Seeing God
August 09, 2017
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Psalm 145: 8-9/14-21
8 The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.9 The Lord is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.14 The Lord upholds all who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down.
15 The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper time.
16 You open your hand
and satisfy the desires of every living thing.17 The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and faithful in all he does.
18 The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.
19 He fulfils the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them.
20 The Lord watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.21 My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord.
Let every creature praise his holy name
for ever and ever.
In this great Psalm of praise we are invited to see the praise of God as the single matter of highest importance in human life. We are encouraged also to view such praise in its widest possible context, as personal praise is shown to be part of a chain of praise that stretches out across all generations and the whole created order. The final verse links these personal and universal aspects of praise: 'My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever' (verse 21).
There is a striking similarity of tone between this Psalm and Julian of Norwich’s Revelations of Divine Love. In a way reminiscent of the Psalm, Julian’s work is a celebration of God’s goodness and mercy. Both the Psalmist and Julian remind us of the necessary link between our praise of God and a prior right perception of his character. Julian says, ‘Truth sees God, and wisdom contemplates God, and from these two comes a third, a holy and wonderful delight in God who is love.’
Similarly, in order to stimulate praise, the Psalmist invites us to contemplate particular divine qualities. In verses 8 and 9 it is the goodness of God that is highlighted. Yahweh is deserving of our praise because he is gracious, merciful, slow to anger, abounding in steadfast love, good and compassionate to all people. In verses 14-21 there is still clear reference to God’s close, personal involvement in human life, shown especially in his tender care for the most vulnerable and disadvantaged.
This tenderness of loving care is captured by Julian in her use of maternal imagery in speaking about God. In her view, ‘As truly as God is our Father, so truly is he our Mother.’ In a manner radical for her time, Julian explored parallels between Christ and medieval notions of ideal motherhood, in regard to the nurturing, protecting, loving, guiding and disciplining of children. ‘The mother’s service is nearest, readiest and surest: nearest because it is most natural, readiest because it is most loving, and surest because it is truest. No one ever might or could perform this office fully, except only Jesus.’
Julian’s conclusion is unsurprising but deeply challenging: ‘The greatest honour we can give Almighty God is to live gladly because of the knowledge of his love.’
Prayer
I entrust to you my very dear ‘children’ and I pray, supreme and eternal Father, let them not be orphans. Visit them with your grace, so that, dead to themselves, they may live in the true and perfect light. With the gentle bond of your love, unite them, that they may die consumed by love. (A prayer of St Catherine of Siena)
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