# We are called to be God's community
*2014-12-18*

> Reflecting on the third week of Advent, Bill Young discusses how God's plan from creation was to bring humanity into a profound relationship of friendship and community through Christ.

## A Call Rooted in Creation

God chose us in Christ before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless before him in love. Our call originates in creation itself; God creates us so that we may live in a profound relationship of friendship with Him. Even when sin broke this relationship—with God, with others, and with creation—God did not abandon us.

## The History of Salvation

The entire history of salvation is the story of God who seeks out human beings, offers them His love, and welcomes them. God called Abraham to be the father of a multitude and chose His people of Israel to make a covenant that would embrace all people. In the fullness of time, God sent forth His Son so that His plan of love and salvation might be fulfilled in a new and eternal covenant with all humanity.

## The Formation of the Church

When we read the Gospels, we see Jesus gather around Him a small community which receives His word, follows it, shares in His journey, and becomes His family. With this community, He prepares and builds His Church. The Church is born from a supreme act of love on the Cross, from the pierced side of Jesus, from which flowed blood and water—symbols of the sacraments of the Eucharist and of Baptism.

## Living as God's Family

The lifeline of God's family, the Church, is God's love, which is actualized in loving Him and others—all others—without distinction or reservations. The Church is a family in which we love and are loved.

*The Church is a family born from the love of the Cross, called to reflect God's unconditional love to all people.*