Thomas Merton was clear that God cannot be reduced to an ‘object’ that we can possess. God as ‘infinite’ has no limits and so can’t be defined, in the sense that the word define means to place limits. God as the Beyond is beyond all beings. Merton writes:

‘There is ‘no such thing’ as God, because God is neither a “What” nor a “thing”, but a pure “Who”. He is the “Thou” before whom our inmost “I” springs into awareness and love. … beyond our natural being we have a higher being “in Christ” which makes us as if we were not and as if He alone were in us.’

So, whilst God cannot be found among the creatures God made, the creatures cannot be separated from their creator. Merton turns to Meister Eckhart where he reflects how God contains a denial of denials. Thus, God is denial: God is “not this” and “not that”; akin to  “neti, neti” in the Upanishads. William Shannon helps us understand:

‘And yet, God is at the same time a denial of denials; that is, God is a denial that God is “not this” and “not that”, namely all creatures that are, find their being and identity in God. To put this seeming paradox in other words: God is transcendent, which means that God is not “this” and not “that”; at the same time God is immanent, which means that God is in all creatures as the source and ground of their being.’

Talking about God we can only use human language to describe our experience, and use these descriptions as symbols or metaphors. Yet the Reality of God outstrips any language we might try to use. I like this description from Merton that our concepts of God are as tiny matches lit to try and look at the sun:

‘As soon as we light these small matches which are our concepts: “intelligence”, “love”, “power”, the tremendous reality of God Who infinitely exceeds all concepts suddenly bears down upon us like a dark storm and blows out all their flames.’

To be with God involves going beyond concepts and images and turning off the lights of reason and imagination and for Merton entering the darkness where it is love that makes contact with God, as God responds to our longings. Merton again: ‘The heart only is capable of knowing God.’ And he quotes a saying of Allah attributed to Muhammad: ‘my earth and heaven cannot contain me. But the heart of my believing servant contains me.’

Through Jesus, God has revealed that God is love – not something God has but rather the divine life – is. And so there is a circulation of Love that constitutes the divine Reality – a circulation that encompasses the entire universe.