Catechism of the Catholic Church · Part One › Section Two › Chapter One › Article 1 · Paragraph 4 (§§279–324)
Paragraphs · 46
The Catechism's text is under copyright, so each paragraph is quoted briefly here with a link to the full text at vatican.va.
Paragraph 4. THE CREATOR
- §279 — "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth." Holy Scripture begins with these solemn words. the profession of faith takes them up when it confesses that God the Father almighty is "Creator of heaven and earth" (Apostles' Creed), "of all that is, seen and unseen" (Nicene Creed).vatican.va
- §280 — Creation is the foundation of "all God's saving plans," the "beginning of the history of salvation" that culminates in Christ. Conversely, the mystery of Christ casts conclusive light on the mystery of creation and reveals the end for which "in the beginning God created the…vatican.va
- §281 — And so the readings of the Easter Vigil, the celebration of the new creation in Christ, begin with the creation account; likewise in the Byzantine liturgy, the account of creation always constitutes the first reading at the vigils of the great feasts of the Lord.vatican.va
I. Catechesis on Creation
- §282 — Catechesis on creation is of major importance. It concerns the very foundations of human and Christian life: for it makes explicit the response of the Christian faith to the basic question that men of all times have asked themselves: "Where do we come from?"vatican.va
- §283 — The question about the origins of the world and of man has been the object of many scientific studies which have splendidly enriched our knowledge of the age and dimensions of the cosmos, the development of life-forms and the appearance of man.vatican.va
- §284 — The great interest accorded to these studies is strongly stimulated by a question of another order, which goes beyond the proper domain of the natural sciences.vatican.va
- §285 — Since the beginning the Christian faith has been challenged by responses to the question of origins that differ from its own. Ancient religions and cultures produced many myths concerning origins.vatican.va
- §286 — Human intelligence is surely already capable of finding a response to the question of origins. the existence of God the Creator can be known with certainty through his works, by the light of human reason, even if this knowledge is often obscured and disfigured by error.vatican.va
- §287 — The truth about creation is so important for all of human life that God in his tenderness wanted to reveal to his People everything that is salutary to know on the subject.vatican.va
- §288 — Thus the revelation of creation is inseparable from the revelation and forging of the covenant of the one God with his People. Creation is revealed as the first step towards this covenant, the first and universal witness to God's all-powerful love.vatican.va
- §289 — Among all the Scriptural texts about creation, the first three chapters of Genesis occupy a unique place. From a literary standpoint these texts may have had diverse sources.vatican.va
Ii. Creation - Work of the Holy Trinity
- §290 — "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth": three things are affirmed in these first words of Scripture: the eternal God gave a beginning to all that exists outside of himself; he alone is Creator (the verb "create" - Hebrew bara - always has God for its subject).vatican.va
- §291 — "In the beginning was the Word. . and the Word was God. . all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made."vatican.va
- §292 — The Old Testament suggests and the New Covenant reveals the creative action of the Son and the Spirit, inseparably one with that of the Father.vatican.va
Iii. "the World Was Created for the Glory of God"
- §293 — Scripture and Tradition never cease to teach and celebrate this fundamental truth: "The world was made for the glory of God." St. Bonaventure explains that God created all things "not to increase his glory, but to show it forth and to communicate it", for God…vatican.va
- §294 — The glory of God consists in the realization of this manifestation and communication of his goodness, for which the world was created. God made us "to be his sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious…vatican.va
Iv. the Mystery of Creation
- §295 — We believe that God created the world according to his wisdom. It is not the product of any necessity whatever, nor of blind fate or chance.vatican.va
- §296 — We believe that God needs no pre-existent thing or any help in order to create, nor is creation any sort of necessary emanation from the divine substance.vatican.va
- §297 — Scripture bears witness to faith in creation "out of nothing" as a truth full of promise and hope. Thus the mother of seven sons encourages them for martyrdom:vatican.va
- §298 — Since God could create everything out of nothing, he can also, through the Holy Spirit, give spiritual life to sinners by creating a pure heart in them, and bodily life to the dead through the Resurrection.vatican.va
- §299 — Because God creates through wisdom, his creation is ordered: "You have arranged all things by measure and number and weight." The universe, created in and by the eternal Word, the "image of the invisible God", is destined for and addressed to man, himself created in…vatican.va
- §300 — God is infinitely greater than all his works: "You have set your glory above the heavens." Indeed, God's "greatness is unsearchable". But because he is the free and sovereign Creator, the first cause of all that exists, God is present to his creatures' inmost being: "In him we live and move and have our being."vatican.va
- §301 — With creation, God does not abandon his creatures to themselves. He not only gives them being and existence, but also, and at every moment, upholds and sustains them in being, enables them to act and brings them to their final end.vatican.va
V. God Carries Out His Plan: Divine Providence
- §302 — Creation has its own goodness and proper perfection, but it did not spring forth complete from the hands of the Creator. the universe was created "in a state of journeying" (in statu viae) toward an ultimate perfection yet to be attained, to which God has destined it.vatican.va
- §303 — The witness of Scripture is unanimous that the solicitude of divine providence is concrete and immediate; God cares for all, from the least things to the great events of the world and its history.vatican.va
- §304 — And so we see the Holy Spirit, the principal author of Sacred Scripture, often attributing actions to God without mentioning any secondary causes. This is not a "primitive mode of speech", but a profound way of recalling God's primacy and absolute Lordship over history and…vatican.va
- §305 — Jesus asks for childlike abandonment to the providence of our heavenly Father who takes care of his children's smallest needs: "Therefore do not be anxious, saying, "What shall we eat?"vatican.va
- §306 — God is the sovereign master of his plan. But to carry it out he also makes use of his creatures' co-operation. This use is not a sign of weakness, but rather a token of almighty God's greatness and goodness.vatican.va
- §307 — To human beings God even gives the power of freely sharing in his providence by entrusting them with the responsibility of "subduing" the earth and having dominion over it.vatican.va
- §308 — The truth that God is at work in all the actions of his creatures is inseparable from faith in God the Creator. God is the first cause who operates in and through secondary causes: "For God is at work in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure."vatican.va
- §309 — If God the Father almighty, the Creator of the ordered and good world, cares for all his creatures, why does evil exist? To this question, as pressing as it is unavoidable and as painful as it is mysterious, no quick answer will suffice.vatican.va
- §310 — But why did God not create a world so perfect that no evil could exist in it? With infinite power God could always create something better.vatican.va
- §311 — Angels and men, as intelligent and free creatures, have to journey toward their ultimate destinies by their free choice and preferential love. They can therefore go astray.vatican.va
- §312 — In time we can discover that God in his almighty providence can bring a good from the consequences of an evil, even a moral evil, caused by his creatures: "It was not you", said Joseph to his brothers, "who sent me here, but God.vatican.va
- §313 — "We know that in everything God works for good for those who love him." The constant witness of the saints confirms this truth:vatican.va
- §314 — We firmly believe that God is master of the world and of its history. But the ways of his providence are often unknown to us.vatican.va
In Brief
- §315 — In the creation of the world and of man, God gave the first and universal witness to his almighty love and his wisdom, the first proclamation of the "plan of his loving goodness", which finds its goal in the new creation in Christ.vatican.va
- §316 — Though the work of creation is attributed to the Father in particular, it is equally a truth of faith that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit together are the one, indivisible principle of creation.vatican.va
- §317 — God alone created the universe, freely, directly and without any help.vatican.va
- §318 — No creature has the infinite power necessary to "create" in the proper sense of the word, that is, to produce and give being to that which had in no way possessed it to call into existence "out of nothing") (cf DS 3624).vatican.va
- §319 — God created the world to show forth and communicate his glory. That his creatures should share in his truth, goodness and beauty - this is the glory for which God created them.vatican.va
- §320 — God created the universe and keeps it in existence by his Word, the Son "upholding the universe by his word of power" (Heb 1:3), and by his Creator Spirit, the giver of life.vatican.va
- §321 — Divine providence consists of the dispositions by which God guides all his creatures with wisdom and love to their ultimate end.vatican.va
- §322 — Christ invites us to filial trust in the providence of our heavenly Father (cf Mt 6:26-34), and St. Peter the apostle repeats: "Cast all your anxieties on him, for he cares about you" (I Pt 5:7; cf.vatican.va
- §323 — Divine providence works also through the actions of creatures. To human beings God grants the ability to co-operate freely with his plans.vatican.va
- §324 — The fact that God permits physical and even moral evil is a mystery that God illuminates by his Son Jesus Christ who died and rose to vanquish evil.vatican.va
Scripture cited · 127 verses
Genesis 1:1 · Genesis 1:2 · Genesis 1:3 · Genesis 1:4 · Genesis 1:10 · Genesis 1:12 · Genesis 1:18 · Genesis 1:21 · Genesis 1:26 · Genesis 1:27 · Genesis 1:28 · Genesis 1:31 · Genesis 2:2 · Genesis 15:5 · Genesis 45:8 · Genesis 50:20 · Deuteronomy 32:39 · Tobit 2:12 · 2 Maccabees 7:28 · Job 42:3 · Psalm 8:1 · Psalm 19:2 · Psalm 19:3 · Psalm 19:4 · Psalm 19:5 · Psalm 51:12 · Psalm 104:24 · Psalm 104:30 · Psalm 115:3 · Psalm 115:15 · Psalm 124:8 · Psalm 134:3 · Psalm 145:3 · Psalm 145:9 · Proverbs 8:22 · Proverbs 8:23 · Proverbs 8:24 · Proverbs 8:25 · Proverbs 8:26 · Proverbs 8:27 · Proverbs 8:28 · Proverbs 8:29 · Proverbs 8:30 · Proverbs 8:31 · Proverbs 19:21 · Wisdom 7:17 · Wisdom 7:18 · Wisdom 7:19 · Wisdom 7:20 · Wisdom 7:21 · Wisdom 7:22 · Wisdom 8:1 · Wisdom 9:9 · Wisdom 11:20 · Wisdom 11:24 · Wisdom 11:25 · Wisdom 11:26 · Sirach 11:14 · Sirach 43:28 · Isaiah 10:5 · Isaiah 10:6 · Isaiah 10:7 · Isaiah 10:8 · Isaiah 10:9 · Isaiah 10:10 · Isaiah 10:11 · Isaiah 10:12 · Isaiah 10:13 · Isaiah 10:14 · Isaiah 10:15 · Isaiah 43:1 · Isaiah 44:24 · Jeremiah 33:19 · Jeremiah 33:20 · Jeremiah 33:21 · Jeremiah 33:22 · Jeremiah 33:23 · Jeremiah 33:24 · Jeremiah 33:25 · Jeremiah 33:26 · Matthew 6:31 · Matthew 6:32 · Matthew 6:33 · Matthew 10:29 · Matthew 10:30 · Matthew 10:31 · Matthew 19:26 · John 1:1 · John 1:2 · John 1:3 · John 14:13 · John 15:5 · Acts 17:24 · Acts 17:25 · Acts 17:26 · Acts 17:27 · Acts 17:28 · Acts 17:29 · Romans 1:19 · Romans 1:20 · Romans 4:17 · Romans 5:20 · Romans 8:18 · Romans 8:19 · Romans 8:20 · Romans 8:21 · Romans 8:22 · Romans 8:23 · Romans 8:28 · 1 Corinthians 3:9 · 1 Corinthians 12:6 · 1 Corinthians 13:12 · 1 Corinthians 15:28 · 2 Corinthians 4:6 · Ephesians 1:5 · Ephesians 1:6 · Philippians 2:13 · Colossians 1:15 · Colossians 1:16 · Colossians 1:17 · Colossians 1:24 · Colossians 4:11 · 1 Thessalonians 3:2 · Hebrews 4:13 · Hebrews 11:3 · Revelation 3:7 · Revelation 4:11