it
may. God remains with and preserves all things which he has made;
otherwise they would not continue to exist.

40. Saint Paul does not simply say--as he does elsewhere--Of him are
all things. He adds two other assertions, making a triple expression,
and then unites the three thoughts into one whole when he says, "To
him be the glory for ever." No doubt it was his intention therewith
to convey the thought of this article of faith and to distinguish the
three persons of the Godhead, even though he does not mention them by
name, which is not necessary here. The ancient teachers also looked
upon this passage as a testimony to the Holy Trinity. Their analysis
was: All things are created by God the Father through the Son--even
as he does all things through the Son--and are preserved, in God's
good pleasure, through the Holy Spirit. So Paul is wont to say
elsewhere; for example (1 Cor 8, 6): "There is one God, the Father,
of whom are all things, and we unto him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ,
through whom are all things." And concerning the Holy Spirit, Genesis
1, 31 says: "And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it
was very good."

41. The Scriptures teach us that all creation is the work of one God,
or the whole Godhead; and yet, inasmuch as they make a distinction
between the three persons of the one Godhead, we may properly say
that everything had its origin, everything exists and continues, in
the Father as the first person; through the Son, who is of the
Father; and in the Holy Spirit, who proceeds from both the Father and
the Son; which three, nevertheless, are comprehended in the one
undivided essence.

42. But how such a distinction of persons exists in the divine
essence from eternity is a mystery which we shall and must leave
unsolved. For we cannot, with our crude understanding, even fathom
God's creatures; no creature is wise enough to understand these three
parts of itself--the beginning, the middle and the end. Though they
are distinct from each other, nevertheless they are so closely
connected that we cannot with our physical senses separate one from
the other. Who has ever been able to discover or explain the process
by which a leaflet grows from a tree, or a tiny grain of corn becomes
a root, or a cherry grows from the blossom to wood and kernel? Again,
who can explain how the bodily members of a human being manifestly
grow; what the sight of the eye is; how the tongue can make such a
varie