Tuesday
of the Fifteenth Week in Ordinary Time
(Isaiah 7:1-9; Matthew 11:20-24)
Is faith possible today? There will be exceptions, but it may be said
that believing is increasingly difficult.
Biblical faith is, first and foremost, a relationship of trust with
God. For a Christian it is the gift of
self to Christ. Throughout the world the
movement is in the other direction. Especially
young adults find the building up of self as the purpose of life. This phenomenon can be easily demonstrated by
the glorification of the self in social media.
Yet there is also evidence accumulated through the ages that faith
produces favorable outcomes. This can be
seen in today’s first reading.
King Ahaz of Judah is in a desperate
situation. Two rival kingdoms have
conspired against him. He wants to seek
help by allying Judah with powerful nations.
But Isaiah warns him that only by clinging to the Lord will he
survive. Thus, Ahaz learns the meaning
of faith – standing steadfast in the
Lord. As a matter of fact, the situation
turns out well. Ahaz’s enemies are
throttled; Judah survives because it trusts in God.
We may find difficulty going against the
grain. Like many others we are drawn to
pursue wealth and pleasure. Perhaps more
than that, we would like to brag about ourselves. We need to remember that Christ is our reward. Following him, we will be saved from vain
pursuits and will come to know deep, endurable happiness.
