Skip to main content

Experience of God, Chapter 3

We must think of God's being as simple.

This statement that Hart believes in and reiterates in his book gives me a boost of spirits as I was reading through. The way he says we should perceive God is in His divine simplicity and I absolutely agree with this. While a lot of us think of God when we see many different things in our daily lives, I find it important to come back to the main root of what He actually is, and that is His divine simplicity. Whenever I think of this, I think of the way a tree looks and how it has hundreds of branches coming off of it. The entire tree itself is supported by the actual trunk-maybe to represent God's most simple structure-yet it has the roots underneath feeding its strength, and the branches above it. In this sense, those are represented as our actions and thoughts towards God, and the way we spread those to others. So, with God being our root, or trunk rather, whether we are praising him through our actions directly or towards others and sharing His word, I think that ultimately we have to come back to Him to stay in our potentially, best versions of ourselves.

Looking back at the beginning of the chapter, I also find what Hart says about having the wonder of a child, to be very striking. Hart says that we cant stay in wonder (90). I have to argue with him about this because of how I live my daily life as a 19-year-old. Going through my day, the times when I feel most alive and at peace are when I notice the presence of God around me through all He has created for us, and this is what gets me excited about being alive and thrilled about what is to come in His plan for me.

Comments

  1. UnknownOctober 11, 2017 at 9:21 PM

    Your understanding and connection to God is powerful in the aspect of experience. I like how you mention the desire to 'stay in wonder' as we move throughout life because it is a more beautiful and easier life to live. The only conflict, from a philosophical perspective, is to not grant full understanding and explanation of God by staying in wonder. Hart is a faith follower and believes by getting out of wonder, people can more fully embrace and connect with God with a more expansive view.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Anna GraziosiOctober 11, 2017 at 9:41 PM

      I think where we differ in this topic is that I choose not to think about the more expansive view, rather the surface view of it all because that ignores the complications and ultimately creates more happiness for myself.

      Delete
  2. AnonymousOctober 12, 2017 at 4:58 PM

    I agree that Hart’s mentioning of the wonder of a child is striking. I appreciate you sharing how you apply this into your own life through feeling the presence of God. I also try to attain this sense of wonder in my life however, I do so by being present and mindful of each moment.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Seven Ways

Udayana states that there are seven ways to prove that God is in existence; effects, atomic combination, suspension, human skills, authoritative knowledge, Revelation, and atoms. He also calls Him the "all-knowing, imperishable God." He is imperishable God because he is the only one who could create atoms because humans are not able to. Also, humans can not break atoms or destroy them and he is stating that the only person that can do that is God because he created atoms. He mentions the difference between the cause and effect to validate if there is a God. He brings up the argument that "Things like the earth must have a cause, because they are produced by a body (101)." Some deity had to have made the earth for their pleasure. He also relies on objections to prove that God is real. Udayana does bring up good ideas to prove that God is real. The best argument to me is that he created atoms. Humans are unable to destroy atoms or to create them; so they had to be...
1 comment
Read more

The Five Ways

How can we justify the existence of God? Aristotle proposed an argument of an eternal universe and a temporary universe. He questions if the universe is one that has always been or one that is temporarily here for a moment in time. Many ponder the question and often go back and forth between answers, but nevertheless, many can agree that either way, the universe must have a cause or an overall creator and this is what St. Thomas Aquinas argues in, "The Five Ways." The five reasons are as follows: “The first and more manifest way is the argument from motion. It is certain and evident to our senses that some things are in motion.” Motion is caused by a movement of an object or person, but who does the initial movement? This is the question that must be answered. If there is motion, who is the mover? Who has created this cause and effect relationship? This leads us to the second reason of evidence: “The second way is from the formality of efficient causation.” Who started th...
2 comments
Read more

Is the Concept of Ultimate Reality Coherent

     Ultimate reality is dependent on a human beings's perspective. Ultimate reality, or the concept of God are compiled of different beliefs  and conceptual models. Questions are raised with  transcendent reality in  nature and existence. Chad Meister, addresses some of these questions. Humans desire to escape the suffering of this world with the faith and belief that another more perfect existence is obtainable where the flaws of this world does not exist (89). Wainwright states that from human beings needs and experiences came the concept of ultimate reality. Advaita Vedanta takes the Hinduism traditions of Upanishadic to interptet the concept of ultimate reality. Upanishadic traditions, such as the teaching of Brahman, could be traslated as ultimate reality. The world is simutaniously external and unchanging whole, and a individuated plurality that is constantly morphing or changing. Vedanta had taken up this particular insight and gives empahasis on th...
1 comment
Read more