The Inside of Life, Underhill p.10
I have come across a short, but wonderful piece by Evelyn Underhill called, "The Inside of Life". Her point was that most people tend to focus on either the inward life or on the outward life and it is rare that one cannot go without overemphasizing one and neglecting the other. The solution to the imbalance is a life filled with wonder and love. From personal observation there are a great deal of people that focus intently on the sciences and the explanations for the amazing things discovered in this world, but I have seldom experienced the same people going beyond an interest/curiosity level. I certainly do not disagree with being curious or looking for answers, but it seems to be at the cost of awe and wonder. Although uncomfortable at times it's good to live in amazement, to leave the world of the great mathematician and enter into the corner of "the lover, the poet, the saint". Most of the wonder filled language is found in this group:
"Oh Thou Supreme! most secret and most present, most beautiful and strong! What shall I say, my God, my Life, my
Holy Joy! What shall any man say when he speaks of Thee?" -- St. Augustine
I suppose that Underhill is defining wonder as appreciating that which we may not fully understand, but that resonates deeply within us. She describes the saints, such as Augustine, as those who don't just talk about the God of the Universe, but ones who gaze deeply into Reality and in doing so are filled with wonder and love. We may not be aware of how deeply these characteristics, wonder and love, connect with who we are, especially when we seldom slow down.
Underhill makes it a point to note that, "All art is born of them and all religion too." It is not that scientific thought should be avoided, but that it must be a means to an end and not the end itself. Art and religion introduce wonder and love because they have the ability to make us slow down and ponder the what lies beyond what we already presently know. They point to the great Reality that there may just be something beyond this world, but in order to be in tune with this one must pay attention to the inward and outward life.
"It was Sir Thomas Browne who first called man the 'great amphibium.' We all begin as tadpoles; but we ought to end as
frogs--equally at home in both worlds, both elements." p.5
I admit that I personally don't have great practice with wonder and love, but Underhill has pointed to a great place to start, in fact she does exactly what she exhorts the Church to do and that is to "bind us together--the learned and simple, the strong and the weak--in a great social act of love and worship: to provide a home for the nurturing of the spiritual life." Like Underhill, just start with reading Psalm 8 and savor the taste of wonder and love shooting through the Psalm. May this season be filled with wonder and love renewed, don't miss out on the germs!