“For this world is not our home; we are looking forward to our everlasting home in heaven.”
Hebrews 13:14 Living Bible
Anyone who has made a journey of any length has probably uttered the words, “it’s good to be home.” I have been blessed to have traveled a good bit around the world and can say that those words are true for me, as well. But where is home?
A familiar idiom is, “Home is where the heart is.” Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz said, “There’s no place like home.” Robert Frost wrote, “Home is that place, when you have to go there, they have to take you in.” According to poet Maya Angelou, “You can never go home again, but the truth is you can never leave home, so it’s all right.” Regardless of our definition, home is important to us.
Several years ago I had been out of the country for an extended period of time and was looking forward, not only to going home, but to setting foot once more on my home soil, the good old US of A. As I walked toward Immigration Services at JFK Airport in New York, I noticed a huge sign ahead of me that read, “Welcome to the United States of America.” My heart leapt as I pulled out my camera to record the moment. Just then, a hand grabbed my shoulder and a gruff government official with a badge and a sizeable sidearm said, “No pictures!” I must have had an incredulous look on my face, because he looked at me and said again, “You heard me. No pictures!” I was stunned. There I stood, a citizen of the United States of America, forbidden to take a picture of a sign welcoming me home.
My first trip to Israel nearly thirty years ago was aboard El Al, Israel’s national airline. As we crossed over the coastline of the Mediterranean Sea, the excitement in my heart was almost palpable. When the wheels of our aircraft touched down on Israeli soil, over the loudspeaker came the song¸ Hava Nagila, which means “Let Us Rejoice.”. People throughout that huge 747, Israelis and non-Israelis, Jews and non-Jews, all began clapping and singing to the music, which lasted until the plane finished taxiing. There was no jetway at Ben Gurion Airport then, so we deplaned via stairway and walked to an awaiting bus. When my feet touched Israeli soil for the first time, I remember thinking, “I’m home,” not in a physical or patriotic sense, but spiritually home.
Did I mention that both of these events happened on the same trip? In one, I was a sojourner made to feel like a citizen; in the other, I was a citizen treated more like an invader.
I’ve had similar feelings on all of my visits to Israel. The people in my groups have always been welcomed, even at Israeli Passport Control, as if we were honored guests. The thought ran through my mind, “Do we welcome visitors to our country like we are glad they are here? That question was answered in Houston on our return. By the time I got through Passport control (now done at a kiosk), security check, Immigration Control, baggage claim, and the cute little beagle sniffing out contraband fruits and vegetables, I felt like I should be guilty of something. All of this is not the fault of the folks at TSA or even necessarily of our government. I think we are in danger of losing our understanding of our country as “home,” something modern Israelis have sworn never to do.
So, how about St. Dunstan’s? Do we see it as our spiritual home? Are we willing to invite friends, family, and neighbors to our home? When guests do come, do we act like we are glad they are here?
Let’s face it, we are only on this earth for a limited time. As our home, it is, at best, only temporary. Jesus said, “Don’t lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in Heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal, For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19-21V). Heart and home; they go together.
Prayer: Loving God, Who made us in Your image, draw our hearts to you and remind us that our true home is always where you are. AMEN.
Fr. Steve+
