Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, SJ (1881 – 1955)
You might have seen this blog before, as I originally posted it last summer. A mysterious technical problem arose, resulting in my receiving dozens of comments that were about other topics, all with the Teilhard de Chardin heading. Perhaps there was a better way to handle this, but my solution was to temporarily take it offline by making it a Draft. That stopped the irrelevant and weird comments, but I didn’t want to keep it offline forever.
(Discussion/Reflection questions are at the end.)
I recently had a conversation with a person who gave, as an example of someone who had wasted his life’s energy writing obscure books, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. Well, one man’s opinion.
My take on Teilhard is that his writings, though misunderstood by those in authority (who warned the faithful about them as lately as 1981) have probably influenced the lives and thinking of all Christians exploring science and religion, matter and spirit, faith and the Universe Story. If you’ve been impacted by Thomas Berry or Mary Evelyn Tucker, or many others who share a similar vision, you have experienced the influence of this French Jesuit. Many of my contemporaries— and possibly the present reader — were thrilled by reading his manuscripts in their youth. Most of us have read at least one of his books. Many are familiar with quotes from him and have experienced over time the wisdom his words hold. They are profound, they are challenging, they are pregnant with life and love.
Of possible interest to SHCJ: Soeur Marie St. Jean Teillard-Chambon, SHCJ, was a cousin of Pierre!
WHAT FOLLOWS IS A SAMPLING OF QUOTES: The first two are a transition from my last blog, about exploration into God.
I am more and more convinced that the great event of our time is a kind of change in the face of God in which the pure “God of above” of yesterday is being combined with a kind of “God of ahead.”
Not “God who is dying,” as Nietzsche said, but “God who is changing.”
To those who know how to see, nothing is profane.
By his Incarnation [Christ] inserted himself not just into humanity but into the universe which supports humanity.
The consciousness of each of us is evolution looking at itself and reflecting upon itself. (I heard that first from Miriam Therese MacGillis, OP, in 1979. It sailed high over my head, but somehow I felt called to comprehend it. This took me well-spent years!)
Because it is not sufficiently moved by a truly human compassion, because it is not exalted by a sufficiently passionate admiration of the universe, our religion is becoming enfeebled.
(That was written in 1918!) [About the “other” who usually appears a danger, nuisance, and obstacle:] I shall like them as soon as I see them as partners in the struggle.
(That was written in 1918!) [About the “other” who usually appears a danger, nuisance, and obstacle:] I shall like them as soon as I see them as partners in the struggle.
Do not brace yourself against suffering. Try to close your eyes and surrender yourself as if to a great loving energy. This attitude is neither weak nor absurd, it is the only one that cannot lead us astray.
Unquestionably, Jesus is still he who bears the sins of the world; in its own mysterious way suffering makes reparation for moral evil . . . The full and ultimate meaning of redemption is no longer seen to be reparation alone, but rather further passage and conquest.
The presence of the Incarnate Word penetrates like a universal element. It shines at the heart of all things.There is almost a sensual longing for communion with others who have a large vision. The immense fulfillment of the friendship between those engaged in furthering the evolution of consciousness has a quality impossible to describe.
Love is the most powerful and still the most unknown energy of the world.
The day will come when, after harnessing space, the winds, the tides, and gravitation,we shall harness for God the energies of love. And, on that day, for the second time in the history of the world, we shall have discovered fire.A prayerWhen the signs of age begin to mark my body (and still more when they touch my mind);when the ill that is to diminish me or carry me off strikes from without or is born within me;when the painful moment comes in which I suddenly awaken to the fact that I am ill or growing old;and above all at that last moment when I feel I am losing hold of myself and am absolutely passivewithin the hands of the great unknown forcesthat have formed me;in all those dark moments, O God, grant that I may understand that it is you(provided only my faith is strong enough) who are painfully parting the fibres of my beingin order to penetrate to the very marrow of my substance and bear me away within yourself.Possible discussion/reflection starters:I had hoped to keep the quotation list brief, but I was unable to do so. Which one(s) might you have omitted and why?If you had to limit them to three, which ones would you have chosen and why?If you have a favorite that is missing, please add it to the comments!If you have found “communion with others who have a large vision,” how do you nurture it?For more, seeteilharddechardin.org/
http://www.teilhard.com
www.teilhardproject.com
Blanche Gallagher’s Meditations with Teilhard de Chardin, Bear and Company, 1988Arthur Fabel, Donald St. John, ed., Teilhard in the 21st Century: The Emerging Spirit
of Earth, Orbis, 2003Any book written by Teilhard (The Phenomenon of Man is now titled The Human Phenomenon.)
