Finding home

A resurrection story:
His name was Guerino and he was a man returned from the land of the dead.

My father, George Merlo, in the fields,
circa 1946

My father was about 16 years old when Guerino returned. He recalls the day clearly. They were working in the fields when they heard the news.

“E vero?” (“Is it true?”) “Sei sicuro”? (“Are you sure?”) Everyone was asking. No one could believe it.

“Si! Si!”

“Non sbagli?” (“You’re joking?”)

“No, no. E vero.”

And then, the church bells pealed joyfully. It was indeed true! Like a man resurrected, Guerino was back alive!

Within 30 minutes, the entire village of about 2000 had gathered in the yard to verify this unexpected miracle, this modern day resurrection from the dead.

It was 1948, five years since the Russians had captured Guerino and imprisoned him in a Siberian gulag. Of the 54,400 Italians imprisoned there, only 10,085 survived.

Guerino had managed to escape. For three years, he walked through the countryside of Russia and Soviet occupied Eastern Europe towards his home in Italy. He was the only one from his village to return.

Guerino’s story is a resurrection story. It is the experience of moving from death to new life. The story testifies to the power of human love, experienced as home. Home was imprinted on Guerino and felt deep within his heart.

Separated from home, from love and compassion, Guerino resided with suffering and deprivation. To escape was dangerous, but to remain was deadly.

Journeying towards home, Guerino may have become lost. The human longing for affection may have tempted him to linger indefinitely where he encountered kindness. Always, the memory of home made him restless and urged him onwards.

The spiritual journey:

Guerino’s journey has parallels with the spiritual journey. Home is the divine imprint on the soul, drawing us towards God.

We lose our way on the journey. We try to escape our current situation, relentlessly pursuing pleasure, fame and fortune. But once attained, these fail to satisfy our deepest longings.

We want to linger indefinitely in our comfort zones, but something propels us forward. We look for ways to transform our present realities.

For Guerino, a new phase of his journey began the moment he arrived home. Returned from the dead, Guerino had to learn to live. He had to integrate the past with his resurrected life.

Cover from The Confessions,
translated by Maria Boulding, OSB.

The spiritual journey teaches us how to live. It integrates the limitations of human existence with the limitlessness of divine love. The spiritual impetus that kindles restlessness urges us towards resurrection, the experience of new life.

Saint Augustine, who wrote one of the greatest accounts of a spiritual journey in the Christian tradition, describes restlessness in The Confessions. Speaking to God, he writes, “You stir us so that praising you may bring us joy, because you have made us and drawn us to yourself, and our heart is unquiet until it rests in you.” 

The heart that finds God finds new life; it has overcome separation and found home.

Note: Quotation from The Confessions, 1.1, translated by Maria Boulding, OSB, New City Press, 1997. I heartily recommend this translation.

Resurrection

Transformed in the tomb
Searching for treasure: An Easter morning tradition

Easter brunch at Nana’s was a big event in the life of our children and their cousins. It was the site of a traditional egg hunt. After everyone had a basket full of chocolates, gleaned from numerous outdoor locations, Grandpa would gather the children and read a little poem. The poem held the clue to the location of the treasure, a gold mesh bag of chocolate nuggets.

I remember one Easter in particular. Our daughter, about 4 years old, stood very quietly, listening attentively. Grandpa finished reading the poem and the boys dashed off. Our daughter remained still until she had solved the puzzle.

As she was on her way to retrieve the treasure, one of her older cousins, observing her movements, outran her, triumphantly grasped the treasure and exclaimed, “I found it!’ He ran off, the cousins (all boys) in pursuit, to show us. Our daughter remained at the spot, crying.

Even though the treasure would eventually be shared out, the hunt created tension. Who would be smart enough, fast enough and wily enough to get to the treasure first?

Our daughter held in tension the elements required to successfully discover the treasure’s location. She was able to sit with the mystery of the puzzle to unravel its meaning, whereas enthusiasm powered the boys as they ran all about.

The first Easter morning: John 20: 1-18
Tension characterizes the dawn of the first Easter morning.

In John’s Gospel, Mary of Magdala goes to the tomb of the crucified Jesus and finds it empty. Afraid that someone has stolen the body, she runs to find Peter. 

Together with Mary, Peter and another disciple run back to the tomb.

 Peter and John Running to the Tomb (1898)
Eugene Burnand
Musee d'Orsay, Paris

The two male disciples enter the empty tomb, notice the discarded burial cloths and run off, leaving Mary alone.

The male disciples, like little boys searching for treasure, are in a hurry. They are unable to be still in the presence of the mystery confronting them. Peter discovers the treasure but does not fully grasp its meaning before running off to share the news with the others.

Mary Magdalene (1535-1540)
Giovanni Girolamo Savoldo
 National Gallery

Mary, however, holds her grief, fears, confusion and hope in tension. She remains weeping at the tomb. She is prepared to wait, to inquire and to discover. And so, Mary is the first to enter deeply into the mystery and presence of the risen Jesus.

Weeping at the tomb: a universal experience

There are times when life leaves us weeping at the tomb. Disappointment, humiliation, illness, suffering and loss can take us into the darkness of the tomb. Anger, shame, grief and sorrow are the burial cloths that obscure our vision. Slowly, we emerge from the pain of our personal crucifixions to re-experience the joy of living.

In the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus, we see the pattern of human experience, the cycle of mini deaths and resurrections that transform us.

The resurrection is not only a future hope we hold in our hearts. We experience resurrection now. Out of our bleakest experiences we emerge with a treasure, nuggets of wisdom forged in the darkness to illuminate our rising.

May your Easter be blessed with the joy of transformation. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!