God creates. God is creative. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established… How majestic you are upon the earth!
To be creative is to be godly. To allow your imagination to see what is not, and give yourself to making it so, is the act of divine imagination partnering with human obedience. We are all children of creativity. We are all creative. God imagined, God breathed us into being. And we have our being and breath in God.
God is creativity. God is Trinity. Fr. Richard Rohr, well known Catholic and Franciscan author and theologian, has turned his later years to write much about God as Trinity. As a younger priest, he was active in the Catholic charismatic renewal. His writings of late reflect upon the brilliance of seeing God, not acting as one but as community. Built into the nature of all that is divine and natural, all that is seen and unseen, is the idea that there is co-creation; co-operation. The very nature of life is not one; but in the partnership of other.
We have great difficulty seeing unity in distinct otherness. We look at Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and try to figure out who came from who, who is primary over the other, or who proceeds from who. Fr. Richard Rohr spent his early ministry championing the work and significance of the Holy Spirit within the life of the church. And then there came a time when he tried to balance his perspective by focusing on the identity and life of Jesus, the Son.
I can recall being asked by sincere people, who are we to pray to? Do I pray in the name of Jesus? Do I pray in the Holy Spirit? Do I pray in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit? We do the same in all areas of our life: politics, sexuality, gender, ethnicity, religion. With distinctions we see separation and isolation instead of unity and universal wholeness.
Finding the unity and community amidst distinctive otherness is a real social issue in our time. The struggle between globalism and nationalism drives elections. What to do with immigrants, Muslims, and the LGBTQ community has joined the longer held struggle over what to do with women and minorities. This is what we do. We see distinction and we divide and isolate. But God, as Trinity, sees distinction and recognizes community, a oneness.
God as Trinity; God as Creativity; God as Unity; God as Diversity; God as rhythm and order; God as wild and free; God as creator, redeemer, comforter, God as other; God as One; God as divine, God as human. These are not distinctions that polarize the image of God; but it represents the wholeness of God. Can we not recognize the same in humanity and all of creation? Humanity in all of our distinctions; are one in our humanity. The wellness and health of our existence is not found in being isolated, intimidated, or conflicted with others; but to welcome and recognize the unique gifts we contribute because of our uniqueness.
I believe the creativity of God is directly related to the diverse community that is God. God embraces and empowers distinction and otherness; therefore there is an endless stream of creativity, and color, and beauty, and peace, and interest, and diversity that flows from the essence of God resulting in creation. I believe this explains why centers of art, and education, and creativity tend to be more diverse than typical neighborhoods or small villages or towns. Environments where people tend to flock together with those of the same feathers, are less innovative or creative.
My own life has been expanded as I have been pushed beyond my own kind into those who were distinctively different than I. I believe that is most people’s testimony when they allow there world to be the world for others. Though we are distinct; we are one.
8:1 O LORD, our Sovereign, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens.8:3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars that you have established;
When I look out at creation, the vast varieties of species in the waters, and on the land, when I survey all manners of plants and landscapes and peoples, there is no end to your creativity, to your diversity, to your community of life and being and beauty. May I recognize the gift of others near and far and the belonging we share in God.
Amen