God Acts "Behind the Scenes" in Man´s Life, John Paul II Says

VATICAN CITY, OCT. 31, 2001 (Zenit.org).- John Paul II today borrowed language from the theater, a passion of his youth, to present God as the "mysterious and invisible director" who moves "behind the scenes" in human history.

"The certainty of the providential action of God is a source of hope for the believer, who knows he can count on his constant presence," the Holy Father said.

The Pope addressed the 12,000 pilgrims who attended the midweek general audience, held in St. Peter´s Square. Reflecting on Chapter 45 of the Book of Isaiah, John Paul II continued his yearlong series of meditations on the Psalms and canticles of the Liturgy of the Hours.

The Holy Father began his address by saying that God reveals himself, despite "remaining hidden in the impenetrability of his mystery."

"No thought can encompass him," the Pope said. "Man can only contemplate his presence, prostrating himself in adoration in praise, by discerning his imprint in the universe."

"God intervenes in history, even if it is not immediately apparent," he continued. "It might be said that he is ´behind the scenes.´ He is the mysterious and invisible director who respects the liberty of his creatures, but at the same time holds the thread of the world´s events."

Herein lies the hope of the believer, the Holy Father added. "In fact," he said, "the creative act is not an episode that is lost in the night of time, as if the world, after that beginning, should consider itself abandoned to itself. God constantly brings into being the creation that came from his hands."

"By definition, God is the only One," John Paul II said. "Nothing can compare to him. Everything is subordinated to him. From here stems the repudiation of idolatry."

Idolatry in our time is real "in the attitudes with which men and things are considered as absolute values, to the point of substituting God himself," he concluded.