God created man to watch over all creation. He created us in His image and likeness to care for everything in the world. And man has fulfilled this duty for generations. In response to our mandate to grow and multiply, to fill the earth and conquer it, we have mastered the world in such a way that we have become creators through our ingenuity.
Our knowledge of the world is so vast, but not exhaustive. We cannot claim to know our world perfectly because our world remains an inexhaustible mystery. The more we learn, the more we recognize that there is still more to know. God continues to reveal the mysteries of the world to us so that we can appreciate His goodness and make the world a better place. Scripture says that it is the glory of God to hide things in mystery, but the glory of kings is to uncover them (Prov 25:2). We are kings because we are made in God’s image.
Mandate
Today’s readings remind us of our mandate as masters of God’s creation. They challenge us to appreciate the grace God has given us to be made in His image and likeness. Our souls reflect God’s essence in a way that prompts us to act like God, caring and loving. As kings and masters, we have often misinterpreted our mandate. Instead of caring, we have plundered. Instead of exploring, we exploited. We have taken advantage of God’s gift and have abused creation through our arrogant human contributions.
Compromise
Like the Pharisees, we are interested in using this mandate only to show power and control, instead of focusing on the responsibility to care and make creation better. Human activity has compromised the stability of the universe at an alarming rate that still calls us to live simply and humbly. We have abandoned and misconstrued God’s mandate for this plunder by paying lip service to God’s instruction. We have mastered God’s creation only to be its masters and not God’s servants. “This people honor Me only with lip service, while their hearts are far from Me. The worship they give to Me is worthless, the doctrines they teach are only human regulations.” But God reminds us today to remember the reason for our calling, the spirit of our original mandate, which is the responsibility to care. That our God-given gift as caretakers of the universe should be used to serve His glory. And when we fulfil our mandate with compassion and love, we affirm the more that we are the image of God. God bless you all.
