[Propertalk] Proper 19 b - 3

[Robert P Morrison]

Part 3 - Bob

	 But THAT was what must have scared Peter so much. He wasn’t ready
for that – nor are we, perhaps. He saw crucifixion in Roman terms,
as the obliteration of everything that Jesus was transforming. Jesus
had been addressing all the things that made life so difficult, so
much so that Peter couldn’t imagine what things would be like if
Jesus were to be torn from them. He saw only total darkness and defeat
– again, precisely as the Romans, and every terrorist, wanted
everyone to feel. THEIRS was the power, or so they thought. No one
could stop them. What Jesus tried to get across to the twelve and to
us, though, is that Wisdom calls us to see the light, the blessing, at
the heart of the cross. THAT’S why Hagia Sophia had such an impact
on people’s lives. THAT’S why people were transformed in
Wisdom’s company. Our eyes, our minds, our hearts, our souls are
drawn upwards. While the light streams down to caress us in our life
filled with cares, we can lift up our hearts to experience the joy of
God’s company, no matter how tough, how serious, things are in our
personal lives at the moment. 

	 Our minds have been focused once again this past weekend on thinking
about the events of fourteen years ago. What lifted me up – was it
Wisdom touching my heart, I wonder? – was story about one rebuilding
that’s continuing on the site of so-called desolation. “What
seemed like a simple idea in 2001 — to replace the St. Nicholas
Greek Orthodox Church that stood at 155 Cedar Street until it was
crushed by the collapse of 2 World Trade Center [1] — became one of
the most complex projects in the redevelopment. 

	 “Then again, St. Nicholas has a mission different from any other
building on the site. … 

	 “A landscape that could scarcely have been imagined a decade ago
is now a day-to-day reality for thousands of workers who pour into the
site each morning. 

	 “For those who know the trade center’s history, however, there
_IS_ something amazing to report: Construction has begun in earnest on
the St. Nicholas National Shrine [2], a Greek Orthodox church and
nondenominational bereavement center, designed by Santiago Calatrava
[3], which will overlook the memorial. …” 

	 The design committee were unanimous in choosing Calatrava because
he’s been influenced so heavily by the way that Hagia Sophia, half a
world away, speaks to the human condition and soul. “‘The purpose
is to project something that will open a window to eternity,’
Archbishop Demetrios [4], the primate of the Greek Orthodox Church in
America, said on Tuesday.” 5 

	 Now, isn’t that what Jesus was saying to Peter, saying to us, that
we find that window to eternity and that we embrace His cross, our
cross, as signs of the wonderful joy promised by God, a promise which
not even the worst in the world can take from us? Not even the
snarkiest, worst-behaved grandchild! 


Links:
------
[1]
http://www.nytimes.com/2001/09/17/us/after-the-attack-st-nicholas-hulking-neighbor-buries-a-church.html
[2] http://www.stnicholaswtc.org/
[3]
http://calatrava.com/projects/st-nicholas-greek-orthodox-church-new-york.html
[4] http://www.goarch.org/archbishop/demetrios/biography

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