Reason for Creation

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God bless every readers of the CAF.
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THE REASON FOR GOD’S CREATION
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CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA Divine Providence.

Quote: In the act by which in His wisdom He so ORDERS ALL EVENTS within the universe that the end for which it was created may be realized.
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That end is that all creatures should manifest the glory of God, and in particular that man should glorify Him, recognizing in nature the work of His hand, serving Him in obedience and love, and thereby attaining to the full development of his nature and to eternal happiness in God.
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The universe is a system of real beings created by God and directed by Him to this supreme end, the concurrence of God being necessary for ALL natural operations, whether of things animate or inanimate, and still MORE SO for operations of the supernatural order.
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God preserves the universe in being; He acts IN and WITH every creature in each and ALL its activities.
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In spite of sin, which is due to the wilful perversion of human liberty, acting with the concurrence, but contrary to the purpose and intention of God and in spite of evil which is the consequence of sin, He directs ALL, even evil and sin itself, to the final end for which the universe was created.
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Yet He is a just God, as well as a Saviour (Isaiah 45:21). Hence both good and evil proceed from Him (Lamentations 3:38; Amos 3:6; Isaiah 45:7; Ecclesiastes 7; 15; Sirach 11:14). End quote. Emphasis mine.
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KEY POINTS OF DIVINE PROVIDENCE:
  1. God ORDERS ALL EVENTS, even evil and sin itself, both good and evil proceed from Him within the universe for a perfect and happy end for all creations.
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  2. At the end ALL CREATURES should manifest the glory of God.
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  3. In particular that MAN should GLORIFY HIM, serving Him in obedience and love, attaining to the full development of his nature and to ETERNAL HAPPINESS in God.
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  4. The concurrence of God being necessary for ALL natural operations, whether of things animate or inanimate, and still more so for operations of the supernatural order.
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  5. God acts in and with EVERY CREATURE in each and ALL its activities. God directs all, EVEN EVIL AND SIN ITSELF, to the final end for which the universe was created.
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Aquinas said, “God changes the will WITHOUT forcing it.
But he can change the will from the fact that He himself operates in the will as He does in nature,” De Veritatis 22:9.
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Phil.2:13; “For it is God who works in you BOTH TO WILL and TO ACT for His good pleasure.”
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Continuation
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Eph.1:9-11; He made known to us the mystery of his will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ,
  1. to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfilment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth in Christ.
  2. In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will.
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GOD WORKS OUT EVERYTHING IN CONFORMITY WITH HIS ETERNAL PLAN AND WITH THE PURPOSE OF HIS WILL WHICH IS — To bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth in Christ.
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CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA Divine providence.
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God DIRECTS ALL EVENTS, even evil and sin itself, both good and evil proceed from Him within the universe for a perfect and happy end for all creations.
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Evil He converts into good (Genesis 1:20; cf. Psalm 90:10); and suffering He uses as an instrument whereby to train men up as a father traineth up his children (Deuteronomy 8:1-6; Psalm 65:2-10;
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One reason therefore why God permits sin is that man may arrive at once at a consciousness of righteousness and of his own inability to attain it, and so may put his trust in God (Anon. epis. ad Diog., vii-ix in “P.G.”, II, 1175 sq.; St. Gregory the Great, “Lib. moral.”, III, lvii in “P.L.”, LXXV, 627).
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Nor would God permit evil at all, unless He could draw good out of evil (St. Augustine, “Enchir.”, xi in “P.L.”, LX, 236; “Serm.”
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Evil, therefore, ministers to God’s design (St. Gregory the Great, op. cit., VI, xxxii in “P.L.”).
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God is the sole ruler of the world (Job 34:13). His will governs all things (Psalm 148:8; Job 9:7; Isaiah 40:22-6; 44:24-8; Sirach 16:18-27; Esther 13:9). He loves all men (Wisdom 11:25, 27), desires the salvation of all (Isaiah 45:22; Wisdom 12:16), and His providence extends to all nations (Deuteronomy 2:19; Wisdom 6:8; Isaiah 66:18).
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All things, whether due to necessary causes or to the free choice of man, are foreseen by God and preordained in accordance with His all-embracing purpose. (I, Q, xxii, a. 2; ciii, a. 5). End quote.
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SOMEONE MAY ASK: AS GOD SO MUCH IN CONTROL, DO WE HAVE FREE WILL?
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The answer is, yes we have free will, of course only God has an absolute free will and we have a limited free will.
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FOR AN EXAMPLE OF THE LIMITATION OF OUR FREE WILL:
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Only God has a free will to choose us and we don’t have free will to choose God, neither we have the ability to choose God.
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John 15:16; You did not chose Me, but I chose you.
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John 6:65; … no one can come to Me unless it is granted to him by the Father.
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John 6:44; No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him,
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ONLY GOD HAS THE FREE WILL AND THE ABILITY TO CHOOSE US, AND WHEN GOD CALLS US WE ALWAYS FREELY SAY YES TO GOD’S CALL BECAUSE: Our cooperation with the grace of God is produced (not just enabled) by God’s operation.
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CCCS = Catechism of the Catholic Church, Simplified.

Explaining Justification

The grace of God’s Justification CCCS 1990-1991; Justification is God’s free gift which detaches man from enslavement to sin and reconciles him to God.

Justification is also our acceptance of God’s righteousness. In this gift, faith, hope, charity, and OBEDIENCE TO GOD’S WILL are given to us.
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The Grace of God’s Call (1996-1998)
Justification comes from grace (God’s free and undeserved help) and is given to us to respond to his call.

This call to eternal life is supernatural, coming TOTALLY from God’s decision and surpassing ALL power of human intellect and will. End quote.
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Acts 13:48; … As many as were ordained to eternal life believed.
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As many as were ordained to eternal life all RECEIVED God’s grace The Gift of Final Perseverance (Rom.14:4; Phil.1:6; Phil.2:13; De Veritatis 22:9; etc.), which is an Eternal Protection of their salvation, furthermore without this protection everyone who called to eternal life would end up in hell. – DE FIDE Dogma. + Infallible teachings of the Trent.
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I believe, God’s Love and Justice and Christ’s Works on the Cross demands that God to call EVERYONE for Eternal Life and to give to EVERYONE His graces of Faith, Hope, Charity, and OBEDIENCE TO GOD’S WILL and The Gift of Final Perseverance (Rom.14:4; Phil.1:6; Phil.2:13; De Veritatis 22:9; etc.). – God’s will is to save everyone.
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SOMEONE MAY DISAGREE AND SAY:
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God is not responsible for evil and sins in the world.
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It is theological fact, God is the supreme Ruler of the universe and he is in complete control and nothing happen in the world without his permission.
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Yet the whole human race corrupted, became spiritually dead and sinners.
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How this is happened?
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Of course this happened because God permitted Satan to enter the Garden of Eden and to deceive Adam and Eve, in fact their deception and “fall” happened in accordance with God’s Eternal Design/Plan of His Creation.
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God created Adam and Eve good but God created Adam and Eve according to His Eternal Design/Plan, so their deception and “fall” was inevitable. – Of course for a greater good, their “fall” is a crucial part of God’s Eternal Design/Plan for the benefit of the human race.
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Nor would God permit evil at all, unless He could draw good out of evil (St. Augustine, “Enchir.”, xi in “P.L.”, LX, 236; “Serm.”
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Evil, therefore, ministers to God’s design (St. Gregory the Great, op. cit., VI, xxxii in “P.L.”).
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God DIRECTS ALL EVENTS, even evil and sin itself, both good and evil proceed from Him within the universe for a perfect and happy end for all creations. – CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA Divine providence. + The Scripture.
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So, what basis can we say that God is righteous when he condemns to hell apart from a few people the entire human race or even one person for doing what He caused them to do, in particular that the HELPLESS human race doesn’t even have the free will and the ability to choose God for their salvation?
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OF COURSE GOD DOES NOT CONDEMN ANYONE TO HELL, IN FACT GOD SAVES EVERYONE WHICH IS HIS ETERNAL DESIGN/PLAN AND WILL FROM ALL ETERNITY.
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Rom.5:18;
Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people.
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1 Cor.15:22;
For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive.
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Eph.1:9-11;
  1. He made known to us the mystery of his will according to His good pleasure, which He purposed in Christ,
  2. to be put into effect when the times reach their fulfilment—to bring unity to all things in heaven and on earth in Christ.
  3. In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will.
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God bless every readers of the CAF.

Latin
 
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My good woman I am not trying to educate you. I am trying to educate myself on your Catholic viewpoints by reasoning together with you. If I did not try to justify my viewpoints I would merely be foolishly and knowingly adhering to a false opinion. I have nothing to prove and am perfectly open to correction. I have to understand that correction and why I am wrong first of course. I have read the Catechism…correction, most of the Catechism, the parts I am curious about so far anyway and which concern my assertions.
You must realize I am not Catholic. I am however open to agreeing with Catholic opinion and becoming one in the future should the Holy Spirit lead me there with truth and proper conviction. I can not lie to Christ. If I feel that a Catholic position is wrong, simply voicing agreement in order to be allowed into the fold would be “sanctimonious” as you’ve called me. The quote from the Catechism you’ve provided me is not a counter point to my argument as far as I can tell. It is merely a statement of belief. A belief I feel I have shown to be in error.

Your first sentence confuses me. What do you think it means to choose the perfect good perfectly? As for you second sentence I would say free will is more the potential to choose to do other than what God has declared good for us. I agree, free will doesn’t cause one to sin. Free will is an agent of potentiality. (def. #3 of dictionary.com: “a natural force or object producing or used for obtaining specific results”.

I’m sorry you feel this way. What was it I did to make you believe that I don’t truly believe in what I say? I’m not here to prove I’m smarter-I’m not, I’m not here to prove I have a better religious viewpoint- I doubt I do, I’m here to reason together to reach the truth of a matter. As I’ve stated before I am not a Catholic. I am not bound to end a debate based on a statement in the Catechism I’ve yet to understand as a definitive counterpoint to my argument unless I am made to understand that my argument fails based on the counterpoint presented. A mere statement of belief is not the same as the argument which determined that belief to be true. How is searching for truth committing heresy? I believe the only way to commit heresy is to promote falsehood in light of knowing the truth. Am I wrong?

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What do you think this means and how does it bare on our discussion? Neutral question, I’m not being a smart alec here.

Why shouldn’t I interpret scripture outside the Magisterium? I’m sure the Magisterium can take care of itself and if I am wrong what the Magisterium provides you in the way of reasoning should suffice to prove it. We are here in these forums precisely to debate and reason together. Perhaps you can lead me to truth. If you see a counterpoint to my example in Job then state it. Present it to me so that I may be educated. I read scripture with a mind to context. The first thing one should learn is “how” to read scripture. I am not an idiot and I would hope you would give me the respect that I give you along those lines. I am also not perfect. I may be wrong. I am open for you to prove it.
God bless your endeavors
 
Here is my take on the matter.
Since being God entails no potential. Any “act” taken by that God necessarily would have to have been timeless in its nature. Creation can not have any connotation of God before creation and God after creation since this would entail a change in Gods state of potential. Potential itself in any other being is a delusion relative to that being created by a finite perspective. Creation exists timelessly within Gods nature and within creation past, present, and future exist simultaneously with no total potential keeping intact Gods total lack of potential. This is a starting premise. Now if you wish begin chopping at it so that we may see how long it may stand.
 
Can you tell me, what is the difference between willing oneself to be and merely always having existed with the nature you have?
 
setarcos said:
Can you tell me, what is the difference between willing oneself to be and merely always having existed with the nature you have?
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Your statement just appears to be a rewording of the same concept of God eternally willing Himself. I’m not sure what you are trying to get at.
 
Where does will enter into eternal existence? For instance, one might say that the universe has always existed in some state of contraction, singularity, expansion, repeat. IF this is the case would you say the universe has a will?
 
No, the universe is a non-living creation subject not to its own will, but to the laws of physics and the will of God.
 
That’s my point. Why say God wills himself when he may just as well have existed eternally just the way he is?
 
Chapter 72
THAT GOD HAS WILL

[1] Having dealt with what concerns the knowledge of the divine intellect, it remains for us to deal with God’s will.

[2] From the fact that God is endowed with intellect it follows that He is endowed with will. For, since the understood good is the proper object of the will, the understood good is, as such, willed. Now that which is understood is by reference to one who understands. Hence, he who grasps the good by his intellect is, as such, endowed with will. But God grasps the good by His intellect, For, since the activity of His intellect is perfect, as appears from what has been said, He understands being together with the qualification of the good. He is, therefore, endowed with will.

[3] Again, whoever possesses some form is related through that form to things in reality. For example, white wood is through its whiteness like some things and unlike other things. But in one understanding and sensing there is the form of the understood and sensed thing, since all knowledge is through some likeness. There must, therefore, be a relation of the one understanding and sensing to understood and sensed things according as these are in reality. But this is not because of the fact that these beings understand and sense, since thereby we rather find a relation of things to the one understanding and sensing; for to understand and to sense exist according as things are in the intellect and the sense, following the mode of each. He who senses and understands has a relation to the thing outside the soul through his will and appetite. Hence, all sensing and understanding beings have appetite and will. Properly speaking, however, the will is in the intellect. Since, then, God is intelligent, He must be endowed with will.

[4] Moreover, that which accompanies every being belongs to being inasmuch as it is in being. This accompaniment must be found in a supreme way in that which is the first being. Now, it belongs to every being to seek its perfection and the conservation of its being, and this in the case of each being according to its mode: for intellectual beings through will, for animals through sensible appetite, and to those lacking sense through natural appetite. To seek perfection belongs differently to those that have it and those that have it not. For those that have it not tend by desire, through the appetitive power proper to them, to acquire what is lacking to their desire, whereas those that have it rest in it. Hence, this cannot be lacking to the first being, which is God. Since, then, God is intelligent, there is in Him a will by which His being and His goodness are pleasing to Him.
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[5] Again, the more perfect understanding is, the more delightful it is to the one understanding, But God understands and His understanding is most perfect, as was shown above. Therefore, His understanding is most full of delight. But intelligible delight is through the will, as sensible delight is through the appetite of concupiscence. There is, therefore, will in God.

[6] Furthermore, a form considered by the intellect does not move or cause anything except through the will, whose object is the end and the good, by which someone is moved to act. Hence, the speculative intellect does not move, nor does the imagination alone without an act of the estimative power. But the form of the divine intellect is the cause of motion and being in other things, since God produces things by His intellect, as will be shown later on. Therefore, God must be endowed with will.

[7] Again, among moving powers in beings possessing an intellect, the first is found to be the will. For the will sets every power to its act: we understand because we will, we imagine because we will, and so with the rest. The will has this role because its object is the end; although it is also a fact that the intellect, though not in the manner of an efficient and moving cause, but in that of a final cause, moves the will by proposing to it its object, namely, the end. It therefore belongs supremely to the first mover to have a will.

[8] Furthermore, “that is free which is for its own sake,” and thus the free has the nature of that which is through itself. Now, first and primarily, will has liberty in acting, for according as someone acts voluntarily he is said to perform any given action freely. To act through will, therefore, supremely befits the first agent, whom it supremely befits to act through himself.

[9] Moreover, the end and the agent to the end are always found to be of one order in reality; and hence the proximate end that is proportioned to an agent falls into the same species as the agent both among natural things and artificial things. For the form of the art through which the artisan works is the species of the form that is in matter, which is the end of the artisan; and the form by which the generating fire acts is of the same species as the form of the generated fire, which is the end of generation. But nothing is co-ordered with God, as within the same order, except Himself; otherwise, there would be several first beings—whose contrary was proved above. He is therefore the first agent because of the end that He is Himself. He is therefore not only the appetible end, but also the seeker of Himself as the end, so to speak. And this He is with an intellectual appetite, since He is intelligent. This is will. There is, therefore, will in God.

[10] The testimony of Sacred Scripture is witness to the divine will. For it is said in a Psalm (134:6): “Whatever the Lord pleased He has done.” And Romans (9:19): “Who resists His will?”
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Chapter 73

THAT THE WILL OF GOD IS HIS ESSENCE
[1] From this it appears that God’s will is not other than His essence.

[2] It belongs to God to be endowed with will in so far as He is intelligent, as has been shown. But God has understanding by His essence, as was proved above. So, therefore, does He have will. God’s will, therefore, is His very essence.

[3] Again, as to understand is the perfection of the one understanding, so to will is the perfection of the one willing; for both are actions remaining in the agent and not going out (as does heat) to some receiving subject. But the understanding of God is His being, as was proved above. For, since the divine being is in itself most perfect, it admits of no superadded perfection, as was proved above. The divine willing also is, therefore, His being; and hence the will of God is His essence.

[4] Moreover, since every agent acts in so far as it is in act, God, Who is pure act, must act through His essence. Willing, however, is a certain operation of God. Therefore, God must be endowed with will through His essence. Therefore, His will is His essence.

[5] Furthermore, if will were something added to the divine substance, since the divine substance is something complete in being it would follow that will would be added to it as an accident to a subject, that the divine substance would be related to it as potency to act, and that there would be composition in God. All this was refuted above. Hence, it is not possible that the divine will be something added to the divine substance.
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Chapter 74
THAT THE PRINCIPAL OBJECT OF THE DIVINE WILL IS THE DIVINE ESSENCE

[1] From this it further appears that the principal object of the divine will is the divine essence.

[2] The understood good is the object of the will, as has been said. But that which is principally understood by God is the divine essence, as was proved above. The divine essence, therefore, is principally the object of the divine will.

[3] Again, the appetible is to appetite as the mover to the moved, as was said above. Similar, too, is the relation of the object of the will to the will, since the will belongs to the class of appetitive powers. If, then, the principal object of the divine will be other than the divine essence, it will follow that there is something higher than the divine will moving it. The contrary of this is apparent from what has been said.

[4] Moreover, the principal object willed is for each one willing the cause of his willing. For when we say, I will to walk in order to become healed, we are of the impression that we are assigning a cause. If, then, it be asked, why do you want to become healed? causes will be assigned one after the other until we arrive at the ultimate end. This is the principal object of the will, which is through itself the cause of willing. If, then, God should principally will something other than Himself, it will follow that something other is the cause of His willing. But His willing is His being, as has been shown.” Hence, something other will be the cause of His being—which is contrary to the nature of the first being.

[5] Furthermore, for each being endowed with a will the principal object willed is the ultimate end. For the end is willed through itself, and through it other things become objects of will. But the ultimate end is God Himself, since He is the highest good, as has been shown. Therefore, God is the principal object of His will.

[6] Moreover, every power is proportioned with equality to its principal object, for the power of a thing is measured according to its objects, as may be seen through the Philosopher in De caelo et mundo [11], But the will is proportioned with equality to its principal object, and similarly the intellect and likewise the sense. Now, nothing is proportioned with equality to the divine will save only God’s essence. Therefore, the principal object of the divine will is the divine essence.

[7] But since the divine essence is God’s understanding and all else that is said to be in Him, it is further manifest that in the same way He principally wills Himself to understand, to will, to be one, and other such attributes.
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I have chewed on this meat before. It does not appear to me to answer the question I posed but I shall chew some more and get back to you with my thoughts. Thank you for the reference.
 
Isaiah 45:18
“For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the LORD; and there is none else.”

So where could ‘evil’ has arose out of?

Genesis 4:1-2
" And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. 2And she again bare his brother Abel."

knew: 3045. yada : acknowledge, acquainted with, advise, answer, appoint, assuredly, be aware

yada yada yada…

And Adam began to ‘experiment’ with Eve his wife, and she conceived. Soon after his discovery, he began to become bold.

Evil and strife against God may have arisen out of Adam’s security with himself when he learned how he could ‘please’ his wife and when he knew he was ‘the man’ in that territory.

For some, even today, to have such discoveries made by man can lead to that man becoming, within himself, as a god. He will sit upon his throne of assurance and he will cast all evil aside with a fling of his arm… or so the feeling is for moments here and there, right?

‘wars and fights’ between men over women or other issues relating to their individual worth as a man?

That is why there is a difference between ‘man’ and ‘Godly man’. The first is ‘self-sure’. The second is ‘humble’ enough to change.
 
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God created us because He wanted us, with love. He then gave us attributes and free will so that we could choose to have a relationship with Him.

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