The story from the Book of Genesis, which furnishes our first reading for today's liturgy, presents us with of that which has become known as Jacob's ladder. While in a dream, Jacob saw a staircase leading from earth to heaven with heavenly messengers using it to ascend and descend as they went about doing God's will. While still in a dream state, Jacob heard God renew the promise to remain with him and his people. As the story continued to unfold, Jacob was renamed Israel, the name by which his descendants are still known.
This ladder or staircase or connection between heaven and earth is recognized in Christianity, Judaism, Islam and many other religions. The cosmology of the Hebrew Scriptures placed God in the heavens or firmament created by God and placed above the earth. This understanding of the universe is the genesis of the notion of a stairway or connection between the two. There are many and various interpretations of its meaning. Those faiths that believe in reincarnation maintain that the messengers descending and ascending the ladder are human souls moving between the two realms. Other faiths record that the messengers represent the Word of God being sent forth from God to bring compassion to the distressed of the earth and returning to God after having completed its task. Native Americans carve totem poles to represent the connection between the earth and the Great Spirit that they revere. Some simply regard the representation as symbolic of the highs and lows, the ups and downs of human life. St. John's Gospel actually references this story in the first chapter of the Gospel. Jesus tells Nathanael that he will come to see angels ascending and descending upon the Son of Man. In the early Church Fathers, the ladder is used to detail the "steps" a soul must take to achieve union with God. All of the various interpretations, however, rely upon the notion that there is an intimate connection between earth and heaven, between God and God's people.
For Christians, the ladder has been replaced by the cross. Like the ladder, the cross stretches up between heaven and earth. Upon the cross, Jesus shed his blood to redeem God's people and so provide them with access to God which was lost by the sin of Adam. Thus the cross became the new ladder, the new connection between God and God's people and a new promise that Jesus would remain with us through the presence of the Spirit in our lives.
As we celebrate the Eucharist this morning, we are mindful that the Eucharist and the cross are inextricably connected, for there would be no Eucharist had not Jesus died for us. Through our reception of the Eucharist, we eat and drink the promise God made to us. We also promise to remain in Him.
Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator