In
the eleventh chapter of the Letter to the Hebrews (v. 1) we find a kind
of definition of faith which closely links this virtue with hope. Ever since
the Reformation there has been a dispute among exegetes over the central word
of this phrase, but today a way towards a common interpretation seems to be
opening up once more. For the time being I shall leave this central word
untranslated. The sentence therefore reads as follows: “Faith is the
hypostasis of things hoped for; the proof of things not seen”. For the
Fathers and for the theologians of the Middle Ages, it was clear that the Greek
word hypostasis was to be rendered in Latin with the term substantia.
The Latin translation of the text produced at the time of the early Church
therefore reads: Est autem fides sperandarum substantia rerum, argumentum
non apparentium—faith is the “substance” of things hoped for; the proof of
things not seen.
Saint
Thomas Aquinas, using the terminology of the philosophical tradition to which
he belonged, explains it as follows: faith is a habitus, that is, a
stable disposition of the spirit, through which eternal life takes root in us
and reason is led to consent to what it does not see. The concept of
“substance” is therefore modified in the sense that through faith, in a
tentative way, or as we might say “in embryo”—and thus according to the
“substance”—there are already present in us the things that are hoped for: the
whole, true life. And precisely because the thing itself is already present,
this presence of what is to come also creates certainty: this “thing” which
must come is not yet visible in the external world (it does not “appear”), but
because of the fact that, as an initial and dynamic reality, we carry it within
us, a certain perception of it has even now come into existence.
Spe Salvi 7
Reflection – OK, this may seem all very technical and dry,
full of obscure points about language and long quotes in Latin and references
to (horrors) Thomas Aquinas. The blog reader may be tempted to come back
tomorrow when I am doing something simpler. Despair not – I come to make all
things clear, if they are not yet so.
Basically, it means
that we all live our lives in Advent, even as we celebrate the season of
Christmas, prepare now to celebrate the Epiphany (the feast of the ‘appearing’
of God), and from there launch again into Ordinary Time and before we know it
the Lent-Easter cycle.
Nonetheless, our
Christian life here and now is intensely an Advent matter. Advent is the
shortest of all seasons, yet it is the whole season of our life. That is, we
are all pregnant, be we male or female. We all bear within us a life, an
embryonic life, a beginning of a life that is very real, as real as can be, but
very hidden. The condition of Mary in her nine months of pregnancy is a close
analogue to the condition of the Christian through our years of life on this
earth.
The ‘thing’ is already
present—this thing which is the life of Christ being lived in our own lives.
But it has not appeared yet, except in the precise same sense that those who
have eyes to see recognize the life of the child in the swelling of the womb of
the mother.
It really is the same
sort of thing. Those who have eyes to see can recognize the signs of Christ’s
life in the life of a disciple as it grows. Charity, mercy, generosity of
heart, quickness to forgive, courage in bearing witness, steadfastness in
bearing burdens, peace, joy—all of these are sure signs of Christ’s life
growing in a human heart. When someone has been ‘very pregnant’ in their
lives—showing!—we might call them a saint after they die.
But of course those who
do not have eyes to see can deny all of the above, just as those who (alas!) do
not wish to acknowledge it can deny the life of the child right until the
moment it is born. I don’t mean to blog about abortion in this post, but we can
see here an added dimension to the already tragic assault on human life: to
refuse to admit a reality until it is seen in full blocks us off from the whole
life of faith in its essential nature.
The life of faith, this
hidden interior life of God in us, is so very much like pregnancy. We bear
within us a life that is not our own, that our own autonomous will did not
create of itself, that is a fruit of God’s coming to us and his faithful love
for us. This life will appear in the fullness of time in the blessed life of
the saints in heaven. But it is already real, already wanting to grow and
expand and stretch us, perhaps cause us some discomfort and pain, even, but
always in service of this new life blossoming in us.
Thank you for your encouraging words. Whenever I worry about things, I try to remember the hope and focus on a more positive thoughts and try to always tell myself that God is carrying the burden. I may have a small piece to carry for this day only. And He gives me the strength and He is my Joy.
ReplyDeleteFather Denis,
ReplyDeleteYour thoughts on how we carry God within us, always....are so very beautiful...
But, it is not the same as human reproduction, not even close.
In nature, 50 percent of all fertilized eggs do not implant, and only 30% of human embryos develop to the blastocyst stage, and seven out of ten human embryos are chromosomally abnormal.
Faith sees with different eyes, perhaps. Nature simply can't and doesn't work that way.
Oh, I totally agree with you. I'm using an analogy here, and with analogies (especially analogies where one of the compared items touches on the mystery of God) the 'unlike' is always greater than the like.
ReplyDeleteI think it is still a valuable analogy in the sense that by faith we do carry a living reality that is mostly hidden, especially at first, but which grows and becomes less hidden as it does so... so yeah, kind of like physical pregnancy. Of course the supernatural reality of God's life by faith far exceeds and is superior in every way to the natural life processes.
God bless you - glad you like my efforts here!