Let us remember that we

are in the most holy

presence of God.
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of
the Holy Spirit. Amen!
Matthew 14:13-21
Knowing, Loving,
and Serving God
Topics:
1.Understanding God.
2.Who is God?
 Doctrine:
1. Discuss the role of covenants as concrete evidence on how the love of God is
seen in the history of salvation.
Objectives
2. Explain that faith is the response to God who revealed his love in the history of
salvation.
3. Recall real-life situations how he/she experiences the love of God and lead
him/her to live a moral life.

Morals:
1. Show evidence how the value of maka-Diyos significantly draws Filipinos to fulfill
the duty to love God. (X.III-9.5)

2. Carry out appropriate actions to fulfill the duty of Loving God and becoming his
believers and witnesses. (X.III-9.6)

Worship:
Commit to have a conscious, loving and faithful relationship with God through a
healthy personal prayer life and regular celebration of the Sacrament of the
Eucharist.
motivation
The Face of God
1. Make a creative presentation of the face/image of God.
2. Use the internet or own picture/drawing to present the chosen image
or understanding of who God is in your life at the moment.
3. Explain in 2-3 sentences why you chose this image/picture to
represent who God is in your life?
4. This is an individual work. One student per slide.
motivation: processing
The Face of God

a. Why did you choose this image/picture to present who God is in

your life?
b. Share an experience of a personal encounter of God in your life.
c. How did this experience affect your faith life?
motivation
The Face of God
We will never understand nor believe that a certain reality exists if we
haven’t experienced it ourselves. As the saying goes, “to see is to believe”,
for us Christians, this also applies in our faith.
However, this does not mean seeing God physically but experiencing his
profound love and mystery in a spiritual realm.
This means that through our faith in Him, we experience his love in our
daily activities. We come to know of his great love through the people that
surround us. But how can we truly know and discover who God is our
Understanding God
We can understand
God through two
Transcendence and Immanence things specific to
God’s quality

Transcendance
God’s total uniqueness and infinite greatness compared
to his creatures.

Immanence
God’s being in the world, his closeness to us, and
intimacy with us.
Understanding God: Divine Revelation
By natural reason man can know God with certainty, on
Revelation the basis of his works. But there is another order of
knowledge, which man cannot possibly arrive at by his
own powers: the order of divine Revelation.

Through an utterly free decision, God has revealed

himself and given himself to man. This he does by
revealing the mystery, his plan of loving goodness,
formed from all eternity in Christ, for the benefit of all
men.

God has fully revealed this plan by sending us his

CCC, 50 beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit.
Understanding God: Divine Revelation

The Salvation History through the covenants:

What is God’s covenant with us?
• A solemn agreement
• An open-ended contract of love
• God promised to be faithful to us forever while humans were to remain
faithful to him.
• Salvation, Redemption, and Eternal life
Understanding God: Divine Revelation
The Covenant with
Noah

God promises
never again to
use a flood to
destroy all life.
Understanding God: Divine Revelation
The Covenant with
Abraham
God would offer
protection and land
to Abraham and
his descendants,
but they must
follow the path of
God.
Understanding God: Divine Revelation
The Sinai
Covenant

God's affirmation
of the Israelites
as his people on
the condition that
they accept
certain rules of
conduct.
Understanding God: Divine Revelation
Jesus Christ,
the New
Covenant
New Covenant as
a new relationship
between God and
humans where
Jesus Christ is at
the center, a
relationship with
God mediated by
Christ.
Understanding God:
Sacred Scriptures and Sacred Tradition

God reveals himself through a single “deposit” of faith. “The books of Scripture
firmly, faithfully, and
This single deposit is found in the Sacred Scripture (Bible) and
without error teach that
in the Sacred Tradition of the Church.
truth which God, for the
sake of our salvation,
The Bible
wished to see confided to
God used human authors and their unique talents to put into the Sacred Scriptures”
writing what He wanted written, and nothing more.
( CCC, 107).
Hence the Bible is Inerrant; that is, it contains no errors
Understanding God:
Sacred Scriptures and Sacred Tradition

Sacred Traditions
• The living transmission or “handing on” of the Church’s
gospel message.
• Church teachings, life, and worship
Christ commissioned the apostles to interpret authentically
God’s Word—both Scripture and Tradition. This Christ
appointed teaching authority, which extended to the pope
and the bishops in communion with him is known as the
Magisterium (from the Latin word for “teacher”).
Who is God?
Yahweh / I AM

God is omnipresent
- present everywhere

God is omnipotent
- all powerful (loving, merciful, and
gracious power)
Who is God?: Attributes of God
St. Thomas Aquinas listed the following nine attributes of God that are evidenced
through history and in scriptures:
1. God is unique. There is no God like Yahweh (is 45:18).
2. God is infinite and omnipotent. God is everywhere, unlimited, and all-powerful.
God can do everything (Ps 135:5-6).
3. God is eternal. God always was and always will be. God is the one being who
cannot not be. God is (Is 40:28).
4. God is immense. God is not limited to space (1Kings 8:27).
5. God contains all things (Wis 8:1).
6. God is immutable. God does not change----ever (Ps 102:25-28).
Who is God?: Attributes of God
St. Thomas Aquinas listed the following nine attributes of God that are evidenced through history
and in scriptures:
7. God is utterly simple---a pure Spirit. The opposite of simple is complex, which means
divisible into parts. In God there are no parts, no divisions. God is not material. God’s
image cannot be made (Ex 20:4).
8. God is personal. God is alive (the source of all life), knows all things, and loves and
cares beyond limit. The saving God manifested personal love through the compassionate
acts in the history of the Israelites and most supremely by sending his Son, Jesus Christ, to
all people (Jer 31:3).
9. God is holy. Holiness is a quality of being absolutely other than creation (Is 55:8). God’s
goodness and love are unlimited. We cannot praise the holy God enough.
Who is God?: The Trinity

God the God the

Father Son

God the
Holy Spirit
One God who eternally exists as
three distinct Persons — the Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit
Who is God?: God the Son
. God the
Father The first person of the Blessed
Trinity

The Father is the Source who

communicates the fullness of
divinity to the Son
Who is God?: God the Father

God the
Son The second person of the Blessed
Trinity

He came to this earth as the long-

promised Christ, Messiah, and
Savior.
Who is God?: God the Son
. God the
Holy Spirit The third person of the Blessed
Trinity

The Holy Spirit was sent to anoint

us with God's guiding force and
God makes his will known by
using that person who is filled
with the Holy Spirit.
Short Video: Who is God?
Synthesis Reflection Question

1. How can we concretely show our love towards God? Give a

specific example.

2. As a Miriam student, what are the activities initiated by the

school that show authentic worship and love towards God?
Value

Christ-like Charity
This is love directed first toward God, toward oneself, and one’s neighbors
as objects of God’s love.

Jesus has given us an example of how to live, how to love.

As he has loved us, we also should love one another.
Summary

a. God freely revealed Himself to us through the covenantal

relationships He initiated with our forefathers/ancestors. We gain loving
knowledge of Him as He freely unveiled his mystery through the Sacred
Scriptures and Sacred Tradition.

b. St. Thomas Aquinas listed the divine attributes of God. He is unique,

infinite and omnipotent. Eternal immense, contains all things,
immutable, utterly simple, personal and holy.