| September 14, 2020 Good afternoon, ” St. Augustine: “si comprehendis, non est Deus.” Roughly translated this means: “If you understand God, what you understand isn’t God.” ” Welcome to Axios, we are making you smarter today. Today’s episode is sponsored by Facebook . ” On Axios Today ( September 14, 2020 ). Axios Today is an eleven minute morning report of the news. It is out of Washington, and it is part of Pushkin Industries. It comments on three stories for you to think about . One of its taglines is ” we are making you smarter today “. I do not think hearing these three stories everyday makes me smarter. They are very interesting, and provide me with new information on many things, but it doesn’t make me smarter. And a troubling part is that it is sponsored by companies like Facebook, Goldman Sachs and other major corporations. It does not seem right, and does not sit well with me. I have got a lot to learn. St. Augustine ( 354-430 ) is an early church leader . He had a conversion experience with God that changed his life. He was one of the first theologians of the Roman Christian Empire. The Emperor was converted late in the 4th century. Augustine wrote a theology that has shaped the church. He talks about our sinful nature, the Just War theory among many other things. I feel I can relate to his idea quoted above. He talks much about God and God’s nature, and yet he knows that what he says about God is only really a guess. God is divine, and I am human. Jesus helps us understand a little bit, because he was human for about 33 years. But, how can we talk about the Divine when we are sinful people. I have much to learn. Moses said, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.” At this, Moses hid his face, because he was afraid to look at God.” Genesis 3:6 This event of Moses’ life is the one about the burning bush. A miracle right before his eyes that he doesn’t understand. He cannot see God because he has the fear of the Lord. Moses does not want to lead the people out of slavery, but he consents to do it for God, although he does not really feel called. He runs from it for awhile. He still had a lot to learn. We are all like Moses, a lot to know and learn, but we live by faith in Jesus Christ that passes all understanding. Salaam and strength for the journey of faith and life Fred Pastor |
