God is THERE

Today’s first reading (Ex. 40:16-21,34-38) comes from a long section of the book of Exodus that methodically details the construction of the most sacred of sacred objects, from the ark of the covenant to what is described in this particular passage: the Mishkan.

Traditionally, this Hebrew word has been translated as “tabernacle.” A few modern translations translate Mishkan as “the Dwelling,” but I humbly think that a better modern translation is “Dwelling Place.”

Moses raised up the Dwelling Place;
he laid its bases, and set up its frames,
and put in its poles, and raised up its pillars;
and he spread the tent over the Dwelling Place,
and put the covering of the tent over it....

And he brought the ark into the Dwelling Place,
and set up the veil of the screen,
and screened off the ark....

Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting,
and the glory of the LORD filled the Dwelling Place

However one translates Mishkan, the meaning is powerful and profound: the God of Infinity and Eternity, the maker of heaven and earth, makes himself specially and uniquely present THERE.

We know, of course, that God is everywhere and also that, in another real sense, Christ dwells in our hearts, as St. Paul prays in Ephesians 3: that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith... that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Yet, though by God’s grace we may be filled with “the fullness of God,” God is more than we are (a truth that we can easily loose if we only worship “God within us”).

Moreover, as physical beings, who perceive and move within physical space, we do well also to seek God as he makes himself present in space and time.

That is what made the Mishkan, the tabernacle, the Dwelling Place such a gift. It is a wonderfully comforting reality: God is really present – in this place, at this time, in our very midst.

Nor is it a coincidence that the ancient word “tabernacle” is used to describe the place where the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist remains after Mass.

It is easy to become lost and confused in this chaotic world. It is also easy, in this oppressive culture of selfishness, for us to become self-centered and self-absorbed.

We need to seek and spend time in the presence of God, not just the presence of God within, but most especially where God makes himself really present THERE.