The Presence of God

So much of life is made up of things we must do, and so little of things we truly enjoy. The saints, of course, seem to be able to turn all those "must-dos" into gifts, into moments of thanksgiving and praise. I have not yet arrived at that point as I struggle to advance on my spiritual journey. I still have trouble turning mundane tasks into joyous occasions. If, as I take out the garbage, I offer thanks to God for the opportunity to do so...well, it just seems a bit hypocritical, as if my thanksgiving is less than honest. Although I can understand St. Therese's "Little Way," I have not yet been able to put it into practice. This inability to experience joy from the mundane is just more evidence of my spiritual immaturity, but perhaps God will give me a few more years to grow. 

Fortunately God is so wonderfully merciful that, despite my many faults, He has still blessed my life with much to enjoy. Dear Diane, my wife of 48 years, is at the very top of the list. Without her my life would be far less joyful. She has taught me how to give and to take joy in the giving, even in the midst of deep sadness. I have trouble remembering what my life was like before she entered it, or even comprehending how empty it would be without her presence. Other blessings, especially family -- children and grandchildren -- and friends who love us in spite of our oddness, have brought Diane and me much joy. 

To all of this I must add my ordination to the permanent diaconate 20 years ago. That life-changing event has enabled me to do much that I find so very enjoyable. Among these is my facilitation of our parish's two Bible Study sessions. I've now been doing this for over ten years and between these two weekly sessions -- one morning and one evening -- approximately 60 parishioners participate. I'm often thanked for what I bring to these sessions, but what the participants don't realize is how much they have taught me over the years. Perhaps I should tell them this more often.

Because here in central Florida so many of our parishioners fall into the "snowbird" category, we take a break from organized Bible Study during the summer months. It just didn't seem fair that those who went north should miss a summer's worth of studies, and I also needed a break from the weekly sessions. And yet many of our year-round parishioners wanted to continue their studies in some fashion. And so last year I offered a relatively brief Scripture-based course to those who remained here during our summer hiatus. It was open to anyone, not just the regular participants in our Bible Study. 

Last year's course was fairly basic, a three-session overview of the Old Testament. This year I'm a bit more ambitious and have been spending a lot of my so-called "free" time preparing a five-session course that I've decided to call "Temple and the Presence of God." The idea for the course came to me years ago after reading a little book, The Presence of God (1966) by Jean Danielou. Cardinal Danielou was a French Jesuit, one of the Ressourcement theologians who had such a major impact on the Second Vatican Council. The course will focus on Temple in all its manifestations, from the Temple of Creation or Cosmic Temple, to Sinai, Jerusalem, Jesus and His Church, all the way to the Heavenly Temple St. John describes in Revelation -- "I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God almighty and the Lamb" [Rev 21:22]. It trust the participants will find it interesting since it examines the theme of Temple and God's Presence as it runs through all of Scripture, from Genesis to Revelation.

Anyway, all this preoccupation with the Presence of God has had its effect on me. I find myself thinking about it constantly, and especially of God's Presence in the Cosmic Temple of His Creation. Every day Maddie and I -- Maddie's our little Bichon Frise -- take both a morning and evening walk, each a mile or two depending on our collective mood. I especially enjoy our frequent pre-dawn walks when I can delight in the glory of God's creation as manifested in the starlit skies of central Florida. Venus hovers brightly over the Eastern horizon and on many mornings I catch sight of a meteorite or two burning their way through the upper atmosphere. But I must admit, I take far more joy in the sights and sounds of the microcosm close at hand.

I especially enjoy the birds. Before I moved here about the only bird calls I could recognize were blue jays and crows. But thanks to my twice-daily walks through The Villages, I have developed a more discriminating ear and can identify the squawk of the common grackle, the rapid-fire chirps of our many neighborhood cardinals, the brief but strange call of the red-winged blackbird, among many others. And no one can dislike the multiple calls of the mockingbird that seem designed simply to show off this bird's remarkable singing talent. We also have large flocks of black-bellied whistling ducks that amaze by whistling instead of quacking. Another of my favorites are the wonderful sandhill cranes that hangout here in The Villages. These large birds can be heard from afar as they fly over the neighborhood and emit their very loud staccato squawks. They seem to enjoy letting the world know they're up and about.

From these daily encounters with such little pieces of God's Creation I can do nothing else but thank Him for His gift of life. I simply cannot understand how anyone who hears a mockingbird spend several minutes running through its entire repertoire of songs can claim to be an atheist. To me the mockingbird and the sandhill crane and the trail of the meteorite and the brightness of Venus all prove God's Presence and His continued love for us. Indeed, God's care for His creation sends us a message. How did Jesus put it?

"Look at the birds in the sky; they do not sow or reap, they gather nothing into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are not you more important than they?" [Mt 6:26]

He would care for us as well if only we would let Him, if only we would come to realize His love for us.

Yes, God's Presence fills every corner of His Creation, but most miraculously His Presence is within us when we open ourselves to Him. We are, after all, "Temples of the Holy Spirit."

Oops...have to go. It's time for Maddie and me to take a walk.

Our Owl

The two owls continue to return to our tree each afternoon, so I can only assume the nocturnal hunting in our neighborhood is good.

They perch high up in our large live-oak tree, probably 60 or 70 feet off the ground. And like our previous resident osprey, they are camera shy and tend to fly off when they see me with my camera. I've had to shoot quickly and because a tripod is too unwieldy the photos aren't as crisp as I'd like. But they're not too bad. I took this photo a few minutes ago. Just seconds later the owl flew to another, more concealed perch. Beautiful birds.

More Big Birds

Cormorant with a fish

If you're a regular reader of this odd blog of mine, you'll know that I find birds especially interesting. Over the years I've taken note of a wide variety of things, ideas, and experiences and gathered them under the heading "Personal Proofs of God's Existence." They are "personal" proofs because many likely have meaning only to me or to those few who share my strange way of viewing creation. The number of these proofs now approaches 100, and the presence of birds in our world was among the earliest. Some day, perhaps, I will list and explain them all...but not today.

I find the existence of birds to be inexplicable from a human or scientific perspective. Those who believe that birds and other flying creatures simply evolved are fooling themselves. When you consider all the physical changes that would be necessary to turn a terrestrial creature into a flying creature...well, those changes simply could not happen all at once; and there would be zero likelihood of them happening one at a time over time since each change in itself would have no evolutionary purpose. 

No, to me birds are wonderful examples of God's whimsical approach to creation. It's as if He looked forward to us still-to-be-created humans and thought, "Let's give these earth-bound, air-breathing creatures of My image and likeness something to contemplate, something to set their minds a-soaring, something they would never imagine on their own. We'll give them birds and bugs, creatures that can fly above the earth and through the air." What a delight that creative act must have been -- and "God saw that it was good."

Owl #1 giving me the eye

As a former Navy pilot, someone who truly enjoyed flying, I was amazed that I, too, could fly above the earth and through the air. I also enjoyed watching birds in flight and could only marvel at their capabilities. And then, one day, while flying my Navy helicopter off the coast of Southern California, I spotted a large cormorant maneuvering over a school of fish. He was beautiful to watch, a remarkably skilled aviator, who suddenly dove into the sea and finally surfaced with a large fish in his beak. It was then that I asked myself a fascinating, rather profound question. Would man have invented airplanes and other flying machines had God not created birds or other flying creatures? Without God's creative act would man have even considered the possibility of flight? It's an interesting question without a definitive answer. But my guess is "No."

Anyhow, as you might recall, some weeks ago I was enthralled by the osprey who had taken up residence in a large live oak tree behind our home here in Florida. (See posts here and here.) He visited us daily, usually in the morning and evening, for almost six weeks. And then, just a few days ago, he was gone. We had grown accustomed to his high-pitched screeching and his shyness when it came to photography. Whenever I entered the yard, camera in hand, he would stare accusingly at me, and then moments later fly off. We will miss him but trust he'll return next year.

Owl #2 ignoring me

Interestingly, though, nature has apparently replaced our osprey. Two days after his departure, we noted the arrival of two large owls that have taken up residence in the same tree. I know little about owls, so perhaps a reader can let me know what type we have here. Sometimes the two of them perch on the same branch, five or ten feet apart, but they're usually father apart on separate branches. We see them in the late afternoon or early evening, probably getting ready for a night of hunting. Our neighbors have begun to notice them too, especially those who own tiny, yappy, toy Yorkies -- you know, the kind some women carry in their purses. I suspect a three-pound dog wouldn't have a chance if one of our large owls chose him for dinner. 

God is good. Through His Creation He gives us so much to think about and talk about.

Osprey and Prey

Our newest neighbor returns daily to a perch high in the same tree immediately next door to our home. It's an osprey and a beautiful one. Yesterday afternoon I caught him just as he was taking flight with a fish in his talons. And today I spotted him again and managed to take a few photos before he left. I expect he'll return soon, since he seems to use this particular tree as his resting spot before and after fishing.

Osprey taking flight with fish

Osprey perched high above in a large live-oak tree

What magnificent birds!