August 24, 2008

The Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time

The Holy Year of Paul, the Apostle

Jesus said to them, “But who do you say that I am?”—Matthew16:15

Dear Friends:

Writer John Garvey in a recent article talks about the nature of faith (Reasons for Hope: Why Faith Is Not About Certainty—Commonweal, August 15, 2008). He says many nonbelievers equate belief with certainty or a need for explanations or an illusion based on a desire to console oneself. And he says that many believers treat religious belief in a superstitious way. And thus they give nonbelievers a false sense of faith.

Garvey points out that the Letter to the Hebrews connects faith with the virtue of hope. Hope he says “moves (us) beyond any sense of certainty.” He goes on to say:

Real certainty does not require hope. I don’t need to hope that two and two make four, but I do need to hope that my belief—well founded, I think—that my wife loves me is grounded in reality and is not an illusion. One could argue that my belief in my wife’s love is in fact an illusion, based on a need to believe…I could not conclusively disprove this…I believe that the reality of my wife’s love is more important than my feelings about it which may vary from day to day.

Garvey goes on to say that faith is the hope that God’s love is different from our limited human love. God’s love is the foundation of our existence. It is radically different than human love because it has no requirements and it does not need a reason it “simply is.”

This love is demonstrated in God’s covenant with Israel, the Incarnation (God becoming human) of Jesus, in his teaching, death and resurrection. And it is reflected in what we are asked to become. “Again our relationship with all of this has to do with hope not certainty.”

Relationship is the key to faith—not information. This is why Jesus is asking the question in today’s Gospel from Matthew (16:13-20), “Who do you say that I am?” The answer to this question will define the quality of our relationship with Jesus. The acknowledgment that “Jesus is Lord” and the Lover of Humanity, is central to our faith. It is the bedrock of the relationship that we name as Church.

Our faith is not about certainty or ideas; it is about a hope founded in love. “…it is a kind of perception, a form of gratitude, and very far from anything like an explanation or certainty.” Faith is more demanding than an explanation. Like any relationship it demands daily care and attention. This may be why many would prefer to make faith a mathematical proposition—mathematics does not ask much from me. However, unlike love, it leaves you a little cold.

Faith like love is a wonderful mysterious journey. It demands everything and gives everything. Faith warms the heart and like love it asks us to be vulnerable—to put ourselves out there. Like love, faith is taking a risk, but it is one that is worth taking.

Peace,

Fr. Ron