The iconic story of Goldilocks and the Three Bears has long been a children’s favorite. It has been interpreted from many points of view including psychoanalytically. These esoteric interpretations seem to me to be way too fussy.
What is most striking about the tale is the law of three: three bears, three chairs, three bowls of porridge, etc. I have long been advised and have so advised others to never have more than three clear points in mind when giving a talk, a sermon, or telling a story. But, this advice has deeper import than that.
In life, isn’t it true that so often the middle path is the best one. It is wise to test the limits either side of a position and then find the fulcrum or balance point that feels “ just right”: not so much this way or the other.
In Christianity, the Law of Three rises to central significance: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. It is interesting that the first and the last Persons of the Trinity are more theologically abstract. It is in the person of Jesus that the defining attributes of the divine are enfleshed, made manifest, and profoundly personal.
The “ Imago dei” refers to the first calling of God to humanity- the emanation of Love from which we are fashioned. It is the Incarnate Word, the Word made flesh, that is the essence of who we are and what we are in God’s time.
The Lord said, “ it was Good” or, as Goldilocks herself expressed it, “just right”!
© The Harried Mystic, 2019 and Br. Anton, TSSF. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission from this blog’s author and/or owner is strictly prohibited.
The Harried Mystic 