The Kingdom of God among Us - Feast Day of St. Albert the Great

Perusing blogs (and for that matter papers, TV, or radio) when is the last time you heard that The Kingdom of God among Us? In the writing that follows from St. Albert the Great I found such a wake up call in the very first sentence:

"In proportion as the mind is absorbed in the thought and care of the things of this world do we lose the fervor of our devotion, and drift away from the things of heaven."

And later in the text:

"God is the “form” of the soul upon which he must impress his own image, as the seal on the wax or the stamp on the object it marks."

How have we today sacrificed our will for His Will enabling God to use His "form" in us so that His own image comes through?

nod to Doctors of the Catholic Church

The scientist and Doctor of the Church, St Albert the Great, that we celebrate today, writes in the Meditation today from the Magnificat Publication.

Meditation of the Day

The Kingdom of God among Us

In proportion as the mind is absorbed in the thought and care of the things of this world do we lose the fervor of our devotion, and drift away from the things of heaven.

The greater, on the other hand, our diligence in withdrawing our powers from the memory, love and thought of that which is inferior in order to fix them upon that which is above, the more perfect will be our prayer, the purer our contemplation. The soul cannot give itself perfectly at the same time to two objects as contrary one to another as light to darkness; for he who lives united to God dwells in the light, he who clings to its world lives in darkness.

The highest perfection, therefore, of man in this life lies in this: that he is so united to God that his soul with all its powers and faculties becomes immersed in him and is one spirit with him. Then it remembers nothing but God, nor does it relish or understand anything but him. Then all its affections, united in the delights of love, repose sweetly in the enjoyment of their Creator.

The image of God which is imprinted upon the soul is found in the three powers of the reason, memory, and will. But since these do not perfectly bear the divine likeness, they have not the same resemblance to God as in the first days of man’s creation.

God is the “form” of the soul upon which he must impress his own image, as the seal on the wax or the stamp on the object it marks.

This can only be fully accomplished when the reason is wholly illuminated according to its capacity by the knowledge of God the Sovereign Truth; the will entirely devoted to the love of the Supreme Good; the memory absorbed in the contemplation and enjoyment of eternal happiness, and in the sweet repose of so great a state.

As the perfect possession of this state constitutes the glory of the blessed in heaven, it is clear that in its commencement consists the perfection of this life.

-Saint Albert the Great (+ 1280) was a German Dominican priest and the teacher of Saint Thomas Aquinas. He is the patron of scientist. There is a popular adage about St. Albert which runs: "He was great in magic, greater in philosophy, greatest in theology." "Magic" here would mean science. It has also been said that St. Albert was a scientist by temperament, a philosopher by deliberate choice and a theologian by mood."

St. Albert, 1200-1280. Doctor of Science, Feast Nov. 15th.

Albert is a great model for all Christians, especially scientists. Many scientists like Albert have been blessed with independence of mind and great mental prowess. In this category, many rely more on reason and memory than faith. One recent survey from a national newspaper showed that there is least difference between the faith of eighty years ago (1917) and today (1998) among Physicists, Biologists and Mathematicians. Those who believe in God were around 40 percent and those who did not believe were 45 percent. Doubt and agnosticism resulted in about 15 percent.