Praised be Jesus Christ! “You see that mountain over there, yea, one of these days I’m going to climb that mountain,” (Alabama, “Mountain Music”). I’m back from my annual trek to the Rocky Mountains and my goal this year was to climb three of them: Mounts Democrat, Lincoln, and Bross. Each standing over 14,000 feet tall, that brings my tally of 14ers to six. A former student of mine who is now a Nashville Dominican Sister has climbed at least that many and because my goal is to beat her I must keep going! As I’ve mentioned in the past, setting a goal of climbing a mountain has been a great motivator for getting me out of the office and out on some glorious walks these past three summers. This summer has been extra challenging because of a plethora of bugs and more heat than I can remember in years. Early in the summer I walked from Marshfield to Spencer and back a number of times to increase my endurance. But once the deer flies take over that route is almost unbearable. Then I switched to the Marshfield-Hewitt loop which varies from downright delightful (especially the Hewitt-Marsh trail) to oppressively hot insofar as you’re usually walking on concrete or asphalt. Just the same, if I’m diligent about my preparation, climbing a mountain, while still incredibly challenging, is manageable. The spiritual life is similar. Saint John of the Cross even wrote a book titled, The Ascent of Mount Carmel and patterned spiritual growth on the efforts necessary for climbing an arduous mountain. Pope John Paul II was an avid mountain climber and skier as a young man and at some point he became friends with an Italian named Lino Zani. Zani wrote a book about their many adventures together – it’s titled The Secret Life of John Paul II and I highly recommend it. It shares stories of the many times John Paul snuck away from the Vatican for a day of skiing in the mountains. At one point Saint John Paul asked Lino why he climbed all those mountains. Before giving Lino a chance to respond, the Pope went on to ask, “What are you looking for when you climb those mountains?” Lino realized the Pope was asking a spiritual question, which is to say a deeply personal and introspective question. Henry David Thoreau once wrote that “We need to witness our own limits transgressed.” In other words, we go to the ocean or climb mountains to find our place in this universe. In a way we want there to be more to life than just us and our seemingly insatiable desires. We want there to be things bigger than us that remind us that we are not the center of the universe, that whatever the meaning of life may be, it’s certainly not reducible to who we are and what we want. The mountains, the ocean, Jesus in the Eucharist – these things tell us that we are very recent arrivals on the scene and long after we’re gone life will go on. While some might conclude that our lives are therefore meaningless, the more profound conclusion is that it’s a miracle that we exist at all. And as if that wasn’t already incredible enough, God gave us an interior life complete with the ability to imagine, dream, contemplate and believe. For time immemorial people have found the great outdoors to be a means for awakening and inspiring this deep interior life. But nature can only awaken such stirrings – God alone can satisfy them. So get outside and enjoy the world God made for us, but please don’t turn it into an idol. Nature is not our mother but our sister – God made her too and He did so to lead us to Him. So why do I climb those mountains, what am I looking for? For a Christian, the answer has everything to do with Who – we climb to meet the One who made the mountains, and even more wondrously, who made us!
May God give us the desire to ascend the mountains of faith, hope and love! Your friend in Christ, Father Martin
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Monday - Thursday: 8:30 AM – 5:00 PM Friday: 8:30 AM – 12:30 PM Stay Connected with Our ParishWelcome from Our PastorWelcome to Christ the King Catholic Church! Ever since 1938 this parish has been assisting souls in their quest for deeper union with God. Our mission statement is essentially found in the stained glass window above the main altar: “For Christ our King.” Insofar as God made us and we belong to Him, we have come to... Read More
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