The Mystery of Our Existence

All of Sunday’s scripture readings make reference to the Temple of God.  In Ezekiel the water flowing from the temple gives life to the world.  In Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, he admonishes them, “Do you not know that you are the Temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?”  (1 Cor 3:16)  In the gospel, Jesus drives the money changers out of the temple and when questioned, He replies: “Destroy this Temple and in three days I will raise it up.” 

In ancient Israel the temple was the center of life and culture, from which the Jews drew their identity as the chosen people of God.  But of course the building itself was only stone and mortar, subject to desecration and destruction, in short, it was transitory.   When Jesus referred to Himself as a Temple, and Paul told the Corinthians their bodies were Temples of God, they were referring to a spiritual reality and the mystery of our human existence.  We are more than mere flesh and bone, we are children of God who is infinite, and we have been created in His image.  Before exploring what this means, I must digress in order to make my case.

Last week I ran across an article about a Christian watchdog group that confronted Ohio State University for flagrantly teaching that Christians are less intelligent than atheists.  In a quiz for a Psychology 1100 class, the correct answer to one of the multiple choice questions was that atheists have a higher IQ than Christians.  The prevailing liberal bias is that Christians are intellectually inferior, as evidenced by their antiquated belief in the spiritual realm.  Pop culture atheists such as Richard Dawkins point to the Catholic Church’s supposed rejection of science and free thought.  In reality, modern science owes its origins to observant Catholic scientists.  This coming week on November 15^th the Church commemorates the feast day of St. Albert the Great, the 13^th century Dominican priest who set the stage for exploring all forms of science, logic, astronomy, economics, politics and metaphysics.  St. Albert is the patron saint of scientists and all researchers of the natural sciences, based on his own significant contributions.  Other notable Catholic scientists included:

·        Nicholas Copernicus, the priest who proved that the earth and other planets rotate around the sun

·        Father Roger Bacon, who is considered the father of the modern scientific method

·        Blessed Raymond Llull who invented the first analog computer 

·        Blaise Pascal, the French mathematician and physicist who is known as the “father of modern hydrostatics”  

·        Gregor Mendel, the 19^th century monk who was the first to prove the founding principles of genetics

·        Fr. Georges Lemaitre who first posited the “big bang theory”

Even our current pope, Francis, is a chemist who taught at the university level.   The point is that the Church staunchly believes that there is no conflict at all between science and religion.  The Church still operates two major observatories, and sponsors important international annual seminars on adult stem cell research.  Louis Pasteur said, “Science brings men nearer to God.  The more I study nature, the more I stand amazed at the Creator’s work.”  In his recent book, Chance or Purpose, Archbishop Schonborn wrote, “Belief in God as the Creator is not an obstacle to science.”  The Catechism of the Catholic Church states:

“There can never be any real discrepancy between faith and reason.  Since the same God who reveals mysteries and infuses faith has bestowed the light of reason on the human mind, God cannot deny Himself, nor can truth ever contradict truth.  Consequently, methodical research in all branches of knowledge, provided it is carried out in a truly scientific manner and does not override moral laws, can never conflict with faith, because the things of the world and the things of faith derive from the same God… for it is God, the conserver of all things, who made them what they are.”  (CCC 159)

Now for a bit of speculative thought of my own:  Modern particle physics states that at the sub-atomic level, all matter is comprised of tiny packets of energy.  At the sub-atomic level, our bodies are, at their core, bundles of energy.  According to Genesis, all of creation came into existence at the Word of God.  When God said, “Let there be…” existence came into being.  Before the Big Bang, was there only energy?  And if so, was that primordial energy God Himself?  Did He create all matter, and all that exists by converting some of His own energy into matter?  This might explain why we are drawn inexorably to God. The energy that forms the atoms in our bodies contains that primordial energy, making us quite literally Temples of God.  

The Church teaches that every human body has inherent dignity and commands respect.  This is because we are God’s children and every human being is beloved by God, Our Father.  Do not mistake my musings for pantheism.  I don't contend that we are gods, or even the embodiment of God, but in a mystical sense we owe our existence to God.   We are drawn to God not only because we come from Him, but because our existence does not begin and end with our birth and death, but rather, we have been created for eternal life.  None of this can be proven scientifically, but nevertheless, we believe it to be true because we inherently know that love exists, and that love transcends time and space. 

The Spirit of God does dwell in us.  This ennobles us, inspires us, and is perhaps the reason why we are drawn to beauty in nature, in music, and in art that transcends our ordinary existence.  After all, music is the vibration of energy, and light consists of packets of energy that makes life itself possible.  When God spoke, energy exploded into matter, including the very atoms that make up our human bodies.  Yet we know we are more than just trillions of atoms, we resonate with the Spirit of God because we come from Him and we instinctively know that we will return to Him.  This does not make us naïve or less intelligent than atheists.  We never deny the truth because all Truth is from God, and draws us closer to Him.  What distinguishes us from non-believers is that we have come to know and believe in the spiritual realm from which we have all been created, and for which we are destined to return. We know this because we are loved and capable of love, despite the fact that love cannot be measured scientifically, nor studied in a lab.  Love is the only thing we experience which is unbounded by time and space.  It is another dimension of our being, which is not limited to our three dimensional existence.  Love is a hint of our spiritual self which we cannot fully fathom until we are released from this world and experience the fullness of God’s infinite love.