Upfront August 15, 2011 Issue

Spiritual uplift

Jeff Ward-Bailey, Staff Editor

I’m not sure I’ve ever felt more uplifted than I did at the top of El Yunque.

The mountain, which sits in a rainforest in Puerto Rico, isn’t particularly tall as mountains go (although it’s one of the island’s highest), but a few years ago I spent all day scrambling up its slope with a small group of friends, slipping on the narrow, muddy trail and sweating in the tropical heat. On the summit we were rewarded with a commanding view of the valley and a heady sense of accomplishment at having made it to the top. The view also reminded me of an important spiritual lesson: Our perseverance in prayer always opens us up to clearer ideas and understanding, to more expansive spiritual vistas.

This issue takes a look at “mountaintop prayer,” which might be defined as the sense of spiritual elevation that comes from communion with God. Our authors share how they discovered this uplift through praying about physical challenges, about relationship difficulties, and—in a few cases—about climbing physical mountains! In our cover section, Chet Manchester shares a time he gained new perspective atop a mountain peak, and concludes: “Isn’t this what happens at the summit of our prayers? We see what the five senses have obscured: the presence of God’s all-encompassing goodness and love, the panoramic substance of spiritual reality” (p. 17).

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