3. How do you view the world? Each of us has a particular way of looking at the world and this shapes how we see and value people and things. Our experiences, relationship, choices, influence how we view the world. Our own point of view affects our expectations and responses to questions and issues, and even shapes our choices. How do we see people and our future? Catholic faith will give answers to these key questions about life, and offers 3 elements that contribute to our vision of life: Trust, Justice and Generosity. )

4. Having faith in Jesus 1.List people or experiences that are connected in your mind with how you view the world (friends, relatives, movies, stories, a Christian belief or value that inspires you). 2.What influences from our Catholic faith do you recognize in your view of life? 3.What are the aspects/views would you like to make more truly Christian? Our faith in Jesus affects how we view reality and live our lives. Jesus is the ‘lens’ that helps us understand the Christian view of life. Reading the Bible is essential to help us understand Jesus’ vision and be able to see the world through his eyes. (See page 8 of the textbook)

5. God’s Wisdom is greater than ours This course challenges you to clarify your vision of life and of the world and bring it more in line with the vision of Jesus. St. Paul writes that God’s Wisdom is far beyond human wisdom. The teaching and vision of Jesus may at times seem unrealistic.. ( Matthew 6:25, 33) (page 9 in the textbook) God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength. (1 Corinthians1:25) Jesus teaches us that we need to rely more on God’s vision than on our own. As you rely on God’s faith- vision, you will be challenged to reassess the way you live your life each day.

6. Learning to trust Positive experiences of trust with people in our lives help us to trust God in matters of faith. Likewise, when we experience broken promises or betrayal, we may find it difficult to trust God. Placing our trust in God is different from placing our trust in people. Because we cannot see or touch God, we must have faith. But, through Jesus’ teachings, we know that God is always faithful and keeps his promises. We can learn much about trust from Jesus(the Incarnate son of God) especially from the trust and love he placed in his Father. Jesus invite us to do the same. 1. In your notebook, write the name of a person whom you trust deeply. List all the reasons why you trust this person. 2. Create a list titled “what makes someone worthy of my trust”?

7. Jesus placed his trust in God The Torah is the written Scriptures of the ancient Jewish people. It contains the promises of God’s Covenant. Jesus showed his deep trust in God through his knowledge of the Scriptures and by the way he lived his life. Jesus was fully divine and fully human and he learned from his human experiences. He taught, “ Do not think that I have come to abolish the law of the prophets; I have come not to abolish but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17). Jesus is the closest we can get to God.

8. The challenge of trusting God The Law or Torah is a Hebrew word meaning teaching or instructions. The three parts of the Torah are: 1. The Law 2. The Prophets 3. The Wisdom Writings. Together, all of these books of the Bible help us to understand how the ancient Israelites learned to trust God and why we can also place our trust in God. The Bible is full of stories that convey the proven track record of God’s love and faithfulness to his people. The Old Testament is record of God and his people entering into covenant, of God freeing them from slavery, calling them to live faithfully their part of the covenant. Central of the Old Testament is God’s promise to send a Messiah.

9. Our God is both just and generous God is Generosity. We can see this in the story of Creation (page 16 textbook). God creates every human in his own image and likeness. When we live as images of the divine love, we reflect God’s generosity and give glory to God. Human Beings are the highest point of God’s creation. Reflect and discuss (page 17 in the textbook) God gives us responsibility to care for creation and continue his plan for the world. The Hebrew words used in Genesis 2:15 in relation to the Earth mean “to cultivate and develop its potential” and “to guard it from destruction or harm”. We must remember to give thanks to God for all that we have. Praying the psalms can heighten our awareness of God’s generosity. See, for example, Psalm 104 (page 18 textbook)

10. God is always trying to ‘convert’ us! God created humanity with an intellect and a free will. We have the ability to know and the freedom to respond to God’s abundant love and generosity. We do not always respond to God’s generosity in the way that we should. We can make selfish and self-centered choices. Even in these times, God loves us unconditionally and continuously calls us to relationship with him. If we are faithless, [God] remains faithful  for he cannot deny himself. — 2 Timothy 2:13

11. God is always trying to ‘convert’ us! God is always calling us back to right relationship with him; in other words, to ‘convert’ us, ‘to turn us around’. The depth of God’s love and desire for humanity was fully revealed in his sending Jesus ‘for the expiation of our sins’ (CCC, nos. 620  621). Journal Exercise: Describe one aspect of your life that would benefit from a “conversion” Write how a Christian faith perspective could inspire and sustain your efforts.

12. Created in God’s image and likeness The Bible tells us that we are created in the image of God: Let us make [man] in our image, according to our likeness. ( Genesis 1:26) This means that the divine image is present in each of us. We are made to be holy. We are created to be united in body and soul, in both a material sense and a spiritual sense. Everyone is called to live in community with one another. God the Creator is the Holy Trinity. One God in three persons who are always in a right and loving relationship, both within the Godhead and toward all creation. Father, Son and Holy Spirit are not just different ways of talking about God. This is a mystery of faith that we can never fully understand. God is Father in a way that goes far beyond any human father. God is infinitely and unconditionally loving and faithful, generous and forgiving, caring and life- giving. (Read on page 21 in the textbook)

13. “In no way is God in man’s image” This Revelation about the identity and nature of God and of man is important. The human person is the summit of all creation “ The divine image is present in every man” What does it mean to be a person? God created the first humans in the state of original holiness and original justice and in a state of living in perfect harmony with him and all creation. God created us to be a unity of “body”(material aspect) and “soul”(spiritual aspect). Both make us one person. God created us to live in community and harmony with one another. There is a resemblance between the unity of the divine persons and the fraternity between men.

14. God’s revelation is clear: all humans, both male and female are equal in dignity Reflecting on Sacred Scriptures, the Catholic Church highlights the importance of healthy relationship for us as human beings. All humans both male and female, are equal in dignity. All forms of unjust discrimination between men and woman based on gender, are contrary to both the plan of God and the dignity of the human person. Created in the image of the Holy Trinity, human beings are called to respect and value one another’s equality and dignity, celebrate one another’s differences, and support one another in difficult times. Faith word : THEOSIS (page 23 in the textbook)

15. Losing the ‘likeness of God’ Human relationships, however, are not always healthy, respectful, loving and generous. Adam and Eve chose to disobey God and made selfish choices that prevented them from becoming the people God created them to be. Those choices caused them to sin and they fell out of God’s grace. They lost God’s ‘likeness’. We call this Original Sin. All of humankind remains essentially good, even when we sin. We can ‘become like God’ once again when we turn away from sin and seek to be in harmony with God and with one another. Reflect and discuss See page 23

16. The story of Peter Maurin Peter Maurin (1877-1949) co-founded the Catholic Worker movement and newspaper with his fellow activist Dorothy Day. Their work provides us with an example of living a life based on the justice and generosity of God. Together they created two ‘Houses of Hospitality’ in New York City, as well as a farm in Pennsylvania where the poor and needy could live and work. At the age of 32 Maurin left France moving first to Canada and then to the USA where he worked a variety of jobs. He lived simply, with little money, a way of life he valued as a gift. May 1, 1933 the Catholic Worker, was launched, in the depth of the Great Depression.

17. Peter Maurin and the Catholic Worker movement Maurin wrote many “Easy Essays” for the paper, expressing his catholic view of the world. For Maurin the practice of hospitality was the key. For him “Hospitality” meant opening our hearts and our homes to people in need. Today there are more than 185 Catholic Worker Houses of Hospitality and Worker Farms across the world and they are committed to non- violence, voluntary poverty, prayer and hospitality for homeless, exiled, hungry and forsaken.