Claim. Human beings fulfill God’s ideal by becoming the eternal objects of God’s love.
Elaboration. SMM says creation arose because God wanted joy through love, but “the ideal of love cannot be realized by God alone” (CSG 4.1 §3, Blessed Family 302). The section identifies God’s object of love as human beings: “When humankind comes before God as the object of love, with perfected love, God becomes the God of happiness” (145-267, 1986.5.15). God’s love means not only human beings loving one another eternally, but “God liking human beings eternally.” Adam and Eve were therefore created as partners God would want to see, be with, and live with forever. The ideal family is the first concrete form of that eternal mutual delight.