Notice that word "evolve." What is evolution? Growth and change. Do you and I evolve? All the time. Sr. Ilia Delio, O.S.F., explains, "While I am alive, I am changing and growing from one moment to the next. This is true of both my body and my character, indeed of the whole pattern that is 'me.' The 'I' that exists now, though woven in part from the cloth that was 'me' yesterday, is an evolved person in whom yesterday's 'I' is sublated into the new 'I' of the present moment. My childhood self no longer exists as the child that I was, and yet it lives on in me, partly to make me what I am and partly to experience its own growth through me."
My irrepressible childhood self whispers and giggles to me that my seventy-three year old body is not even a third so much fun any more. But my spirit is very happy because, over the years, it has evolved way beyond what I imagined possible. For example, through the gift of the Holy Spirit, my ideas about "home" and "family" have evolved - astronomically. The same Spirit has helped my husband's ideas evolve in the same direction.
At first, our family home was our house in Cheektowaga, which held the two of us, and then at one point held seven, and now holds only two once again - the two of us who like to go out to eat, in part to recapture that joy of visiting with more than each other. Now, for us, our "family home" is the universe, and our immediate family is everyone on earth. Including every waiter and waitress. Over the years, we've grown to know most of their names. They don't seem to mind being called "dear;" they seem to like being treated as a much-appreciated sister or brother, son or daughter, grand-son or grand-daughter. They've gotten used to one of us running after them to personally hand them their tip so it doesn't get stolen off our table (that happened once, years ago.)
In their coming and going from our table over the years, our waiters and waitresses in our favorite restaurants have shared some of what's happening in their lives, and we've shared some of what's happening in ours. We remember when Tiffany was pregnant; now her child is attending kindergarten. We met James when he was a shy bus boy; now he's a self-confident assistant manager. We hold Lucy's hand, and she weeps a little over her very ill husband, but then sensitive Lucy understood our tears when our son died. Years ago we encouraged one young waitress to have her children receive the Sacraments; now her daughters smile in recognition when we walk in.
Blonde Erika of the corn-flower blue eyes keeps us up to date on her love life. This week, Sean ran over whenever we entered so we could continue our lively discussions about Catholicism - conversations that he's waited to have with someone for fifteen years, he says. At a restaurant in New York City, we heard about young Mohammad's wife and son, and together shared our mutual faith that God - Allah - loves us all because we are created in the Divine Image.
We and our waiter and waitress family have helped each other evolve, change, and grow over the years, because it's relationships that help create who we are. "In and through our relationships we are continuously created," Delio says. In fact, God's "Kingdom" could really be called God's "kin-dom," because, in Christ, we are all "kin" - relatives. Christ, the beating Heart of the ever-expanding, ever-evolving Universe, dances with the pure energy of unconditional Love connecting everyone and everything, urging us all to that final Unity in Love of the entire universe which will be the Final Coming of His Kin-Dom.
Evolution is a concrete reality in our daily lives. Christ is calling us, moment by moment, to evolve into seeing more and more people with his compassionate eyes, to love more and more people with his compassionate heart. We are now his hands and feet, mind and heart, arms and voice, to co-create this ever-evolving universe with him, to help him bring all life into greater and greater unity through the power of love. Imagine what seven billion humans could accomplish if we all loved and respected each other. Imagine! Imagine what would happen if seven billion people loved for, respected, and cared for our mother planet earth. Imagine what would happen if, in every restaurant on earth, those who served and those who sat at tables would speak to and embrace each other in mutual love and respect.
We are less than a dot of consciousness in our universe, yet we are connected organically to all else that is. "Today we know our universe to be ancient, large, dynamic, and interconnected. The universe is about 13.8 billion years old, with a future of billions of years before it. Some scientists estimate that the future age of the universe will be 100 trillion years, although the sun will die out long before then, perhaps six to nine billion years from now. It is a large. universe, stretching light years in diameter, one of many universes that occupy space." (Delio.) We can't even begin to imagine the size and scope of creation; all we can do is bow our heads in awe of Divine Creativity - and the reality that we are each here because God personally chose each of us to exist.
How amazing it is that each one of us is here for this instant of time, and that we have the consciousness to appreciate the universe and ourselves - all the work of God. What's even more amazing is that God depends on us to channel the power of His unifying love so that the universe continues to expand and evolve as it should. And how amazing for me it is that every time my husband and I walk into a restaurant, our personally-loving God is there - in us, in our waiters and waitresses, sitting beside us, listening to us and helping us all continue to create new and deeper relationships of unifying love. Each of our evolving and deepening relationships impact the universe! Every word of understanding and love that we listen to or speak propels our ever-evolving universe into greater and greater unity. THAT is how remarkable your life and mine are in the heart of God!