Knowing God

   For many years I have studied God, theology and the Catholic Church.  I believe it is important to know these things as completely as possible.  Through these studies I have gained a depth of knowledge that has been extremely helpful in my faith and prayer life.

   My studies have also taught me that regardless of how long I live and how much I read and study I will never know all there is to know about God.  If I were to spend every waking hour in this effort I would still fail.  I have found that the more I learn, the more I realize how much more there is to learn.  The amount of knowledge to be gained is a blessing but one that will never be fully realized in this world.  I pray that we will be granted all knowledge of our Lord in the next life.

   I also believe that there can be a danger in the intellectual search for God if it isn’t balanced with a faith relationship.  It’s possible to get so involved with the technical knowledge that we obscure the personal rapport with our Lord.  Just because one knows a great deal intellectually doesn’t mean they will have faith in God.  Atheists study all the same things as Christians in their effort to disprove Christianity.  Many have a great deal more book knowledge of the Christian faith than most Christians.  What they lack is the personal experience that leads us to believe and place our faith in God.

   A second truth I’ve found is the blessing that has allowed me to greatly deepen my faith life.  Increased knowledge of God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and all things of faith is very important but is perhaps not the most important part of our lives as Christians. We not only should strive to know about God, we need to know God.  There is a vast difference in having the knowledge and having a faith-based relationship with Him.  Each can complement the other and both have great value, but I’ve come to understand that the personal relationship is far more important to my faith than the intellectual one.  I suppose if there were only one to choose from I would choose the personal relationship over the intellectual.  I would prefer to be His friend than His student.

   Knowledge and faith; two sides of the most important relationship of our lives.  I fully intend to continue my study of all things related to God and faith, but the true treasure is friendship, love, and communion with Him.