The love which will lead us to God does not consist in sentiment; it is an act of th will. To love is to 'will the good'; to love God, is to 'will good to God.' The good which we can desire for God is that which Jesus Himself taught us to ask of our heavenly Father: 'Hallowed be Thy name; Thy will be done.' Since God is the infinite good upon which everything depends, the good that He desires and that by which He is pleased is none other than His own glory and the acomplishment of His holy will.
This goes some way to dealing with the issue about whether praising God is something that God would desire; it seems to us to be so fraught with narcissicism. I think I'd have to add that it needs to be understood in a Trinitarian framework, or it does seem more difficult. However, this quote does open up the possibility of seeing theologically how loving God begins to issue in praise.
Dominican Idaho: Because it never hurts to remember::
1 comment:
Dear friend,
Another fine book is "This Tremendous Lover" by M. Eugene Boylan, considered one of the 20th century spiritual masterpieces. In it, repeatedly it is pointed out that "God's glory is his mercy" - you see how "Thy will be done" for God's glory is our salvation, which is his will?
God bless,
Mark
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