Youcat commented through CCC – Question n. 281.

YOUCAT Question n. 281 - Why do we yearn for happiness?

(Youcat answer) God has placed in our hearts such an infinite desire for happiness that nothing can satisfy it but God himself. All earthly fulfillment gives us only a foretaste of eternal happiness. Above and beyond that, we should be drawn to God.

A deepening through CCC

(CCC 1718) The Beatitudes respond to the natural desire for happiness. This desire is of divine origin: God has placed it in the human heart in order to draw man to the One who alone can fulfill it: We all want to live happily; in the whole human race there is no one who does not assent to this proposition, even before it is fully articulated (St. Augustine, De moribus eccl. 1, 3, 4: PL 32,1312). How is it, then, that I seek you, Lord? Since in seeking you, my God, I seek a happy life, let me seek you so that my soul may live, for my body draws life from my soul and my soul draws life from you (St. Augustine, Conf. 10, 20: PL 32, 791). God alone satisfies (St. Thomas Aquinas, Expos. in symb. Apost. I).

Reflecting and meditating 

(CCC Comment)

(CCC 1719) The Beatitudes reveal the goal of human existence, the ultimate end of human acts: God calls us to his own beatitude. This vocation is addressed to each individual personally, but also to the Church as a whole, the new people made up of those who have accepted the promise and live from it in faith. (CCC 1725) The Beatitudes take up and fulfill God's promises from Abraham on by ordering them to the Kingdom of heaven. They respond to the desire for happiness that God has placed in the human heart. 

(The next question is: Does Sacred Scripture speak about a way to happiness?)

Youcat commented through CCC – Question n. 280 - Part IV.

YOUCAT Question n. 280 - Part IV. What reasons do Christians give for human dignity?

(Youcat answer - repeated) Every person, from the first moment of his life in the womb, has an inviolable dignity, because from all eternity God willed, loved, created, and redeemed that person and destined him for eternal happiness.

A deepening through CCC

(CCC 1709) He who believes in Christ becomes a son of God. This filial adoption transforms him by giving him the ability to follow the example of Christ. It makes him capable of acting rightly and doing good. In union with his Savior, the disciple attains the perfection of charity which is holiness. Having matured in grace, the moral life blossoms into eternal life in the glory of heaven. (CCC 1710) "Christ… makes man fully manifest to man himself and brings to light his exalted vocation" (GS 22 § 1).(CCC 1711) Endowed with a spiritual soul, with intellect and with free will, the human person is from his very conception ordered to God and destined for eternal beatitude. He pursues his perfection in "seeking and loving what is true and good" (GS 15 § 2). (CCC 1712) In man, true freedom is an "outstanding manifestation of the divine image" (GS 17).   

Reflecting and meditating 

(Youcat comment) If human dignity were based solely on the successes and accomplishments of individuals, then those who are weak, sick, or helpless would have no dignity. Christians believe that human dignity is, in the first place, the result of God’s respect for us. He looks at every person and loves him as though he were the only creature in the world. Because God has looked upon even the least significant child of Adam, that person possesses an infinite worth, which must not be destroyed by men.

 (CCC Comment)

(CCC 1713) Man is obliged to follow the moral law, which urges him "to do what is good and avoid what is evil" (cf. GS 16). This law makes itself heard in his conscience. (CCC 1714) Man, having been wounded in his nature by original sin, is subject to error and inclined to evil in exercising his freedom. (CCC 1715) He who believes in Christ has new life in the Holy Spirit. The moral life, increased and brought to maturity in grace, is to reach its fulfillment in the glory of heaven.

(The next question is: Why do we yearn for happiness?)

Youcat commented through CCC – Question n. 280 - Part III.

 

YOUCAT Question n. 280 - Part III. What reasons do Christians give for human dignity?

(Youcat answer - repeated) Every person, from the first moment of his life in the womb, has an inviolable dignity, because from all eternity God willed, loved, created, and redeemed that person and destined him for eternal happiness.

A deepening through CCC

(CCC 1705) By virtue of his soul and his spiritual powers of intellect and will, man is endowed with freedom, an "outstanding manifestation of the divine image" (GS 17). (CCC 1706) By his reason, man recognizes the voice of God which urges him "to do what is good and avoid what is evil" (GS 16). Everyone is obliged to follow this law, which makes itself heard in conscience and is fulfilled in the love of God and of neighbor. Living a moral life bears witness to the dignity of the person.   

Reflecting and meditating 

(Youcat comment) If human dignity were based solely on the successes and accomplishments of individuals, then those who are weak, sick, or helpless would have no dignity. Christians believe that human dignity is, in the first place, the result of God’s respect for us. He looks at every person and loves him as though he were the only creature in the world. Because God has looked upon even the least significant child of Adam, that person possesses an infinite worth, which must not be destroyed by men.

 (CCC Comment)

(CCC 1707) "Man, enticed by the Evil One, abused his freedom at the very beginning of history" (GS 13 § 1). He succumbed to temptation and did what was evil. He still desires the good, but his nature bears the wound of original sin. He is now inclined to evil and subject to error: Man is divided in himself. As a result, the whole life of men, both individual and social, shows itself to be a struggle, and a dramatic one, between good and evil, between light and darkness (GS 13 § 2). (CCC 1708) By his Passion, Christ delivered us from Satan and from sin. He merited for us the new life in the Holy Spirit. His grace restores what sin had damaged in us. 

(This question: What reasons do Christians give for human dignity? is continued)

Youcat commented through CCC – Question n. 280 - Part II.

YOUCAT Question n. 280 - Part II. What reasons do Christians give for human dignity?

(Youcat answer - repeated) Every person, from the first moment of his life in the womb, has an inviolable dignity, because from all eternity God willed, loved, created, and redeemed that person and destined him for eternal happiness.

A deepening through CCC

(CCC 1701) "Christ,… in the very revelation of the mystery of the Father and of his love, makes man fully manifest to himself and brings to light his exalted vocation" (GS 22). It is in Christ, "the image of the invisible God" (Col 1:15; cf. 2 Cor 4:4), that man has been created "in the image and likeness" of the Creator. It is in Christ, Redeemer and Savior, that the divine image, disfigured in man by the first sin, has been restored to its original beauty and ennobled by the grace of God (Cf. GS 22). (CCC 1702) The divine image is present in every man. It shines forth in the communion of persons, in the likeness of the union of the divine persons among themselves (cf. Chapter two). 

Reflecting and meditating 

(Youcat comment) If human dignity were based solely on the successes and accomplishments of individuals, then those who are weak, sick, or helpless would have no dignity. Christians believe that human dignity is, in the first place, the result of God’s respect for us. He looks at every person and loves him as though he were the only creature in the world. Because God has looked upon even the least significant child of Adam, that person possesses an infinite worth, which must not be destroyed by men.

 (CCC Comment)

(CCC 1703) Endowed with "a spiritual and immortal" soul (GS 14 § 2), the human person is "the only creature on earth that God has willed for its own sake" (GS 24 § 3). From his conception, he is destined for eternal beatitude. (CCC 1704) The human person participates in the light and power of the divine Spirit. By his reason, he is capable of understanding the order of things established by the Creator. By free will, he is capable of directing himself toward his true good. He finds his perfection "in seeking and loving what is true and good" (GS 15 § 2).

(This question: What reasons do Christians give for human dignity? is continued)