Memorial of Saint Josaphat, Bishop and Martyr
Within the parable of the judge and the widow today, there lies a question that may deeply trouble us Christians in the world - if the Son of Man (Jesus Christ) were to come to earth today, would he find faith among his people? Some may positively look at their own faithfulness while others may negatively look at the declining religiosity around us. But my take is to not feel the need to answer yes or no. Instead, we must answer this with our daily efforts to bring faith alive in our own hearts and the hearts of others.
So let me back up a bit. Jesus in today’s gospel from Luke’s account offers a pretty lazy parable. Don’t give me that look - I mean it with all love and respect. If this were a Netflix series, the Rotten Tomatoes score would be in the single digits. But it’s obviously not about the scripted characters Jesus is trying to win us over with. We are drawn to see that God is so much better than the worst judge imaginable who still responds to the people, so why do we not have faith that God actually is?
Jesus makes a really good case here. Yet, I know many times in my own life where my faith waivers from what I see on the screen or in my encounters in the community. We see violence and war, yelling unspeakable insults at one another, and leaving people to fend for themselves on the street. We could easily be discouraged and point to this being the reason why there is no faith on earth.
However, I do not think faith to be the absence of evil or suffering in our world. It is what we do in our response to it all. In our Catholic faith community, our response is always with prayer and action. These two elements come in different forms and, depending on our situation in life, it may only be possible to offer a humble prayer and donation to a worthy cause. Whatever the size, prayer and action is our calling to witness to our faith.
If we look at the construction of the mass which we share together, it gives the roadmap to engage this prayer and action response. We come together as individuals and community to pray many prayers, offer petitions, read and reflect over Scripture. And then we receive the nourishment of the Eucharist to be food for the journey as we go out and act in ways inspired by the love and mercy we just shared in. In my theological studies, a professor once said the mass is like breathing for the Body of Christ, the Church. We take in the air we need and we then exhale to let out what needs let out in the world we live.
Could this be our response today? To not fret over if Jesus would find any of us faithful, but to breathe easier knowing our God is more than we ever need. Find that space today to take some long and deep breathes in … then out … . And remember that faith is found amidst the tragedies, where our God never leaves our side.