Praying the Psalms with Augustine and Friends

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Praying the Psalms with Augustine and Friends

Psalm 104 with Ambrose – Creation’sWonders Reveal the Creator

He made the moon to mark the seasons, and the sun knows when to go down (v. 19). Consider that the sun, the moon, and the stars, though they light up the sky and shine with brilliant splendor, are yet creatures. Whether they rise or fall in their daily duties, they serve the will of the eternal Creator, bringing forth the beauty with which they are clothed and shining by day and by night. How often is the sun covered by clouds or taken from the gaze of the earth when the ray of its light dims or an eclipse occurs, and as Scripture says: the sun knows when to go down (v. 19). It knows when it should shine in full light or weakened light. The stars, which are engaged in service to this world’s advantage, disappear when they are covered by clouds. They do not do so willingly, surely, but in hope, because they hope for gratitude for their labor from him who made them. Thus, they persevere for his sake, that is, for his will. ———

This world is an example of the works of God, because, while we observe the work, the Worker is revealed to us. Let us consider the arts: There are those which are practical. These relate to the movement of the body or to the sound of the voice. When

Ambrose on Psalm 104 “This world is an example of the works of God, because, while we observe the work, the Worker is revealed to us.”

the movement or the sound has passed away, there is nothing that survives or remains for the spectators or the hearers. Other arts are theoretical. These display the