Looking at the World From God's Point of View - Part 6
We ended last week's discussion of looking at the world from God's point of view with this call to action:
But first, let's switch gears and consider the idea of looking at the world from God's point of view from a different perspective. Our context in recent posts has, naturally, been the world of work. But if we expand our view to all of life we might gain a better, even a deeper, understanding of how we can in some way see things as God sees them. And for this, we reference a saint whose feast we celebrated last week, St. Francis of Assisi. Specifically, we note his radical detachment from the world, something with which any Catholic worth his salt should be familiar.
Now we're not going to recommend selling all your possessions, putting on a burlap sack, and walking about the countryside preaching the Good News. (If that's your calling, go for it of course.) Most of us aren't and won't be courting "Lady Poverty," as St. Francis might say. We have jobs, families, perhaps children to support, and all the rest. We're necessarily and appropriately engaged in the world in a manner Francis eschewed; and there's nothing wrong with that. However, we can learn something from Il Poverello about "detachment" even in the midst of our daily efforts to make a living. These words, which we learned from Abbot Leonard Giardina about ten years ago, explain it best:
Lord, increase our virtue such that we see you everywhere in everything. By your grace, may our hearts and minds be pure in pursuing this intention. And with this new way of seeing, help us to see the world from our point of view.
...(Let's) acknowledge and embrace our calling to further the development of civilization and culture. With each tool we use or piece of paper we process, with each key stroke on our computers, we can and should capture the spirit of that will to work; it should communicate our intention to civilize a world filled with good and faithful servants, true children of God. If we approach our work this way each and every day, we will see our work from God's point of view.Today we turn to two final thoughts on this matter from Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski's Working Your Way into Heaven: how we add new values and possibilities to creation; how we not only sense what God intends in His work of creation, but harmonize the rhythm of our work with God's.
But first, let's switch gears and consider the idea of looking at the world from God's point of view from a different perspective. Our context in recent posts has, naturally, been the world of work. But if we expand our view to all of life we might gain a better, even a deeper, understanding of how we can in some way see things as God sees them. And for this, we reference a saint whose feast we celebrated last week, St. Francis of Assisi. Specifically, we note his radical detachment from the world, something with which any Catholic worth his salt should be familiar.
Now we're not going to recommend selling all your possessions, putting on a burlap sack, and walking about the countryside preaching the Good News. (If that's your calling, go for it of course.) Most of us aren't and won't be courting "Lady Poverty," as St. Francis might say. We have jobs, families, perhaps children to support, and all the rest. We're necessarily and appropriately engaged in the world in a manner Francis eschewed; and there's nothing wrong with that. However, we can learn something from Il Poverello about "detachment" even in the midst of our daily efforts to make a living. These words, which we learned from Abbot Leonard Giardina about ten years ago, explain it best:
St. Francis is a prime example of one of the central paradoxes of Christianity, namely, that to the degree that we detach ourselves from created things, and seek God alone, to that degree are we able to return to creatures with a fresh vision and holy enjoyment. The closer we come to God through faith and charity, the more are we able to share his vision and love of creation.You don't have to be a monk living in the enclosure of a monastery to acquire the spirit of detachment. Even the busiest of us can do so. Here's how:
If we rise above the world by prayer and penance, becoming truly “poor in spirit,” we shall be able to appreciate and see God’s goodness and beauty reflected in the most insignificant creature or event. “Blessed are the clean of heart, for they shall see God.” Yes, see God; see Him in the sunset, in the rose, in a blade of grass, in a bird, and above all, in neighbors and in trials and tribulations. By denying ourselves, our vision and perception of divine realities becomes keen and sensitive, and our capacity for experiencing true joy increases. If we become as a “little child” with God, we shall begin to find pure, innocent joy in the “little” things of life; joy which the pleasure-seeking worldling knows nothing about.Yes, we can see God even in our neighbors, our trials and tribulations (even and especially in that co-worker who gets on your nerves at times). Many of us will need to work at this. But with discipline and practice, with the determination to see God in our surroundings, and in all with whom we come in contact throughout the day, we can find pure, innocent joy in the little things of life. We just have to keep at it. Eventually, we'll develop the habit of seeing God's goodness and beauty reflected in pretty much everything. We beg Our Lord for the virtue that comes with the pure heart of those who see God.
Lord, increase our virtue such that we see you everywhere in everything. By your grace, may our hearts and minds be pure in pursuing this intention. And with this new way of seeing, help us to see the world from our point of view.
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