3rd Saturday in Ordinary Time
Memorial of St. Thomas Aquinas
Hebrews 11: 1-2, 8-19; Mark 4: 21-25
“Brothers and sisters, faith is the realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen” (Heb. 11:1). Faith is trusting in the God Who dwells in unapproachable light and though unseen by our human eyes is present to us every day of our lives. Faith is walking in the assurance that God IS. Because God IS, all He promised is made true and real. The One who fulfills our hopes and expectations cannot be deceived nor does He deceive those He loves. Holding to the anchor of our souls, we conform our lives to the Word of God. Abraham, our father in the faith, set to realize what had been promised. Not seeing where his journey would lead him, he set out, trusting that the One who called him would be faithful. He lived every day as if already experiencing God’s power to fulfill His promise.
Faith like this is not wishful thinking. It is taking seriously God’s fidelity. “Faith is the giving of substance to things hoped for, the putting to the test of things not seen.” If we are to realize what we hope for, we have to work in the midst of the tension between God’s promise for the future and the realities we face day to day. Despite our best efforts, situations arise to thwart us. This may cause us grief, but we have to keep our eyes fixed on the Kingdom to come. Therein is our hope. Even though we may not see it, God sees the reflection of His Son in each of us. The author of Genesis put it quite nicely: “God looked over all He had made, and He saw that it was very good” (Gen. 1:31). We need to pray that God give us evidence of the things we cannot see. May we come to the realization of the things we hope for.
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