“For that same reason, human science (knowledge) cannot discover God; for human science is but the backward undoing of the tapestry-web of God's science, works with its back to him, and is always leaving him--his intent, that is, his perfected work--behind it, always going farther and farther away from the point where his work culminates in 👉🏼revelation.👈🏼
Doubtless it thus makes some small intellectual approach to him, but at best it can come only to his back; science will never find the face of God; while those who would reach his heart, those who, like Dante, are returning thither where they are, will find also the spring-head of his science.
𝐀𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝, 𝐚𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝; 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞.
It discovers a little of the way God walks to his ends, but in so doing it forgets and leaves the end itself behind…the very process of his work is such a leaving of God's ends behind. It is a following back of his footsteps, too often 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘱𝘴.
To rise from the perfected work is the swifter and loftier ascent. If the man could find out why God worked so, then he would be discovering God; but even then he would not be discovering the best and the deepest of God; for his means cannot be so great as his ends.”
— George MacDonald
Unspoken Sermons, 1867