Day 60: God Sends His Only Son

We believe and confess that Jesus of Nazareth, born a Jew of a daughter of Israel at Bethlehem at the time of King Herod the Great and the emperor Caesar Augustus, a carpenter by trade, who died crucified in Jerusalem under the procurator Pontius Pilate during the reign of the emperor Tiberius, is the eternal Son of God made man. He 'came from God', 'descended from heaven', and 'came in the flesh'. For 'the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father. . . and from his fullness have we all received, grace upon grace.' CCC 423

In today's reading, the Catechism speaks of what the Protoevangelium in Genesis promised: the coming of the One who would redeem man from his sins. Something that has always drawn me to Christianity, particularly the Catholic Church, is just how rooted in history it is. This reflected a passion of mine for history, from the well-known to the most obscure. I like how the Catechism Companion, Vol I notes the historical rootedness of our faith:

We will see how rooted in history the reality of Jesus is. Christianity is a historical religion. Jesus was born a Jew, in Bethlehem, under the reign of Herod the Great. He lived in a specific time and place (see CCC 423). (p. 124) 

It is in that real Person of Jesus, whom the Gospels proclaim, that we confess with St. Peter, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God" (Matt 16:16).

The next couple of paragraphs deal with catechesis, largely quoting from St. John Paul II:

"At the heart of catechesis we find, in essence, a Person," that is, Christ (CCC 426). "Whoever is called 'to teach Christ' must first seek 'the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus'" (CCC 428). (p. 124)

Adoration of the Kings by Michael Damaskinos circa 1591