It is incredible to contemplate the diversity of animals – their colors, their patterns, their sizes and capabilities. There are incredible intricacies that enable them to live underwater, to soar
through the skies , and to run at incredible speeds and they all depend on each other. It may have been a while since you last learned about photosynthesis or the complexity of the food chain and cells, but take a moment and look at the world around you with new eyes. See the masterpiece of creation. Notice how everything is intertwined. Thank the great designer behind the design. “The beauty of creation reflects the infinite beauty of the Creator and ought to inspire the respect and submission of man’s intellect and will” (CCC 341).

Everything owes its existence to God who drew it out of nothingness (CCC 338). God created everything with purpose, design, and goodness and did it all in six days. This creation narrative reveals that everything relies on God for its existence. The story of creation usually brings up a lot of dispute about whether or not it is literal, but the Church holds firm that it is more about what the creation story reveals – That there is order, that all things are good and each has its place in the world, and that man is the greatest of all creation. (CCC 339-343)

The six days of creation also reveal the importance of the seventh day. “And on the seventh day God finished his work which he had done, and he rested on the seventh day” (Genesis 2:2). The day of rest, the day of worship – the Sabbath day. “Creation was fashioned with a view to the Sabbath and therefore for the worship and adoration of God. Worship is inscribed in the order of creation” (CCC 347). Humanity and all of creation were created to worship God and to reserve this day of the week specifically for that worship. It is important that we remember this as we plan our weeks and our activities and as we live in the busyness of the modern world. We must make room for God, for worship, for it is inscribed in our very being and in the beautiful and intricate world around us.