THE WHOLE COSMOS AS A THEOPHANY
Creation is humanity’s first and primary sacred cathedral. Franciscans developed what we know as “nature mysticism.” Francis even developed his “Canticle of the Creatures” which included inanimate creation such as water, wind, etc. He is famous for phrases like “Brother Sun and Sister Moon.” What is sacred is not confined to churches, cathedrals, temples, or mosques, but it is of the whole wide created universe and the nature we see with our naked eyes that God declared, “It is good.” What is good in God’s eyes must be sacred. Father Richard Rohr, who is a Franciscan friar, wrote, “Franciscans at their best attempted to live inside the universal mystery of ‘church’ and from there we went out to serve the world. Most Christians got it backward by living in the ‘world’ and occasionally ‘going to church.’” (italicized are his.) I am not a Franciscan, but I would like to be a Franciscan in spirit.
In our journey toward embracing nature as sacred, we must begin by engaging our physical faculties. We experience nature through seeing, touching, hearing, smelling, and tasting. No real connection is possible by merely thinking about nature. When we take time to focus and see something in nature, whether diminutive or capacious, we soon find ourselves dumbfounded by the complexity and creativity of the mysterious beauty and bliss. Jesus embodied a deep connection with nature and drew countless examples from nature with utter ease and saliency.
My wife and I made our way down to Jeju Island, a top destination spot in Korea, especially during COVID. We will facilitate a retreat with a few families we have been spiritually guiding and creating a space for mutual learning. A gigantic volcanic rock sitting on the entrance to a small and seemingly old section of a harbor town we are currently staying at features a poem inscribed into it. Basically, the poem poignantly captures deep appreciation and timeless bond with nature (namely water and mountain) even in the midst of the onslaught of modernity. The town is not too far from the only airport in Jeju, so one would be reminded constantly of the pollution of noise, to say the least. I silently cheered the elegiac defiance and moved on with my day, while the irony remained since we had to fly to get to the island.
That same afternoon, while walking along the shore, we were greeted by a host of Haenyeos (I have seen one or two haenyeos in the past, but not these many in one time), female divers who are famous for their ability, without any technical gears, to harvest ocean’s gifts to humanity. Haenyeos are deemed as Korean national living “treasures,” though they have been reduced in numbers. It is fascinating to watch them dive underwater, hold their breath for incredibly long stretches of time, collect all kinds of shellfish, sea urchins (my fav), sea cucumbers, etc., only with wetsuits, diving masks, gloves, picks, flotation device, and net. Though they are harvesting for their livelihood, I appreciate their respect for nature, their slow method (you harvest what and how nature gives you), and non or less commercialization of the haenyeo profession.
Bodily connection with nature is a direct result of our soul’s desire for union with nature as God’s creation. At the same time, the connection provides our soul with deeper craving for more. When we restrict “the world” God loves to humanity alone, we rob God’s generous and infinite wisdom pertaining to the “cosmos” (which is the Greek word) God loves. We truncate God’s full original scope of the Gospel and thus short circuit the full impact of the Gospel. When the Bible addresses “the world,” it has two major foci, and the two are diametrically opposed to one another. First, there is the world God created and died for, and still loves, which is nature. Then there are the world as intricate and clever systems of power that have been carefully devised and manipulated by the devil to put us under slavery and bondage. As such, we are to love the cosmos as God loves and reject and fight against the evil systems of the world.
Apostle Paul used the Greek word poiema twice in all his letters (In fact, the word only appears twice in NT), once reserved for humanity (Galatians 2:10) and the other for the cosmos (Romans 1:20). The word poiema is the root of our modern word poem or poetry, which in Greek can be translated simply as “masterpiece.” Psalms are filled with imagery of the cosmos singing praises to God; the psalmists clearly incorporate nature as part of worship and life. We are also to “sing” to God by recognizing the ubiquitous nature that is around us. This was Jesus’ spirituality and the spirituality of the Bible. Unfortunately, the consumer-minded modern people (including me) have become too desensitized and dualistic minded, leading us to separate and ignore the natural from the supernatural.
How then are we to love the cosmos and to sing and worship? While there are many expressions, caring and stewarding are on the top of the list for me. Years ago, I saw an ad that was trying to raise money (in millions of dollars) to free some whales somewhere. I could not understand and even remember speaking to others about what wasteful effort that was. I was steeped in so-called mission work of mobilization and training and was convinced that was a waste in the overall scope of God’s kingdom work. While it is true that I will probably not give toward such a cause (being honest here), my perspective has changed enough to mentally support those who are called to save whales. That just may be their way of caring for God’s creation.
What we have done in our house, since a few years back, is to reduce our use of plastic household materials. It is inconvenient for sure. Boy, do I miss using those plastic zip lock bags! At least until the pandemic, we carried our own reusable cups to coffee shops. Very small steps but steps, nonetheless. I become more cognizant about how much waste I or we as a family create. I cringed every time a meal was dropped in front of my quarantine room door, due to all the plastic they used to deliver my food. While being thankful for the food, I wished that they would be vigilant about recycling the plastic. This also makes me question my own tendencies of the consumer mentality. My wife and I began talking about embracing more of a minimalist living. My wife has done far more in trimming her stuff, whereas I get very sentimental about letting things go. I finally got rid of the t-shirt where one of my boys’ name was inscribed as an all-star player in his little league baseball, obviously many moons ago.
Our sensitivity and commitment to the cosmos God loves gives back something precious and beneficial to our souls. Nature slows us down. Nature properly places us. Nature reminds us about change. Nature teaches us about order, disorder, and reorder. Nature instructs us about independence, dependence, and interdependence. I end this post with a quote from Ilia Delio in her eye-opening and mind-expanding book, The Unbearable Wholeness of Being.
Creation is not merely gift of God; it is being-in-love with God. . . God is not the supernatural being above but the supranatural center of everything that exists. . . That is, we are not rescued from the world by divine grace; rather, we are saved or made whole in and through the world by cooperating with divine love. . . Because divine love is totally other-oriented, the whole cosmos is a theophany, a revelation of God’s glory (italicized are hers, 69)