Our journey into God, a journey to the "holy mountain"

Reflections on Lk 9:51-56 and Zac 8: 20-23:  How deeply compassionate and understanding is our God! Truly, God is a God of understanding,  a God of patience,  a God full of hope, a God of vision—a vision shared with us through the prophet Zachariah and Jesus. Zachariah prophesied that people from many nations will come to Jerusalem, the holy city where Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection takes place.  All will one day, in union with Christ and through Christ, experience the fullness of the redemption on that “holy mountain.”  The journey is a long one, as it was for the Samaritans, who grew to hate the Jews and in no way were ready even to touch the garment of a Jew,  much less follow them to the experience of “God with us.”   Only after Pentecost were a large number of Samaritans converted to Christ. Like the Samaritans and the Jews, our  journey to a total transformation includes periods of exile, intense anger and hatred (sometimes, hidden even from ourselves) that spill out in destructive attitudes and behaviors. God knows that Pentecost and union with Christ will happen for all of us and patiently waits as we move through the stages of grief—anger, bargaining, depression, denial, and acceptance—on our journey to Jerusalem, the eternal city of God.