The Word became flesh to make us "partakers of the divine nature."
- CCC No. 460
Reflection: At the center of the New Age Movement is the proclamation that "I am God, and you are too." Like all heresies, it asks the right question, but gets the wrong answer. Can humans be divine? Yes, but only by participation in the divinity of Christ.
Prayer: Jesus, you have glorified human nature by your incarnation. Make us one with you in truth.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
From this loving knowledge of Christ springs the desire to proclaim him, to "evangelize," and to lead others to the "yes" of faith in Jesus Christ. But at the same time the need to know this faith better makes itself felt.
- CCC No. 429
Reflection: Telling others about Christ is a great blessing, but it is also a tremendous responsibility. When sharing our faith, we must all distinguish between our own conclusions drawn in isolation and true Christian doctrine.
Prayer: Father of the Word Incarnate, make us able and effective evangelizers that all may come to know you.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
The victory that Christ won over sin has given us greater blessings than those which sin had taken from us: "where sin increased, grace abounded all the more."
- CCC No. 420
Reflection: Christians often proclaim that God brings good out of evil, but it might be more accurate to say that God brings "better" out of evil.
Prayer: Father, in your mighty plan you have thought of everything, making all things tend toward our benefit. Let this knowledge of your love for us increase our faith in you.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
The first man was not only created good, but was also established in friendship with his Creator and in harmony with himself and with the creation around him, in a state that would be surpassed only by the glory of the new creation in Christ.
- CCC No. 374
Reflection: There are three relationships mentioned here: man with God, with self, and with others. In paradise, all three were in perfect harmony. Our Christian life calls us to restore that harmony.
Prayer: Father, help us to live a life of piety, honesty, and justice, that we may know true peace.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
Being in the image of God, the human individual posseses the dignityh of a person, who is not just something, but someone.
- CCC No. 357
Reflection: The only beings in the known universe who share the title of "person" are humans, angels, and the three divine persons of the Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We are in good company.
Prayer: Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, help us to fully live our personhood, which we share with you.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
Man is the summit of the Creator's work, as the inspired account expresses by clearly distinguishing the creation of man from that of the other creatures.
- CCC No. 343
Reflection: We often hear it said of humans that "we are just another animal," though everything from art to airplanes seems to prove otherwise. As children of God we must cherish our privileged status and gravely own up to the responsibility that goes with it.
Prayer: Father in heaven, as your children, may we always be mindful of the dignity that is ours.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
In time we can discover that God in his almighty providence can bring a good from the consequences of an evil...But for all that, evil never becomes a good.
- CCC No. 312
Reflection: Even though we know that God can bring good out of the most difficult circumstances of our lives, we must never trivialize our trials or those of others. The scourge of evil was not God's original intention for the universe.
Prayer: Jesus, you sweat blood meditating on the evil of the world; help us to understand the true consequences of our actions.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
Why does evil exist?...Only Christian faith as a whole constitutes the answer to this question....There is not a single aspect of the Christian message that is not in part an answer to the question of evil.
- CCC No. 309
Reflection: Many ask, "How can there be a God with so much evil in the world?" Christianity asks a different question: "If there is no God, how does one explain virtue, love, and all the good they have inspired?"
Prayer: Jesus, you sweat blood meditating on the evil of the world; help us to understand the true consequences of our actions.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
Drawn from the nothingness by God's power, wisdom, and goodness, [the creature] can do nothing if it is cut off from its origin, for "without a Creator the creature vanishes."
- CCC No. 308
Reflection: Look into the faces of the people you will interact with today and contemplate the fact that each of these people was "drawn out of nothingness" by God to be here, looking into your face. Reflect on God's desire to create the other person.
Prayer: Lord, you love everything you have created. Let all the people you willed to be give you praise by the witness of their lives.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
God is the sovereign master of his plan. But to carry it out, he also makes us of his creatures' cooperation.
- CCC No. 306
Reflection: True cooperation creates mysteriously. It is hard to tell where the work of one ends and another begins. This is how the world looks to the Christian. It seems that all is God, and yet, each of our decisions has such undeniable impact.
Prayer: Father, be patient with us. As you strive to do what would please you, support our efforts and guide us in the path of your commands, for there we find joy.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
Of all the divine attributes, only God's omnipotence is named in the Creed: to confess this power has great bearing on our lives.
- CCC No. 268
Reflection: To believe in a God who is all powerful and can do whatever he wills is to admit our own insignificance. To call this omnipotent God "Father" is to claim an extraordinary dignity.
Prayer: God our Father, keep us ever mindful of your power at work in the world, and of your love and work in our lives.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
The ultimate end of the whole divine economy is the entry of God's creatures into the perfect unity of the Blessed Trinity.
- CCC No. 260
Reflection: The human being is an awesome creature whose full dignity is rarely understood. Yet, our destiny in God is even greater than all that we are now: it is no less than true participation in the divine life of the Trinity.
Prayer: Father, you sent your Son to become like us so that we could become like you. By the likeness of Christ your Son.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
The whole Christian life is a communion with each of the divine persons, without in any way separating them.
- CCC No. 259
Reflection: Although there is only one God who reaches out to us in love, at different times in our life we might relate to different aspects of God: the power and majesty of the Creator, the intimacy of Christ our brother, or the charismatic fire of the Holy Spirit.
Prayer: God, I commit my life to you in the name of the Father, and the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
The mystery of the Most Holy Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It is therefore the source of all the other mysteries of faith, the light that enlightens them.
- CCC No. 234
Reflection: The issue of identity is at the center of all the questions of our life. "Who am I?" and "Who are you?" are lifelong meditations that flow from, and are enriched by, the doctrine of the Trinity.
Prayer: Father, faced with the mystery of our identity we find comfort in the sure knowledge that we are your children.
From: Day by Day with the Catechism (Catholic Book Publishing Corp., New York)
