Awakening Faith

In the letter to the Hebrews, written by Paul or one of the members of the communities he served, we are given a definition of faith: “Faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen” (Hebrews 11:1). Generically defined, faith is a belief that is not based on science or able to be proved using the scientific method. For a Christian, it is belief in salvation, in eternal life, that comes from – as Paul says in his letter to the Romans – confessing that Jesus is Lord and believing in your heart that God raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9-10).

Religion is not the same as faith. Religion is a set of practices based on one’s faith. For example, as Catholics, we believe that everyone is made in God’s image; out of that belief, we practice love of neighbor. We believe that baptism cleanses us of original sin and makes us children of God, so we engage in a ritual involving water. Our Church tells us that we should come together as community once a week to worship God, so here we are at Mass. These practices are the outward expression of our faith.

In many of his letters, Paul talks about the people’s preoccupation with the law, which is much like our practice of religion. His fear is that they are simply going through the motions, that they have forgotten what's supposed to motivate their actions. Throughout the letter to the Hebrews, We hear what our Biblical ancestors did in faith and how their faith inspired and sustained them. The message is that our actions, our religion, should be an expression of our inner faith in God.

So what if we’ve lost our faith, or find that our faith is waning? This is not a new problem. In the time of the Old Testament, the Israelites, who heard the voice of God and experienced miracle after miracle, nevertheless occasionally lost faith. Perhaps it is part of human nature that we often need to renew our relationship with God.

A few years ago, there was a program called Renew, where small groups formed for the purpose of faith-sharing. Today, the Church is still here to help you form and grow your faith, this time through Awakening Faith, a small group process that helps inactive Catholics renew their faith.

Saint Paul went to great lengths to establish communities of believers throughout the Roman Empire. He understood, as we do today, that faith is meant to be shared with and nurtured by one another.