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Written by FATHER HERB WEBER
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Saturday, 21 November 2009 00:00 |
It was cold when I went outside at 10 p.m., but I felt I had no choice. I wanted to enjoy the full moon as it presented itself on a clear late-autumn night.
It’s not that I haven’t seen many full moons. In fact, I often go out just to stare at the moon and stand in awe before this wonder of nature: how a small sphere that circles our planet can reflect the sun’s rays and lighten up the night.
Nature presents many moments of awe. Most people say they like sunsets, mountain-top views, gurgling brooks or late autumn roses. Sadly, those who claim to enjoy these wonders often take a quick glance and then move on.
 What is needed is a renewed sense of mystery, which often starts by reclaiming a sense of awe and wonder!
The ritual for the sacrament of confirmation includes a list of the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit. After the conferring minister, usually the bishop, imposes hands over the candidates, he prays that the Spirit of God will come upon them. As the Spirit’s gifts are named, the last line is spoken, “Fill them with the spirit of wonder and awe in your presence.” Instead of using the term, “Fear of the Lord” that my generation was taught, this reference to awe and wonder places a clear emphasis on standing before the Mystery of God.
Even as a gift, awe and wonder has to be practiced in order to be appreciated. If people take God’s wonder for granted, their lives will be sadly diminished.
To discover awe and wonder, leading to mystery, one has to be observant. Furthermore, there has to be an investment of time and energy. What is found in nature is only one starting point.
The same aspects of nature that lead to wonder and awe can be found in great art. Music that helps the soul to soar, paintings that move the inner spirit and poetry that creates images greater than the words that are used — these, too, can provide people with material for experiencing wonder. In short, they help people go beyond the mundane or the easily acquired.
In more recent years the word “awesome” has been used with great frequency to mean that something is great or beyond normal. Unfortunately, such facile use of the term has watered down the very notion of awe. True awe, as applied to God, is beyond words and is attractive to people even as it overwhelms them.
God is indeed mystery and cannot be fully understood or adequately known. That is not to say, God cannot be experienced. But all experiences of God are filtered by human limitations. Because God is beyond description, perhaps the best that can be done is to simply stand before mystery and allow oneself to be moved and enveloped by the experience.
Although awe and wonder in nature and the arts can be vehicles for placing people before God, nothing conveys God’s great mystery like liturgical celebrations. Purposeful gatherings of the church at the Eucharist or for other sacramental celebrations inherently call people beyond the here and now. God’s unexplainable presence floods the gathering and each human heart.
In an era of high technology that includes DNA printing, human genome graphing, instant communications across the planet and ever-expanding exploration of space, there is a temptation to think humans are in control of the universe in which they live. Admitting that is not true creates more honesty and it opens up new possibilities for people to accept gracious mystery.
A sense of awe and wonder is needed more now than ever. So when people look at the full moon or allow the snowy wind to blow through their hair, they are only a short step away from acknowledging an awesome God who is the source of all wonder-filled experiences.
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Father Herb Weber is pastor of Perrysburg Blessed John XXIII.
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Last Updated on Monday, 08 February 2010 20:32 |
