“Faith is not an idea but a life” -- Pope Benedict XVI in “What is Christianity?: The Last Writings”
St. Thomas Aquinas begins his Catechetical Instructions with a short exposition on faith. “What is faith?”
He writes, “The first thing that is necessary for every Christian is faith, without which no one is truly called a faithful Christian.”
St. Thomas takes nothing for granted.
He writes, “Faith brings about four good effects. The first is that through faith the soul is united to God, and by it there is between the soul and God a union akin to marriage. Indeed, it must be known that no one is acceptable before God unless he has faith.”
We often use analogies to understand difficult or higher truths. Consider how the high divorce rate and society “redefining” marriage is now weakening this analogy. How would a child whose parents are divorced accept the analogy?
Continuing, Aquinas writes, “The second effect of faith is that eternal life is already begun in us; for eternal life is nothing else than knowing God. This the Lord announced when He said: ‘This is eternal life, that they may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent (John 17:3).’ This knowledge of God begins here through faith, but it is perfected in the future life when we shall know God as He is.”
Some of you may have participated in “The Rescue Project.” In it, Father John Riccardo observes/comments/notes that things are “messed up.” We can agree but not let it hold us back.
Jesus tells his apostles in John 16:33: “In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” Baptized? Yes, eternal life has begun … have faith … be of good cheer for Jesus has overcome the world!
Perfection in heaven will mean that faith is no longer needed, where we will be united with God in the most intimate way possible.
Aquinas writes, “The third good that comes from faith is that right direction which it gives to our present life. Faith teaches us all that is necessary to live a good life. It teaches us that there is one God who is the rewarder of good and the punisher of evil; that there is a life other than this one, and other like truths whereby we are attracted to live rightly and to avoid evil. ‘… the righteous shall live by his faith (Hab 2:4).’”
Is our faith “true?” Who defines “good?” God.
Thankfully, we can be assured that when St. Thomas refers to God as a “punisher of evil,” it is with a fatherly love to his children. But alas, today fatherhood is being diminished and ripped apart (like marriage), so to think of God as Father may engender thoughts of absent, distant, or violent … someone to run from, not toward.
He writes, “The fourth effect of faith is that by it we overcome temptations: ‘(The holy ones) who through faith conquered kingdoms … (Heb 11:33).’ We know that every temptation is either from the world or the flesh or the devil. The devil would have us disobey God and not be subject to Him. This is removed by faith, since through it we know that He is the Lord of all things and must therefore be obeyed. ‘Your opponent the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith (1 Peter 5:8-9) … ‘The world tempts us either by attaching us to it in prosperity or by filling us with fear of adversity. But faith overcomes this in that we believe in a life to come better than this one, and hence we despise the riches of this world and we are not terrified in the face of adversity. ‘(A)nd this is the victory that overcomes the world, our faith. (1 John 5:4).’
“The flesh, however, tempts us by attracting us to the swiftly passing pleasures of this present life. But faith shows us that, if we cling to these things inordinately, we shall lose eternal joys. ‘In all circumstances, hold faith as a shield (Eph 6:16).’”
St. Thomas concludes the section saying, “We are more certain, therefore, in believing the things of faith than those things which can be seen, because God’s knowledge never deceives us, but the visible sense of man is often in error.”
Ponder that last clause. Recall, “the apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’” in Luke 17:5.
Use it or lose it. Frequent the sacraments. “To live, grow, and persevere in the faith until the end we must nourish it with the word of God; we must beg the Lord to increase our faith; it must be “working through charity,” abounding in hope, and rooted in the faith of the Church. (CCC 162).”
