Presence and Faith

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to ponder the effect of the Presence of God in our hopes, understanding, and love for others.

Presence and Faith

The reading from the Book of Wisdom is an exhortation to Uprightness.

* [1:1] Righteousness: not merely the cardinal virtue of justice (cf. 8:7), but the universal moral quality which is the application of wisdom to moral conduct. You who judge: “judges” and “kings” (cf. 6:1) are addressed in accordance with the literary customs of the times and with the putative Solomonic authorship, but the real audience is the Jewish community.

* [1:4] In these verses personified Wisdom is identified with the spirit of the Lord; so also in 9:17.

* [1:5] Discipline: here and elsewhere, another name for Wisdom. (Wisdom, CHAPTER 1, n.d.)

Psalm 139 praises the Inescapable God.

* [Psalm 139] A hymnic meditation on God’s omnipresence and omniscience. The psalmist is keenly aware of God’s all-knowing gaze (Ps 139:1–6), of God’s presence in every part of the universe (Ps 139:7–12), and of God’s control over the psalmist’s very self (Ps 139:13–16). Summing up Ps 139:1–16, 17–18 express wonder. There is only one place hostile to God’s rule—wicked people. The psalmist prays to be removed from their company (Ps 139:19–24).

* [139:2] When I sit and stand: in all my physical movement.

* [139:9] Take the wings of dawn: go to the extremities of the east. Beyond the sea: uttermost bounds of the west; the sea is the Mediterranean. (Psalms, PSALM 139, n.d.)

The Gospel of Luke presents some sayings of Jesus about temptations to Sin and saying of Faith.

* [17:3] Be on your guard: the translation takes Lk 17:3a as the conclusion to the saying on scandal in Lk 17:1–2. It is not impossible that it should be taken as the beginning of the saying on forgiveness in Lk 17:3b–4. (Luke, CHAPTER 17, n.d.)

David Crawford asks what are we teaching our little ones in our unguarded moments?  For that matter, what are we teaching them with how we go about our everyday lives, at home and in public?

There are so many things in our daily lives that challenge us, and we have so many examples of people responding to hatred with hatred, to violence with violence.  We who follow Christ are called to respond differently, lovingly.  What Dr. King professed so many years ago is still true today:  “Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”  We just need faith, no bigger than a mustard seed, that love, which comes from God and is God (1 John 4:7-8), is ours. (Crawford, 2023)

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 catalogue 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, 2022)

The Word Among Us Meditation on Luke 17:1-6 comments that it can be easy to read this passage and conclude that if only our faith were stronger, we would be able to do just about anything. All the “mulberry trees” in our lives would literally fly into the sea! But that’s missing the fact that our faith is only the lever. We need to be founded firmly on Jesus—on his wisdom, his will, and his plan for our lives. We can’t “believe” our way into something that God doesn’t want for us!

The key, as in all things, is to stay connected to the Lord. Then we can move all the things that need to be moved in our lives. Are you struggling with a sin pattern? You can move it as you stay rooted in Christ. Are you facing a new opportunity for evangelization or service but aren’t sure you can meet the challenge? With Jesus as your “fulcrum,” you can. His love and his grace and his power are far bigger than any mulberry tree in the world!

“Lord, teach me to surrender to your will, even as I trust in your mighty power!” (Meditation on Luke 17:1-6, n.d.)

Friar Jude Winkler explains the connection of the Book of Wisdom to Greek philosophy in the 2nd Century BCE. The Book, written only in Greek, is excluded from the Jewish and Protestant canon. In the New Testament, Jesus is portrayed as “Wisdom Incarnate”. Friar Jude reminds us that the “little ones” to whom we do not give bad examples may also include the anawim and he underlines the different depths of faith that as a gift from God call us to do the best we can.

Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, introduces Franciscan Sister Ilia Delio who describes spiritual maturation as a growth in consciousness and a radical surrender into divine love.

We cannot know this deeper divine reality if we live only on levels of mediocrity and self-preservation. We are created out of love and are made to energize the world in love…. Aging can be either a life of nostalgia or a wholehearted engagement with the future. It is a disruptive process as things break down, friends and pets die, houses are sold, and memories of the past haunt the present. Months melt into years, and we find ourselves in the flow of life.

Growing inward by falling upward means learning from our mistakes…. Even if the felt experience of life dims, we are invited to let go and surrender to the wild love of God, living into the endless vitality of life itself. Letting go into God is coming home to our true selves, where we discover that our root reality is infinite divine love, and in love, we are eternally free. (Rohr, 2023)

We are awakened by the Spirit to the Presence of God in our environment and through our faith that is the affirmation of our journey to fullness of life.

References

Crawford, D. (2023, November 13). Creighton U. Daily Reflection. Online Ministries. Retrieved November 13, 2023, from https://onlineministries.creighton.edu/CollaborativeMinistry/111323.html 

Luke, CHAPTER 17. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved November 13, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/luke/17?1 

Meditation on Luke 17:1-6. (n.d.). The Word Among Us: Homepage. Retrieved November 13, 2023, from https://wau.org/meditations/2023/11/13/829402/ 

Psalms, PSALM 139. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved November 13, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/psalms/139?1 

Rohr, R. (2023, November 13). A Breakthrough in Consciousness — Center for Action and Contemplation. Center for Action and Contemplation. Retrieved November 13, 2023, from https://cac.org/daily-meditations/a-breakthrough-in-consciousness/ 

Schwager, D. (2022, October 2). Lord Jesus Increase Our Faith. Daily Scripture net. Retrieved November 13, 2023, from https://www.dailyscripture.net/daily-meditation/?ds_year=2023&date=nov13 

Wisdom, CHAPTER 1. (n.d.). USCCB. Retrieved November 13, 2023, from https://bible.usccb.org/bible/wisdom/1?1