Bringing Many to Glory
As parishioners are all too aware and as visitors quickly discover, St. Johns is presently tightly ensconced in the midst of a construction zone, and such will continue to be the case for another few years. Since my arrival at the parish back in July of 2025, I have seen both the Ozmun Building and the Damon Parking Ramp vanish from view (though neither vanishing happened in a single moment, to be sure), and now I have the opportunity to watch as new developments unfold nearly each day at these sites. I honestly have no idea what the specific import of these developments are, to be sure, as new equipment and materials arrive and workers toil to put things in place. Perhaps it’s this very ignorance that allows me to marvel at the design that is guiding the whole process, as I look at each step being taken in the building process and realize that each one is a necessary moment in producing the finished buildings, even while I am clueless about precisely how each step moves things closer to the end goal!
As we celebrate the wonder of the Resurrection this Easter Sunday and, moreover, throughout this Easter Season, I find myself comparing this mystery to a work of construction. In each moment of salvation history leading to Christ, and thus on every page of the Old Testament, a step is being taken toward the arrival of the Messiah and the fulfillment of his mission. God is carrying out his project, and it does not reach fruition in one fell swoop. There are moments of joy and exuberance, and there are moments of destruction and devastation. But all of it leads, sometimes overtly and sometimes enigmatically, toward Jesus. In his own story, of course, there is that tremendous moment of pain and ache that comes on Good Friday, after which he himself vanishes from view as he is placed in the tomb. His burial, however, is but one more step toward the ultimate revelation of God’s plan for us that shines forth so exquisitely in the Resurrection.
It is the glorified Christ, the Risen Savior, who manifests for us God’s desire for us: through the twists and turns of our own lives, the Father is leading us toward nothing less than an ever-greater sharing in the glory of the Risen Christ. I include the qualifier “ever-greater” very deliberately, as we already enjoy a share in this glory thanks to our baptism. We have already been plunged into the mystery of Christ’s dying and rising. With each passing day, though, we have the opportunity to let that mystery take deeper hold of us. With each passing day, we can stir up deeper hope in our hearts as we look at the Risen One who shows us our ultimate destiny in God’s design.
The Mayo construction project is impressive, I will readily grant. And I look forward to the day of its completion (for a plethora of reasons). At the moment, though, I am grateful that I am able to witness it as a work-in-progress and use it as a springboard to spur deeper appreciation of God’s great project of “bringing many sons to glory” (Heb 2:10), that very glory that shines forth for us in the marvel of the Resurrection.
