CREATION AND KNOWLEDGE OF GOD

 

Can man know God outside of the "special revelation" given by Him to humanity through the prophets and the Son, Jesus Christ? That is, can man attain the salvation of his soul through the knowledge of God that comes through Creation, what scholars call "general revelation"? This question is relevant because, at the time when it points out the divine interest in fallen humanity, seeking to reveal himself to it, it shows man as a being lost, in the world, separated from his Creator. 

It is a fact that when the human being looks at the immensity of the universe, he feels lost and disoriented, because he does not know who put him there. It's as if he were in an existential moat. He doesn't know where he came from, where he is going, and why he is in the world. This is an effect of the Fall, of original sin. But even fallen, by the fact that he comes from God and carries with him the "image and likeness" of his Creator, when he contemplates Creation, the idea of God comes to him.  But in a blurred vision, not clear. 

Man, fallen, does not see the true God in the immensity of the world. He, at best, comes to the idea of God. That is why many confuse and worship Creation itself as God (pantheism). Many others worship elements of Creation as gods (idolatry). And, on the other hand, others, when observing the universe, see only matter and deny the divine existence. It is as the psalmist says: "the fool says in his heart, There is no God" (Psalm 14:1). This spiritual blindness is another effect of the Fall, so that atheism and religiosity constitute great marks of man separated from the Creator. 

But despite this disorientation, God's witness has always been present in humanity. Whether by created things or by prophets, by God himself, in the person of the Son, and by the Church. See what the psalmist says, "the heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands" (Psalm 19:1). Creation bears the marks of its Creator, so that there is a constant witness of the true God in the universe. Even so, man remains lost in idolatry and atheism and only perceives God who is reached by the grace that is in Christ Jesus, that is, by historical revelation.  

Paul, writing to the Ephesians, affirms that man is dead spiritually, that is, he is dead to God, to spiritual reality, because of sin (Ephesians 2:1). Therefore, he does not see the Creator, in Creation, but only the idea of "god". This, however, does not exempt him from his responsibility for his spiritual condition. This same Apostle, writing to the Romans, said: "...since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities —his eternal power and divine nature —have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse..." (1:19,20).  

For this reason, God, for his great love for humanity, uses this time that the human being spends in this life to give him the opportunity to meet again with the Creator and return to the original condition. Jesus said, "whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them" (John 14:21). Knowledge of the true God only reaches man if it is revealed to him. Sinful man does not reach God by himself. At this point divine love for man is observed in such a way that He revealed himself in his Son, who died on a cross for humanity. It is faith in this act that opens the human mind to see God and to meet Him again. Faith is the language by which we read and understand God.

Antônio Maia - Ph.B., M. Div.

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