There was a beautiful story told about a great king and his Palace. His palace was magnificent and luxurious with the excitement of special guests arriving from all over the world. One day there arrived among the many guests a Spiritual Master (Guru). So, the servants quickly brought the man into the presence of the king. The king at once recognized the Guru and welcomed him happily to his beautifully decorated palace. Sitting down in reverence, the king asked very politely, “How can I help you, sir?” or “What can I do for you, sir?” Immediately the Guru said, “I want to stay the night in this inn, please.”

The king said, “This is not an inn but it is my own Castle.” So, the Guru asked the king, “Who was the owner of this place before you?” The king said, “It was my father, who else?” The guru asked where he is now, and the king said he died a few years back and he is gone from here.

After a moment of silence, the guru said, “Who owned this palace before your father?” The king said, “It was owned by his father, of course.” “Where is he now?” the guru asked. The king said, “He is long ago gone from this palace.”

“So according to what you have said, all those who stayed here stayed only for a short period of time. After that they all continued to travel somewhere else. Then this palace is nothing but an inn! Am I right?” asked the guru. The king had no answer for that.

“It is the temporary residence of a passer-by; a night in an inn” Marcus Aurelius said once. He was a Roman Emperor and a philosopher. When people have power and wealth in life, they think that this world is a permanent place for them. They forget that their earthly life leads to eternity. The Bible says that our citizenship is in Heaven (Phil 3:20). That is, heaven is our real home and eternal city. That is where we will live forever. We will live with God. This world is only an inn, or in other words, only a passing-by place. No human beings here stay in this world forever. When the time comes, they will leave this place to go to the other world.

So, therefore, learn how we can gather blessings from this world to go to heaven. When we share our things of this world with others, or share them with the poor, the needy, and the unwanted, then we will have blessings from heaven. Those are the resources to get into heaven. Sharing, compassion and caring are the ways to get into the heaven that Jesus promises to us. Strive hard for that always.

Love and Prayers

Fr. Charley