From My Nature Journal: Purity of Heart is to Will One Thing

Purity of heart is to will one thing.

These were words of Danish philosopher and social critic Søren Kierkegaard (in fact, they were a book title of his), speaking of the singularity of purpose and will with which the mature follower of Christ pursued the life of faith. Off the top of one’s head it might be challenging to describe that ‘one thing’ in a single sentence, and would be interesting to raise that subject among a group of friends sometime soon. But it no doubt relates to the same ‘one thing’ about which Jesus exhorted Martha in Luke 10:41-42, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about so many things. But only one thing is needed…”

Singularity of will… Sometimes, by contrast, my seeming multiplicity of wills is an annoyance, and that not only to me.

Singularity of will… Sometimes, by

contrast, my seeming multiplicity of wills

is an annoyance, and that not only to me.

Over the last several springs there has been a bass nest in a couple feet of water about twenty feet south of our dock. A fish nest? Yes, they’re different from most other animal nests – in the wide open with little cover, and in the case of bass and many other fish, are simply a roughly circular clearing where the male has driven away the sand and silt with his tail and left a slight, gravelly depression. Nose anchored in a fixed position, he pivots to create a bed approximately twice his length. (‘Our’ nest is twenty-four to thirty inches in diameter.) He’ll then coax a ready female over it and woo her; mama releases her eggs, papa gives them a spray of sperm (called ‘milt’), and the fertilized eggs settle into the sparse cover of cracks and crevices below. She swims away, often to spawn again

A bass nest

elsewhere, and the male may entice another female to spawn with him, assuring good diversity of offspring. The male then guards the nest for several days, not exactly settling on but hovering over it or patrolling nearby; when the fry hatch (I always thought ‘fry’ was an ironic name for juvenile fish, given their potential future…), papa will guard it for another day or two and then be gone. Many of these nests are visible in shallow water, as the gravel tends to be lighter in color than the silt and sand that has been blown aside. And if the lake is calm, it is usually quite easy to spot a nice-sized fish perched over it.

During spawning season, fishermen work these beds with various techniques to catch them. (I won’t reveal here what I think is the most effective method, as that would be to disclose trade secrets.) Most fisherpeople I know have long since progressed to catch-and-release when it comes to bass, especially in pristine natural settings where better food fish like sunnies, walleye and trout are more available. It takes a pretty large bass to be a legal keeper in the northwoods anyway, in excess of fifteen inches here in Michigan. Up north, that’s a big fish; individuals that reach this size do not do so because they’re dumber than average.

But bass are just plain fun to catch. Even small ones give an amazing thrill, and they are just so beautiful to see up close. Only very rarely is one wounded in the catch-and-release process, if it is done right. A few seconds out of the water, liberation from the hook, maybe a photo, and finally a gentle release and they’re back in the water in a few flashes, more quickly gone in a flash of their own.

And this is if a spawning fish can even be caught. Getting back to the idea with which I started, they are pretty intent on their purpose. Typically a nesting fish will ignore the distraction of nearby food, including bait or lure; in fact, it is not unusual for a nested fish to pick up the edge of a lure ever so gently, too smoothly and lightly for the fisherman to even feel it, then move to the edge of the nest and just spit it out. I’ve seen them do this. Can’t you picture it? “Oh, there’s that annoying little thing again… (Lift.) Puhtooey!” In fact, if a fisherman has the ability to actually see his lure move slowly left or right, defying physics, a quick tug might capture him right then and there.

This past Memorial weekend my dear son-in-law could not resist seeing if he could raise the old boy in our swimming area and take a look. I watched for a short while from the three-season porch as he worked the bed, and, immediately after I looked away, he was clambering quickly up the steps with his catch held carefully in both hands. We hastily shared the joy of this little natural beauty, and Beej was off quickly for the release.

Here’s the thing, though… Later that morning, out of curiosity I asked him if he could tell if the fish had returned to its nest at all while he was down there continuing to fish. “Oh, within seconds it was back on it,” he replied. “Really? Within seconds?” “Yes, maybe ten.” We both shook our heads in amazed delight. It had just gone through what was likely a first-in-its-life experience, fought a fight that would mean life or death, was forcefully yanked from its familiar environment and was finally introduced to as foreign a setting as underwater would be to us. Once back in the water, wouldn’t you think it’d take off for the most distant cover it could find, in sheer fear? Nope, within a brief moment he was back at it as before.

That is singularity of purpose. That is willing one thing.

Forgive my anthropomorphism, but, as always, natural realities constantly remind me of spiritual realities. I wish I could possess that kind of singularity of will. My mind at times wanders, my commitment at times wavers. If purity of heart is to will one thing, my heart must be pretty adulterated. Will it be Jeremiah’s description that wins out, who said, The heart is deceitful above all things, and is exceedingly corrupt…? Or Paul’s description – This one thing I do. Forgetting what lies behind… I press on toward the goal for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus…? One clever commentator asked the question, “Do we say, with Paul, ‘This one thing I do,’ or do we rather say, ‘These twenty things I dabble in?’”

God knows me and knows my heart, and I draw great consolation from that. As Thomas Merton prayed, “…I believe that the desire to please You does, in fact, please You.” God knows your heart, too. In the midst of life’s distractions, however annoying, or its traumas, however shocking, there is a place of purpose to which we may return and find again the possibility of life renewed and hope restored.

~~ RGM, June 1 2016

QOTM...*: Thomas Merton

(*Quote of the Month)

I am surrounded by a beauty that can never belong to me. But this generates within me an unspeakable reverence for the holiness of created things, for they are pure and perfect and belong to God and are mirrors of his beauty. He is mirrored in it all…

~~Thomas Merton               

Years ago when I was music director at a Bible camp, we sang a folk song called “Have You Seen Jesus, My Lord?” Written by John Fischer around 1970, it was sung long into the 80’s in churches, too, was even a well-loved song used in many Christian renewal movements such as Cursillo and Lay Witness Mission. The song makes the point that we see the very face of Christ when we can finally learn to recognize him in another person. That is not dissimilar to concepts Jesus taught, after all. And in the very same way, we see the ‘face’ of God in what God has created, and the old song spoke of that as well.

Thomas Merton (1915-1968) was a Trappist monk. Trappists are known for their commitment to silence in daily practice, a habit difficult to understand in our wordy culture. (They're also known for their beer!) Yet Merton’s choice to speak through his writing was not a violation of his vows, but one encouraged by his superiors. An activist and prolific writer, he was also a thoughtful observer of nature, finding sustained solace in the forest environs of his home, the Abbey of our Lady of Gethsemani in Bardstown, Kentucky. As a result, he often wove contemplation on the natural world into his writing, speaking and teaching. If I recall correctly, I got this quote from a collection of his nature writings called When the Trees Say Nothing.

Indeed, God is mirrored in all God has made. Most profound of all, we are made in God’s very image – able also to love beauty, and be creative, loving, resourceful, powerful and wise.

In the Bible translation known as The Message, Romans 1:20 states it this way:

The basic reality of God is plain enough: open your eyes, and there it is! By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such cannot see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of God’s divine being…

So whether it’s the songwriter, the Bible or Thomas Merton, there is no doubt in my mind: they all get it correctly.

~~RGM, May 15, 2015

QOTM...*: Nouwen on Nature

(*Quote of the Month)

Henri Nouwen

It is impressive to see how prayer opens one’s eyes to nature. Prayer makes a person contemplative and attentive. In place of manipulating, the one who prays stands receptive before the world. He no longer grabs but caresses, he no longer bites but kisses, he no longer examines but admires. To this person, nature can show itself completely renewed. Instead of an obstacle, it becomes a way; instead of an invulnerable shield, it becomes a veil which gives a preview of unknown horizons.

~~ Henri Nouwen                 

It surprised me when I realized I had not yet used a quote of Henri Nouwen for my QOTM. One of my life-long favorite authors, I guess I also realize that I have not very often run across anything by him on the subject, at least not since I began collecting these kinds of quotes. Don’t get me started on my favorite Nouwen books, though, as I probably own more by him than any other single author, even heard him speak a couple times years ago, one of the most intensely focused speakers I have ever heard.

Case in point: at a Covenant pastors’ Midwinter Conference years ago, with probably 7-800 in attendance at that time, he actually asked if the back doors could be locked while he spoke, as the constant late-comings and bathroom-goings typical with a crowd that size were causing him to struggle with focus. I’d never heard THAT from a speaker before, but wow, did he deliver it! Sure made people get there on time the next night!

It is impressive to see

how prayer opens one’s

eyes to nature…

That is an indication of the laser focus the man had, the single-minded attention he gave to things. Attentive is the word he uses in the quote. The contemplative or prayerful Christian is attentive. In fact, active or contemplative, serious Christians are attentive. And those of us who find nature an important spiritual pathway just happen to be attentive to certain natural things that most people are not, especially in our frenetic, western, non-agrarian culture; for us, nature becomes a way, a veil previewing paradise.

Thomas Merton

Interestingly, the quote is actually from a book Nouwen wrote on the work of another famous monk, Thomas Merton, the title of which is Thomas Merton: Contemplative Critic, one I have not read. But Merton was another of those whose natural, spiritual focus was sharp.

How attentive are you as a follower of Christ? And what is your attention focused upon? I am not at all suggesting it has to be the natural world, but where is our focus, and Who is our Focal Point? I think the old 1611 King James English said it this way, “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.”

That is to say, I guess we are what we give our attention to. Thanks for the reminder, Henri. And peace to his memory.

~~RGM, March 14, 2014