Discernment as "Being Seen"
"I am struck by the way Jesus 'saw' Nathanael under the tree in the Gospel of John. Even before meeting him, Jesus said of Nathanael: 'Here is truly an Israelite in whom there is no deceit!' When the two men met on the road, Nathanael asked Jesus with amazement: 'How do you know me?' Jesus answered him, 'Before Philip called you, when you were under the fig tree, I saw you.' Jesus's seeing through Nathanael under the fig tree was such a powerful act of discerning what was in his heart that it caused Nathanael to proclaim: 'Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!' To which Jesus remarked, 'You believe this because I told you I saw you under the fig tree? You will see greater things than these. . . You will see heaven opened, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man (John 1:47-51)
This wonderful story about seeing through to the heart of things raises a deeper question: Do I want to be fully seen by Jesus? Do I want to be known by him? If I do, then a faith can grow that will open my eyes to heaven and reveal Jesus as the Son of God. I will see great things when I am willing to be seen. I will receive new eyes that can see the mysteries of God's own life, but only when I allow God to see me, all of me, even those parts that I myself do not want to see."
(Henri Nouwen, on "Embracing the Practice in Solitude and Community" in Discernment, New York: NY, HarperOne, 2013, 7)
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