To be near unto God - pagina 65

the

question

to

the

Corinthians,

"What man

knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him?" (1-2:11). Man alone can understand man. The more human we are ourselves, the more fully will we understand the truly human in others. Of course, always with this difference, that the more nearly we are alike, the closer will be our communion. A compatriot comes closer to us than a foreigner. A member of the family, a professional colleague, a peer in society, one whose lot and experience in life are similar with ours comes nearer to us than he whose settings of life are in every way different

from our own. Like alone understands like. The Divine saying, "Let us make man after our image and likeness," implied of itself therefore the Divine intention of creating beings who would be capable of Divine fellowship and who would be susceptible to this glorious communion. If, then, all true religion consists of this mutual fel.

lowship,

it

follows that

his likeness created religion. God magnified his

after

when God

He

thereby

created a being simultaneously

omnipotence in the works of nature, and the more fully its early chaotic estates refined and unfolded themselves, until the murmur of waters bore fruition in the note of the nightingale, the more majestic became the revelation of the splendor of Divine Almightiness. The whole earth is full of God's glory. But there is no self-conscious and responsive fellowship between all this and God. God stands above nature. Nature is subject to His majesty, but it has no knowledge or understanding of God and therefor no single note of thanksgiving, worship or com-

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