My science teacher sat me down at lunch and said with pride
“I’ve spied how hard you’ve worked…
You’ve struggled, really tried!”
He shared he’d like to tutor me in things not taught in class
I said, “I guess, but will it help me pass?”

He grinned and said, “Of course! Let’s start. For elders and for youth
Two wings are sorely needed…
To soar and fly to truth!

Like Beatrice, or Morpheus, I’ll try opening your eyes
So listen well”, he mumbled, munching fries

“The Matter-only Vision says what’s seen is ALL that’s real
The things that you can sense
Or measure, test, or feel
It holds that all that matters is the matter you can hold
On the Matter-only Vision, are you sold?”

I mused, “So if I understand, on science this view is founded
The only things that count
Are things that can be counted
The view that all that’s valuable is viewable by eyes!
But in the face of many Faiths, this flies?”

My mentor chuckled, stating, “You have grasped the concept clearly
There’s more, please hear me out
But first, what is your query?”
I said with caution, “I’m a Christian, but I trust in science
Could both beliefs be somehow in alliance?”

He jumped up, spilled his tea and cried, “Of course! They’re best of friends!
They complement each other
On each, the truth depends!
A lot of famous scientists were also faithful Christians
Like Bacon, Llull and Ockham, all Franciscans!”

I paused and posed, “I guess they had a different kind of vision?”

He nodded, “Yes! Passed down through looooong tradition!”

“The Sacramental Vision says that while what’s seen is real
The unseen is as well
This view makes sense, I feel
It holds what matters most is that which eyes cannot behold
When the heart learns how to see, new worlds unfold!”

I realized then the sandwich in my hand I hadn’t bitten
His words were oddly filling
Such wonders left me smitten
I stated, “This is deeper than your class, but no offense!”
“I see”, he laughed and said, “it’s making sense!”

I thought, “I just can’t wait to tell my friends about this stuff!”

He drew a breath, sat down, and on he spieled…

“The spirit realm’s unseen, yet by the stuff of earth, revealed
Things visible are symbols
Unveiling what’s concealed
That realm is, in a sense, more real than that which senses sense
Is this all clear as mud, or too intense?”

I wagged my head, and spurred him on, my breath held in suspense

He plucked his glasses, pointing to a lens

“A Matter-only Lens examines galaxies or Mars, while
A Sacramental Lens
Sees past the sea of stars
The former says that love is merely chemical reactions
The latter, soul and body interactions”

“The former claims our bodies have no purpose but to thrill, while
The latter, that they teach us
Our purpose, and God’s Will
The former has a scope confined to scopes and human tools
The latter isn’t bound by physics’ rules!” 

The bell then yanked my head from new and mind-expanding clouds
“May we pick up here tomorrow”
I begged, “as time allows?”
He cried, “Of course! And bring a friend who might enjoy this topic!”
“I will!” I said, “It’s made me less… myopic!”

That night in bed I pondered, head upon the pillow pressing
The Matter-only Vision
Is flatter, dull, depressing!
It claims that when I die, so dies my “I”; then worms lay claim
But the other Vision… sparks my heart aflame!

That wise old bird! He shoved me from the nest to spread both wings

Of science and of faith

To help me find fresh things

To let me scan the heights with eyes of head and eyes of heart

And see the hopeful sights new Vision brings!

*****

“Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth.” -Pope St. John Paul II, Fides etc Ratio

“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” -Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

“He kept calling them to what was primary by means of what was secondary, that is, through foreshadowings to the reality, through things of time to the things of eternity, through things of the flesh to the things of the spirit, through earthly things to the heavenly things.” -St Irenaeus, Against Heresies