Homilies

19th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME: ALLOWING OUR FAITH TO GROW MATURE

IN THE LAST ten years, there have been books written by the so-called neo-atheists which attempt to discredit established religions, including the Christian religion. This phenomenon suggests that modern atheism is on the rise in our day. But we can understand them because they may have an obscure knowledge of the God whom we believe.

However, I think our concern is more on the members of the Church who have not lost totally their faith, but have diminished their faith in God. They may be compared to Peter who was reprimanded by Jesus in today’s gospel for his “lack of faith.”

It would be good to recall our learning in faith so that we could have a better view on how to develop this faith and become eventually mature in our faith in God.

First of all, faith has a cognitive dimension. Faith is related to knowledge, i.e., knowledge about God, knowledge about the gospel etc.. St Paul emphasizes this by saying that the knowledge of faith should grow to greater adequacy. When we were born, we did not receive this faith in its totality. We learn piecemeal. While we grow in age, we should also grow  in the knowledge of Him. But in truth there are believers who are satisfied with the knowledge they received when they were kids. For them, the basic catechesis is already sufficient. But this should not be the case. Although God is and remains a mystery, we should explore the depth of this mystery and the other mysteries of our faith as well. The profession of faith that we do in Sunday masses should be complemented with deeper understanding of them.

Second, faith has a volitive dimension. Faith is not only knowing but also trusting. It is trusting in the words of God and ultimately, in the person of Christ. This is something that Peter lacked. Jesus gave the assuring words to Peter, but unfortunately, Peter did not trust Jesus’ words, and in effect, he did not also trust in Jesus at that time. However, the experience of Peter was very human. In fact, we can associate ourselves with Peter. There have been moments in our life wherein we doubt God and his goodness. There have been moments in our life in which lack faith in Him. Well, we can find people who would say that they have “sufficient” knowledge of God. But as soon as they experience problems and trials, they easily falter. Consequently, they distance themselves from God and the Church. For these people, there is a need to teach their hearts to trust, even in situation of hopelessness.

Third, faith has a practical dimension. Faith is not only seen in the mind and in the heart, but also in the way we live. A Latin axiom says, “lex credendi, lex vivendi’ or “the law of believing is the law of living.” In other words, our life is guided by what we believe in. This is worth reflecting because our identity as a Christian nation does not reflect in the way we live as a people. Our country is known as a predominantly Christian nation in Asia, but, at the same time, our country has been known as one of the most corrupt countries in the world. Thus, our way of life does not correspond to our identity or calling. This is actually a faith crisis. This problem is not only a collective problem. This can also be reflected in individual persons. There are people, who are graduates from Catholic schools, and yet, they are corrupt or they support abortion. What they do does not correspond to what they believe as Catholics.

If our faith bears these three dimensions, then we can say that our faith is already a grown or mature one. If not, then, we have to find some means in making it more comprehensive. Some have only the first dimension and theirs is not a mature faith yet. Some have the first two dimensions, but this is not considered yet a mature faith. The challenge lies on the third dimension because this may be the hardest thing to do. But, if we have the awareness of who we are, of our identity as Christians, I think this would help in guiding ourselves to live our day-to-day life.
 

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