Fr. Dale Matson
Mt. Jordan Behind Reflection Lake Kings Canyon National Park
“One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold
the beauty of the LORD and to
meditate in His temple.” Psalms 27:4 (NASB)
Benedict Groeschel, OFM Cap.
(Priest, Psychologist and Friar) maintains that most of us seek God in one
of four ways (Spiritual Passages: The Psychology of Spiritual Development,
1993 Crossroad, N.Y.). He used the saints of the church as examples to
illustrate his point. The call of St. Catherine of Genoa was to Unity, St. Francis saw God as the Good, St. Thomas Aquinas saw God as True. St Augustine saw God as Beauty.
St. Augustine had the following to say about beauty. “But
what is it that I love when I love you? Not the beauty of any bodily
thing, nor the order of
any seasons, not
the brightness of light that rejoices
the eye, nor
the sweet melodies
of all songs, nor
the sweet fragrance of
flowers and ointments and
spices; not manna or
honey, not the limbs that carnal love embraces. None of these things do
I love in loving my God. Yet in a sense I
do love
light and melody
and fragrance and food and
embrace when I love my God - the
light and the voice and the
fragrance and the food
and embrace of the
soul. When that light shines upon my soul which no place can contain, that
voice which no time can take from me, I breathe that fragrance which no wind
scatters, I eat the food which is not lessened by eating, and I lie in the
embrace which satiety never comes to sunder. This it is that I love, when I
love my God.
Late have I loved Thee, O Beauty so ancient and so new; late
have I loved Thee! For behold Thou wert within me, and I outside; and I sought
Thee outside and in my unloveliness fell
upon those lovely things that Thou hast
made. Thou wert with me and I was not with Thee. I was kept from
Thee by those things, yet
had they
not been in Thee, they would not
have been at all. Thou didst call and
cry to me and break open
my deafness; and Thou didst send
forth Thy beams and shine
upon me and chase
away my blindness; Thou didst
breathe fragrance upon me, and I
drew in
my breath and do now
pant for Thee; I tasted Thee and
now hunger and thirst for Thee. Thou didst touch me, and I have
burned for Thy peace.” Confessions
East Lake With Mt. Brewer Center Left
Kings Canyon National Park
These mountain places are where I fellowship with God too
for it was He who made these things and us also. It can at times be as intimate an occasion
for me as when I proclaim the words of the Great Thanksgiving during the Holy
Eucharist.
3 comments:
Be open to the beauty, be thankful for the experience, and praise God who created it all.
THE AUTHORITY OF GOD? BY STEVE FINNELL
Where is God's authority recorded? Most denominations who use creed books AKA denominational church catechisms, use those creed books as the final authority for faith and practice.
The question is, if church creed books are used as the authoritative book, why read the Bible? The ironic thing about churches who use creed books is, they try to use the Bible to support their denominational creeds.
If creed books are used as the rules for faith and practice, then referencing the Bible rings hollow.
There is not one denomination that has written one verse of the Bible. Denominations write creed books. God does not write creed books.
John 14:23 Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word: and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.
Jesus did not say if anyone loves Me, he will keep the words of the church catechism.
1 John 1:4-6 .....as we received command from the Father......6 This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment , that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it.
We are told to walk according to the commandments of God. There is no commandment that says to walk according to church creed books nor new books of revelation written by men.
If your church catechism AKA creed book, or your so-call book of new revelation contradicts doctrine that is found in the Bible, then one of two things is true. 1. The Bible is in error and therefore cannot be trusted for faith and practice. 2. Your creed book or book of new revelation is in error and cannot be trusted as God's message to mankind.
YOU CAN USE THE BIBLE AS GOD'S AUTHORITY OR YOU CAN USE MAN-MADE EXTRA-BIBLICAL SOURCES.
YOU CANNOT USE BOTH!
(Scripture from; NKJV)
YOU ARE INVITED TO FOLLOW MY BLOG. http://steve-finnell.blogspot.com
Steve,
Thanks for the post. Anglicans do use creeds and the creeds were based on Scripture. For example the Athanasian Creed which deals with the Trinity is based on Scripture but nowhere in Scripture does the word Trinity appear.
Although there are Creeds included in our catechism, I would not call our catechism a "creed book." It is not a case of using Scripture or "man made extra biblical sources. Anglicans see Scripture as the primary means but recognise Tradition and Reason too. Remember, it was the church that decided what writings would be included in the canon of Scripture. We are not "extra biblical".
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