“The messiah is among you”

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Today’s readings about the qualities of wisdom as found in the book of Wisdom 7:22-8:1 and the gospel reading from Luke 17:20-25 about Jesus telling the Pharisees that “the Kingdom of God is among you” remind me of an old story about a monastery that had fallen on hard times. There were only five monks left, all them over 70, and it seemed clear that the order was dying. Deep in the woods near the monastery lived a Rabbi in a little hut. It occurred to the Abbot that he should visit the Rabbi and seek his advice. The Abbot opened up to the Rabbi about how no one came to the monastery anymore because the monks were old and found it difficult to get on with each other and the atmosphere was no longer hospitable or friendly. As he was leaving, the Abbot turned to the Rabbi and asked if he had any advice as to how he might save the monastery. The Rabbi turned to Abbot and simply said, “The messiah is among you”. So the Abbot returned to the monastery, disappointed with what he thought was useless advice. The next day, at breakfast, his brother monks were eager to learn from the Abbot what advice he had been given by the Rabbi. The Abbot replied, “All the Rabbi said was, ‘The messiah is among you’.” Remarkably over the next few weeks, a transformation began to take place within the monastery. Each of the monks began to ponder, “Who among us is the messiah? Could it be the grumpy cook or the slow gardener or the miserable prayer leader?” As a result, they began to be very careful how they treated each other in the belief that one of them must be the messiah. The atmosphere changed and the people in the village noticed the transformation and began to visit the monstery again and discover that it was a place where they could encounter God among people who really cared for each other. Even young people were attracted to a community that had come alive again. So bear in mind the words of Jesus, “The kingdom of God is among you”. Be kind to one another and treat one another with respect because “the messiah is among you”. It may mean that others will notice and feel attracted to find out what’s the secret.