It is easy to be in awe of Notre Dame, St. Paul's Cathedral, King's College Chapel, Westminster Abbey, or National Cathedral. Not only the magnificent architecture and the overwhelming scale of such places take our breath away, but the exquisite acoustics of incredible musicians and choirs leave us in awe. However, perhaps we should pay attention to the small, the handmade, the humble. Sometimes it is in these places of most humble origins that the most awe-inspiring takes place.
I was fortunate to spend Christmas Eve in a teeny, tiny Church in the woods. The entire Church was constructed in the 19th century and is Southern pine from the roof rafters to the creaking floor. There is no choir. There are four people on staff: the Rector, the Assistant, the Housekeeper who is married to the Groundskeeper. But the site and the service were awe-inspiring. As the wind howled and the rain pelted the simple windows, the Church glowed with candlelight. Fresh greens cut from the nearby forest decorated the Church in simple boughs. But as voices filled the Church, I was again reminded that it is not the latest gadgets or sophisticated interiors or extravagant decorations that make us in awe of a place. It is the people inside it, and what those people inspire us to feel.
I hope that wherever you are this holiday season, you are surrounded with beauty that inspires awe. I hope that nothing ever takes your breath away like the majesty of a mountain, or the power of the ocean rolling. I hope that your holidays are filled with simplicity, gratitude, and peace. Merry Christmas.
St. Andrews from the Cathedral
Posts
