1.5 The Wonder of Being Made by God
Made in His Image - What Does That Really Mean?
Being made in the image of God is the foundation of Catholic anthropology — the way we understand who we are and where we come from.
If, as I mentioned in “Who are you, really?”, we are daughters of God and made “in His image and likeness,” then it makes sense that we should strive to understand Him. If you want to understand someone, you have to get to know them. If you want to understand yourself, you have to explore where you come from.
So, let’s face those questions together:
Where are you coming from? Who made you?
Everyone at the beginning of life’s journey.
The Wonder of Being Made by God
As Christians, we believe that God made us.
And as I’m writing this, it hits me again: wow—GOD made us.
I am made by Him. You are made by Him. But that only deeply touches the heart if we know who God is.
Who are we talking about? A far-away guy in the skies?
No.
We’re talking about the ultimate good.
What is good? Okay, there have been some smart people in history defining that… and I’m glad they did. But think of it this way—what’s good in your life?
Ice cream, hugs, laughter, sunrise and sunset, a beautiful landscape, hearing birds sing in the early morning hours, a goodnight kiss… and the list goes on and on.Now imagine all that good, together and forever, without limits. That’s a glimpse of who God is.
Friendship is reflecting God’s goodness.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC, 1997) tells us that “God is the fullness of Being and of every perfection, without origin and without end” (para. 213).
Every perfection.
We all have some idea of that. Maybe you’re part of the perfectionist gang—always chasing the ideal you’ll never quite reach. You might long for the perfect world, the perfect people, the perfect cappuccino foam. And God is every perfection.
2. Getting to Know God (Again)
Maybe you’re like me—when you see a headline like “Who is God, really?” you’re tempted to skip it. “Yeah, I know. It’s God. Heard that before.” But that attitude is haughty and can make us miss something huge.
Think of it like your best friend. You probably know a lot about them, but that doesn’t mean you stop listening when they start sharing a story from their childhood. Relationship means continual discovery. It’s the same with God.
The Catechism reminds us that God is truth and God is love (CCC, 1997). He is also mysterious—beyond our understanding. When He reveals His name as YHWH (“Yahweh,” meaning “I am who I am”), it shows us that He simply is—the source of all being, all goodness, all love.
3. Reflecting His Image
And He made us in His image.
That means we are good, too.
We were created good.
And there is something mysterious about us as well.
Our truth, goodness, and beauty reflect God’s perfection (CCC, 1997, para. 41).
He is an infinite exchange of love—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Father loves the Son; the Son loves the Father; and that love is the Holy Spirit.
The Giver, the Receiver, and the Love itself—one God in perfect unity.
4. How this truth changes everything
As you are a reflection of God’s love and beauty so are your mom, your dad, your coworker you don’t really like that much, and the beggar on the street.
We are not objects — we are subjects, created out of love and for love.
I came to really know God through a good friend. Because of some circumstances, I spent Christmas with her and her family. She has a very deep and profound love for Christ and is a fully awake, joyful, and cool person. I had never encountered such a combination before — a cool Christian. I think that opened something in me. That maybe, there was more to discover. That God could truly transform a person in a good and not awkward way.
So I said yes to daily Mass and to holy hours during that time. And I really liked it. Sure, sometimes I felt odd, like a stranger. But I talked a lot with my friend and opened up deep parts of my heart. For me, she truly was a reflection of God’s love — because of how she listened to me and carried the pain I had experienced.
It was a time to be vulnerable — truly vulnerable. And that allowed me to open my heart to the Lord. I realized that He had always been and was with me in my suffering, just as my friend was. That He had not abandoned me.
Then one day, through a prayer and a homily, something hit me deeply — a truth that went straight to my core:
Wow. I am His daughter. Through His wounds, I am healed. And I am safe in Him.
That changed me forever.