Heaven on Earth

Author Saul Bellow wrote about a Rabbi who lived in a small town in Russia. Every Friday Morning the Rabbi disappeared for several hours. The people of his congregation liked to tell people that during his absences, their Rabbi went up to heaven and talked to God. When a stranger moved into town and heard this explanation for the Rabbi’s weekly departure, he was not convinced. So, he decided to find out what was really going on.

The next Friday morning, he hid by the Rabbi’s house. As usual, the Rabbi got up and said his prayers. But unlike other mornings of the week, he then dressed in peasant clothes. He grabbed an ax and wandered off into the woods to cut some firewood. With the man watching from afar, the Rabbi then hauled the wood to a shack on the outskirts of the village where an old woman and her son lived. He then left the wood, enough for a week, and hiked quietly back home.

After seeing what the Rabbi did, the stranger decided to stay in the village and join the congregation. From then on, whenever he heard one of the villagers say, “On Friday morning our Rabbi ascends all the way to heaven,” the newcomer quietly added, “Yes, to heaven – if not higher.”

Jesus said, “Whatever you have done to the least of these… you have done it to me.” In some real sense when we care for those most in need, he promises to be present right there in that moment.

This week, try and do something generous for someone you know to be in need. And, try not to let them, or anyone else, find out it was you who did it. When you do, I trust that you will encounter the presence of the Risen Lord. And like the Rabbi in the story, I trust that you too will experience a foretaste of heaven.

Let us pray: Come, Lord Jesus, surround us with your peace. Lift from our hearts any burdens or anxiety we may be carrying, and restore us again to the joy of your salvation. Then, Loving God, may we experience your presence as we reach out to others. Help us to forgive as we have been forgiven, to love as we have been loved, and to give as we have received. Amen.