Ez 1:2-5, 24-28 / Mt 17:22-27
Have you ever tried to imagine what 100 billion of anything might look like, or how far it is to edges of the universe, or exactly how many sub-atomic particles there were in the strawberry you ate for breakfast? Have you ever tried to wrap your mind around the idea of "forever"? Those are mind-boggling experiences, but they pale into insignificance when compared to any attempt at imagining God.
In the thirteenth century, the famous theologian St Thomas Aquinas was blessed with an intensely personal experience of God's presence while at prayer during Holy Week. In the days and months that followed, he told his fellow scholars that all his learned books about God and the things of God were just so much straw, and he never wrote another word for the rest of his life.
We can gain some insight into God by observing his creation: its beauty, its vastness, the power of the forces of nature which he created. They all tell us something about the One who created them, but ultimately, God is mystery, and all our efforts at naming him come to nought. All the more precious, then, is God's gift of his son Jesus who freely shows us what God is truly like, most of all a loving father.
May we give thanks always for this Father whose love is beyond all understanding, and for his son, our brother, who walks with us always!
