Faith in the Real World
Sep 9: Memorial of Saint Peter Claver, Priest
Today, we’re talking about active faith, rather than passive faith. It’s something we do, not just believe.
Reading 1
Col 1:21-23
Brothers and sisters: You once were alienated and hostile in mind because of evil deeds; God has now reconciled you in the fleshly Body of Christ through his death, to present you holy, without blemish, and irreproachable before him, provided that you persevere in the faith, firmly grounded, stable, and not shifting from the hope of the Gospel that you heard, which has been preached to every creature under heaven, of which I, Paul, am a minister.
Jesus saved us from sin, but of course, we can’t sit back and just “receive” salvation. We definitely can’t save ourselves; that only comes through grace. But then we’re required to take that grace and run with it, persevere in the faith, not shifting from the hope of the gospel.
The famous passage from James,1 “Faith without works is dead,” sometimes seems to contradict Paul.2 But in this letter, Paul is pretty clear “faith” doesn’t mean just sitting on your hands and believing really hard.
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 54:3-4, 6 and 8
R. God himself is my help.
O God, by your name save me,
and by your might defend my cause.
O God, hear my prayer;
hearken to the words of my mouth.
R. God himself is my help.
Behold, God is my helper;
the Lord sustains my life.
Freely will I offer you sacrifice;
I will praise your name, O LORD, for its goodness.
R. God himself is my help.
This is another song of lamentation, where the psalmist refuses to despair. Instead, he hopes in God, who is active in history and just. He’ll continue to offer sacrifice, even as he awaits help.
Alleluia
Jn 14:6
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the way and the truth and the life, says the Lord;
no one comes to the Father except through me.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
No matter what we do to keep the faith, we still rely on Jesus.
Gospel
Lk 6:1-5
While Jesus was going through a field of grain on a sabbath, his disciples were picking the heads of grain, rubbing them in their hands, and eating them. Some Pharisees said, "Why are you doing what is unlawful on the sabbath?"
Jesus said to them in reply, "Have you not read what David did when he and those who were with him were hungry? How he went into the house of God, took the bread of offering, which only the priests could lawfully eat, ate of it, and shared it with his companions?"
Then he said to them, "The Son of Man is lord of the sabbath."
Sometimes, we are so focused on and get caught up in thinking about the spiritual, we can forget that God made us as both body and soul. We aren’t angels; we have to eat, breathe, and otherwise take care of our bodies.
That’s why the Church makes exceptions to fasts and other requirements for people who can’t, or would be harmed by participating. Take the short fast before communion. If you have to take your meds at a certain time and with food, and that time happens to be within an hour before receiving the eucharist, God understands you’re not being disrespectful. He knows exactly what your condition is, even!
Likewise, if you’re traveling, you’re relieved of your Sunday mass obligation. Is it worth making an effort anyways? Certainly! But when I visit my in-laws in New Zealand, we leave on Saturday and arrive on Monday. God understands that time zones are weird.
God never demands of us anything more than what we can do. But, remember how much more you can do with God!