By Fr. Roy Cimagala
WE have to be familiar with this particular aspect of Christian life. There is such thing as the mountain of the Lord where we can expect some special moments with the Lord. A number of times this mountain is mentioned in the Bible, like in the Book of Isaiah. (cfr. Is 25)
“On this mountain, the Lord of hosts will prepare for all peoples a banquet of rich food, a banquet of fine wines, of food rich and juicy…On this mountain he will remove the mourning veil covering all people,…” he says.
Interestingly enough, it’s also on a mountain that Christ attracted a big crowd that included those with all kinds of illnesses looking for some cure from him. It was also there where he multiplied a handful of bread and fish to feed the people. (cfr. Mt 15,29-37)
A number of times, it is also mentioned that Christ would go to a mountain or to hill to pray and to have some intimate moments with the Father. (cfr. Mk 6,46; Lk 6,12; etc.) It was also on a mountain that Christ had his transfiguration. (cfr. Lk 9,28-43)
We have to know the implications that these references to a mountain have in our Christian life. From what we can gather from these references, the mountain is a favorite place of Christ to pray, to have some special and intimate moments with the Father.
It is also a place where we can expect to find joy and healing of whatever illnesses we can have, physical, moral, spiritual. It’s like a home to which Christ would go to rest and pray, and to be with us as well. No wonder a psalm expresses the desire we should have for this house of God. “In the Lord’s own house shall I dwell forever and ever.” (Ps 23,6)
We should keep that desire burning as we go through our daily affairs. We should try to see to it that at the end of each day, we have that sensation of wanting to go to our home with God which will involve a certain mountain.
Thus, we can understand the mountain of the Lord, which is his house and our home with him, as a state of mind, heart and spirit that would involve a certain detachment from our usual daily and temporal affairs.
We have to learn to leave behind our temporal concerns just to be with the one who is the most important person in our life and the fulfillment of our real dignity. This spirit of detachment was articulated by Christ himself when he said, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” (Mt 16,24)
This leaving behind our temporal affairs was also taught to us in those parables about the kingdom of heaven compared to a treasure hidden in a field and to a pearl of great value, for which everything else was sold to buy that field and that pearl. (cfr. Mt 13,44-26)
Somehow, we are told that we should go to that mountain of the Lord at the end of each day. It should be a mountain where we truly should find our Lord, our joy, and have that feeling that we are at our definitive home. We need to develop the relevant practices that will actualize this aspect of our Christian life.
Email: roycimagala@gmail.com
