Of webs and walls--a sermon preached at Saint Columba's Church on the Isle of Skye on Saint Columba's day--June 9, 2007
(for Natalie, the patient and persistent!)

During World War II, the story is told of a fighter pilot who was forced to eject from his plane while flying behind enemy lines. While he landed safely, he knew that he would be most certainly be spotted and sought by the Nazi forces. He eagerly looked for a place to hide and could only find a very shallow cave. Being a faithful man, he prayed for God to keep him safe. As he opened his eyes after his prayer, he noticed that a spider had begun to weave a web over the opening to the cave. He was disheartened that he would soon be found and imprisoned. Sure enough, in short order he perceived the advance of the enemy soldiers who were seeking him. When they came to cave, the pilot heard one soldier say to the other that they did not need to search the cave, because the spider web covering entrance clearly indicated that no one could have recently entered. The pilot breathed a sigh of relief as he realized that God had indeed answered his prayer and kept him safe.

I share this story with you this morning as we contemplate the Gospel reading from Luke because it reminds us of the human tendency to sometimes miss what is right before our eyes. We can see, without really seeing what is important. Just as the soldier saw only one way for his prayer to be answered, so the seventy in the Gospel could only focus on their own expectations and in so doing missed what Jesus was trying to teach them.

In the Gospel, the seventy have returned after Jesus has sent them out. They are amazed at what they have been able to accomplish and the power that Jesus’ name has over demons. They are overly impressed with this tangible display of might—but have missed the real power before them.

You see, from Jesus’ perspective, they are missing the point. He tries to set for them a larger context and open them to a fuller spiritual reality. He reminds them he has seen even greater things accomplished in the Glory of God’s Creation. What is more important; what is worth rejoicing about is to have your name written in heaven—that is to be in relationship with God.

Today we also remember the great Celtic Saint, Columba. In the sixth century, it seems that Columba was involved in a scheme to posses a rare copy of a book. Somehow, one of his closest friends in the monastery lost his life in the process and Columba willingly went into exile. Yet his exile was also a pilgrimage—a journey undertaken for the stated purpose of drawing closer to God. This was the foundation of his ministry and it would be the goal that would occupy the rest of his life.

He chose to come with his twelve companions to the coast of Scotland and while he was not the first Irish missionary to arrive on these shores, he was the most successful of all of his predecessors. Columba used a different approach that had eluded his predecessors. He established his ministry by building relationships with the indigenous Picts. He traded with them, ate with them, lived with them day in and day out. In time, he came to carry not only the Good News of Jesus Christ, but also their trust. They came into his community because of the web of relationships and connections he had built with them and they received the Gospel.

Columba understood the power of relationship. He grasped the message that Jesus was trying to convey to the seventy—it is not so much about what you are able to do, it is more about how you can connect—to God in Jesus Christ; and to each other as the body of Christ. In our pilgrimage through life, we also are on a journey of drawing nearer to God. We may go many places and see many wonderful things: we may go out into the unknown or fall behind enemy lines; we may set off and find only the routines of daily life—yet it is not about the things we do—it is about how we find and see Christ in each other and build relationships and connections. God will always provide what we need—and we may still miss it sometimes—but that is never the end of the story. We must strive always to rest in the love of God as we pray and seek the webs of connection to God in heaven above, and to each other as the Body of Christ.