Faith stands or falls with credibility

Why do we find so many groups rallying in the streets today? They belong to various factions led by a hundred and one leaders all differing in their belief. They elevate to the pedestal one or the other politicians and press for his or her leadership. What kind of persons are they emulating and under whose banner are they up in arms? They believe in the leadership of popularity because he or she was a movie superstar. They believe in promises which are later unfulfilled. They believe in the power of money because it can get them far in spite of immorality. They believe that a leader who knows the tricks of the gambling trade or cheating trade can get them instant wealth and la dolce vita.

How great a faith is being exercised on the wrong people; and this is idolatry, the worship of a man or woman who has deified himself or herself with the instruments of influence, money, clout and all the perishable items that make a world of crawling deceit. It’s like a serpent coils around an unsuspecting person who is out to elevate himself or herself in life by hook or by crook. But beware if we ascribe credibility on people who live the lie, who put up a front to appear believable, make evil appear good, who devour the innocent by deceiving them with false promises just to get that ambitioned position in the upper echelons. No wonder, we have a crisis of leadership, a crisis of governance, a crisis in social functioning. No wonder the Philippines is presently in a crisis. Nobody knows anymore what to believe and who we can believe.

In the widest sense faith means freely accepting what a person says because of one’s confidence in a person. This is to say that faith always entails a relationship between persons which stands or falls with the credibility of the person who is believed. In primitive times, faith is already presented as the relationship between God and the prophets beginning from Abraham. There is that arbitrary paradox of "blind faith" which can only be applied to Christian faith. For her it is God himself who is believed. God is not merely an external motive of faith, rather His revelation of Himself appeals to all the dimensions of man so as to order them all to God. This is self-communication – grace and its complete fulfillment is love containing in itself the perfect fulfillment of all hopes. Faith from the very beginning of man is shown by the fidelity of God’s people. In the Gospel of today, Jesus Himself in walking on rough waters, demands faith when He requires recognition of the signs of the new and final dispensation which is inaugurated in Him, signs which include all His activity (the preaching, the casting out of devils, the healing of the sick and the raising of the dead) and when He summons men to follow Him.

"Take courage; be not afraid. It is I". He had just said that when Peter, the impulsive showy one, asked Jesus to command him to walk on rough waters like Jesus was doing without sinking. "Come" Jesus had summoned, Peter’s fright in encountering rough waters showed that He as yet did not have much faith in Jesus. And when he began to sink, he shouted, "Lord, save me!" The Lord did but reproached him, ‘Oh you of little faith, why did you doubt?" (Mt 14:27ff)

True to say that when we are in such a situation like the crisis-stricken Philippines today, it will help most for us to utter continuously, ‘Lord, we believe in You, we trust You. The prayer of faith touches Jesus no end. Our leaders are not credible? Our society is in trouble? Our country is sinking in rough waters? Then let us all have that consensus of faith, take the hand of Jesus in faith and ask Him to save us and our country from evil that is causing untold trouble today. Let us join hands in manifesting our sensus fidelium, i.e., a consensus of a believing, trusting faithful in Jesus. So this is what to do in these chaotic times. We believe Jesus when it is hardest to do so because we are in rough waters. We take courage because it is Jesus, the infinitely credible Person whom we trust.

Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Matthew 14:22-33.