Monday, January 26, 2009

I'm Not Alone

Sometimes I wonder whether I am alone in my uncertainty and blindness.  Then I read things like this:

"And do thou, O Lord my God, teach my heart where and how to seek thee, where and how to find thee. Lord, if thou art not here, where shall I seek thee who art absent? But if thou art everywhere, why do I not see thee who art present?"

"O Lord, thou art my God and thou art my Lord, and I have never seen thee. Thou hast made me and remade me, and thou hat bestowed on me all the good things I possess, and still I do not know thee. Finally, I was made in order to see thee, and I have not yet done that for which I was made."

- Anselm of Canterbury, An Address, from A Scholastic Miscellany pp 69-70, trans. and ed. by E. Fairweather

It feels good to have some company.

2 comments:

  1. What if Anselm has come to know God more in the way that God would want him to know Him as opposed to Anselm being at the controls in the relationship? And, what if this is the case with each and every one of us?

    I am beginning to recognize that my idea of how God should reveal Himself to me could be very different from what He may actually be doing. If God is perfectly loving and His good purposes surpass ours, perhaps the way He has preferred to reveal Himself has more to do with His desire to conform our spirits into His likeness morally? So our primary focus might ought to be directed within the deepest part of ourselves through our consciences and all that might entail in our whole personhood in terms of what it means to be most fully human constitutionally-speaking, as opposed to our less important focus on empirical or purely rational conceptualization of data.

    Thinking in such a way, uncertainty becomes a little more acceptable to us humans, especially if God has approaches to us that are more fitting toward His goals which may be focused more toward our reconciliation to Himself as opposed to our expectations which may not even come close to lining up with His (which would be grounded in His infinite wisdom).

    I realize that I am probably assuming a lot here, but I am also aware of the fact that I have my own perspective and I should also be respectful of others who may not see things the way I do. Is it even feasible to presume that we'll ever be able to avoid perspectivism in our current state of being, and then to suppose that an all-wise God would reject our efforts in seeking after Him?

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  2. I like the way you think.

    It seems to me that the sort of perspectivism you describe is pretty much unavoidable, and I would hope that our God would not fault us for our imperfect efforts.

    I know you've mentioned it before, but for some reason the idea of being transformed by God as a means to knowledge of/relationship with God really strikes a chord with me this time. It's a beautiful connection between seeking God and living ethically. The possibility that those two things may be wrapped up in the package of reconciliation sounds wonderful.

    You've given me a few new things to ponder....

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Let me know what you think....