By RAYMOND DE SOUZA, KM
Part 1
In this article we move from the Bible to the first theological virtue, which we received at Baptism: faith. It will take a little study to delve into this matter, because it has a theological nature, unlike other topics we’ve dealt with. So, take a deep breath, say a Hail Mary, relax a bit, and let us enter the world of theology. . . .
We begin by defining faith: It is a divine virtue whereby we believe the truths God has revealed to us, not because of our natural reason, but by the authority of God, who can neither deceive nor be deceived. It is not like the belief in God’s existence, because we come to know there is a God by our pure natural reason, by logic, science, and common sense as well. This is not the case with faith: We believe the truths God revealed to mankind, simply because He revealed them to mankind, by means of trustworthy witnesses.
How do we receive the virtue of faith? Faith is received into the soul with sanctifying grace. The first time we received it was in our Baptism. But faith is a precious gift which can be lost by the grave sin of unbelief: when one denies a truth that God has revealed, scienter et volenter, that is, knowingly and willingly.
Faith is necessary for salvation. But we cannot make proper act of faith without God’s help, and Jesus states it very unambiguously: “Without me, you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Contrary to Luther’s opinion, the gift of faith does not deprive one of liberty. It is a help we are called to freely accept, and to cooperate with it, also freely.
Two other definitions: What are heresy and apostasy? Heresy is the persistent doubt or denial of a truth revealed by God, of an article of the Catholic faith (example, when a Catholic becomes a Protestant, or a schismatic, or joins one of the many weird sects that abound these days). But apostasy is the rejection of the whole Christian faith, such as when a Catholic becomes a Muslim, an atheist, or a Satanist. And yet, interestingly enough, in God’s mercy He sees to it that the virtue of faith is not lost by mortal sin.
The truths revealed by God for our salvation are found in the teachings we received from the apostles, that is, Sacred Scripture and the Apostolic Tradition. Many of those truths are perfectly understandable by the human mind, while others are not. We accept them in faith, because God said so, and that’s the end of it. Take, for instance, the Trinity of Persons in God and the Incarnation of God the Son. However much we may try to figure them out, we’ll never understand them fully. The foundations of faith consist of two basic truths: 1) God exists; and 2) He has revealed Himself to mankind.
After these preliminary principles, let us take a look at what is called the act of faith, whereby we believe in what God has revealed. God does not speak to us directly and individually. Instead, He has revealed Himself through the prophets of the Old Testament, and to the apostles in the New. And we have learned from them through the teachings of the Magisterium of the Church, which Christ instituted and promised to be with till the end of time. There is no other way. So, take it or leave it, as they say. The Magisterium of the Church conveys to us the truths of salvation by God’s authority, not their own.
Faith gives us certainty. The gift of faith strengthens our minds to accept the teachings of God without any doubt. Cardinal Newman put it beautifully: “He who believes is certain that the doctrine taught is true, as God is true. And he is certain because God is true, because God has spoken, not because he sees its truth or can prove its truth.”
And St. Thomas Aquinas says that “the certainty that comes through the divine light is greater than that which comes through the light of natural reason.”
That explains why the martyrs laid down their lives for Jesus Christ: They were absolutely certain that He was God Incarnate. From these teachings we can conclude that there are two essential elements in the act of faith: 1) It is based entirely on the Word of God; 2) It absolutely excludes all doubt or hesitancy.
“Fine,” you may say, “but what about temptations against the faith caused by difficulties in believing? How do we deal with them?”
First of all, the same Cardinal Newman gives a very sound rule to observe: “Ten thousand difficulties do not make one doubt.”
Let us make an important distinction: Doubts come from the human will, and difficulties from the intellect. Let us analyze them one at a time. Our doubts arise from our reluctance to bow down to divine authority, for instance, when we hesitate to accept that God has spoken to us, and we tend to resist a given teaching of the Magisterium. So one doubts that Humanae Vitae is binding on all Catholics, because it may well be the just the opinion of a bunch of celibate Italians; or one holds that divorce and remarriage without annulment could be OK if someone means well, and so on. Now difficulties arise from the mind trying to reconcile certain apparently contradictory things, for instance, how a merciful God could have created Hell, or how can Church teaching disagree with science.
A doubt cannot be dispelled except through a change of heart on the part of the believer. A difficulty can be solved by proper instruction in the faith; but it must be proper learning, and that is precisely what The Wanderer is doing in the English-speaking world today.
In any event, not all questions will ever be solved in this life. That is why God, in His infinite mercy, has created a place for us whereby to solve all necessary questions, called Purgatory.
Faith Is Not Feeling
A most important characteristic of faith is that it is not feeling. Yes, this is reality, you read it right: Faith is not a feeling. At times feeling pushes us against faith, but feelings are in the lower operations of the soul, called sensibility, whereas faith is in the highest operations of the mind.
If Jesus had paid attention to His feelings when He was at the Garden of Olives, He would not have gone to the sacrifice, and we would be today as a crowd of unredeemed pagans. Neither did the martyrs pay attention to their natural feelings of self-preservation, but accepted martyrdom.
Feelings come and go, sometimes according to our moods and dispositions, but faith is a habitual virtue. In themselves, feelings cannot be a sure guide to truth and virtue. They may or may not help faith. They are in themselves unreliable. The Catholic Church teaches us reality, spiritual realities, not whims or preferences or . . . feelings.
Next article: Delving into the Act of Faith, to perfect our living faith.
+ + +
(Raymond de Souza is an EWTN program host; regional coordinator for Portuguese-speaking countries for Human Life International [HLI]; president of the Sacred Heart Institute, and a member of the Sovereign, Military, and Hospitaller Order of the Knights of Malta. His website is: www.RaymonddeSouza.com.)
Powered by WPtouch Mobile Suite for WordPress