within your gates, Jerusalem. (Psalms 122:2 NABRE)
Jerusalem, the spiritual center of so much of God's plan on earth, was made a pilgrimage destination in the Jewish law* before it was even established as a city. Psalm 122 is a song sung by pilgrims obeying the law.* The song celebrates the pilgrims' arrival in Jerusalem to give thanks to God and to pray for peace.
For the Christian, Jerusalem is also a symbolic destination. We are pilgrims on a faith journey during this life. We can even experience the excited anticipation of arrival in the promised kingdom of God, the new Jerusalem we learn about in the book of Revelation (See Revelation 3:12, 21:2 and 21:9).
Lord Jesus, thank you for the gift of your mercy. Thank you for your plan of salvation. Thank you for giving each of us a path to walk and a guide so that we might reach the new Jerusalem as pilgrims, so that we might rejoice in your company and sing with you in your kingdom.
Today, I will imagine the great joy of the arriving pilgrim and I will live humbly as a traveller on the way.
Saint Gertrude the Great, who reminds us that prayer is the heart of the Christian life, pray for us.
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