So does the Catholic Church hold that without God’s daily involvement our world would end, as I believe, or not, as my son is postulating??? Thanks all for your wisdom!
God is involved with the world’s subsistence; but He is not a marionette that you can control to make things happen according to our whim.
As God and the Creator He has a vested interest in the world’s continuance as well as a special interest in both the Believers (Christ followers) and the non-Believers:
13 'You are salt for the earth. But if salt loses its taste, what can make it salty again? It is good for nothing, and can only be thrown out to be trampled under people’s feet. 14 'You are light for the world. A city built on a hill-top cannot be hidden. 15 No one lights a lamp to put it under a tub; they put it on the lamp-stand where it shines for everyone in the house. 16 In the same way your light must shine in people’s sight, so that, seeing your good works, they may give praise to your Father in heaven. (St. Matthew 5:13-16)
Jesus reveals to His disciples that they are here as God’s representatives to serve humanity: bring the Good News of the Heavenly Kingdom to Creation!
so that you may be children of your Father in heaven, for he causes his sun to rise on the bad as well as the good, and sends down rain to fall on the upright and the wicked alike.
(St. Matthew 5:45)
Here Jesus demonstrates that God is fully aware of humanity’s need and of the planet’s need: without the sun and without the rain life would perish!
He is the reflection of God’s glory and bears the impress of God’s own being, sustaining all things by his powerful command; (Hebrews 1:3a)
16 for in him were created all things in heaven and on earth: everything visible and everything invisible, thrones, ruling forces, sovereignties, powers – all things were created through him and for him. 17 He exists before all things and in him all things hold together, (Colossians 1:16-17)
Everything there is comes from him and is caused by him and exists for him. To him be glory for ever! Amen. (Romans 11:36)
19 For what can be known about God is perfectly plain to them, since God has made it plain to them: 20 ever since the creation of the world, the invisible existence of God and his everlasting power have been clearly seen by the mind’s understanding of created things. And so these people have no excuse: (Romans 1:19-20)
4 Thus he chose us in Christ before the world was made to be holy and faultless before him in love, 5 marking us out for himself beforehand, to be adopted sons, through Jesus Christ. Such was his purpose and good pleasure… 9 He has let us know the mystery of his purpose, according to his good pleasure which he determined beforehand in Christ, 10 for him to act upon when the times had run their course: that he would bring everything together under Christ, as head, everything in the heavens and everything on earth. 11 And it is in him that we have received our heritage, marked out beforehand as we were, under the plan of the One who guides all things as he decides by his own will, 12 chosen to be, for the praise of his glory, the people who would put their hopes in Christ before he came… stamped with the seal of the Holy Spirit of the Promise… 19 and how extraordinarily great is the power that he has exercised for us believers; this accords with the strength of his power 20 at work in Christ, the power which he exercised in raising him from the dead and enthroning him at his right hand, in heaven, 21 far above every principality, ruling force, power or sovereignty, or any other name that can be named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. 22 He has put all things under his feet, and made him, as he is above all things, the head of the Church; 23 which is his Body, the fullness of him who is filled, all in all. (Ephesians 1:4-23)
19 for the whole creation is waiting with eagerness for the children of God to be revealed.
20 It was not for its own purposes that creation had frustration imposed on it, but for the purposes of him who imposed it- 21 with the intention that the whole creation itself might be freed from its slavery to corruption and brought into the same glorious freedom as the children of God. 22 We are well aware that the whole creation, until this time, has been groaning in labour pains. 23 And not only that: we too, who have the first-fruits of the Spirit, even we are groaning inside ourselves, waiting with eagerness for our bodies to be set free.
24 In hope, we already have salvation; in hope, not visibly present, or we should not be hoping – nobody goes on hoping for something which is already visible. 25 But having this hope for what we cannot yet see, we are able to wait for it with persevering confidence.
26 And as well as this, the Spirit too comes to help us in our weakness, for, when we do not know how to pray properly, then the Spirit personally makes our petitions for us in groans that cannot be put into words; 27 and he who can see into all hearts knows what the Spirit means because the prayers that the Spirit makes for God’s holy people are always in accordance with the mind of God. 28 We are well aware that God works with those who love him, those who have been called in accordance with his purpose, and turns everything to their good.
29 He decided beforehand who were the ones destined to be moulded to the pattern of his Son, so that he should be the eldest of many brothers; 30 it was those so destined that he called; those that he called, he justified, and those that he has justified he has brought into glory. 31 After saying this, what can we add? If God is for us, who can be against us? (Romans 8:19-31)
There is a constant play between the temporal and spiritual: in God everything exists with a purpose and He maintains Creation to accomplish His Divine Will!
Maran atha!
Angel
