 I enjoy reading all sorts of books, but when reading fiction, there is nothing like a well-written ‘who-done-it,’ especially the kind in which it takes getting to the end of the book before I think I know who perpetrated the crime. Fiction is one thing, but in real life there are different kinds of mysteries to be encountered, some of which produce anxiety, while others are simply in the realm of anticipation and desire. There are also scientific mysteries that people try to ‘figure out’ through experimentation and application of previous knowledge. In contrast to these, however, is the type of mystery that is spiritual; these are not mysteries that can be figured out empirically, but rather, require faith. This is because we are not seeking something, we are seeking Someone. These mysteries are not to be understood, but to be experienced. The nature of faith is mystery, and thus we refer to the events of the Easter season as Paschal mysteries: our faith is about coming to know the Person of Jesus Christ, the Risen Savior who is love and mercy. As His disciples we are called to stay in that mystery throughout this life, trusting He will guide us into the next. While remaining in mystery can be uncomfortable sometimes, accepting and engaging in this mystery is worth everything.  Even though God has revealed many things through Jesus, much is still mystery insofar as Who God is and what He does; therefore, our relationship requires faith. In the Letter to the Hebrews we read: “Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen…. By faith we understand that the universe was ordered by the word of God so that what is visible came into being through the invisible.” (Hebrews 11: 1,3) The author then outlines salvation history as a way of fleshing out the events and people through which God has acted, all of it dependent upon faith. Thus, we see that dealing with mystery requires faith, nurtured by prayer and study of Scripture. If we study the Old Testament into the New, we see that as time went on, the understanding of His people grew as God revealed more to them. If our faith is to grow, entering into dialogue with God through reflection with His Word and responding to Him in prayer is essential.  Jesus revealed a great deal through His words and deeds. However, we can see that often what He said was difficult for His followers to comprehend, mostly because they lacked the trust that came with faith; they could not enter into mystery patiently. For example, the Bread of Life discourse seemed so mysterious to them that most left Him. (John 6) And later many were flabbergasted when Jesus, in describing Himself as the Good Shepherd said, “The Father and I are one….” (John 10:30-38) Even the apostles could not understand the three predictions Jesus made about His Passion or that which He said at the Last Supper. These examples elucidate what the problem was: they tried to understand with their minds rather than with their hearts. They were trying to ‘figure out’ what He was saying rather than trusting His words and deeds. The result is that they understood so little that they nearly came to ruin. What saved them after their ‘failure’ was that they persevered in prayer, allowing God into their pain, thus recognizing that what they needed was not to figure out, but to allow God’s mercy and love to transform them into the saints they were always capable of becoming.  We must remember that we suffer from the same struggle with mystery as did the disciples. However, the valuable lesson we learn from them is that spiritual mystery is not a problem to be overcome, it is a reality to be entered into and embraced. And therein lies the beauty: we can know the Lord, but to do so we have to learn the way He speaks by entering into mystery in order to let Him reveal who He is as He chooses. Therefore, we will not get very far if we try to solve spiritual questions as we would a mystery novel or a scientific enigma; rather, we enter into mystery in order to let unfold within us whatever God wants to reveal. Indeed, it is wonderful to want to know all we can about our faith: in fact, we are compelled to do this in order to grow in knowledge of that which has been revealed and which the great mystics and theologians have shed light upon. But alone that is not enough; we must engage our faith and enter into the mystery because it is there that we find God. *  Much of life is mystery and we need the same trust in God as that of the apostles and holy ones. The way to this kind of trust is to know the One whom we follow. Even though we will not understand many things in life, God will give the graces we need to persevere until the time comes when we are with Him face to face. For now, spiritual and theological mysteries will remain; there will be personal mysteries, things that we cannot fathom which are simply part of life. In it all we must not treat mystery as a problem to be solved, because if we do, we will only become tired and frustrated. But if we treat mystery as something to be entered into and embraced, we will find the Lord of Love and Mercy at its center. That is worth everything!  May we engage in the mysteries of the spiritual life, realizing that it is worth everything! May we engage our Baptismal graces of faith, hope, and love as we enter more deeply into a life of prayer! And may we come to know the Lord more intimately as He draws us to Himself. Let us meet in the Heart of Jesus! Peace! ©Michele L. Catanese  * Think of Moses entering into the cloud on Mount Horeb; that cloud was the Shekinah presence of God Himself. Think of all the prophets who spoke for God, and perhaps did not always understand the message, yet trusted the Messenger. Think of the apostles at Pentecost who still did not understand everything, but on whom the Lord had breathed the Holy Spirit before He ascended and then received the Holy Spirit in an enormous way. Think of the famous story of St. Thomas Aquinas, one of the most brilliant theological minds the world has ever known: after He had a mystical experience of God while celebrating Mass, he declared everything he had written to be as straw in comparison to the One God whom he loved. None of these faithful ones understood everything, but because they knew the Lord, they trusted in His word and in His directives to them, and so they followed.
Images: 1. Icon; The Risen Christ, by Fr. William Hart McNichols. If you are interested in obtaining a copy, this can be found at https://fineartamerica.com/featured/the-risen-christ-014-william-hart-mcnichols.html 2. My photo; cloud over mountain, taken from Mount Mucrone, northwestern Italy. 3. Painting; inset of Host with Chalice by Jan Davidsz de Heem. 4. My photo; procession at the beginning of Mass, St. Louis University Cathedral. 5. My photo; lilies at Keukenhof Gardens, Holland. 6. My photo of a painting; The Prophetess Anna, by Rembrandt. This photo was taken at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. The model for Anna was Rembrandt's mother. 7. Icon; The Silence of St. Thomas Aquinas by Fr. William Hart McNichols. This can be found at https://fineartamerica.com/featured/the-silence-of-st-thomas-aquinas-097-william-hart-mcnichols.html Note: In compliance with GDPR rules, I wish to make it clear that I do not gather any information on any of my readers at any time. Comments are closed.
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