We are pilgrims on a journey, a search for meaning. There is a saying that the most difficult steps of any journey are the ones from the threshold to the station. It can be difficult to leave where we are. Yet, on a rainy Saturday morning when it would have been comfortable to stay home, over a thousand fellow pilgrims traveled to Seattle University in Washington, USA, for the School of Theology and Ministry’s third annual book festival, "A Search for Meaning."

As pilgrims we are drawn to the company of fellow travelers. Many were drawn by the names of keynote speakers Anne Lamott and Tariq Ramadan, who promised wisdom and inspiration. The festival’s workshop sessions were just as rich. Each classroom an oasis where seekers were nourished by the diversity, prophecy and resonance of stories shared.

Every author emphasized that we do not search alone. Not only do we have companions on the journey; but the search itself is relational. As humans, we long for something beyond ourselves; while we search, God longs for us. We are encouraged to start the journey from right where we are, by attending to the very sacrament of our lives.

Tariq Ramadan is Professor of Contemporary Islamic Studies at Oxford University

Tariq Ramadan urged us to consider the new we; we being people of faith, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, and seekers of truth. We must learn not only to travel well together, but to shine light on each tradition’s deep commitments through our own practice and to strengthen a common witnessing voice in the face of injustice. To “shape this new we;" we must be willing to take those first steps beyond our own certainties and need to be right. If we are willing to deconstruct the perceptions, assumptions and words we use without critically thinking; we will truly encounter the other. Otherwise, we miss the meaning hidden in each person, each moment, each created step.

As spiritual directors, we accompany others on this search. We help draw attention to the practical, to the incarnate revelations in everyday life. We encourage: “Take a step. Cross your threshold.” As spiritual directors, we also know it is vital to pray for grace. Fr. Mike Raschko, author of To Hunger for God, said grace is the “first word, the last word … the more powerful word.” Anne Lamott simply said, “Grace bats last.” Grace is our true guide and companion. She is the inspiration for each of us who finds the courage to step over our thresholds and search for more. 

Photographs courtesy of Lindsey Wasson. Thank you!

--Marilyn Nash is a spiritual director, a graduate of the School of Theology and Ministry, and currently the Campus Minister for Ignatian Spirituality at Seattle University. She attended the Search for Meaning, Pacific Northwest Book Festival, February 5, 2011.

Please reply with your thoughts and comments.