Word to the Wise
Monday, February 9, 2015 - Monday in the 5th Week in Ordinary Time
[Gen 1:1-19 and Mark 6:53-56]In the beginning, when God created the heavens and the earth, the earth was a formless wasteland, and darkness covered the abyss, while a mighty wind swept over the waters...[Genesis]
Recently some astronomical event was noted on the national news which learned scientific figures solemnly declared would give us new information about the "big bang" which their field of knowledge assures us is the origin of the universe and all creation. This report came shortly after I had returned from Tucson, AZ, which is the place where the Vatican observatory has its headquarters and where I heard its director give a very entertaining lecture to two packed auditoriums on the origin of all "life." (I learned that it is not easy to define that word!)
Then, today, the Book of Genesis appears with the wonderfully profound and poetic account of creation that loses nothing of its majesty in the face of the amazing things we are learning about things out in space. On the contrary, the meaning of the first chapter of Genesis seems to gain with each new "scientific discovery." The biblical author, with the help of the Holy Spirit, described the beginning as well as possible with the science of the time. Very few have been able to provide a better version, even with the incredible science of our own time.
St. Augustine is quoted as saying, "The bible teaches us how to go to heaven, not how the heavens go." But Genesis 1 captures for me some of the wonder that motivates all those who study the "heavens." Psalm 19 adds to the poetry of it all when it sings: "The heavens declare the glory of God; the firmament proclaims the works of his hands..." [NAB] How anyone can deny the existence of God in the face of all that has come from "the big bang" is beyond me. AMEN