3.- The Creed (cont)
Chapter 2: The Creed (cont)
¶ 50. We can know God through His creation. But human reason is not the only way to know the creator.
· The Order of Divine revelation. Vatican II. Dei Filius (see footnote)
o “In principle, indeed, because we know in one way by natural reason, in another by divine faith.”
o “In object, however, because, in addition to things to which natural reason can attain, mysteries hidden in God are proposed to us for belief which, had not been divinely revealed, could not become known.”
o Philosophy: Philo (Love) Sophia (Wisdom) = Love for Wisdom
o Human wisdom, in search for meaning.
o Theology: Theo (God) Logos (knowledge) = Knowledge of God
o The study of God’s Revelation.
· 1 Corinthians 2:7, 8, 10
o “We speak God’s wisdom, mysterious, hidden, which God predetermined before the ages for our glory, and which none of the rulers of this age knew for, if they had know it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory…this God has revealed to us through the spirit. For the Spirit scrutinizes everything, even the depths of God.
· Mathew 11:25
o “At the time Jesus said in reply: ‘I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike.”
God reveals his “Plan of Loving Goodness”
¶51. God is pleased to reveal himself to us. He is not hiding himself, but he reveals himself according to our capacity.
· Ephesians 1:9. “He has made known to us the mystery of his will in accord with his favor that he set forth in him.
· Ephesians 2:18. “For through Christ we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.”
· 2 Peter1:3-4. “His [Jesus Christ’s] divine power has bestowed on us everything that makes for life and devotion, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and power. Through these, he has bestowed on us the precious and very great promises, so that through them you may come to share in the divine nature, after escaping from the corruption that is in the world because of evil desire.”
¶52. Why does God reveal himself to us?
· In order to adopt us in Jesus Christ.
o Ephesians 1:4-5. “…as he chose us in him, before the foundation of the world, to be holy and without blemish before him. In love, he destined us for adoption to himself through Jesus Christ, in accord to the favor of his will.”
· He wants us to be capable of…
o Responding to him
o Knowing him
o Loving him
· Far from our natural capacity.
· Philosophy is not enough, for it only takes us as far as our human capacity.
· Theology, however, stretches our capacity to reach God’s love.
· The God of Philosophy is the outcome of rational investigation
· The God of Theology is a Person who enters into friendship with us.
¶53. God’s pedagogy
· God reveals himself gradually so that we may understand him better.
· The History of Salvation, as found in Sacred Scriptures and handed down by Tradition, reveals God to us in a gradual manner.
· Not contradicting himself, but revealing the same mysteries in a deeper reality.
· St. Irenaeus (d. 107 AD)
o “The Lord, too, does not do away with this [God], when He shows that the law was not derived from another God, expressing Himself as follows to those who were being instructed by Him, to the multitude and to the disciples:
· Mathew 23:1ff.
o “The scribes and the Pharisees have taken their seat in the chair of Moses. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever thy tell you, but do not follow they example. For they preach but they do not practice. They tie up heave burdens [hard to carry] and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they will not lift a finger to move them.”
· St. Irenaeus.
o The Lord therefore did not throw blame upon the law which was given by Moses, when He exhorted to observed, Jerusalem being as yet in safety; but he did throw blame upon those persons because they repeated indeed the words of the law, yet were without law.”
The Stages of Revelation
In the beginning God makes himself known.
¶54. God reveals himself.
· Constant evidence of Himself in created realities.
· He manifested to our first parents. Romans 1:19-20
o “For what can be known about God is evident to them, because God made it evident to them. Ever since the creation of the world, his invisible attributes of eternal power and divinity have been able to be understood and perceived in what he has made”
¶55. The Revelation was not broken by sin.
· Romans 2:6-7.
o “… God,… will repay everyone according to his works: eternal life to those who seek his glory, honor and immortality through perseverance in good works…”
o Roman Missal, Eucharistic Prayer IV
o “Even when he disobeyed you and lost your friendship you did not abandoned him to the power of death, but helped all men to seek and find you. Again and again you offered a covenant to man, and through the prophets taught him to hope for salvation. Father you so loved the world that in the fullness of time you sent your only Son to be our Savior.
The Covenant with Noah
¶56. After the fall, God begins to heal the friendship with humanity.
· Genesis 9:9-10
o “Behold, I establish my covenant with you and your descendants after you, and with every living creature that is with you, the birds, the cattle, and every beast of the earth with you, as many as came out of the ark.”
· Genesis 9:16
o “When the bow is in the clouds, I will look upon it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon earth.”
· God unites his people, but he keeps them grouped, “in their lands, each with its own language, by their families, in their nations” (Gen 10:5).
¶57. God’s intended division is to limit the pride of mankind.
· Acts of the Apostles 17:26-27.
o “He made from one the whole human race to dwell on the entire surface of the earth, and he fixed the order of seasons and the boundaries of their regions, so that people might seek God, even perhaps grope for him and find him, though indeed he is not far from anyone of us.”
· Division for God is intended to humble us. It gives us limits.
· Tower of Babel Gen 11:4-6.
o “Then they said, ‘Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the sky, and so make a name for ourselves; otherwise we shall be scattered all over the earth.’ The Lord came down to see the city and the tower that the men had built. Then the Lord said, ‘If now, while they are one people, all speaking the same language, they have started to do this, nothing will later stop them to do whatever they presume to do.”
· But this provisional method from God , would later be threaten by polytheism, idolatry to both nation (totalitarianism) and rulers (leaders).
· Rom 1:18-25. Please read as homework.
· “The wrath of God is indeed being revealed from heaven against every impiety and wickedness of those who suppress the truth by their wickedness” (Rom 1:18)
· Then St. Paul explains how since creation human beings have found ways to reject God by worshiping creation, and not the Creator.
· “Therefore, God handed them over to impurity through the lust of their hearts for the mutual degradation of their bodies. They exchanged the truth of God for a lie and revered and worshiped the creature rather than the creator, who is blessed forever. Amen (Rom 1:24-25).
¶58. The Covenant of Noah was never forgotten.
· God does not create a new covenant exclusive from the previous ones.
· Many others lived by this covenant of fidelity.
o Read Genesis 14:18 (Noah); Hebrews 7:3 (Daniel); Ezekiel 14:14 (Job).
· In Christ, the Lord will “gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad” (Jn 11:52).
God Chooses Abraham
¶59. Abram is chosen from amongst God’s people.
· Abraham: Father of many nations. God begins his plan to unify his people.
· Galatians 3:7-9. “Realize then that it is those who have faith who are children of Abraham. Scripture, which saw in advance that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, foretold the good news to Abraham, saying, ‘Through you shall all nations be blessed. Consequently, those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham who had faith.”
¶60. God begins to expand his chosen people.
· The descendants of Abraham will prepare the day when God would gather all of his Children unto one Church.
· John 10:16.
o Jesus said, “I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock, one shepherd.”
· John 11:52 Caiphas, the high priests prophesied that Jesus would die in place of a nation.
o “…and not for the nation only, but to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.”
· All nations will be united in Jesus Christ.
¶61. Because the patriarchs, prophets, and certain Old Testament figures served as forerunners of Jesus, the Church will always regard them as part of God’s covenant, fulfilled once and for all in the person of Jesus Christ.
God forms his people Israel
¶62. God gathers his people, by freeing them from slavery.
· A new covenant in Mt Sinai: New Law through Moses
· The Law becomes the point of unity for God’s people.
o Recognize one true God as opposed to many.
o Serve only one God.
· Vatican II, Dei Verbum November 18, 1965
o “In his own time God called Abraham, and made him into a great nation (cf. Gen 12:2). After the era of the patriarch, he taught this nation, by Moses and the prophets, to recognize him as the only living and true God, as a providential Father and just judge. He taught them, too, to look for the promised Savior. And so, throughout the ages, he prepared the way for the Gospel.
¶63. Israel is and it always will be, the priestly people of God.
· Deuteronomy 28:9-10.
o “Provided that you keep the commandments of the Lord, your God, and walk in his ways, he will establish you as a people sacred to himself, as he swore to you; so that, when all the nations of the earth see you bearing the name of the Lord, they will stand in awe of you.”
· Roman Missal, Good Friday, General Intercessions VI.
o “Let us pray for the Jewish people, the first to hear the word of God, that they may continue to grow in the love of his name and in faithfulness to his covenant.”
o Priest: “Almighty and eternal God, long ago you gave your promise to Abraham and his posterity. Listen to your Church as we pray that the people you first made your own may arrive at the fullness of redemption.”
¶64. The Prophets: Instruments of God’s word to bring people back to himself.
· Read.
o Isaiah 2:2-4
o Jeremiah 31:31-34
o Hebrews 10:16
· Prophets: signs of God’s desire for union with his people. God remains present through the work of the prophets. The prophets are “representatives” of God.
Christ Jesus – “Mediator and Fullness of All Revelation”
God has said everything in his Word
¶65. God’s Word is the ultimate revelation.
· John 1:1-5, 14.
o “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came to be through him, and without him nothing came to be. What came to be through him was life, and this life was the light of the human race; the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it…And the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us, and we saw his glory, the glory as of the Father’s only Son, full of grace and truth.
· Read the quote from St. John of the Cross.
There will be no further Revelation
¶66. Christ: the New and Definite Covenant. It will never fade. God gave us all in Christ, so we cannot expect any further public revelation.
· All Revelation is completed with Jesus Christ.
· The Christian Faith will work on making this revelation completely explicit.
o We must gradually grasp its full significance.
¶67. The Nature of Private revelations
· Apparitions, locutions, etc… As those experienced by saints.
o Recognized by the Church as real.
o Not part of the deposit of faith
o They cannot claim to improve the revelation in Christ
o They cannot claim to complete the revelation in Christ
· Private revelations
o Help us live Christ’s revelation more fully
o They are limited by time, place, and individuals
· The Magisterium of the Church
o Discerns these private revelations
o Assists the people how to interpret them
o It would direct the people to an “authentic call of Christ or the saints to the Church” not outside of the Church.
· The Christian Faith cannot accept new revelations if…
o …They claim to surpass something previously revealed in the deposit of faith, e.g. new books of scripture, religious pluralism, etc…
…They claim to correct the Revelation of Christ, e.g. Jehovah Witnesses, Mormon Church, etc…
© 2000-2008 Juan Carlos Aguirre Borchardt