Conversations with Calliope- Nature and God's Mystery

(Central Park Lake)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. It sounds like you had a busy week.
JOE: I did. I finally sent in the final draft of Meeting God in Nature yesterday for publication in Christian Schaal's book, Meeting the God of America.
CALLIOPE: How was it received?
JOE: Enthusiastically. He posted it as a sample from the forthcoming book.
CALLIOPE: Can I read it?
JOE: Sure. It's posted at http://www.meetingthegodofamerica.com/finding_god_in_nature.pdf.
CALLIOPE: Thanks. I'll take a look. What else are you up to.
JOE: I planned to organize my desk last Saturday but didn't get to it. Today it's time for another go at it.
CALLIOPE: Sounds ambitious. How's the floor coming?
JOE: Just about finished. Other laborers were called to the vineyard so I didn't have to work on it last night. I'm on call today if needed.
CALLIOPE: Anything else on the agenda?
JOE: Church in the morning and then a graduation party in the afternoon.
CALLIOPE: I hope you have some time to relax.
JOE: I do and have some reading planned. Talk with you on Monday.

Conversations with Calliope- Nature's Mysteries

(Lagoon in San Juan)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Just barely.
JOE: Now, now. It's Saturday and I'm taking my time getting going today.
CALLIOPE: Okay. What's this about nature's mysteries?
JOE: Another part of the topic from yesterday.
CALLIOPE: Explain please.
JOE: I told you that I eventually learned to connect with God through nature. Specifically the mysteries I found in nature led me to God.
CALLIOPE: I see. How did that happen?
JOE: After wrestling with thoughts for years, I finally let myself go in the magnificence of nature. For a while I just enjoyed communing with it and finally realized it was a manifestation of the glory of God. Then I appreciated it even more.
CALLIOPE: Very interesting. So now whenever you need to connect with God all you have to do is be alone with nature and its glory.
JOE: Correct. But it took me a long time to find such a simple approach.
CALLIOPE: Sometimes the most obvious things lie right in front of us.
JOE: No question.
CALLIOPE: Thanks for the explanation.
JOE: My pleasure. Talk with you on Monday.

Conversations with Calliope- Finding God in Nature

(God in Nature)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. I understand there are people waiting to hear our conversation today.
JOE: That's what I heard too. I think they want to know about God in America.
CALLIOPE: So tell me already.
JOE: Yesterday I finished my piece, Finding God in Nature. It's about my path to discovering God.
CALLIOPE: I'd like to know more.
JOE: I started by wrestling with institutional church teachings, prescriptions and proscriptions dating back to childhood through my early twenties.
CALLIOPE: And?
JOE: I finally realized I could find God in the mysteries of nature and relate on that level with a God who reached out to me in ways to which I could respond.
CALLIOPE: Can you share the whole piece with me?
JOE: It's rather long for a blog. Also I wrote it for inclusion in a book. I'm not sure the author would appreciate my unveiling it before publication.
CALLIOPE: I understand. Where will your piece be published?
JOE: I wrote it for Christian Schall's book in progress, Meeting the God of America.
CALLIOPE: I assume there will be other contributors.
JOE: There will. He has some but from what I understand is still looking for more. He describes his project at http://www.meetingthegodofamerica.com/

Conversations with Calliope- Juggling Projects

(Sunrise in Leroy)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: I feel like a juggler.
CALLIOPE: What are you juggling?
JOE: Several projects.
CALLIOPE: Anything we haven't discussed yet?
JOE: I have agreed to write a piece for a new book, Finding God in America.
CALLIOPE: How's it coming?
JOE: I'm doing better with it than I thought I would. It's quite a topic.
CALLIOPE: I agree. How are you approaching it?
JOE: I started with how I see God these days and where.
CALLIOPE: Which is?
JOE:In nature. I have concluded that most religions become stultified and moralistic with age. Keeping in touch with God through official channels becomes more of an obligation than a joy.
CALLIOPE: So how do you find God?
JOE: That's what my piece is about. I'll tell you more about it tomorrow. See you then.

Conversations with Calliope- Life's Mysteries

(Pillar Fragment- Santianna, Spain)

JOE: Good morning Calliope.
CALLIOPE: Good morning Joe. How are you today?
JOE: In a reflective mood.
CALLIOPE: About what?
JOE: I was just speculating to myself about what makes the world so interesting and worth writing about.
CALLIOPE: Did you come to any conclusions?
JOE: I'm not sure I can speak for everyone, but the mystery I find in nature and in people fascinates me.
CALLIOPE: Tell me more.
JOE: I have been working on a piece about what God means to me. After writing about it for a while, I reached the conclusion that I find God in the mysteries which surround me at every turn waiting to fascinate me if I just stop to pay attention to them.
CALLIOPE: Are you able to unravel the mysteries?
JOE: Not usually.
CALLIOPE: Isn't that frustrating?
JOE: Not really. I can sit with a mystery and enjoy its intricacy, realizing I am in the presence of something more profound than I am. It's my way of being close to God.
CALLIOPE: I see. Sounds like a good realization.
JOE: I think so. Talk with you tomorrow.

Who Owns God?

Karen Armstrong wrote a book called The Battle for God. In it she wrote about the struggle over a period of centuries for people of the major religions to come to terms with the implications of the modern world and their age old traditions. It does not seem that this battle has ended. Some people have opted to reject the modern world and cling to their own particular beliefs. Others have chosen the modern world, rejecting all religions. Some have tried to forge their own way realizing that their solitary path has few guideposts to make their journey easier. Some people see it as their job to convert others to their view of God and reality. Others see it as their job to get others to see the fallacy of any religion. Still others have chosen to live the best life they can without help or interference from others. Those of us who think about why we are on earth struggle to make sense of our lives and discover the purpose for which we are here. Is there a way for us to help each other with this search without being dogmatic in our efforts?

(Stone relief in Santillana, Spain)

Sunrise, Sunset

I have been thinking and to some extent writing lately about the proliferation of bad news in our newspapers and TV news programs. Bad news does seem to sell well and also confirms our pessimism as well as making us feel better about our own personal fortunes. As I looked at the sunrise this morning, I realized that I have never seen a sunrise or sunset featured as an article of news. Yet they are probably the two most spectacular events we can find on earth. I guess it is up to each of us as individuals to thank God for this wonder freely offered for our appreciation and amazement. Thank you, God.

Further Thoughts on Natural Law

An anonymous reader shared his perception of natural law as "the laws of nature and the universe without the intervention of man and his interpretation." I think this is a good way to put it. An example would be the law of gravity or ocean tides. They work whether we think they should or want them to. They are just there. Maybe I was confused by people arguing about what the natural law means in their interpretation and presuming to speak for God. We don't need to decide whether there are such things as gravity or tides. They are pretty obvious. How God means us to act seems to me to be a matter of interpretation and should probably be called something other than natural law.