Ch. 1: God’s Good Creation: The Beginning of Salvation History

Origins of the World and Humankind The story of God’s saving activity in human history begins at the creation of the world… …and reaches its fulfillment in our Lord’s Passion, Death, and Resurrection. We call this story salvation history. God’s love, forgiveness, and compassion are revealed most fully in the saving actions of Jesus Christ, especially in the events of the Paschal Mystery.

Discussion: What big questions do you have about life and the world?

Understanding Divine Revelation Asking these kinds of questions and studying the created world can lead us toward God, but… Human reason is limited, so we need help to know about God. Here teachers might explain that the pursuit of these sorts of questions through human reason or logic is called “philosophy.”

Divine Revelation = God’s self-communication to human beings. God’s Revelation answers our deepest questions and makes known to us his desire for us to know him, love him, and share divine life with him. Though philosophy and other religions grasp some part of the truth, God has entrusted the full truth to the Church in the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

How Scripture Is Interpreted Divine Revelation is made available to us in Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture Scripture was formed by inspiration Christ entrusted the Apostles with the authority to interpret God’s word authentically. This authoritative office of the Church is what we call the Magisterium.

To read the Bible with understanding: (1) We must recognize the intention of the author. the Bible deals with a time, people, and culture that is foreign to us and… the Bible is written in a variety of literary forms.

(2) We must ask what God wants to teach by way of these words. Read the Bible in the same spirit in which it was written. Read according to the proper sense: Literal Spiritual (allegorical, moral, anagogical)

Activity: Apply the guidelines for reading the Bible to interpret Psalm 23. What genre of literature is this passage? What culture- and time-specific elements are present? What might the author have intended to express? Is this passage meant to be interpreted according to a literal or spiritual sense? What might God have intended to convey in this passage? Genre: anthem Culture-/time-specific elements: The psalm draws heavily upon pastoral imagery, portraying God as the shepherd and the psalmist/God’s people as the sheep of his fold. It was the job of shepherd to protect the sheep, leading them to areas where they could graze and have water to drink and sometimes protecting them from dangerous animals like wolves. Anointing was an ancient symbol of favor or special distinction. Author’s intention: The author most likely intended primarily to convey trust in God’s protection of his people and to praise God for doing so. Sense: This passage should be read according to the spiritual sense. The author does not literally mean that God is a shepherd but rather seeks to convey that God protects his people. God’s intention: There is no certain answer here, but we may reasonably recognize in this psalm an assurance of God’s care for his people.

Accounts of Creation in Genesis The book of Genesis, which contains the creation accounts, is one of five books in the Bible known as the Pentateuch, or the Torah (“Law”) by the Jewish people.

The First Creation Account (Genesis 1:1-2:4a) The first creation account adapts traditional stories and symbols of ancient myths to convey the Chosen People’s belief in one, true God—Yahweh. This account is not intended to be a scientific explanation of the beginning of the universe (though the truths of faith that come from Divine Revelation do not contradict science).

The First Creation Account Rather its intent is to reveal important religious and theological truths: there is one God God planned creation God created an ordered and good world out of nothing God created human beings (male and female) in his own image God gave human beings a place of honor in creation God blessed the Sabbath and made it holy

The Second Creation Account (Genesis 2:4b-25) The second creation account was written by the Yahwist, who portrays God as anthropomorphic, that is, with human qualities

Like the first creation account, the point is not to describe what God looks like but to reveal important religious and theological truths: Equality and differences between man and woman are willed by God. God created human beings in harmony with themselves and all creation, that is, in a state of Original Holiness and Original Justice. Together the two creation accounts convey the truth that God, the almighty creator of the universe, is intimately concerned with the human beings he created.

The Theme of Creation in Theology and Scripture The theme of creation is present in Catholic theology and Sacred Scripture as the foundation of all of God’s saving plans and the beginning of Salvation History. For example…

The Book of Isaiah The Creation theme is used to assure God’s suffering people that he will bring about a new beginning for them just as he did in the past.

Creation is offered as reason for praising God’s greatness. The Book of Psalms Creation is offered as reason for praising God’s greatness.

Proverbs The author praises Wisdom for its role assisting God in the work of creation.

Jesus Christ, the Word of God, is the agent of creation. The New Testament Jesus Christ, the Word of God, is the agent of creation.

Taken all together Scripture reveals that creation is the work of the whole Trinity— Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.