Saturday, August 16, 2008

God’s perfection in creation: from humility to magnificence

God wishes to be praised by all His creatures, from the peacock that lives out in the open, to the ant that lives in the hidden darkness of the earth.

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There is something magnificent about the ant -- its work, humility and constant activity. You could almost say its work is organized and rational. Its colonies are perfectly constructed.

The ant is different from the butterfly. When you see a butterfly, you are enchanted with its bluish-green color and its flying pattern.

If we were to make a collection of God’s creatures, we would find the most diverse perfections -- from humility to magnificence.

God desires to be known in all His works.

Creatures exist in great variety. They form collections.

This is so creation reflects God in the most complete manner possible. Consider a collection of precious stones. To be complete, it must contain many stones. To be truly magnificent, it must display every possible beauty that a stone can have.

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The Koh-I-Noor diamond has radiance and beauty which easily recalls the splendor of Divine Intelligence.

So also with men. God created several races, each with its own characteristics and abilities. This variety is magnificent and expresses God’s perfection.

God also created the peacock. But He gave man the talent to make silk. Fabric made of quality silk is magnificent! The rustle of silk is attractive; try it…take silk cloth and rub one part against another -- the friction is fascinating.

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Imagine a Marchioness walking by with the train of her dress gliding along the floor and the light from the chandeliers reflecting off her silk gown -- how splendorous!

Seeing things and what they symbolize expands horizons and unites souls tremendously. You cannot imagine how beautiful and admirable it would be were all to understand symbols as they ought!

Symbols express reality. Abstract knowledge does too, but differently. We ought to develop both.

The symbol is the bridge between the visible and the invisible. Men would be more reflective were they to perceive the symbolic value of things.

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