Guest blogger: my first, my last, my everything, Jay!
I have a business colleague "Arthur" who describes himself as an atheist (. . . or as he goes on to elucidate . . . a rationalist). I know him to be a learned man, very ethical in his business dealings, and one of the most well-read people I know when it comes to all major religions in the world. In fact, when I asked him what he had been up to recently, he answered he was reading a fascinating book on the pre-Nicene gospels.
I introduced Arthur to a gentleman "Stan" who we had just finished a business transaction with. Bonnie and I were meeting he and his wife for breakfast. Stan had just finished sharing he wanted to give us a few copies of the book he had written recently. We had no idea he was Christian author. I’m not sure what denomination he is yet . . . all I know is two really important things came out of a conversation which occurred when Arthur came over to our table and I introduced him to Stan.
Stan had just finished saying one book was for us and the other was for us to give to someone else. When Arthur approached (a man I knew to be an avid reader) I immediately offered him the second book. Arthur quickly scanned the back cover and in a jovial manner began to ask Stan about the book and his beliefs. Stan remained calm and first described that one thing he realized early in his book research was how God thinks cannot be understood by the human mind . . . especially in real time. Arthur turned slightly agitated and it wasn’t until after the meeting I realized what Stan had shared was we can’t put God into any box. We can’t figure Him out through an intellectual pursuit or rational thinking. The truth is we can be in relationship, we can love and be loved by Him . . . but we will never figure Him out. His ways are not our ways! Stan very politely shared that Arthur's approach would not get him to where he wanted to go.
Arthur then shot back with a series of questions about early Christianity, questions about the apostles, and how a number of the historical events did not make sense. Stan very calmly began to describe why in hindsight, the logic behind those events were nothing short of Divine. He not only spoke in a very relaxed manner using his deep knowledge and respect for our Lord . . . along with a little humor . . . and with the intrigue of a best-selling novel. For me, it was one of the greatest examples of why knowing and being able to defend the faith and our Lord (Apologetics) is not only a great skill to acquire . . . it can be fascinating and fun.
In todays Gospel (John 7: 40-53) we see the people are trying their best trying to figure out if Jesus is God and then following up with the questions on how could God be from a certain area (an area that did not fit into the box):
Some in the crowd who heard these words of Jesus said, “This is truly the Prophet.” Others said, “This is the Christ.” But others said, “The Christ will not come from Galilee, will he?Does not Scripture say that the Christ will be of David’s family and come from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?” So a division occurred in the crowd because of him. Some of them even wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.
So the guards went to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why did you not bring him?” The guards answered, “Never before has anyone spoken like this man.” So the Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived? Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed.” Nicodemus, one of their members who had come to him earlier, said to them, “Does our law condemn a man before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?” They answered and said to him, “You are not from Galilee also, are you? Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.” Then each went to his own house.
In the booklet Heaven Speaks to Those Who Have Rejected God, our Blessed Mother shares her thoughts on the futility of using our intellect to figure out our Limitless God:
"Dearest little child of heaven, you are not as intellectually
advanced as you think. If you were truly advanced in your intellect, you would
be working hard to become a saint because when one authentically applies
the intellect to the consideration of truth, one is enchanted with the
limitlessness of God’s knowledge. One then desires to proceed more and
more deeply into these heavenly truths. This can be done during your time on
earth. You are loved. You are cherished."
Lay apostles, are you prepared to defend your spouse and your children against an attack, even to the point of giving your own life? I venture to say that most of you would answer yes. Then why wouldn't we be willing to do the same for our Lord? We do not need to ask if He would do the same for us . . . He did!
Thank you, Lord, for allowing us to get closer to you via our hearts, our souls, and our minds. Thank you for revealing Yourself often in ways defying logic . . . defying rationale not fitting into a box, thus making our walk with You so much more exciting and intriguing.
Humbly and gratefully yours,
Jay
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