Benedict Groeschel - The Journey of Faith: How to Deepen Your Faith in God, Christ, and the Church

The Journey of Faith

How to deepen Your Faith in God, Christ, and the Church

Fr. Benedict J. Groeschel, C.F.R.

OUR SUNDAY VISITOR PUBLISHING DIVISION

OUR SUNDAY VISITOR, INC.

HUNTINGTON, IN 46750

Unless otherwise noted, the Scripture citations contained in this work are taken from the Catholic Edition of the Revised Standard Version of the Bible (RSV), copyright 1965 and 1966 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Excerpt on pages 47-49 from Beginning to Pray by Archbishop Anthony Bloom, copyright 1970 by Archbishop Anthony Bloom, Paulist Press, New York/Mahwah, NJ, www.paulistpress.com. Used with permission.

Every reasonable effort has been made to determine copyright holders of excerpted materials and to secure permissions as needed. If any copyrighted materials have been inadvertently used in this work without proper credit being given in one form or another, please notify Our Sunday Visitor in writing so that future printings of this work may be corrected accordingly.

Copyright 2005 (under the title Why Do We Believe?) and 2010 by Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, Our Sunday Visitor, Inc.

Published 2010.

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All rights reserved. With the exception of short excerpts for critical reviews, no part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means whatsoever without permission in writing from the publisher. Contact: Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division, Our Sunday Visitor, Inc., 200 Noll Plaza, Huntington, IN 46750; 1-800-348-2440;.

ISBN 978-1-59276-323-8 (Inventory No.T422) LCCN: 2009943273

Interior design by Sherri L. Hoffman
Cover design by Amanda Miller
Cover Image by Shutterstock

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

This little book is dedicated to His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI, a faithful and true Christian.

Let not your hearts be troubled; believe in God, believe also in me. JN 14:1

I am very grateful to Michael Dubruiel of Our Sunday Visitor for encouraging me to do this small but convenient book for people who are having trouble with faith or who are trying to increase their faith. It is purposely short and to the point. In order to make the book available quickly, I have relied on the help of my editor, Charles Pendergast. I am also grateful to Alex Kubik and Fr. John Lynch for their encouragement in completing the manuscript.

Without prayer, growth in faith could not take place. I hope that every reader will approach this work in a prayerful way and will include a prayer for me.

Fr. Benedict J. Groeschel, C.F.R.

April 21, 2005

Feast of St. Conrad of Bavaria, O.F.M. Cap.

The Catholic Church in the United States is currently going through one of the great crises of its history a crisis of faith. The faith of many good and even devout people is shaken. Even when we are not in times of crisis, our faith is constantly challenged by secularism, skepticism, unbelief, a lack of faith, and the temptations of the world.

In this little book I wish to address the need for a renewal of faith, concentrating on three areas of belief: faith in God, faith in Christ, and faith in the Church of Christ. I address this presentation to believers and unbelievers alike. I hope it will strengthen the former and give to those who do not believe at least some understanding of what motivates such a large number of their fellow human beings.

Jesus answered them, Have faith in God. MK 11:22

Many years ago, just after World War II, the great Dominican friar and theologian Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange was scheduled to lecture on De Deo Uno (On the One God) at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas in Rome, often known as the Angelicum. He came into the lecture hall, which was jammed. Everyone wanted to hear Father Garrigou-Lagrange. He said a prayer and then began his lecture.

God Then he hesitated. He repeated, God Finally he cleared his throat and in a quiet voice began again a third time. God And then silence. Father Garrigou-Lagrange could not speak. He folded his papers and left the podium. He was so overcome by the thought of what this word meant that he could say no more. Those present never forgot this amazing event, which was far more memorable than a lecture.

In the epistle to the Hebrews we read these words, based on Psalm 102, which perhaps catch some of the thoughts in the great theologians mind that day:

Thou, Lord, didst found the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of thy hands; they will perish, but thou remainest; they will all grow old like a garment, like a mantle thou wilt roll them up, and they will be changed. But thou art the same, and thy years will never end (Heb 1:10-12).

Ninety-four percent of the people in the United States say they believe in a personal God who knows them. Of the same group, 92 percent say they believe in a God they will meet at the end of their lives and to whom they will have to render an account of all that they have done or not done during their time on earth. (Although very large, the number of believers is hardly recognized by the secular media in the United States, which constantly mocks and belittles religion. This reveals how far removed the media moguls are from any real understanding of the American people.) Ninety-four percent believe that there is a God who knows they exist and who personally cares about their existence!

Now this is immensely mysterious. How can anyone even a divine being know the six and a half billion people who live on the earth?

In relation to this mystery our Divine Savior, Jesus Christ, says:

Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground without your Fathers will. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows (Mt 10:29-31).

God Knows Everything

If you look into distant space, you can see the star Epsilon Aurigae, which is 2,000 light-years away. If youve got really good eyes and know where to look, you can see the great Andromeda Nebula, which is two million light-years away. In order to calculate the distance, you would have to multiply two million by almost six trillion miles (the distance light travels in one year). And cosmically speaking, the Andromeda Nebula is our next-door neighbor! If you find that distance staggering, keep in mind that there are billions of galaxies of billions of stars in the universe, most of which are at unimaginable distances from Earth. And God knows them all and has given each a name.

He determines the number of the stars, he gives to all of them their names (Ps 147:4).

In New York we rarely have a good view of the stars and their constellations. Atmospheric conditions and the millions of man-made lights militate against this. But occasionally, on a numbingly cold night in January or a crisp evening in early fall, even we New Yorkers are favored with a display of Gods majesty revealed in the heavens.

If you live in a rural area, especially near a desert, the next time you look into the night sky and contemplate the beauty of Gods creation, thank Him and be humbled. Realize your rather insignificant place in what to the human mind seems a limitless universe and which is, in fact, a glimpse of the secret of Gods infinity. Remember your position before God, who, allegorically speaking, could hold dozens of universes in the palm of His hand. We, on the other hand, are made of the dust of the earth, and our lives come and go in the blink of an eye. We must all learn the lesson taught to Job long ago when God questioned him: