Thomas said to Jesus, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way and the truth and the life.” ~John 14:5-6
One of the unsettling aspects of pilgrimage is never knowing exactly where we are. We rely on guides to steer us. We rely on drivers to take us on unknown roads. We cannot read the signs, which are most often in Arabic and Hebrew. Each day brings us to places we have never been, to sights we have never seen, to insights we barely have time to process. Only to set off again the next day.
After a week or so, something in me yearns for home. This is true even in Jerusalem, which Scripture calls our heavenly home. We are used to home feeling familiar, and this place does not.
But people of faith have always been called to follow rather blindly. The earliest followers of Jesus referred to their movement as The Way. Still today, pilgrims rely on past generations of pilgrims. So we follow.
Recall a time when you had to find an uncharted way. What did that teach you about faith?
Prayer: O Lord, show me the way.
This material is adapted from my book, Chasing the Divine in the Holy Land.
The photo of a first century road is mine, taken at the archeological site in Magdala, Israel.
Leave a Reply