Reading: The Canticle of Creation by St. Francis of Assisi O Most High, all-powerful, good Lord God, to you belong praise, glory, honor and all blessing. Be praised, my Lord, for all your creation and especially for our Brother Sun, who brings us the day and the light; he is strong and shines magnificently. O Lord, we think of you when we look at him. Be praised, my Lord, for Sister Moon, and for the stars which you have set shining and lovely in the heavens. Be praised, my Lord, for our Brothers Wind and Air and every kind of weather by which you, Lord, uphold life in all your creatures. Be praised, my Lord, for Sister Water, who is very useful to us, and humble and precious and pure. Be praised, my Lord, for Brother Fire, through whom you give us light in the darkness: he is bright and lively and strong. Be praised, my Lord, for Sister Earth, our Mother, who nourishes us and sustains us, bringing forth fruits and vegetables of many kinds and flowers of many colors. Be praised, my Lord, for those who forgive for love of you; and for those who bear sickness and weakness in peace and patience - you will grant them a crown. Be praised, my Lord, for our Sister Death, whom we must all face. I praise and bless you, Lord, and I give thanks to you, and I will serve you in all humility. Reflection: Every year for over thirty years my family has vacationed in Taughannock Falls State Park outside Ithaca, NY. Having lived in Massachusetts, New York, Minnesota, Berlin, and now Pennsylvania, in many ways Taughannock Falls State Park has been the one constant place of my life. For a week or two each summer, we rent a shabby cabin (four cots and a fridge, constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s), swim in Cayuga Lake, sit by the campfire, and walk the riverbed up to the 215' tall Taughannock Falls. Taughannock is where I first felt, and continue to feel, my deepest connections to nature. Whenever I step in the sun-warmed waters of Taughannock Creek or watch the sun set over Cayuga Lake or walk the wooded trails around the park, I catch a sense of something old and deep and mysterious. Maybe it's just my childhood imagination resurfacing, reminding me of all the dragons and hobbits I encountered in those woods as a boy. Or maybe it's what C. S. Lewis called the "deeper magic." In his fantasy story The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, the lion Asian knows of a deeper magic, one that can overcome the deep magic of the evil witch whose wintry magic has taken over the fantastic land of Narnia. The deeper magic is the creative force that brought the universe into existence and continues working to redeem and restore all of creation. In The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, the deeper magic saves Narnia. In our world, we might simply call that deeper magic "God." The deeper magic, that feeling that there is something bigger than ourselves, something mysterious and wonderful and maybe even dangerous, infuses all of creation. Sometimes we can sense it when we spend time out in creation. We modern folk have come to see creation as a resource to be exploited, as subservient to humanity. But the Bible says otherwise. All creation, the trees and birds and rivers and mountains, plays an active role in praising God (Isaiah 55:12) and even has a share in eternal life and redemption (Romans 8:21). That great lover of creation, St. Francis of Assisi, would even go on to claim that all the creatures of creation are our brothers and sisters because all creatures (whether animal, plant, rock, water, or fire) are children of God, created by God. To paraphrase theologian Richard Rohr, if God is in everything, then everything is sacred. Creation therefore is not to be exploited but protected like a sacred brother or sister. Creation has a lot to tell us about our Creator. Creation's awesome beauty, its terrifying power, its delicate gentleness all teach us a little bit more about God. All creation reflects God and God is in all creation; that's why we can sense God, that deeper magic, when we go for a walk in the woods. So here, in the midst of this hot summer weather, take some time to be out in nature. Whether you walk a trail, listen to the roar of a waterfall, sit by a lake, or gaze at the stars, spend some time in creation. Open your heart to the deeper magic. --Jim Vitale
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Authors
Anyone is welcome to contribute! If you'd like to write for us, please e-mail [email protected] Email
Get our daily devotions delivered to your e-mail box each day by signing up below:
Archives
May 2022
Subscribe |