We have a butterfly growing kit at the Monastery. The Sisters who live on Benet Hall have been witnessing the amazing transformation of painted lady butterflies. Currently we are waiting for the emergence of the butterflies while the caterpillars are in their chrysalis. Looking at them makes you wonder, what’s going on in there?
Scientifically we know that inside the chrysalis, the caterpillar is undergoing metamorphosis, a complete transformation. Most of its body dissolves into a liquid. Specialized cells use this material to construct all the pieces of an adult butterfly. Inside the chrysalis almost like magic wings, legs, antennae, and other organs are formed. This hidden process is mysterious and fascinating!
What goes on inside each of us is also mysterious and fascinating. Day after day we too are undergoing a transformation. This deep, inner transformation is a process of spiritual growth and maturation. This process involves a dismantling of the old self and our inclinations to sin. We go through marked renewals of the mind, the development of qualities like love and empathy, and we grow in wisdom and understanding. We are becoming more Christ-like. It is the mysterious and fascinating work of the Spirit that changes us from the inside out!
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.” – 2 Corinthians 5:17
