Aeneas pleads with the gods. He wants to journey into the underworld to be reunited with his father. He can do it. He is strong. He is Jove's son. But the prophetess answers,
"The way down to Avernus is easy.
But to retrace your steps and get back to upper air,
This is the real task and the real undertaking."
So easy to descend. So hard to come back. It's been running through my mind all morning. Easy down. Hard up. EasyHard. DownUp. GoCome. So easy to fall descend stray. We all do it in our own ways. But we call it introspection. We call it melancholy or deep thinking or discouragement or solitude or sometimes even prayer. But whatever its label, we let it cripple paralaze kill profitable action. Whatever we call it,
it is the choosing of our brains to take a journey inward.
A descent from our dwelling place in the shadow of His wings, an exploration of our inner beings, a journey to the searing coals of human reason. And we realize one day, today, that such journeys are easy. And such journeys are not right. We descend into ourselves to find the meaning answer reason cure. And find ourselves in Hell. It is no game we play, this dangerous introspection. And the return journey, the pilgrimage to the high offices of our priesthood, seems perilously impossible.
We are the Royal Priesthood. Why do we beg the lesser gods which are no gods to lead us into worlds that are but cages? Because we understand cages. In small confined spaces we can reign over dust, fragments of thought, unfinished projects, high ideals. Kings of nothing we'd rather be than own ourselves to be unskilled intermediaries of another Lord's invisible kingdom.
Indeed, the way up, the way back to wholesome air, the way out of material dankness and nothingness is Hard. But only for those of the mortal strain. For all our shunning and all our running, there is but one Fountain of Living waters. And His words are in our mouths. His very Godhead existing within our souls. We, you and I and all the Sons of God, have no such trouble unless we choose it. And the power to choose rightly is ours. We have Almighty. Creator pulsing in our veins. Why do we not choose Him now?
Why do we not choose to return to our Priesthood? To the place where we can proclaim to the nations: Our God Reigns! He reigns on Terra! He rules the sky! He rules in the hearts of men! What you live in now is but a painting, what you touch but a sculpture, what you hear but a symphony, what you do but a part in a play. Oh, come with us and meet the Artist. Meet the LoverSaviourConqueror.
Let us leave the underworld of human reason and breathe the living air of Divinity. He has retraced our steps. Let us follow Him back.
Posted by stephanie at March 4, 2004 08:03 PM | TrackBack