Day 21 - What is God? (Video Interlude)
Living Christ Sangha - Advent Ango Practice Period
Readings
Reflection
Today, I’m sharing another short (4 minute) video reflection. This one is an answer by Thich Nhat Hanh to the question, “What is God?” The question was posed by a child at a retreat, and the video intersperses footage from his answer with beautiful images of nature and Plum Village, the monastery where he lived in France.
Buddhism is a non-theistic religion, yet Thich Nhat Hanh doesn’t shy away from questions such as this one. This is because of his deep connections with Christians like Martin Luther King, Jr., Thomas Merton, Brother David Steindl-Rast, and Daniel Berrigan. As a result of these friendships, he came to see Jesus as his spiritual ancestor, saying, “Through men and women like these, I feel I have been able to touch Jesus Christ and His tradition.”1
His answer to this question is remarkable for its simplicity and depth. Zen is deeply experiential, and his answer speaks beautifully from this aspect of the tradition.
Prayer
Creator God, you pour your wonder into our hearts in the beauty of creation. Help us to see and understand that we are enmeshed in and dependent on our precious planet’s web of life, and teach us to love and care for the Earth as your gracious and life-sustaining gift to us. Amen.
Thich Nhat Hanh, Living Buddha, Living Christ, Parallax Press, 1995.