It Does It For Me

We are all wonderfully and fitfully made creatures. Biology has never been an enemy of faith for me. The more I learn about how amazingly complex human bodies are, how incredibly complex every creature is, how fascinatingly mountains and river systems are, the more I accept the notion of an all wise creator. As some one suggested, "To believe that this amazing universe happened by chance from a big explosion is as believable as to believe that the Encyclopedia Britannica would be printed by an explosion in a print shop."

We humans are so amazing and so diverse. I think that is what makes People Watching one of the great activities for so many people. You can sit in the Mall and just be amazed at the differences in people. Tall, fat, lopsided, big ears, big hair, lots of tattoos, bushy eyebrows, and on and on, with no two looking the same.

Because we are so different it is not a surprise that we all have different ways of finding and responding to the Holy Deep, to the Mysterium Tremendous, to God, to the Wholly Other, to the Ultimate. Some people are touched by magnificent music. Some people want to sit in silence and be alone with the Alone. Some people become awaken by one of the special gifts of humans. Someone sent me a piece about the incredible gift of colors. We would see and some do live in black and white. Life would be possible without colors, but they are a great gift of joy and beauty. I remember a man who prayed and gave thanks for the taste of food because we would eat to survive even if food had no taste. But boy are we glad that foods taste different

One of the places that is constantly reminds me of the wonder of creation and forces me out of the temptation to narrow and make God small is the annual trip to the Beach. The Ocean has a way of reminding me about the vastness of creation and life. One of my first amazements was how in the world can we human people create enough garage to pollute that vast ocean. It looks so huge. The Ocean and the power of the waves drives home a lesson about how small and insignificant I am. The steady beat of the waves reminds me of what G.K. Chesterton said about God and our powers. Chesterton said when we play with our children and toss them up and they laugh and cry "Do it again!" We do it again until we become exhausted and have to stop. God does not get tired. Each day, Chesterton suggested, God says to the Sun, Do it again. And I think he says to the waves, Do it again. Do it again. Do it again.

Each of us is different and have our own places and our own times for meditation and worship. These private moments have to be brought to the community and shared at some point or we can drift into heresies and private religions. But the Ocean is always a good place for me to get a perspective on life. To jump start my theology. It does it for me.