Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the wilderness and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. – Exodus 3:1

Today's Scripture Reading (September 20, 2021): Exodus 3

It is an Island off of the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. The island has a long history. It was the site of an important monastery during the Early Middle Ages. The monastery was founded by Colm Cille, an Irishman who had been exiled from his homeland in the middle years of the sixth century (500s). The island is called Iona.  Physically, Iona is part of the Inner Hebrides. But spiritually, it is thought to occupy a "thin place," a spot where the things of heaven come in contact with the things of the earth.

I have always been intrigued by "thin places" like Iona. It was the Celtic saints who first began to speak of these "thin places." They told stories of particular spots, like Iona, where there seemed to be almost no barrier between heaven and earth. It was a Spiritual portal or an ancient well. These are places where the air is "thin" and where God is easily found.

The Bible mentions several of these "thin places" within its pages.  Jacob found a "thin place" at Bethel. It was at Bethel that he had a dream.

He had a dream in which he saw a stairway resting on the earth, with its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God were ascending and descending on it. There above it stood the Lord, and he said: "I am the Lord, the God of your father Abraham and the God of Isaac. I will give you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread out to the west and to the east, to the north and to the south. All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your offspring. I am with you and will watch over you wherever you go, and I will bring you back to this land. I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you" (Genesis 28:12-15).

Jacob named the place Bethel, which means "House of God." And years later, he would return to this thin place and build an altar.

Moses found another "thin place" on Mount Horeb. The comment in Exodus that it was the mountain of God is likely a later addition, but it is a recognition that Mount Horeb occupied a "thin place." Moses didn't go there with his sheep because it was God's Mountain. It was just a mountain. But on Mount Horeb, God met with Moses when he appeared to Moses and spoke to him from within a burning bush. Moses would return to Mount Horeb, which we also know of as Mount Sinai, and there he would meet with God and receive the Ten Commandments.

Centuries later, Elijah would find his way to Mount Horeb in despair. There he would spend a night in a cave. And there, he would meet with God.

"Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass  by."

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave.

Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah" (1 Kings 19:11-13)?

Mount Horeb was a "thin place" that Moses stumbled on by accident. And my hope is that we will all stumble onto ours.

Tomorrow's Scripture Reading: Exodus 4