The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today challenge us to reset our attitudes to patience and perseverance in our trust in our relationship with God to be the Way that satisfies our deepest needs.
The reading from the Prophet Habakkuk outlines the prophet’s complaint.
* [1:2–4] The prophet complains about God’s apparent disregard for Judah’s internal evils in language that echoes the preaching of prophets like Amos, Isaiah, and Jeremiah.
* [2:4] The just one who is righteous because of faith shall live: the faithful survive the impending doom because they trust in God’s justice and wait patiently for God to carry it out. Several New Testament passages cite these words (Rom 1:17; Gal 3:11; cf. Heb 10:38) to confirm the teaching that people receive justification and supernatural life through faith in Christ. (Habakkuk, CHAPTER 2, n.d.)
Psalm 95 is a call to worship and obedience.
* [Psalm 95] Twice the Psalm calls the people to praise and worship God (Ps 95:1–2, 6), the king of all creatures (Ps 95:3–5) and shepherd of the flock (Ps 95:7a, 7b). The last strophe warns the people to be more faithful than were their ancestors in the journey to the promised land (Ps 95:7c–11). This invitation to praise God regularly opens the Church’s official prayer, the Liturgy of the Hours. (Psalms, PSALM 95, n.d.)
The reading from the Second Letter to Timothy details the gifts that Timothy has received.
* [1:4–5] Purportedly written from prison in Rome (2 Tm 1:8, 17; 4:6–8) shortly before the writer’s death, the letter recalls the earlier sorrowful parting from Timothy, commending him for his faith and expressing the longing to see him again.
* [1:6] The gift of God: the grace resulting from the conferral of an ecclesiastical office. The imposition of my hands: see note on 1 Tm 4:14.
* [1:8] Do not be ashamed of your testimony to our Lord: i.e., of preaching and suffering for the sake of the gospel. (2 Timothy, CHAPTER 1, n.d.)
The Gospel of Luke shares a saying of Faith and advocates the attitude of a servant.
* [17:7–10] These sayings of Jesus, peculiar to Luke, which continue his response to the apostles’ request to increase their faith (Lk 17:5–6), remind them that Christian disciples can make no claim on God’s graciousness; in fulfilling the exacting demands of discipleship, they are only doing their duty. (Luke, CHAPTER 17, n.d.)
Mike Cherney comments that several scripture scholars suggest that the historical Greek texts imply that Jesus’ response (If you had faith the size of a mustard seed, …) carries the tone that rather than lacking faith, faith is something that the apostles already have. These scholars see Jesus’ words as a call to action rather than a chastisement.
I feel the three readings make clear that although we are recipients of God’s gifts, the path that we are on is not that of immediate gratification. All three readings outline the demands on discipleship. Jesus describes the model of the servant. This is very different from the sense of entitlement that pervades our society.
I might describe Justice as getting one’s due, but what is my due? My expectations change when I acknowledge the many gifts that I have received. I consider myself blessed being the recipient of so much more than I feel that I deserve. The Gospel’s reminder of my position as a servant helps me put things in perspective.
Dear Lord,
I often feel that I am the target of marketing that tells me what I want, what opinions I should hold, and what behaviors are acceptable. Like the apostles, I desire more faith, a fire that burns within. Habakkuk reminds me of the need for patience. Jesus reminds me of the path of dutiful service. St. Paul promises the Spirit. Help me to remember these things as I confront my doubts. Allow me to continue to progress knowing that Jesus’ early disciples as well as modern saints, like Mother Theresa, felt that that needed more faith. (Cherney, 2022)
Don Schwager quotes “To increase faith is to strengthen it by the Holy Spirit,” by Cyril of Alexandria (376-444 AD).
"They ask, 'Add faith to us.' They do not ask simply for faith, for perhaps you might imagine them to be without faith. They rather ask Christ for an addition to their faith and to be strengthened in faith. Faith partly depends on us and partly is the gift of the divine grace. The beginning of faith depends on us and our maintaining confidence and faith in God with all our power. The confirmation and strength necessary for this comes from the divine grace. For that reason, since all things are possible with God, the Lord says that all things are possible for him who believes (Mark 9:23). The power that comes to us through faith is of God. Knowing this, blessed Paul also says in the first epistle to the Corinthians, 'For to one is given through the Spirit the word of wisdom, to another the word of knowledge according to the same Spirit, and to another faith in the same Spirit' (1 Corinthians 12:8). You see that he has placed faith also in the catalog of spiritual graces. The disciples requested that they might receive this from the Savior, contributing also what was of themselves. By the descent upon them of the Holy Spirit, he granted it to them after the fulfillment of the dispensation. Before the resurrection, their faith was so feeble that they were liable even to the charge of being 'little of faith'." (excerpt from COMMENTARY ON LUKE, HOMILIES 113-16) (Schwager, n.d.)
The Word Among Us Meditation on Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4 notes that the prophet Habakkuk was waiting for God to rescue Israel from violence and destruction. We might be waiting for a reconciliation with a loved one, for healing from a chronic disease, or for a child to return to his faith. But waiting doesn’t have to be a passive, dreaded time. As difficult as it can sometimes be, we can use this time to actively exercise our faith and let it grow.
Another way to exercise your faith as you wait is to fight the temptation to doubt or despair. You might not know what God is doing or when he will do it. But you can place your trust and hope in the promise that he is always at work, even behind the scenes, to do something far greater than you could ever imagine. When God told the prophet Habakkuk that his vision had not reached fulfillment, Habakkuk probably thought he was referring to Israel’s liberation from its enemies (2:3). He never imagined that God’s vision was humanity’s liberation from sin and death!
So even if you’ve been waiting for a long time, don’t lose hope. God’s vision for your life is pressing on to its fulfillment. And just as he told Habakkuk, so he tells you: this vision “will not disappoint; . . . it will surely come” (2:3).
“Lord, even as I wait, I place my trust in you.” (Meditation on Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4, n.d.)
Friar Jude Winkler comments on how Habakkuk is similar to Job in the sentiment that we just have to wait, God will make it alright. The advanced ecclesiology of the Pastoral Epistles, including to Timothy, suggest they are written in the name of Paul, urging the community to give witness to Christ even at the cost of ridicule and judgement. Friar Jude reminds us that we serve in the image and likeness of Christ when we give the gifts we have received to others.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces Sister Ilia Delio who identifies the spirituality of Francis of Assisi (1182–1226) as rooted in God’s love and humility.
I think Francis of Assisi grasped something of the mystery of God and, in a particular way, the mystery of God’s humility. Although he was simple and not well educated, he had an insight into God that I can only say was profound. Francis did not study theology. . . . He simply spent long hours in prayer, often in caves, mountains or places of solitude, places where he could distance himself from the busy everyday world. Thomas of Celano [c. 1185–1260], the first biographer of Francis, wrote: “Where the knowledge of teachers is outside, the passion of the lover entered.” [1] What Thomas perceived is that love, not knowledge, allowed Francis to enter into the great mystery we call “God.” As he entered into this mystery he discovered two principle features of God—the overflowing goodness of God and the humility of God. . . . How did a man as simple as Francis arrive at this mystery of God? The answer is Jesus Christ. Francis came to know the God of humble love by meditating on and imitating the poor and humble Christ. (Rohr, n.d.)
We ask the Holy Spirit to illuminate the Love of God that permeates our lives and reaffirms our trust in the Will of God.
References
Cherney, M. (2022, October 2). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/100222.html
Habakkuk, CHAPTER 2. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/habakkuk/2
Luke, CHAPTER 17. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/17?5
Meditation on Habakkuk 1:2-3; 2:2-4. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://wau.org/meditations/2022/10/02/503383/
Psalms, PSALM 95. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/95?1
Rohr, R. (n.d.). Daily Meditations — Center for Action and Contemplation. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/
Schwager, D. (n.d.). Lord, Increase Our Faith! Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations – Daily Scripture Readings and Meditations. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2022&date=oct2
2 Timothy, CHAPTER 1. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved October 2, 2022, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/2timothy/1?6
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