A Secretary of Invisible Things

Czeslaw Milosz, the Christian Polish poet and Nobel Prize winner, called the poet “the secretary of invisible things.” Unlike Romantic theories of creation, he said the poet did not create things so much as discover things. The poet is a prober of reality, not its maker. And many of the most important things cannot be seen or touched.

I think believers too should be secretaries of invisible things. Invisible does not mean non-existent, only non-tangible. And often resistant to logic narrowly defined and the scientific method. Saying so opens the door of course to all kinds of abuse, including self-delusion. But then all approaches to reality are subject to delusion.

Dealing with invisible things requires more care and wisdom than dealing with tangible things. That’s one reason poets are so careful with words. We should be as well.