Marvels of Creation

Granada Louis of

Description

In Marvels of Creation these holy Dominican writes beautifully and profoundly, so that we might see the wonders that God has put in plain sight and give glory to Him for them. Here is great spiritual fruit that has nourished the greatest saints for centuries, and now will sustain you in prayerful reflection and wonder of all that God created in His perfect and awesome design.

Sujets

• Philosophie et théologie
• Catholic Church

Informations

• Publié par: TAN Books
• Date de parution: 05 novembre 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781505114836
• Langue: English

Extrait

THE
MARVELS
OF
CREATION
The Marvels of Creation © 2019 TAN Books
All rights reserved. With the exception of short excerpts used in critical review, no part of this work may be reproduced, transmitted, or stored in any form whatsoever, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
This work has been taken, edited, and arranged from the TAN Edition of Summa of the Christian Life, which is in the public domain. All editing arrangement © TAN books. All Rights reserved.
Unless otherwise noted, the editor’s use of the Douay-Rheims Version for biblical quotations has been retained. Typography and changes in this edition are the property of TAN Books and may not be reproduced, in whole or in part, without written permission of the publisher.
Cover & interior design by www.davidferrisdesign.com
Image Credits
Cover
Third Day of Creation, Genesis, Schnorr von Carolsfeld, Julius (1794-1872) / Lebrecht Authors / Bridgeman Images
AngryBrush, Morphart Creation, Danussa, Christos Georghiou, Hein Nouwens, oleskalashnik, Channarong Pherngjanda, sar14ev, Manekina Serafima, Golden Shrimp © Shutterstock.com
Interior images
pgs 2 , 123 , 137 : Traditional Line Art, St. Edmund Campion Missal & Hymnal for the Traditional Latin Mass © Corpus Christi Watershed
pg 13 : Tatiana Apanasova and Nastasia Lagoda © Shutterstock.com
pg 20 : sar14ev © Shutterstock.com
pg 29 : Christos Georghiou © Shutterstock.com
pgs 40 , 45 , 77 : Channarong Pherngjanda © Shutterstock.com
pgs 46 , 58 , 83 , 87 , 94 , 102 , 107 : Hein Nouwens © Shutterstock.com
pgs 53 , 58 , 64 , 87 , 105 , 144 : Morphart Creation © Shutterstock.com
pgs 80 : AVA Bitter © Shutterstock.com
pg 149 : Third Day of Creation, Genesis, Schnorr von Carolsfeld, Julius (1794-1872) / Lebrecht Authors / Bridgeman Images
ISBN: 9781505114812
Library of Congress Control Number: 2019950690
Published in the United States by
TAN Books
PO Box 410487
Charlotte, NC 28241
www.TANBooks.com
Printed in the United States of America 2019
THE
MARVELS
OF
CREATION
Ven. Luis of Granada, OP
Edited and arranged by Ryan Grant
TAN Books Charlotte, North Carolina
TABLE OF CONTENTS
EDITOR’S NOTE
AUTHOR’S INTRODUCTION
CREATION OF THE WORLD
THE SPLENDOR OF THE SKY
BENEFITS OF AIR AND RAIN
THE GRANDEUR OF THE SEA
THE BEAUTY AND FERTILITY OF THE EARTH
VARIETY AND PERFECTIONS OF ANIMALS
GOD’S CARE OF THE ANIMAL KINGDOM
THE WONDERS OF BEES
WONDERS OF THE HUMAN BODY
MAN’S LOWER FACULTIES
THE LIFE OF THE SENSES
THE PASSIONS
GOD’S IMAGE AND LIKENESS
MAN’S GRATITUDE TO GOD
CREATION OF THE ANGELS
GOD’S CARE FOR ALL HIS CREATURES
EDITOR’S NOTE
T he Venerable Louis of Granada was a 16 th century Spanish Dominican. He is celebrated as a theologian of great merit, and the author of numerous spiritual works, such as the Sinner’s Guide .
In this holy Dominican’s meditation on creation, you will find no polemical work of any sort. In our day debates about creation and questions raised by modern science cause a great deal of contention and consternation. However, in the Marvels of Creation , these debates are far from the mind of the author. This is not merely because the work was written four centuries ago, but even more so, because his aim is one specific thing: that man might see the wonders that God has put in plain sight and give glory to Him for them. Thus, the reader can take the book in confidence and find herein great spiritual fruit, whatever his views are in relation to modern questions on creation.
Nevertheless, though the author writes as a theologian and only means to present the science as it was in his own day, just the same, discoveries subsequent to his time have allowed for the formulation of new principles and led to the rejection of older ideas in favor of more precise modern formulations. So, when the author makes reference to Aristotle’s notion of the four elements, or Galen’s teaching of the humors, these theories of ancient learning are best looked upon as superseded rather than merely wrong. The theory of the humors, for what it was meant to explain, is not wrong per se, but it is too broad to be precise, let alone isolate phenomena or predict events based on principles. Likewise, the theory of the four elements, which is not wrong in observing that some things go down and others tend to go up, is still wrong as to the causes of such things. In both areas, modern science affords us more precise theories that more accurately describe what takes place and allow us to predict other events based on them. Whenever it is advantageous to the reader, we have placed footnotes where a claim or comparison by the author has been superseded or corrected by modern scientific knowledge.
None of this should trouble the reader when he comes across an antiquated description of events. In fact, noting our more precise scientific theories in physics or cosmology, we should give God glory all the more for the complicated workings of the created world that we find all around us, and of which we are, nevertheless, the pinnacle.
Therefore, let the reader carefully and prayerfully consider the wisdom of Fr. Granada, and look with wonder at all things, great and small, which our creator God has placed in the world for us.
–The Editor
AUTHOR’S INTRODUCTION
I n the following work, our aim is none other than that man should glorify Almighty God by seeing His providence and care at work in creation. We shall look at the works of the creator that are both great and small, complex and simple, to see His handiwork not only in the marvelous arrangement of stars and planets, but of tiny ants and bees which we overlook on account of their size.
To do this, I shall quote from many authors who observed these marvels while adding commentary to them so as to fix the mind of the reader inextricably on God. There is nothing in this work that will not seem positively wondrous and which will not give further testimony of the wisdom and providence of God who made all these things.
The interpretation and application of these marvels I leave to the devotion and prudence of the reader. If I were to comment on each detail, the discussion would be too lengthy. I should like only to remind the reader that man is created in the image and likeness of God because of his immortal soul, which is illumined with the light of reason. As a result, man is not only able to know divine things, but also to establish and govern nations, with all their necessary offices and functions. But the reader should realize that while man does all these things through the light of reason with which he has been endowed, God’s smallest creatures perform many of the same functions much better than does man himself, although they lack the use of reason. Moreover, while man can indeed devise many marvels, whether they be great buildings or great works of the mind, the great creations of God that light the heavens, and the mighty animals of the earth eclipse his endeavors.
This applies to many of the things we shall now describe, and we should remember that God did all this to manifest His greatness and providence, so that knowing these things, we would honor and reverence Him.
–The Ven. Louis of Granada
1
CREATION OF THE WORLD
S acred scripture tells us of the immensity and greatness of our Creator. This fact of revelation may also be understood by making a simple exploration into the world He created, since it gives clear testimony to God’s greatness.
One of the many differences between the Creator and His creatures is that all created things have limits and boundaries to which their natures and powers extend. As a result, they have a limited or finite being and limited powers, knowledge, and faculties that flow from that being. This limitation is according to the measure that the Creator willed to impart to His creatures, giving more to some and less to others.
Seeing that God Himself was not created by any superior being, there is no being that can put limits or boundaries to His essence, power, knowledge, goodness, happiness, or any of His other perfections and attributes. Now, since there are no limits or restrictions of any kind in God, He is infinite in every respect. Therefore, His being is infinite, as are all of His other attributes, such as His beauty, His glory, His richness, His mercy, and His justice. Because He is incomprehensible and ineffable, no creature that has been made or could be made will ever comprehend Him. God alone can perfectly know and comprehend Himself.

Comparing the relationship between the Creator and His creatures with that of a king and his subordinates, we can readily grasp the notion of God’s infinity. They distribute the duties and offices in their kingdom at their pleasure to various persons, limiting the jurisdiction and power given to each one lest it be prejudicial to others. The king who thus restricts this delegated power, possesses in himself the supreme and universal authority throughout his entire kingdom, so that he acknowledges no one superior to himself. As a result, there is in the kingdom no jurisdiction or power, however great, that the king does not surpass. We call such jurisdiction and power infinite or absolute, in the sense that it is not restricted to any limit or boundary within its own area of jurisdiction.
We can demonstrate the same truth in another way. According to philosophers and theologians, God is so great a being that it is impossible that a being greater than He exists. One could not even imagine a greater or more perfect being than God. If the perfections of God were in any way limited, we would be able to imagine other perfections greater than His. But this is impossible, for we have already stated that our concept of God is that of a being so great that we could not even imagine one that is greater.
Let us take as our theme the words of the angel who represented the person of God. When the fathe