In life, we know there is a distinction between what an author writes and who that author is as a person. One has only to meet an author to realize this. No matter how good the writing, it can never a substitute for the real thing. At best, it only hints.
It is the same for our spiritual life. We can read and even memorize scripture. But it can only bring us knowledge of Jesus. To really know him we must experience him by personal encounter through meditation and contemplation. Erasmo Leiva-Merikakis writes The written Word, even when profoundly meditated upon, can at best bring us to the threshold of the living person of Jesus. Nothing can substitute for this personal encounter, this merging of the horizons of the person of Jesus with my own, this convergence of my and our existence with his, here and now.
How do we experience this personal encounter? By practicing metanoia, turning to the Divine repeatedly, seeking, searching, yearning. When we turn our thoughts toward treasured unseen, we open the door to a relationship that goes beyond the veil. In silence, we hear the voice of inspiration, of invitation. As we continue to turn, we enter into a conversation with the Divine, and we eventually experience that wondrous encounter. For the spirit is not as far away as we formerly thought
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