I was recently began reading a daily devotional on male spirituality entitled On The Threshold of Transformation, and on one particular day the reflection was on the search for the Holy Grail.
The hunt of the Holy Grail has been to told and re-told in various cultures for centuries. The story’s appeal hits at the heart of one the deepest desires of all people, that being union with God. The original story has Joseph of Arimathea bringing a cup in which some of the blood of Jesus was saved before he was buried to Britain. The legend flourished in the twelfth through fourteenth centuries and continues even to this day, as the 1989 movie Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade shows. So, what makes this story so alluring?
Modern commentators say that it is a metaphor for our search for God. In many ways this makes perfect sense. For some, they might believe if they only had this or did that, then the answer would come to them and they would be in union with God. Maybe because the people living when the grail stories developed were uneducated, this certainly makes sense. If they could possess or even hold something that was so closely linked to Christ, then an instant transformation would occur and all would be well for them.
For those of us who are Christians today, we don’t need to be on a grail quest. The reasons are simple and Scriptural. Ultimately, the grail is identified with the words of Paul in his letter to the Galatians (2:20), “it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me..” The search for the grail ends with the awareness of Christ dwelling within us.
Isn’t it funny how so many of us are trying to find answers in the latest book, the newest theory, the most popular television show, and yet everything we need in front of us? Better yet, it’s right inside of us. From the moment of our Baptism God dwells within us and we become temples of the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 6:19).
So, if you are going through a tough time right now, trying to find answers to difficult questions, or maybe trying to make a fresh start, remember who you are. Have trust in the fact that God is with you, and that you don’t have to go off chasing the next best thing to find Him. He’s right where He’s always been, and He’s ready to help 🙂
Have you every been on your own search for a Holy Grail? What did you find?
