Saturday of the 18th
Week in Ordinary Time
August 9, 2014 8:30am
Picking up on today’s gospel, I
want to make a comment about faith.
One of our current Catholic
theologians and writers, Father Richard Rohr, says this.
“On retreat I once wrote in my journal, ‘How good of you, God, to make
truth a relationship instead of an idea.’”
Father Rohr gets to the core of
the matter.
Faith is a relationship first and
foremost.
This is why Pope Francis calls us
to a renewed, personal encounter with Jesus.
That is the root of faith.
How can we have this personal
relationship?
And then how can we sustain it
and grow in it?
I see three things as needed: 1) watch,
2) listen, and 3) speak.
First, we need to watch Jesus.
Through the gospels, we need to
observe what he does, how he treats people, and how responds to situations.
We need to look at all of this
and know that he is our example and teacher even in his actions.
And then we need to listen.
Again, primarily through the
gospels, we need to listen to what Jesus says to religious leaders and people
viewed as sinful and people who are suffering and to his disciples.
We need to take in his words and
their context and try to fathom their meaning, even if it is different from
what we have thought or expected.
And finally, we need to speak.
We need to respond to what we see
and hear by talking with him, praising him for his love and goodness and asking
him for more clarity where we need that.
We need to tell him who and where
we are and what we need from him for our journey at this time.
So, 1) watch, 2) listen, and 3)
speak – these three actions will enable us to have an alive and growing
personal relationship with Jesus.
That is the core of faith.
