Virgin and Child with a Dragonfly/Master of Saint Giles Netherlandish/French
Isaiah 11:1-10
Psalm 72:1-8
Luke 10:21-24
Last week, while riding a bus to the library, I received a wonderful gift. Gazing around me at the other passengers and the uniqueness of each one, time became suspended. I was overcome by an experience of their beauty, their magnificence, their radiance. It was a gift of love.
Similarly, today’s readings from the Gospel and Book of Isaiah allude to the gift of seeing with the eyes of the heart. “Heart” is another word for our inner core, our soul, our essence. So, seeing with the eyes of our heart is not so much something we do as it is connecting with the sweetest, deepest part of ourselves, which, of course, is love.
Have you ever had the experience of gazing at someone you know well and suddenly seeing them through a transfiguring lens of mystery? Or have you ever seen a little child stop with a captivated gaze to watch an insect on the sidewalk? Or have you stood on a clear night, transfixed by the beauty of the full moon? Perhaps in these moments, God’s eyes and our eyes are one. One seeing, one heart, one loving.
So, perhaps this gift of seeing with the heart is the grace of love. Perhaps love is the only way of truly seeing.
Barbara Sheppard
