Converging and Convincing Proof of God: Mystical Encounters with the Absolute

11/18/2012

(Page 3 of 3)

circumstances, suffering the want of any and all external and internal support, that St. John found the superlative invitation of divine love," el divino extremo, the "divine extreme." God alone! Solo Dios basta!

Aqu�sta me gu�aba
m�s cierta que la luz del mediod�a,
adonde me esperaba
quien yo bien me sab�a,
en parte donde nadie parec�a

It lit and let me through
More certain that the light of noonday clear
To where One waited near
Whose presence well I knew,
There where no other presence might appear.

Here, then, is the proof of St. John's experience in the words of Aidan Nichols: "Let us take the most repellent human situations and see what comes of them if we approach them as the hidden presence and invitation of the love of God." The "pure" experiences such as these suggest that God is real.

St. John of the Cross did just this, and "the triumphant survival of his humanity through a personal holocaust," as Aidan Nichols describes it, bore fruit in his poetry and prose, and especially in that poem, "The Dark Night." "The existence of that poem, written in that place," is itself theistic evidence," suggests Nichols.

More contemporaneously, St. Maximilian Kolbe did a similar thing, and "the triumphant survival of his humanity through a personal (and even more literal) holocaust" bore fruit when he never doubted God amid the horrors of Auschwitz, and willingly exchanged his life for one of his fellow prisoners--a father with a wife and children--in an act of great love. The self-giving of St. Maximilian Kolbe, in that horrible and repellent place, is also theistic evidence.

Even more modernly, Fran�ois-Xavier Nguyen Van Thuan, Archbishop of Saigon (later Cardinal), who was detained for thirteen years amid the horrors of a Vietnamese re-education camp, nine of which were in solitary confinement, nevertheless remained unshakenly convinced in God.

As Pope Benedict XVI, who mentioned him in the encyclical Spe Salvi, stated: "During thirteen years in jail, in a situation of seemingly utter hopelessness, the fact that he could listen and speak to God became for him an increasing power of hope, which enabled him, after his release, to become for people all over the world a witness of hope--to that great hope which does not wane even in the nights of solitude." Yes, the dedication of Nguyen Van Thuan and his witness to God is also theistic evidence.

In the likes of these "pure" experiences, when God is experienced in the most unlikely and repellent places and without semblance of internal psychological or emotional support--and the Catholic Church has a plethora of them to which it can point since its altars are full of saints and they multiply each and every day--that we find theistic evidence.

All of these "pure" experiences have their source at the Cross, where a Jew who claimed to be God, was scourged, nailed to a cross, and abandoned--so it seemed--by both God and man. And yet, here at Calvary, in the most implausible of circumstances, when God seemed to all most distant--Eloi, eloi, lama sabacthtani, My God, my God why have you abandoned me--that the Lord's glory and the Lord's love revealed itself in the most invisibly true and pure and most intense way, like the hottest of flames.

For the penitent thief, Jesus Christ on the Cross was theistic evidence. Jesus! God! If we could have the penitent thief's spiritual eyes!

The existence of the Christ's Sacrifice on the Cross, lifted in the place of Golgotha, the place of the skull, and repeated bloodlessly on Catholic altars, is itself theistic evidence. Its veracity is mercifully confirmed in the Resurrection, as perhaps the Cross would have been too much naked reality for man to believe true without it being clothed and confirmed by the historical miracle of Christ's Resurrection.

This sort of proof converts. St. Teresa de Jes�s (also known as St. Teresa of �vila) was another mystic soul with these "pure" experiences, and she, like her Carmelite reforming cohort, St. John of the Cross, wrote about her mystical ascent to God and her encounter with Him.

The moment that the Jewess intellectual Edith Stein read about the mystical experiences of St. Teresa in the latter's Autobiography (which she happened to read quite by "accident") she knew that God as described by St. Teresa existed.

As Aidan Nichols summarized Edith Stein's thought process in his A Spirituality for the Twenty-First Century, Edith Stein concluded: "If Teresa is real, then God is real."

We can say the same for all "pure" souls: "If St. John of the Cross is real, then God is real." "If St. Maximilian Kolbe is real, then God is real." "If the Servant of God Nguyen Van Thuan is real, then God is real." Beginning with St. Dismas, the penitent thief, and on and on . . . .

All these "pure" souls recognized the Truth made Flesh, loved Him, and made Him the driving force of their lives. It is this which gives them their superlative attractiveness, resulted in oustanding integrity, and which makes them proofs of the existence of the God to whom they gave themselves with such abandon in the circumstances of seeming abandonment: If Jesus is real, then God is real.

-----

Andrew M. Greenwell is an attorney licensed to practice law in Texas, practicing in Corpus Christi, Texas. He is married with three children. He maintains a blog entirely devoted to the natural law called Lex Christianorum. You can contact Andrew at agreenwell@harris-greenwell.com.
- - -

Pope Benedict XVI's Prayer Intentions for January 2013
General Intention: The Faith of Christians. That in this Year of Faith Christians may deepen their knowledge of the mystery of Christ and witness joyfully to the gift of faith in him.
Missionary Intention: Middle Eastern Christians. That the Christian communities of the Middle East, often discriminated against, may receive from the Holy Spirit the strength of fidelity and perseverance.

Keywords: existence of God, proofs of God, mysticism, St. John of the Cross, Andrew M. Greenwell, Esq.

NEWSLETTERS »

Previous Page 1 | 2 | 3

Rate This Article

Was this helpful to you? Very Helpful Somewhat Helpful Not Helpful at All

Would you be interested in more articles like this? Yes, I am Interested No, I am not Interested

Rate Article

1 - 4 of 4 Comments

Andrew M. Greenwell
6 months ago
@Eric: Thanks for your comments, and your kind words. While I agree that the Kingdom of God is within us, that is only one dimension of the Kingdom of God as it appears to have been taught by Jesus. Pope Benedict XVI reminds us of the "three dimensions" of the term "Kingdom of God." The first, seized and developed by Origen, is that Jesus himself is the Kingdom of God. That is one reason why Catholic mystics such as St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross insist on the humanity of Christ as the key to all authentic mysticism. As Benedict XVI taught in one of his audiences, St. Teresa "has a very clear idea of the 'fullness' of Christ, relived by the Christian. At the end of the route through The Interior Castle, in the last 'room,'Teresa describes this fullness, achieved in the indwelling of the Trinity, in union with Christ through the mystery of his humanity." The second dimension, also developed by Origen and emphasized by you, is that the Kingdom of God is within us. The third dimension is ecclesiastical; here, "the kingdom of God and the Church are related in different ways and brought into more or less close proximity," so that we may say that the Kingdom of God is found in the Church, in her teachings, in her sacraments, and in her liturgical prayer, in particular the Eucharistic Sacrifice. If the kingdom of God is only seen as being within us exclusively (without the other dimensions), we make an end-around Christ and his Body, the Church. This would make Christ and the Church inessential in the spiritual life, which would involve, it seems to me, a rejection of the very Trinitarian God with whom contemplative and mystical prayer seeks union. All three dimensions of the Kingdom of God must be recalled. If we don't recall all three dimensions, we run the risk of finding ourselves, as you so well put it, "in a place where they may not be talking to God at all," and we may fall into a sort of self-divinization, a gnosticism, or pantheism, or even fall prey to a spiritual presence opposed to God. While I am not opposed to other cultures and other religions--we should be open to and recognize all that is good with them--I would insist in the absolute centrality and unique revelation of God in Jesus, the Word made Flesh. If we do encounter God through mysticism, would not this be the same God that became man, the Christ who is all and is in all (Colossians 3:11). Christ was something more than a "favorite teacher," a rabbi or guru. He, after all, is "the way, the truth, and the life. (John 14:6).
Peace, and may God be with you.
Andrew
J. Bob
6 months ago
Wonderful article. I truly enjoy St. John's books, & how his sketch inspired Sali Dali's "Crucifixion" painting.

There is another book that I have enjoyed for the past 50+ years, "Mysticism" by Evelyn Underhill. It gives a list of many Christian, and other Mystics that have opened up a new world. Three favorites are St. Theresa of Avila, Julian of Norwich & Thomas Mertnn (Inner Experience).

One of the interesting things about the Contemplative Silence, is that it reflects a oriental philosophy in the martial arts. That is called, in Japanese, "mizu no kokoro", or mind like water. In short, it means one must have a calm mind, to reflect reality.
Mathew Thankachen O.Praem
6 months ago
'converging and Convincing proof of God' as the fruit of 'mystical encounter' by Andrew Greenwell is based on " natural law" gradually gaining momentum into " supernatural union and encounter", the experience of a real mystic. As a little child, before anyone began to teach me catechism or God as creator, my mind asked a thousand questions on the universe like who created the sky? why the crow is black while the crane is white and the Rose is red while the Jasmine is white and so on which gradually slipping into the " role of ultimate Reality" ie. God. The " image of God within" is an untaught " spiritual power". This " heart of flesh" is so receptive, the wave length of God, the connecting plug that helps one to burn his light within. This created " image" in so far as in " communion with its source"(God), Revelation takes place in the form of " insight" and " creative ideas", simply in the religious language is termed, " mysticism". As a matter of fact, mysticism need not be any " abnormal or so called supernatural phenomena". It could be experienced in the ordinary events and course of life, but with a sublime intensity. As insight is gained through experience of union with the ultimate, rationality and wisdom begins to shine forth. If the " image of God" is marred by sin and " hard hardheartedness", it cannot establish its connection with God, affecting revelations. The closer you are in touch with yourselves, the better will be your closeness with God. " in you is the source of life and in your light, we see light". Jesus said, " the Holy Spirit dwells within you". That which makes " the image of God" in connectivity is the " child like innocence" and hence Jesus said," unless you become like a child..." and " happy are the pure in heart, they shall see God". Jesus further prayer," Thank you Lord of heaven and earth for hiding it from the wise and revealing to the little children". As a mater of fact, " the mystery and history of mysticism" is a " free gift of God" endowed with " creation" and hence is based on " natural law" upon which the Religious upbringing fosters to grow in faith. As " insight" and " new ideas" are based on "Reason" grounded upon mystical relation, the fruit of faith, " the faith of the Catholic Church is not blind, rather is capable of challenging the atheists". And no wonder, Pope Benedict XVI, the most rational man of our century, put up a " cell for dialogue with the Atheists" in Paris last year. For, Jesus our master was the most rational man ever lived. He said, " here stands someone greater than Solomon" and his rationalism was such he challenged the social customs and beliefs of his time to the extent, " no one dared to ask him questions any more". His " self- awareness of his relationship with the Father" was such that St. John, another mystic could speak of Jesus, " I and the Father are one". As a matter of fact, salvation consists in being one, experience of integrity, "Communion" another name for Eucharist, the true relationship of God becoming man, heaven blending into the earth, the very word, Religion, " relegare" - " relate". Hence, " mysticism is the deep communion, relationship of man with God and with one another", the summary of compendium, love of God and love of neighbor. " That all may be one", the motto adopted by Pope Benedict is the only way the world can progress on the way to progress both spiritually and materially.
Mathew Thankachen O.Praem.
Mathew Thankachen O.Praem.
Eric Nielsen
6 months ago
Hi Andrew,

I truly loved your article. However I just wanted to add a few things.
Jesus stated that the KIngdom of God is within each of us. This is true, because I've had such an experience. When you write about the terrible time the Saints had before seeing God, that simply is the truth describing the importance of the amount of concentration that will be needed, for those in modern times, wanting to succeed as well. Desperate meassures are needed during desperate times.

Many times those who have taken up meditation and centering prayer don't seem to understand that intense concentration and focus is needed to reach what Jesus had promised those that searched for God.

The stories from the Saints don't need to be analyzed as to whether they are real or not. The main benefit from sharing these experiences is that they should simply give hope to the generations that follow, that Jesus was correct--the Kingdom of God is within all of us and if we make an honest effort, as did the Saints, we too can discover these facts.

Mysticism, in our modern times, has been distorted by all those people that are out to make a buck on something that has the interest of the general public. As a result, there are those that are using centering prayer and meditation to discover the truth for themselves.
Unfortunately, where those practitioners are finding themselves, is in a place where they may not be talking to God at all. But instead, they might be conversating with themselves.

A true mystical experience, doesn't take place somewhere between sitting in prayer or meditation and feeling the calmness of relaxation. No, it is when you literally separate yourself from this physical world and stand in the Kingdom of God staring at the infinite from the vantage point of your soul. And yes, the world is left completely behind, as is all your previous concepts of what you thought God would be like when you finally got to see Him.

And like Jesus, you do get the same message that I and the Father are one, or as described by other religons--Thou Art That and I Am That. And yes, because there is only one God, these experiences are of a human concern, more so than a religious matter. So, this would indicate that maybe if a person wanting to know more about these mystical experiences, might come to the conclusion that there are a whole lot more stories about humans stumbling upon God than those of the Christian Saints.

The fact that every person having this same experience, knows that there is only one God and they have experienced Him, takes away the the separation of religions and makes the experience of God the same for all, even though the various cultures around the world and throughout time, have had different ways of explaining these experiences of meeting up with God.

Let us not forget that in school there was always a favorite teacher; one who could get the lesson across to us with ease. Well, the same is true, if we can bring ourselves to venture away from our various religions, to hear the stories told by those from a different culture and religion.

Thanks for the opportunity to share,
Eric Robert Nielsen
The Mystic Post at http://www.EricRobertNielsen.com
Author of "Beyond God's Veil: A True Story of Piercing the Cloud of Unknowing."

Comments submitted must be civil, remain on-topic and not violate any laws including copyright. We reserve the right to delete any comments which are abusive, inappropriate or not constructive to the discussion.

Though we invite robust discussion, we reserve the right to not publish any comment which denigrates the human person, undermines marriage and the family, or advocates for positions which openly oppose the teaching of the Catholic Church.

This is a supervised forum and the Editors of Catholic Online retain the right to direct it.

We also reserve the right to block any commenter for repeated violations. Your email address is required to post, but it will not be published on the site.

We ask that you NOT post your comment more than once. Catholic Online is growing and our ability to review all comments sometimes results in a delay in their publication.

Name *

Email *

Comment *

Send me important information from Catholic Online and it's partners. See Sample

Post Comment