Francis Dorff has a wonderful story called “The Rabbi’s Gift,” which illustrates how important it is for us recognize, claim, and not take for granted that God is with us each and every day. The story goes like this:
There was a famous monastery, which once had been full of monks and visitors seeking spiritual guidance. However, the monastery had fallen on dry years when their spirituality level was very low. Few pilgrims came to seek guidance, and few young people gave themselves to become monks. At last, there was only a handful of elderly monks going about their work, their prayer, and their study with heavy hearts. The only time their spirit seemed to lift was when the word went out that the rabbi was walking in the woods. You see, in the woods near the monastery, there was a small hut that this rabbi had constructed as a place of retreat, and he came from time to time to fast and pray. When the monks in the monastery knew he was fasting and praying, they felt supported by his prayer.
One day, the abbot of the monastery, hearing that the rabbi was walking in the woods, decided to go see him. When he reached the little hut, there was the rabbi standing in the doorway with his arms outstretched, as if he had been standing there for some time to welcome the abbot, who had given no notice of his visit. They greeted one another and then went in the simple hut where there was a table with a book of scripture opened on the table. They sat there, silently prayed, and then the abbot began to weep. He poured out his concern for the monastery and for the spiritual health of the monks. Finally, the rabbi said, “You seek a teaching from me, and I have one for you. It is a teaching which I will say to you and then I will never repeat. When you share this teaching with the monks, you are to say it once and then never to repeat it. The teaching is this. Listen carefully. ‘The Messiah is among you.’”
Well, when the abbot heard that teaching, he thanked the rabbi. He went back to the monastery to gather the monks and to tell them the teaching of the rabbi. He told him, as he was instructed, that he would say the teaching once, and then they were to talk about it no more. “Listen carefully,” he said. “The teaching is this: One of us is the Messiah.” It wasn’t exactly what the rabbi had said, but they began to look at one another in a whole new light. Is Brother John the Messiah? Or Father James? Am I the Messiah?
As beloveds created in the image of God, we all bear the mark of the Divine. We are God’s hands and feet and should care for this world and its people as if we are caring for God. I often remind the youth that if they want to see God, simply look left and then right. How we treat people, treat the environment, treat ourselves directly impacts the One who created and gave us life. The Messiah is among you, because each of us has the Messiah within. So, go boldly, with eyes open to see the Divine within yourself, our world, and those who live in it. Go and be a light unto the nations.
Youth of Geist Christian Church 