Peruvian Ponderings

I lift up my eyes to the hills—from where will my help come?

Psalm 121:1

… like living stones let yourselves be built into a spiritual house…

1 Peter 2:5

Dear Friends,

As you are probably aware, we were on vacation for a couple of weeks in Peru. Laura and I had a really good trip and spent a lot of time in the highlands of Peru. One of our guides shared with us some of the spirituality of the indigenous people. Though 95% of the current population identify as “Catholic,” the ancestral spirituality is all about the mountains. In addition to being majestic and dominating the skyline and geography of western Peru, the mountains were also seen as the source of not only the fertile ground that grew crops but also the water that flowed from their glaciers during the growing season. They did not see the mountains as lifeless but actively choosing to bless them with the things they needed to live. Add to this the fact that many of these mountains were volcanoes (which are still erupting), then it makes total sense that they prayed to these mountains as their gods. These huge “stones” that we call “mountains” were alive to them!

In Sunday’s Scripture reading, we read part of Peter’s first letter. The passage is full of “rock” and “stone” imagery. First of all, Peter in Greek means “rock.” Jesus said that Peter was the rock on which he would build his church. Then Peter talked about how Jesus was the stone that the builders rejected which became the cornerstone. Because they rejected Jesus, then the cornerstone became a stumbling block for them.

Peter continues his geologic sermon by encouraging us to be like living stones which together form a spiritual temple to God. This embodies a very significant theological twist… Instead of God being out there, up there, and someone we have to try to reach and appease, the God revealed in Jesus is right here with us. God is not only right here with us but within us! Paul talks about our bodies being temples of the Holy Spirit. To go back to the “stone” imagery… we are living stones animated by the Holy Spirit which dwells within us. When we gather together, we are creating a very large and powerful temple of the Holy Spirit. And when we disperse into our daily lives, we have the opportunity to carry this life-giving, illuminating force to those around us.

The next time you gaze at the mountains, may you be reminded of the power and majesty of the one who created them. And may you remember that this power and majesty of God dwells within in you through the presence of the Holy Spirit!

Paz,

Pastor Phil