Oblates of St. Francis de Sales

New DeSales World Newsletter - Summer Edition

21st Sunday Ordinary Time (August 21, 2005)

Suggested Emphasis

"How deep are the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God!"

Salesian Perspective

In his Treatise on the Love of God, Francis de Sales wrote: "We see that the universe, and especially human nature, is like a clock made up of so great a variety of actions and movements that we cannot restrain our wonder at it. We know in a general way that these parts, diversely fashioned in so many ways, all serve either to display, as inside a watch, God's most holy justice, or to make manifest the triumphant mercy of God's goodness, as by a chime of praise. But to know in particular the function of each part, either as ordered to the general end or as to why it is made as it is, this we cannot understand unless the supreme watchmaker teaches it to us. However, God does not reveal his art to us now in order that we might admire it with greater reverence until in heaven God will ravish us with the beauty of his wisdom. Then, in the abundance of his love God will unveil to us the reasons, means and motives of all that has taken place in this world to effect our eternal salvation." (Book IV, Chapter 8)

Indeed, who can know the mind of God? Who of us can hope to understand God's plan for us? Who of us can comprehend the breadth and depth of God's love for us? God's justice is beyond the limits of the human mind.

While we may not know the mind of God, we can clearly come to know the heart of God…in the person of his son and our savior, Jesus Christ.

In Christ we see the God who created us. In Christ we see the God who redeemed us. In Christ we see the God who inspires us. In Christ we see the God who loves us, forgives us, challenges us, cares for us and longs for our happiness.

In Christ we also see something else: what it means to be fully human. The human mind and heart are at their best when they are compassionate, forgiving, honest, just, peaceful and generous. In Christ, the humble, gentle servant, we see what it means to be truly human, what it means to be sons and daughters of the living God.

To be sure, there is much of God's mind that we can only hope to know in heaven. In the meantime, the bulk of our efforts should be directed to understanding and embodying the heart of God in our relationships with one another here on earth.

"How deep are the riches and the wisdom and the knowledge of God" in each and every one of us. How can we share them with others today?

Rev. Michael S. Murray, OSFS is Executive Director of the De Sales Spirituality Center.