The Existence of God
1713
The Existence of God
François de Salignac de La Mothe- Fénelon
1713
Fénelon, the French theologian whose adventure novel "Télémaque" once captivated European readers, turns his elegant prose to the most fundamental question of all. Written in the twilight of the seventeenth century, this treatise argues that God reveals Himself not only to scholars in their studies but to any soul willing to observe the world with open eyes. Fénelon contends that the cosmos itself is a schoolroom, its stars and seasons and intricate creatures teaching the existence of a Creator far more vividly than abstract speculation. The trouble is that humanity is too distracted by worldly concerns to notice. Through metaphysical reasoning and what we might now call natural theology, Fénelon invites readers to cultivate attention, to see the artistry woven through every sparrow and sunset. In an age increasingly distant from religious certainties, this elegant little treatise offers a way back to wonder.
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“In short, what ought to help most to open their eyes serves only to close them faster;””
— François de Salignac de La Mothe- Fénelon
“A man who lives without reflecting thinks only on the parts of matter that are near him, or have any relation to his wants. He only looks upon the earth as on the floor of his chamber, and on the sun that lights him in the daytime as on the candle that lights him in the night. His thoughts are confined within the place he inhabits. On the contrary, a man who is used to contemplate and reflect carries his looks further, and curiously considers the almost infinite abysses that surround him on all sides.””
— François de Salignac de La Mothe- Fénelon
“A man deeply concerned in an affair of great importance, that should take up all the attention of his mind, might pass several days in a room treating about his concerns without taking notice of the proportions of the chamber, the ornaments of the chimney, and the pictures about him, all which objects would continually be before his eyes, and yet none of them make any impression upon him. In this manner it is that men spend their lives; everything offers God to their sight, and yet they see it nowhere. “He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, and nevertheless the world did not know Him””
— François de Salignac de La Mothe- Fénelon
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Fénelon, François de Salignac de La Mothe-. The Existence of God. Lex, lex-books.com/book/the-existence-of-god-60864ab8-0e7d-49f9-ae16-243dcc597a2b.Fénelon, F. D. S. D. L. M. (1713). The Existence of God. Lex. https://lex-books.com/book/the-existence-of-god-60864ab8-0e7d-49f9-ae16-243dcc597a2bFénelon, François de Salignac de La Mothe-. The Existence of God. Lex. https://lex-books.com/book/the-existence-of-god-60864ab8-0e7d-49f9-ae16-243dcc597a2b.
