Increase Our Faith

Increase Our Faith

Oh! What marvels faith can work among peoples!

Many say that those people are superstitious and their faith is not sound. Instead, I say that their faith is very sound and there, more than any other place, we see it proven by extraordinary events. They believe with simplicity, and this is one of the wisest qualities of a true believer. They are uneducated, but posses within themselves good reason for their beliefs. God has infused it in them. They also are willing to be instructed. No, the faith of these people is not to be despised. They may not be able to express the reason for their faith, nor can they always defend it, but these reasons which they possess are deeply felt in their hearts, as though they had studied much. The reason for this faith is the heart’s highest good; the heart is judge of what is for its benefit, not the intellect. Everyone has a heart, the learned and the ignorant.

How many uneducated souls with pure hearts have raised themselves to God in blessed contemplation. Thus, even the mysteries that are beyond science and the mind were not superior to the vastness of their hearts. No, the mind does not comprehend the mysteries of faith, but, because they are mysteries of love, the heart of one who has the gift of faith feels, rather than understands them. Yes, the Trinity, the Incarnation, and the Eucharist are mysteries of a God who makes himself for us father, brother, victim, and food. They are proof of an infinite love; the heart perceives the truth because it needs to be infinitely loved. Oh, faith, oh, holy religion, how much you have benefited humanity! Appearing in the night of ignorance, you have crushed error and have assured reason and truth positions they will never lose. You will live for ever no matter how embattled, and error will never be a part of you. When error assails us, we will return to you and find truth under your beautiful mantle.

Saint Frances Xavier Cabrini

struggle - it's about Love

I’ve been reflecting on struggle for some time now. In fact, I’ve recently been in struggle with writing this blog. What to say, is it good enough, what will people think?

As my week progressed, I faced lots of little struggles. Each one seemed to speak to me, at first subtly, but got more and more pointed as the week went on.

Early in the week, while writing a draft of this blog, I answered the rhetorical questions like this: ‘after careful consideration and reflection I realize it’s what I am called to do, to share myself with you’.

Then later in the week, I found myself driven to tell others ‘Are we not confident in the power of Love alone?’

But I still hadn’t fully gotten what was going on, what I was learning and having become more a part of me.

This morning I read today’s reading about Jesus asking “Who among you, if your son or ox falls into a cistern, would not immediately pull him out on the sabbath day?”

As I reflected, I thought, it’s not about the letter of the law but the spirit of the law, it’s about love.

When we enter into struggle, what do we do? How do we handle it? What does it teach us?

I think that if we enter our struggle in union with Jesus, we see that it’s about Love.

About “writing this blog”, it is so much more than simply that. It is me sharing myself with you, so that we can be in union with each other, one Church, in union with Him.

It’s about Love.