Hello my friends! Several of you have asked me to address both personal & spiritual questions. Here are some questions and my answers to them. I invite more questions. Call me, write me or send questions to Diana for this bulletin article (d_hudock@yahoo.com). This article will also appear on our Facebook and Blog on our website.
Linda R. asks: What does omnipotence mean? Since God is love, that means he can’t hate, right? And since we have free will, God can’t make us choose him. So how does that work with omnipotence?
Father Pete: This is a very good questions. Another word for omnipotence is almighty. In fact, this is the term we use in the creed. Might or power is truly understood only in terms of God’s character. True power is a power that is expressed in the “fatherhood” of God. The catechism of the Catholic Church paragraph 270 states:
“God is Father Almighty, whose fatherhood and power shed light on one another: God reveals his fatherly omnipotence by the way he takes care of our needs…finally by his infinite mercy, for he displays His power at its height by freely forgiving sins.”
Thus, to be powerful is to be loving and merciful. Hate is weakness unless it is directed toward evil. But to hate any part of creation is to display weakness. Love and power are the same. And to love and to be powerful is to allow the other to come or go. It is to allow freedom. God does not hate His creatures ever. God allows free choice to us humans. This is the very definition of omnipotence. This was a tough concept to explain. I hope that my answer has helped and not confused my readers.
Keep the questions coming!
Love,
Fr. Pete