A Soulful Journey

The story says that a traveler from Italy came to the French town of Chartres to see the great church that was being built there.  Arriving at the end of the day, he went to the site just as the workmen were leaving for home.  he asked one man, covered with dust, what he did there. The man replied that he was a stonemason.  He spent his days carving rocks.  Another man, when asked, said he was a glassblower who spent his days making slabs of colored glass.  Still another workman replied that he was a blacksmith who pounded iron for a living. Wandering into the opening gloom of the unfinished edifice, the traveler came upon an older woman, armed with a broom, sweeping up the stone chips and wood shavings and glass shards from the day’s work.  “What are you doing?” he asked. The woman paused, leaning on her broom, and looking up toward the high arches, replied, “Me? I’m building a cathedral for the Glory of Almighty God...

“I recently came across a whimsical anecdote based on the fantasy of a contemporary rabbi.   He dreamed that Hell had burned down and was utterly consumed. "The Celestial Council met in urgent session to decide on a course of action.   There was, of course, the logistical suggestion that another Hell be built.   But one of the angels disagreed.   “As long as there was an Eternal Inferno, it had to be, but it is not right to build a new one.” “But,” said Satan, “we must have a Hell for those who deserve it.   We would undermine the principles of justice otherwise.” "Both protagonists found some support within the Council.   Neither side would yield and an impasse was reached.   Finally, one of the wisest of the group proposed a compromise.   He pointed out another related problem.   Paradise was decrepit and badly in need of repair.   A committee had already =begun plans for a modernized facility.   Therefore, let the old ...