What does “a new heaven and a new earth” mean to you in your life right now? - Daily Reflections November 28,2014

A NEW HEAVEN AND A NEW EARTH

 

My childhood memories are full of images of the goodness of Mother Nature. I remember going out at dawn after a stormy night to gather delicious mushrooms. I recall rushing home when cicadas would signal that dusk is nigh. Dragonflies would swarm predictably at certain times of the year, and birds of different colors and shapes would regale us with their songs just outside the window of our wooden house.

       The best though was what elders then called “agua de Mayo,” or the first rains of May. While we were ordinarily discouraged from bathing in the rain, the first rains of May were different. It was believed to be beneficial for both body and soul.

       Heaven and earth, for us then, formed just one simple reality. Graces from above spelled copious blessings, too, from below. Rains from the sky brought new life to the earth below that, in turn, produced crisp fresh greens, and the rhythm of night and day, dark and light, only meant that blessings and graces appeared in different forms at different times. And so it was in our earth-inspired, simple theology and spirituality.

       I long for those simple days of abandon and abundance. We children were carefree, and adults who labored each day in the fields were not unduly worried about anything. Stress was a word that never crossed our minds. But while I still look back with joy at those carefree days, I now look forward to an infinitely better version of our own “heaven and earth” with faith and hope. This is what my Catholic faith tells me. This is what the passage from the Book of Revelation assures me of. Something better is coming for those who believe — something greater and more glorious — something that you and I can work for together.

       I wait for it in hope. I work for it in the same spirit of faith and love, and I know that we, who are engaged in this world but with eyes fixed on heaven, really await the coming of something new — new not in substance, but in quality: a new heaven and a new earth! Fr. Chito Dimaranan, SDB

 

REFLECTION QUESTION: What does “a new heaven and a new earth” mean to you in your life right now?

 

Teach me, Lord, to never settle for the things of this world, but to await the fulfillment of Your promises.