How can I come to know and live in the presence of God? The Irish Dominican Father Anselm Moynihan once authored a short but compelling book to answer this question. In his spiritual classic, The Presence of God, Fr. Moynihan presents the profound teaching of St. Thomas Aquinas on the various ways in which God is present and active in our world and in our lives. God is present to the whole world as the loving Creator of all. God sees all, God rules all, God holds all creatures in being at all times. Love is in control of the universe.
But in the souls of those who live in God’s grace, God is present in a special and still more profound way. In the inner depths of the faithful soul, God is present as Someone, an indwelling Guest, a loving Friend. God is within, and he is available for knowing and loving. To have the Holy Trinity dwelling within one’s very soul is at the heart of what it means to live in God’s sanctifying grace. A baptized faithful person is, in a way, like a tabernacle.
After the Second World War, Fr. Moynihan wrote this book because he had become convinced that, more and more, people were losing awareness of how present and active God is. The short book quickly became popular because the author both explains deep theological mysteries in simple terms and offers practical steps on how to live and grow in a daily awareness of the Holy Trinity dwelling within one’s soul. The book teaches how turning toward God within our hearts, making acts of faith in the Indwelling One, and welcoming his inward action allow one to be present to the Trinity.
When one learns to abide in the presence of God continually, he begins to experience spiritual joys and delights that far surpass anything he has known before. Only the holy are happy.
The Dominican Lay Fraternity at New Hope Publications in New Hope, Kentucky have now reprinted this classic book for distribution throughout North America. For those in the U.K. and Europe, the same book is available through St. Martin’s Apostolate.
You can order the book by clicking on any of the links above.
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Image: Andrej Rublëv, Angels at Mamre (Holy Trinity)
