52. “what no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

“what no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).

YOUCAT Catechism + Catechism of the Catholic Church Lesson 52

Ave Maria series

Heaven and Heavenly Creatures

52.  What is heaven?

Heaven is God’s milieu, the dwelling place of the angels and saints, and the goal of creation.  With the words “heaven and earth” we designate the whole of created reality.  [325-327]

Hymn: Eye Has Not Seen. A beautiful hymn that finds its roots in earliest Christianity. .....52

Heaven is not a place in the universe.  It is a condition in the next life.  Heaven is where God’s will is done without any resistance.  Heaven happens when life is present in its greatest intensity and blessedness—a kind of life that we do not find on earth.  If with God’s help we arrive someday in heaven, then waiting for us will be “what no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him” (1 Corinthians 2:9).  158, 285

“Walk with your feet on earth, but in your heart be in heaven.”  St. John Bosco (1815-1888, patron saint of youth)

325-327

Heaven and Earth

325 The Apostles' Creed professes that God is "creator of heaven and earth". The Nicene Creed makes it explicit that this profession includes "all that is, seen and unseen". --Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition

326 The Scriptural expression "heaven and earth" means all that exists, creation in its entirety. It also indicates the bond, deep within creation, that both unites heaven and earth and distinguishes the one from the other: "the earth" is the world of men, while "heaven" or "the heavens" can designate both the firmament and God's own "place" - "our Father in heaven" and consequently the "heaven" too which is eschatological glory. Finally, "heaven" refers to the saints and the "place" of the spiritual creatures, the angels, who surround God.( Psalm 115:16; Ps 19:2; Matthew 5:16.)¹⁸⁶ --CCC

327 The profession of faith of the Fourth Lateran Council (1215) affirms that God "from the beginning of time made at once (simul) out of nothing both orders of creatures, the spiritual and the corporeal, that is, the angelic and the earthly, and then (deinde) the human creature, who as it were shares in both orders, being composed of spirit and body."( Lateran Council IV (1215): Denzinger-Schonmetzer 800; compare DS 3002 and Paul VI, Credo of the People of God § 8.)¹⁸⁷ --CCC