UNDERSTANDING GOD AND RELIGION

A very sensitive and intelligent woman once expressed concern because she didn’t understand God and religion. I asked her if she ever worked on crossword puzzles or other kinds of brain teasers. “You know, you think and think, and finally the answer comes to you, and you say to yourself, ‘Oh, I’ve got it!’?”

She said she often did the “jumble” puzzle in the newspaper.

“And have you ever heard a piece of music that sent chills up and down your spine?”

She mentioned a favorite selection.

“And have you ever seen a drama, like a movie or something that brought tears to your eyes?”

She had recently seen, “The Heart is a Lonely Hunter.”

“And have you seen something so visually beautiful – like a painting or a nature scene – that it brought a smile and an impulsive, “Oh how lovely?”

She mentioned a painting of van Gogh.

I said, “The ’Oh, I got it’ means you understood the brain teaser. The chills up and down your spine means that you understood the music.  The tears in your eyes means that you understood the drama, and the ‘Oh, how lovely!’ means that you understood the painting.”

“Understanding God and religion is NOT like, “Oh, I get it.” Understanding God and religion is like the chills up and down your spine, and the tears in your eyes, and the ‘Oh how lovely.’  Understanding God and religion (and life) is primarily a matter of the heart rather than the mind.