Monday, February 16, 2009

Trinity Transit Homily~ Life at the Crossroads



Life at the Crossroads

A crossroads is a place of intersection, and it can be a placing of meeting.  It is also a place of waiting. What will come next?  What can be learned while waiting at these crossroads.

In the book of Jeremiah (6:16), the prophet declares…

       Stand at the crossroads, and look, 

       and ask for the ancient paths,

       where the good way lies; and walk in it, 

       and find rest for your souls.  

Firstly, a cross roads allows us to stop, to rest, and to wait.  For Jeremiah, this is a place first of all, to look… that is, be attentive; be aware of where you are; and who all may have met at this crossroads.  It is not just an obstacle through which we must quickly pass, and just take any path without thinking

Secondly, it is a place to seek the ‘ancient paths where the good way lies’. There have always been those who we will meet at the crossroads, and who will offer direction.  In our modern world, we have maps that can be unfolded and offer us many paths, and we have GPS (global positioning service), which can track our progress along the road, and tell us where to turn. But even GPS cannot decide where we ought to go.  A GPS device, like a map needs us to decide on our destination. Jeremiah advises the traveller who has come to a crossroads to pay attention to possible directions. There is a wisdom in reflecting on ways or directions that have proven themselves.

Thirdly, while a crossroads is a place to stop, to great other travellers, and to consider possible directions, it is not a place to stop.  Hopefully we choose wisely a direction that can be taken.  Possibly we have meet others who also need to choose a direction from this crossroads.  But a crossroads is not a place to ‘pitch our tent’, we must move on. 

Jeremiah says that after choosing the ‘good way’, we must walk on.  We must leave the crossroads.  In walking the ‘good way’, we will find rest, and peace, and wholeness.

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