Last week we reflected on the Prophet’s candle which represented hope. This past Sunday, we lit the “Bethlehem Candle” at Mass, which represents faith. When lighting this second violet candle, we remember the faith Mary and Joseph had in God’s promises as they headed towards Bethlehem.
Faith provides the foundation in which we plant our hope. Faith refers to the infallible teachings of the Church, while hope, refers to the subjective application of those truths1, grounded in faith. We have faith that God desires our well-being, so we hope that He will provide for our needs and wants. We have faith that Jesus really is God, so we hope in his promises for us. We have faith that Jesus rose bodily from the grave. We hope that we can persevere in the faith and also rise bodily at the end of time.
Faith doesn’t mean a blind acceptance of whatever someone tells me. In fact, Pope Saint John Paul II wrote in his encyclical, Fides et ratio, “faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth.” God gave us the gift of reason to help us understand the world around us. We cannot, however, understand everything in the natural world. We take on faith the findings of scientists, doctors, and engineers.
The second candle is the Bethlehem candle
“Triumph of the Faith” by Peter Paul Ruben
For example, I believe the buildings I enter won’t collapse on me. Not because I am able to verify the construction methods and materials, but because I have faith in the institutions that certify construction companies. Likewise, I didn’t live in any of the thousands of years in which the Bible takes place, but I have faith in the Catholic Church, which has passed the writings of the Apostles down to us since that time. Therefore, I trust in the veracity of the Bible and, in turn, the teachings it presents.
We express our faith with our bodies. When we go to Church, receive the Sacraments, or fast from meat on a Friday, we express our faith bodily. We don’t have to do any of these things. God will not send the heavenly host to physically punish us if we skip going to Mass on Sunday (though we may receive spiritual repercussions). But when we truly live the teachings of the Church, we have to actually do things that may require a sacrifice of our time, resources, or comfort. We do these things because we believe in the promises of God. We have faith that God really does want us to go to Mass, and we express that faith when we — embodied persons — attend.
This week let us reflect on what it looks like to have faith in God’s promises.
Chris Tarantino is the Communications Director for TOBET. He studied History at The University at Texas A&M and has written for the Tennessee Register and Nashville Catholic.
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