ARE YOU IMPORTANT?

ARE YOU IMPORTANT?

These are the very first words of the song, Here I Am to Worship, “Light of the world

You stepped down into darkness.”  Upon hearing this song this morning, I couldn’t help but think of how people want to be important but fail to realize just how important and valued they truly are.  

One only needs to ponder two things deeply and carefully to realize just how important they are.

The first thing is to consider how God is the Creator of all that exists. He is “Maker of all things visible and invisible,” according to what we profess in the Nicene Creed. Think deeply about what is being said here. God created the entire universe, the ends of which science will most likely never determine, a vast universe containing billions of galaxies, containing billions upon billions of stars and planets. Think also of the microscopic world with all of its intricate detail and complexities, many of which still escape the knowledge of modern science.

The second thing to consider is that the same Creator God mentioned above chose to descend upon our earthly realm, making his appearance in history as a helpless infant no less.

Why did He do this, you ask?

God chose to become both fully human and fully divine in order to fulfill his mission of restoring creation to its originally intended condition prior to Adam & Eve’s fall in the garden - to redeem us. He accomplished this mission through his life, passion, death, and resurrection. The Creator God assumed our human nature so that we could have the opportunity to share in his divine nature. This happens when we unite ourselves with Christ, the Word made Flesh. To share in God’s divine nature is to be given the opportunity to experience the ultimate happiness of living eternally in the presence of God.

Without God’s incarnation and redemption, we were in danger of returning to a state of nonexistence (nothingness), since God created everything from nothing, and God being God, He was not about to allow that to happen.

How important are you? VERY IMPORTANT!

To learn more about the subject, consider reading St. Athanasius'

On the Incarnation

Also enjoy Father John Behr’s talks on St. Athanasius’ work on YouTube

Why Did The Word Become Flesh?

"HE WAS CONCEIVED BY THE POWER OF THE HOLY SPIRIT,AND WAS BORN OF THE VIRGIN MARY"

This Christmas let us meditate on why the Word became Flesh?

We find the answer to this question in the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which tells us the following:

456
With the Nicene Creed, we answer by confessing: "For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven; by the power of the Holy Spirit, he became incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and was made man."
457
The Word became flesh for us in order to save us by reconciling us with God, who "loved us and sent his Son to be the expiation for our sins": "the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world," and "he was revealed to take away sins":70
Sick, our nature demanded to be healed; fallen, to be raised up; dead, to rise again. We had lost the possession of the good; it was necessary for it to be given back to us. Closed in the darkness, it was necessary to bring us the light; captives, we awaited a Savior; prisoners, help; slaves, a liberator. Are these things minor or insignificant? Did they not move God to descend to human nature and visit it, since humanity was in so miserable and unhappy a state?71

458
The Word became flesh so that thus we might know God's love: "In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him."72 "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."73
459
The Word became flesh to be our model of holiness: "Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me." "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but by me."74 On the mountain of the Transfiguration, the Father commands: "Listen to him!"75 Jesus is the model for the Beatitudes and the norm of the new law: "Love one another as I have loved you."76 This love implies an effective offering of oneself, after his example.77
460
The Word became flesh to make us "partakers of the divine nature":78 "For this is why the Word became man, and the Son of God became the Son of man: so that man, by entering into communion with the Word and thus receiving divine sonship, might become a son of God."79 "For the Son of God became man so that we might become God."80 "The only-begotten Son of God, wanting to make us sharers in his divinity, assumed our nature, so that he, made man, might make men gods."81