16 There is Only One God - Divine Providence

In this episode I discuss how as Catholics, our faith centers around the belief in the existence of ONLY ONE GOD. We will address some of His characteristics. We could know some of these characteristics through reason alone, but they were also positively revealed by Him: for example, that he IS, that He is Infinite, all-powerful and creator of all things. We will also look at the consequences of this belief, particularly, how we owe him WORSHIP and obedience, and we should depend completely on His Divine Providence.

“Since creatures have received everything they are and have from God, only God in himself is the fullness of being and of every perfection. God is “He who is” without origin and without end.” [CCCC #39]

God is the creator of every reality outside of Himself, both material and spiritual. He has created by a free choice of his will, neither out of necessity, nor out of a kind of “natural” overflowing of His Being. Finally, this world did not come to be by a blind “chance”.

When God created everything, He used neither any “pre-existing matter” nor “anything at all” from which He made everything—not even a part of Himself. On the contrary, He created everything out of nothing (“ex nihilo”). “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. God creates freely “out of nothing”.” (Catechism 296) See 2 Macabees 7:21-28.

Moreover, God continues to maintain the world in its being, He is holding us in the palm of his hand (see Isaiah 49:16).

We speak about the consequences of these truths for our lives:

(1) We should recognize his infinite GREATNESS and our “nothingness”. (2) We should learn to ADORE God and obey Him. (3) We should live with an attitude of THANKSGIVING for everything we have and for everything He does for us. (4) We should also learn to value and defend the intrinsic DIGNITY OF ALL MEN, created in the image and likeness of God. (5) We should make good use of all created things, using them for the glory of God and our Salvation. (6) We should depend entirely on his DIVINE PROVIDENCE, entrusting ourselves to Him like a child in the arms of his mother, even in adversity.

Spanish version of St. Teresa’s Poem:
“Nada te turbe, nada te espante
todo se pasa, Dios no se muda,
la paciencia todo lo alcanza,
quien a Dios tiene nada le falta
solo Dios basta.” (Poemas, 30)

Toward the end, I quote Psalm 91:1-5.

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- Miles Christi Religious Order website: https://www.mileschristi.org

- This Podcast’s Website: https://www.forcollegecatholics.org

- To learn about the Spiritual Exercises (silent weekend retreat), visit: https://www.mileschristi.org/spiritual-exercises/

Recorded at our Family Center in South Lyon, Michigan.