On Nature and God

Part 1, Union or Obstacle?

I am unfamiliar with the thought of Maurice Blondel (1861-1949), the Catholic philosopher. However, in reading an article I was interrupted by a Blondel quote from his famous work Action:

To reach man, God must go through all of nature and offer Himself to him under the most brute of material species. To reach God, man must go through all of nature and find Him under the veil where He hides Himself only to be accessible. Thus the whole natural order comes between God and man as a bond and as an obstacle, as a necessary means of union and as a necessary means of distinction.

The quote describes material reality--nature--as both "bond" and "obstacle." Material reality can be a "means of union" between creature and Creator, but should also provide a "necessary means of distinction" between creator and Creator.

Regarding the "bond" and "union" material reality provides, this captures the sacramentalism of Catholic theology. As I describe in Hunting Magic Eels, matter matters. God makes contact with material reality through materiality. As Blondel puts it, "God must go through all of nature and offer Himself to [us] under the most brute of material species." Think, here, of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. But also of the sacramental ontology of the ancient imagination, where all of nature is charged with the grandeur of God.

On our side of the relationship, we, as material creatures, must seek God through the material realm. There is no Gnostic option in seeking God. We cannot sidestep the material realm. As Blondel says, "Man must go through all of nature and find Him." And yet, that very path can become an "obstacle." In nature God is "under a veil." God "hides" in nature. And yet, God does so to become "accessible."

In short, the natural world has a dual aspect. Pathway or obstacle. Window or occlusion. Portal or blockage. Nature communicates God or makes God go silent. We see this dual nature depicted in Psalm 19:

The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the expanse proclaims the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour out speech;
night after night they communicate knowledge.
There is no speech; there are no words;
their voice is not heard.
Their message has gone out to the whole earth,
and their words to the ends of the world.

On the one hand, speech: "Day after day they pour out speech." On the other hand, muteness: "There is no speech; there are no words; Their voice is not heard."

So which is it, speech or silence? Well, it's both.

Nature can be both means of communication with God or the muting of God's voice.