yesterday, i was walking in downtown new haven on my way back from staples. i passed by christ church and its open doors beckoned me in. as i opened the door to the sanctuary, i at once saw a cavernous space and smelled the soft memory of anglo-catholic episcopal worship: incense. and i recalled something thomas merton once said in new seeds of contemplation: "let there always be quiet, dark churches in which [people] can take refuge. places where they can kneel in silence. houses of god, filled with [god's] silent presence. there, even when they do not know how to pray, at least they can be still and breathe easily. let there be a place somewhere where you can breathe naturally, quietly, and not have to take your breath in continuous short gasps. a place where your mind can be idle, and forget its concerns, descend into silence, and worship the father in secret. there can be no contemplation where there is no secret."
in the formation of lives of faith, space matters. because somehow, if we are to bend our lives toward discipleship, toward following the way of the cross through all of our life, then we need moments where we find ourselves confronted with another, with a divine overwhelming as david ford puts it. that was for me the gift of christ church yesterday. may your lenten journey yield such moments of silent, of overwhelming.
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