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6 February 2024

 

The Mystery Of Goodness

We live comfortably, usually in safe environs, with little to invade “our space” except the distractions we choose. We have created an impressive array of distractions: the oft-inane blare of television, the engrossing vacuity of cell-phonitis, the brief delights of socializing, quickly-forgotten sporting events, the daily parade of political theatrics.

As a neighbor recently said, “Happiness is but a channel away…” Yet the manner of “happiness” which these diversions provide is gossamer, fleeting, not what we are destined for. See this link:
How Happiness Studies Lets Us Down - First Things

Given our national penchant for diversion, most of us pay little attention to the Miraculous Universe in which we live and breathe and exist. Occasionally we see videos of a random planet shooting across the sky in its last flaming gasp of existence. We hear of black holes a million times larger than our Sun, whirling at the center of galaxies … but we pay little heed. Why should we?

It's A Really Big Cosmos, Eh ?

After all, we have work to do, expenses to meet, kids to raise, in-laws to cope with, taxes to fret. Why worry about issues far removed from our daily cares? After all, the Universe is incomprehensibly vast and mind-boggling, so it is logical that the Mystery of Creation is the last item on our list of stuff to be concerned about.

Occasionally, a personal tragedy (e.g., loss of a loved one) reminds us of truths we’d rather avoid, such as our essential fragility on this Earth and the sobering thought that, despite our achievements, we are not really in charge of most events in our lives. Mystery hovers benignly.

Some people find these humbling truths disturbing; they seek distractions and avoid facing the fact that our state of dependence on Earth is a “given,“ intended to keep us gratefully aware of (1) the Miracle of our own lives, and (2) the Mystery of Creation, of which we are part.

The Miracle Of Creation

In fact, we are enveloped in Mystery every instant of our lives … a Divine Mystery which tells us we exist in a truly miraculous Universe. For example, in addition to Earth, there are other planets in our solar system. But our solar system is one of billions in our Milky Way galaxy … and billions of galaxies also exist. In fact, NASA soon launches SPHEREX, its latest attempt to bring coherence to the Miracle of Creation. Here’s the link:
Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer | NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)

Another example: Among the billions of galaxies which exist, the closest to our Milky Way galaxy is the Virgo Cluster (about 40-70 million light years from Earth, give-or-take a light year or two). The Virgo Cluster contains billions of galaxies. Obviously, the number of star-suns in the Virgo Cluster is another cosmic incalculable.

The Milky Way and the Virgo Cluster are two of billions of galaxies out there. Even if we could count the star-suns in only one these galaxies, and then count the number of planets therein, and then measure their chemical make-up, and then chart their evolution through endless time, we would still face the same humbling questions:

• Where did these miraculous realities come from?


• What purpose does all this Mystery serve?


• What - or Who - is behind all this?

We study the “What” of Creation, the countless “givens,” but we stumble badly when we deny the “Who” of it all and hide from the real reasons why we are here on Earth.

The Clarity Of Mystery

When we study life’s Mysteries, Common Sense reveals that human reason by itself cannot possibly offer answers to questions such as “What’s the point of life, of the Mystery of Creation, of the Miraculous Universe.”

Tidy answers escape our logic, so some people approach these Mysteries impatiently, at times with ruthless intolerance, angry that tidy logic does not satisfy. In haste for closure, they often act as if they are immune from the laws and limits established by our Creator. Conceit replaces Humility. Truth is stifled. 

Nevertheless, the fact is that we are born into a plethora of Mysteries which are Divine in origin. The fact is that we are born (1) to seek answers, and (2) to find peace of soul in the Unknown -- BUT only through Faith and Humility, only by admitting that:

1. the Divine realm is central to our identity, and


2. we must rely on Faith in the Divine - not merely ourselves - for the Wisdom to understand all this.

Let Us Not Stray From Reality

Common Sense attests that we’re part of Creation, part of the Divine Plan. Moreover, Faith reveals that our lives are miraculous gifts from Divine largess. These facts are (or should be) sufficient reason for us to seek Goodness.

• Without Faith, we are limited in our understanding of ourselves and others.


• Without Faith, our perceptions of the Virtues and how they apply are deeply compromised.

Faith’s first insights, then, are that we: (1) accept the boundaries of our humanity, (2) accept responsibility and accountability for our behavior, (3) realize that the Virtues are excellent ways to conduct ourselves in daily living.

In practice, this means we acknowledge our state of dependence as a norm, not a curse. Yes, we are gifted with intelligence to clarify many unknowns in Creation. Yes, we are inspired to push the boundaries of knowledge. But, even as the Mystery of Creation stares us in the eye, we (1) must not mistake knowledge for Wisdom, and (2) must not mistake our urge for knowledge as a right to know, allowing our paltry conceits to replace the Divine.

Wisdom’s Role

Some skeptics say Faith is for quitters, a cognitive cop-out, an excuse for mental laziness. Wrong!!

Faith does not advocate intellectual passivity nor remove from life’s challenges or squelch the moral demands of Civility and Forgiveness which enrich human experience. 

On the contrary, Faith pushes us to acknowledge that we have responsibility (1) to learn and pursue knowledge, and (2) to pursue Goodness as moral agents, i.e., as persons.

Faith insists that we are responsible for the choices we make, accountable for the deeds we do. In fact, our ability to know and wisely choose define us as human beings.  

Faith insists that our true task is to revere the Mystery of Creation starting with ourselves, then our families and cultures – acknowledging that certain Mysteries in Creation are known only by Wisdom’s assent.

This is our personal task as human beings.

• It is a task of self-mastery by which we open ourselves to Wisdom’s insights.


• It is a task by which, with proper disposition, we honor the laws and limits established by our Creator.


• It is a task in which we see (maybe for the first time) the Wisdom of Virtues such as Self-Restraint, Truth, Prudence and Kindness in daily life.

Relationship: Faith’s Consolation

For many, living a life of Faith slowly introduces a form of consolation not found in distractions or displays of haughty superiority. It is a consoling relief for mind and soul - an insight which results from developing a relationship with God, our Creator, Who patiently awaits our attention.

It is a consoling moment when, through trust and perseverance, one finally drops one’s pretenses and acknowledges that we are truly God’s children in every sense. Nothing can alter our status as children of the Divine -- except our own misguided pride. 

Here is a parallel. A parent or grandparent does not ask inane questions when a child nestles in his arms for a nap. He holds that child in the moment and allows all else to cease and be at rest. As he embraces the child, he is immersed in a place of enchantment, of quiet reverie and tranquility of soul. He does not ask why the child sleeps, but rejoices that the child chooses to sleep in his arms in this moment of joyous serenity.

At such times, we are wise to submit entirely to the peace which the child’s Trust creates in us … the peace of not having to know anything more than the calm and purity of now, of this tranquil, loving moment.

Such moments of loving trust offer us a glimpse into the Eternal Now in which we are held by our Loving God, our First and Final Reality Whom we can never grasp with our intellect alone.

I believe these moments reflect the point and purpose of our humanity, the reason why we are given the Divine gift of life . . . a gift from God, Who is with us every instant.

We forget (or deny) that our relationship with God is our true purpose, so we continue to canonize reason and logic, and clamor for unseemly “rights,” as we rashly dismiss Faith and Wisdom and Virtue as enemies of reason, not realizing that within God's miraculous gift of life, Faith awaits, along with Wisdom and Virtue, Hope and Divine Love … and greater freedom than human knowing alone will ever offer.