Four rabbis had a theological arguments, and three were in accord against the fourth.
"Three to one, majority rules," they argued. "I know I'm right," the fourth said and asked God for a sign from heaven.
A storm cloud rumbled and dissolved. But they were not convinced. The fourth prayed, "Please, God, a bigger sign!"
Four storm clouds appeared, rushed together and a bolt of lightning slammed into a tree. But the three insisted this could all be explained by nature.
The sky turned black, the earth shook, and a deep voice boomed, "HEEEEEEEE'S RIIIIIIIGHT!"
"Well," said the fourth Rabbi.
One of the three shrugged, "So, now it's three to two."
One of the things that keeps us from a deeper and richer faith life is that we can't see Jesus. We don't see God. And perhaps we have forgotten to read the signs. Some of the saints have had mystical visions and spoken with God.
Father Abraham, Moses, the disciples after Christ's resurrection and saints through the centuries have had visions and communications with the almighty. If only God would show Himself to me! Then I would believe. My life would be changed. Sound familiar?
The little signs are with us in creation. Sometimes it is more obvious, but we have to learn to look. Psalm 68 tells us to "Sing praisesto him who rides upon the clouds his name is the Lord."
I am a cloud watcher. This past Sunday as I was taking communion to shut-ins I mused that I was glad I was not God. One patient suffering from advanced cancer wanted to live. Another older patient wanted to die. I mused that it must be tough to be God.
As I returned to the church I noticed a cloud configuration in the shape of a cross. "God is in the heavens. All is well," I mused. Sounds a little simplistic?
The truth is that God is with us, in you and in me. That is the truth St Augustine expressed so well. When we consume the Eucharistic bread, we become what we eat. The life of Jesus is within us and sustains us. The Word also nourishes us.
In a homily entitled "The Genius of God", Father Brendan McGuire says, "The genius of a composer is in his music The genius of the poet is in her words The genius of God is his creation To experience God's creation is to understand the mystery of God."
Creation's beauty points to the Creator, just as the composition points to the composer. Words are not always necessary to enjoy or experience the beauty and truth expressed.
McGuire adds, "The high point of God's creation is Christ becoming one of us:
so that we would truly understand God's love for creation; so that we would come to experience that love for ourselves; so that we would come to experience Christ and
God's love in and through the gift of his Spirit."
I love to think of nature as an unlimited broadcasting station, through which God speaks to us every hour, if we will only tune in. George Washington Carver
