In Ignatian spirituality, there is an expression about “finding God in all things.” I would say that this phrase can be taken at least a couple of different ways. It might refer to finding God in one’s interior life, through all of one’s experiences. All experiences are, or can become, spiritual experiences, as we search for how God is calling us through them. As well, there’s another way of interpreting this phrase: that God is actually right in all things.

                  Recently I attended a memorable event. It was the Baptism, Confirmation, and First Communion of a young woman. We were a small group, about 15 in all, gathered in a small chapel. We all knew each other fairly well. It was a special, beautiful experience. It recalled for me the time when I entered the Catholic Church. I thought to myself at this time, in this small chapel, that the air was thick with the presence of God.

                  Later, as I reflected on this experience, I considered the question: was the air actually, literally thick with the presence of God? Perhaps God is always in the air, along with being present in the hearts and minds of the people gathered. I definitely experienced God’s presence that evening; and I might describe that presence as one that seemed to be everywhere in the room.

                  It looks like there is a long tradition in the Catholic Church of finding God’s presence in all of creation. St. Ignatius wrote that “God dwells in creatures.” Regarding the how of God’s presence, St. Thomas Aquinas has stated that God is present in things “innermostly.” Having said that, we might add that it is not the case that God is things. Creatures have their separate identities, apart from God; and God extends beyond God’s presence in creation.

                  For me, a few minutes of walking in the woods or paddling in a canoe usually suffice for a renewed connection with God. One might attribute such an experience of finding God to the fact that God has created all these things, and has left a mark on them. I might add that God not only created all these wonders of the world, but is present and active in them in an ongoing way. Such a thought might help me to praise and thank God, and to sense God’s presence; and might also encourage me to walk or paddle gently through God’s creation,