signs of an Artist

Sweet little sculptures

Gold leaves dance through a sunbeam

The thumbprints of God!

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Author's note:

These days I'm agnostic... That said, there are times when I lean close to a sense of belief... When I see beauty in the natural world and it makes my breath catch for a second-- often times, the beauty can be quite small, to the point where it runs the danger of feeling mundane.

But these little moments and little sights will send chills up my spine and give me a sense that while things might never be all right, some things will always be better than alright.

There's a sort of comfort I feel when I see leaves blowing in the wind or sunbeams peeking through the clouds or a flower growing on the sidewalk or a human smiling despite it all.

And the thought will cross my mind: where did this beauty come from? Is God an Artist?

The teleological argument, the idea of intelligent design-- or of seeing God in Creation-- is not a new concept. The most famous teleological argument is the "watch maker analogy" which posits that the vast, interconnected complexity of our physical world is like an awe-inspiring machine. The analogy goes on to conclude that all the machinery of life and the cosmos working in perfect concert implies a grand intelligence behind it all.

Again, I'm agnostic, so I don't find this argument conclusive. However, I do find an offshoot of this argument compelling. For me it's less "Where did this complicated machine come from, it must be God!" and more "Where did this beautiful art come from. It could be God...."

Still not conclusive, but again, these little sights and sounds of awe-inspiring beauty do give me a sense of spiritual comfort.

Anyway, I know I'm not the first to conceptualize little moments of beauty as the thumbprints of a divine Sculptor or the brushstrokes of a divine Painter....

If the teleological notion of "seeing God the artist" in creation is compelling to you, I'd like to share one of my favorite prayers. I know, it's kinda silly for an agnostic to have favorite prayers, but this poem really resonates with me.

(Translated text of the prayer included in the wikipedia link, because I find the history and context of this prayer really fascinating).

The Canticle of the Sun, by St. Francis of Assisi

And if you're in the mood for music, I found an example of this prayer adapted into song :)

It's in Italian, written by composer Angelo Branduardi, "Cantico delle Creature":