.  Everything was different.

 

The farm where I retired is not located by the Rive Chebar, or any river, but by what is called the runoff branch.  The runoff branch is like a creek that has no spring as a source, but depends on runoff water caused by rain clouds.  Some seasons make it dry and others make it like a gurgling mountain stream.  As I settled into life by the runoff branch, I discovered what Ezekiel surely discovered.  All the familiar symbols and signs of the holy were gone.  And along with their absence I wondered how God would be experienced in a world empty of all the familiar signs of His presence. 

Of course, this wondering was not something I brought with me into the place of retirement.  It took some time to realize what was missing and even longer to realize that while my world was empty of things like a cross, candles, and a communion table, it was not empty of symbols which pointed me to the Holy One.  What I finally started coming to was an awareness that the God who created all things, the God whose hand has touched all of creation provided an abundance of new symbols such as a hooting owl, a broken limb, or the sound of rain racing across the hayfields.  All that was needed was a new set of eyes and new set of ears to receive what had once been hidden and invisible.