XXVII Sunday of the Year

FAITH IS A GIFT AND A TASK

Habakkuk 1:2-3, 2:2-4; 2 Timothy 1:6-8, 13-14; Luke 17:5-10

Readings for the XXVII Sunday of the Year

A family I know has been going through difficult times: one member died in a tragic accident; two have major illnesses; some of the younger ones face career uncertainty. It is overwhelming. And the “good Catholics” around them have been questioning their faith: “If their faith were stronger, they wouldn’t have all these troubles”! 

Experiences like this make one question: What is faith? A mantra to recite or a magic wand to wave… and whoosh… problems solved?! I wish it were, but it is not!

This Sunday’s readings help us to understand what faith is.

Habakkuk (first reading), writing in a time of turmoil, dares to question God about his apparent silence at the injustice he and his people are suffering from foreign conquerors. God persuades him to wait patiently for deliverance for “it will surely come”. The attitude required of his people is “faith”: steadfast loyalty and holding on in obedience to God’s law even when it apparently pays no dividends.

St Paul reminds Timothy (second reading) that God has gifted us “a spirit of… power and love and self-control” and invites him to bear hardships “with the strength that comes from God.”

Jesus instructs his disciples (gospel) that it is the quality (and not quantity) of their faith that matters. The size of faith doesn’t matter because God is the one doing the moving! He urges them to do their duty, that is, to serve God unconditionally without counting the cost. He cautions the disciples against supposing that faith (and the service of the Lord) establishes a claim for reward.

Faith is a gift of the Spirit – that moves us to wait patiently and humbly – while steadfastly doing our tasks – in the knowledge and hope that God’s will and word will be fulfilled. 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church affirms: “to obey in faith is to submit freely to the word that has been heard… Abraham is the model of such obedience… the Virgin Mary is its most perfect embodiment” (144). Didn’t they have problems and difficulties? Through all their ordeals, their faith never wavered. 

What kind of faith do I have: a mantra to recite or a magic wand to wave or steadfast loyalty to God and fidelity to duty through (and despite) difficulties? 

May the Lord increase my faith!