by Sr. Triona Harvey MMM               Ireland          19.02.2021

First published in 1986

Many writers have tried to describe what life and death mean to them. When writing about death, a pilot once said that, for him, the idea of going to heaven was not one of “going up to heaven”, he argued that as he piloted his plane off the runway into the air, his feelings were usually linked with he fact that he was leaving behind family, friends, or loved ones. However, when he was guiding a plane down after the journey, his mind and heart were full of expectancy, as he awaited the encounter of the undercarriage with the ground. He knew that friends and loved ones would be there. It was always good to come down after the journey. It seemed that the earth itself rose silently to meet the plane. The lights, noise and bustle of the airport were all symbols of a great encounter. For him, going to heaven would be like this, but even greater. He would be coming down to heaven, not any longer to symbols of encounter, but to the ultimate and transcending encounter of creature with creator, of a human being with God.
Going up and coming down are experiences full of meaning for missionaries, just as they are for the pilot in the story. As the plane rises into the air, they are sad at leaving behind those with whom they have shared relationships, spiritual, cultural and social interactions. These bonds of attachment are strong, and going up is not without its moments when the pain of separation is felt and expressed.
However, the experience is not a negative one. The pain involved indicates a beginning; departure soon becomes arrival and new birth takes place as the missionary steps forward. Feelings of separation subside as anticipation increases. Although the plane may alight in an unknown land, ‘coming down’ brings with it the challenge of new experiences. Others will be there to meet and greet the new arrival, and together they will go forward to participate in unique encounters of love and relatedness.
Routine tasks must be carried out. The newly arrived missionary must collect luggage, check through customs, and have a neat stamp placed in a passport. Luggage and a passport, in a way, are the items which act as the remaining links with the place of departure. Occasionally, it is not until the last bar of soap, carefully packed in the luggage, has disappeared that the ties with the place of departure are relaxed.
The change in geographical location of the missionary only takes a few hours from departure to arrival. However, the missionary involves the transmission of the Word, the purpose for which one departs. As the home bonds are relaxed, the missionary is free not only to reach our, but to experience the reaching in of another. In the depth of this inter-relation the purpose of mission is achieved, and the Word is mutually expressed. The moment of manifestation is acknowledged, obstacles are overcome, the message is given and received, contemplated and affirmed. The experience of Mary and Elizabeth at the Visitation is relived.