FAITH

What It Means to Be Catholic

Faith is not just belief in God’s existence, it is belief that God is existence itself, the source of all truth, all benevolence, all contingent reality; that our existence comes from God and is for God; and that eternal life exists through Jesus Christ for those who give their lives to him. The faith that we share as baptized members of the Catholic Church stands as the fullness of God’s revelation to man and the fullness of Christian faith. Through our baptism into the Church a sacramental bond of unity is established among all the baptized who are reborn as one body in Christ. “Baptism in itself is only a beginning, a point of departure. It is wholly directed toward the acquiring of fullness of life in Christ. That fullness is a complete profession of faith, a complete incorporation into the system of salvation such as Christ himself willed it to be, and . . . a complete integration into Eucharistic communion." (Decree on Ecumenism, Vatican II). This union of baptized members is what builds the body of Christ: “the unity of all her members with each other as a result of their union with Christ; Christ as head of the Body; and the Church as bride of Christ.” (Catechism 789).

What is Faith?

Faith is grace. It is an entirely free gift that God makes to man.  When St. Peter confessed that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, Jesus declared to him that this revelation did not come "from flesh and blood", but from "my Father who is in heaven." Faith is a gift of God, a supernatural virtue infused by him." Before this faith can be exercised, man must have the grace of God to move and assist him; he must have the interior helps of the Holy Spirit, who moves the heart and converts it to God, who opens the eyes of the mind and 'makes it easy for all to accept and believe the truth.'" (Catechism 153).  For those disposed to know God, faith begins with truth, is affirmed in understanding, and convicted to sanctity by grace alone.

The Church never ceases to proclaim her faith in one only God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.  (Catechism 152)

“…that your faith might rest not on human wisdom but on the power of God.” (1 Corinthians 2:5)

yet I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me; insofar as I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God
who has loved me and given himself up for me.  (Galations 2:20)

Why do we have faith?

This world allows us the opportunity to live according to our own will, to fulfill our own desires, and to determine for ourselves what is right and what is wrong. But in the end, whose will is holy and perfect? The will of Self or God? From where does virtuous desire come and who has the power to fulfill those desires? Man or God? And ultimately, who is the author of truth, virtue and love? Our own conscience or God? The world serves to form the conscience of man and empower his will over God’s, ignoring his unfathomable love for us and the immeasurable power of his grace. The often-ignored reality is that no one can reach even the limited understanding of goodness without God and many fail to recognize this because the hearts of men are led by the world into self-adoration. “We know that we belong to God, and the whole world is under the power of the evil one.” (1 John 5:19). Our faith exists so that we may know God, love God, and serve God. It is only through Jesus Christ that man finds truth and gains faith in God; for He is the way, the truth, and the light. Believing in Jesus Christ and in the One who sent him for our salvation is necessary for obtaining that salvation. "Since without faith it is impossible to please (God) and to attain to the fellowship of his sons, therefore without faith no one has ever attained justification, nor will anyone obtain eternal life 'But he who endures to the end.'" (Catechism 161)

Faith makes us taste in advance the light of the beatific vision, the goal of our journey here below. Then we shall see God "face to face", "as he is."
So faith is already the beginning of eternal life. (Catechism 163)

What do we believe as Catholics?

God, infinitely perfect and blessed in himself, in a plan of sheer goodness freely created man to make him share in his own blessed life. For this reason, at every time and in every place, God draws close to man. He calls man to seek him, to know him, to love him with all his strength. He calls together all men, scattered and divided by sin, into the unity of his family, the Church. To accomplish this, when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son as Redeemer and Saviour. In his Son and through him, he invites men to become, in the Holy Spirit, his adopted children and thus heirs of his blessed life. (Catechism 1)

 

Our Beliefs | God, Man & The Church | Purpose | Sin | Sanctity | Challenges | Opportunities