Paradox.
Although I am not God, I am not other than God either.
~ Romano Guardini
Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I have said you are “gods”’[Ps 82:6]?
~ John 10:34
new years, 5
We are not altogether comfortable with the idea of union with God.
Despite the consistent testimony of scripture and Christian leaders over these many years, most of us are not convinced that such union is either possible or desirable. Overall, it feels safer to keep God at a comfortable distance. Why is this? Here are a few of the reasons I can think of why we are reluctant to claim our birthright as full sons and daughters of God…
We don’t want to think too highly of ourselves. We don’t want to infringe upon the otherness of God, the holiness and distinctness of God. There is a rightness to this instinct, but it’s also a cop-out, as we shall see.
We’re not sure God thinks that highly of us. The Calvinist doctrine of total depravity has historically painted with far too broad a brush and convinced us that, at the end of the day, God just doesn’t like us that much. He has to love us, but our humanity is far too mired in sin and contamination. Jesus however felt otherwise as he eagerly took on the full measure of our humanity and united it with divinity. This is our calling too.
We’re not sure we could pull it off, even if we wanted to. Even if we’re not totally depraved, we know our weaknesses all too well. So even if Jesus has “fooled” God into seeing us through the lens of his perfection, we know better. If we don’t reach so far, we can’t fail so badly.
We’re just not sure we want to carry that responsibility. We’re not sure that “being Jesus“ is an entirely fulfilling gig. We might miss out on some fun stuff. Overall, it simply feels too daunting. It’s easier to let Jesus carry that burden while we stay safely in the shadows and worship from afar.
Theologically, we’re talking about the paradox of transcendence and immanence. Transcendence says that God is completely above us and is echoed in these words from Isaiah, “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways” (55:9). In fact the Old Testament overwhelming emphasizes this otherness of God… with occasional refreshing respites from the divine intimacy of Moses and the poetry of David.
Jesus takes a much difference perspective by emphasizing the nearness and approachability of God, what we call immanence. This perspective is embedded in his title Emmanuel, “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel” (which means ‘God with us’)” (Mt 1:23). Paul picks up the torch by declaring, “God did this [created humans] so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring’” (Acts 17:27-28).
The Italian Catholic priest Romano Guardini (1885–1968) explored this paradox within his 75 books, Although I am not God, I am not other than God either. Let’s remind ourselves the meaning of “paradox”—a statement, idea, or situation that seems contradictory or absurd but, upon closer examination, reveals a deeper truth, logic, or meaning, often challenging our understanding and forcing deeper reflection.
Dare we open our hearts to reflect upon this greatest of paradoxes? Can we be trusted to bear such a mantle as divine union? We know we will not do it as well as Jesus did, but maybe part of the genius of the plan is that our failures get folded back in upon our transformational journey. Humility is not seeing ourselves as more lowly than we are; humility is seeing ourselves precisely as we are: a “treasure” beyond comprehension carried in “jars of clay” (2 Cor 4:7). Beautiful, fragile, and fundamentally sacred.
growing your soul
Probably the exercise that best connects me to the transcendent truth of immanence is this one: the Atmosphere Exercise. Sometimes our bodies lead us into truth better than our minds.
serving our world
What could possibly serve the world better than Jesus incarnated more fully in you?
takeaway
Hold the Paradox.