Places vs. moments

On another blog page I read about thin places vs. thin moments.  If you recall, thin places are a description of where those in Celtic spirituality believe that heaven and earth meet.  They believe them to be physical places, which can be identified and visited.  One author differentiated between thin places and thin moments.  Thin moments are places in time that a real, physical presence of God is or has been felt.  Since reading about that distinction I have been pondering if there is a difference or not.

As I go on this journey, I am struck by the fact that I don’t know that I believe in “thin places.”  Or rather, that there are a distinct number of places that are thin, versus those that are not as thin.  I feel what makes the Isle of Iona a thin place is perhaps not so much the unique and ancient Christian history here, or the fact that it is so remote, but that while here you are removed from the everyday distractions that keep you from seeing, feeling, experiencing the thinness of the place you are in.  That is not to take anything away from the island, or the community, certainly not.  Indeed, it provides you the opportunity to become aware of God in the most common of places.  In the kitchen we are joined everyday by guests that help chop vegetables.  This week that has included a man from New Zealand, a young woman from Scwazcatuwan, an older woman from South England, and an 87 year old nun who taught Nelson Mandela’s children, and if you didn’t pay close attention you would miss the thin place of the kitchen. 

If you work on the assumption that the entire world is a thin place, then it is the thin moments we need to become aware of.  And often we miss thin moments because we are too busy and don’t take the time