The Mystery of Faith:
Biblical Foundations
Fr. Felix Just, S.J., Ph.D.
Loyola Institute for Spirituality, Orange, CA
http://catholic-resources.org
THANK YOU!
 For
participating in R.E. Congress!
 For sharing our faith as catechists!
 For helping in many other ministries!
2
OVERVIEW

What is “Faith”?
 “Year of Faith” (2012-13)
 “Enter the Mystery” (RE Cong)
 “The Mystery of Faith”

What is “Mystery”?

Biblical Foundations?
3
“Mystery of Faith” – Eucharistic Prayers
A. Christ has died, Christ is risen,
Christ will come again.
B. Dying you destroyed our death, rising you
restored our life. Lord Jesus, come in glory.
C. When we eat this bread and drink this cup,
we proclaim your death, Lord Jesus,
until you come in glory.
D. Lord, by your cross and resurrection,
you have set us free.
You are the Savior of the World.
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Eucharistic Prayers: “Mystery of Faith”
Roman Missal, 3rd Edition (2011)
A. We proclaim your death, O Lord,
and profess your Resurrection
until you come again.
B. When we eat this Bread and drink this Cup,
we proclaim your death, O Lord,
until you come again.
C. Save us, Savior of the world,
for by your Cross and Resurrection,
you have set us free.
5
WHAT IS “MYSTERY” – IN ENGLISH?
 “Unsolved
problem” or
“Not-yet-solved problem”
 “Whodunit?” – we try to
solve or unravel the mystery
 Detective Stories
 Murder-Mystery Novels
 “It’s
all a mystery to me!” = “I don’t know!”
 Synonyms:
 problem, enigma, riddle, puzzle
6
WHAT IS “MYSTERY” – IN THE BIBLE?

Hebrew:
 no equivalent word
 some related words for “hidden” or “secret”

Greek: mystērion
 “a religious truth, hidden to human reason,
but known through
revelation from God”

Latin:
 mysterium
 sacramentum
7
MYSTERY: WHODUNIT?
Who? What? Where? When? Why?
8
MYSTERY: BIBLICAL
9
MYSTERY
How ? Wow !
?
!
10
CHRISTIAN FAITH
What is the CORE
Christian Mystery?
 How
would you answer this?
 Hint:
11
CENTRAL CHRISTIAN MYSTERY
12
CENTRAL CHRISTIAN MYSTERY
13
CENTRAL CHRISTIAN MYSTERY

CCC 234 – “The mystery of the Most Holy
Trinity is the central mystery of Christian faith
and life. It is the mystery of God in himself. It
is therefore the source of all the other mysteries
of faith, the light that enlightens them. It is the
most fundamental and essential teaching in the
“hierarchy of the truths of faith.” The whole
history of salvation is identical with the history
of the way and the means by which the one true
God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, reveals
himself to [humans] “and reconciles and unites
with himself those who turn away from sin.”
14
CENTRAL CHRISTIAN MYSTERY

CCC 237 – “The Trinity is a mystery of faith
in the strict sense, one of the ‘mysteries that
are hidden in God, which can never be known
unless they are revealed by God’ [Dei Filius 4].
To be sure, God has left traces of his Trinitarian
being in his work of creation and in his
Revelation throughout the Old Testament.
But his inmost Being as Holy Trinity is a mystery
that is inaccessible to reason alone or even to
Israel’s faith before the Incarnation of God’s Son
and the sending of the Holy Spirit.”
15
Catechism of the Catholic Church: Glossary

TRINITY: The mystery of one God in
three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
The revealed truth of the Holy Trinity is at
the very root of the Church’s living faith as
expressed in the Creed. The mystery of the
Trinity in itself is inaccessible to the human
mind and is the object of faith only because
it was revealed by Jesus Christ,
the divine Son of the eternal Father
(see CCC #232, 237, 249, 253–256).
16
CENTRAL CHRISTIAN MYSTERY:
Most Holy TRINITY:
 ONE God in Three Persons
 Father, Son, Spirit
 Creator, Redeemer, Sanctifier
God is…
 LOVE
 LIGHT
 WISDOM / TRUTH
 HOLY, HOLY, HOLY
 Lord, King, Father, Mother, Shepherd, etc.
17
TRINITY IN THE LITURGY
“I baptize you in the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
(cf. Matt 28:19)
 “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the
love of God, and the communion of the Holy
Spirit be with you all.” (cf. 2 Cor 13:14)
 “…through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of
the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.”
 Creed: “I/We believe in one God…”

18
SECOND CORE CHRISTIAN MYSTERY?
19
CORE CHRISTIAN MYSTERY
PASCHAL Mystery
 Passion, Death, Resurrection of Jesus Christ

Mystery  Questions:
 How can Jesus be fully human and fully God?
 Why did Christ have to suffer & be crucified?
 How does Jesus’ death bring us salvation?

Mystery  Reactions:
WOW!
20
Catechism of the Catholic Church: Glossary

PASCHAL MYSTERY/SACRIFICE:
Christ’s work of redemption accomplished
principally by his Passion, death, Resurrection,
and glorious Ascension, whereby “dying he
destroyed our death, rising he restored our life”
(1067; cf. 654). The Paschal Mystery is celebrated
and made present in the liturgy of the Church,
and its saving effects are communicated
through the sacraments (1076), especially the
Eucharist, which renews the paschal sacrifice
of Christ as the sacrifice offered by the Church
(571, 1362–1372).
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Review: U.S. Cath. Cat. for Adults: Glossary
Mystery: The term has several complimentary meanings.
First, it reminds us that we can never exhaust God’s
divine and infinite meaning.
Second, mystery tells us that God is “wholly other”
(not us), and yet so near that in him we live and
move and have our being.
Third, the union of the divine and human in Christ is
so unique that we revere it as holy mystery.
Fourth, mystery also applies to the celebration of the
Sacraments in which God, Father, Son, and Spirit,
are present and active for our salvation.
22
“MYSTERY” IN THE BIBLE
 Old
Testament
Synoptic
 John
Gospels
and Acts
Letters
of Paul
 Catholic
Epistles
 Book of Revelation
23
H.B.: God Reveals Hidden Things
Recall: Word “Mystery” not found in O.T.
 Isa 48:6 – “You have heard; now see all this;

and will you not declare it? From this time
forward I make you hear new things,
hidden things that you have not known.”

Amos 3:7 – “Surely the Lord GOD does
nothing, without revealing his secret to his
servants the prophets.”

Daniel – “secret” used 9 times, ref. to a
new age in which God will reign
24
“Mysterion” in the Four Gospels
Matt 13:11 – “To you it has been given to know
the secrets (mysteries) of the kingdom of
heaven, but to them it has not been given.”
Luke 8:10 – “To you it has been given to know
the secrets (mysteries) of the kingdom of
God; but to others I speak in parables…”
Mark 4:11 – “To you has been given the secret
(mystery – sg!) of the kingdom of God, but for
those outside, everything comes in parables”
Note: Mysterion is not used in John or Acts
25
“Mysterion” in the Four Gospels
Matt/Luke – “...to know the mysteries (pl.)…”
Mark 4:11 – “To you has been given the secret
(mystery – sg!) of the kingdom of God…”
Q: What is this mystery/secret,
according to Mark’s Gospel?
A: JESUS himself! Jesus is the KEY
to unlock all the mysteries of God
26
GOT MILK?
27
“Mysterion” in Paul’s Letters
 Evangelization:
 Paul preaches God’s mystery, God’s wisdom,
not human wisdom (1 Cor 2:1-7)
 Apostles are “servants of Christ and stewards of
God’s mysteries” (1 Cor 4:1)
 Understanding mysteries & having faith are
subordinate to LOVE (1 Cor 13:2)
 Paul proclaims the mystery of our own bodily
resurrection (1 Cor 15:51)
How?
or Wow!
28
Ephesians: Inclusion of Gentiles
“…the mystery was made known to me by
revelation, as I wrote above in a few words, /
a reading of which will enable you to perceive
my understanding of the mystery of Christ. /
In former generations this mystery was not made
known to humankind, as it has now been revealed
to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: /
that is, the Gentiles have become fellow
heirs, members of the same body, and
sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus
through the gospel.” (Eph 3:3-6; cf. Rom 11:25)
29
Colossians: “Mystery” IS Christ
Col 1:26-27 – “the mystery that has been hidden
throughout the ages and generations but has now
been revealed to his saints. / To them God chose
to make known how great among the Gentiles are
the riches of the glory of this mystery (sacramentum),
which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.”
Col 2:2-3 – “I want their hearts to be encouraged
and united in love, so that they may have all the
riches of assured understanding and have the
knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ
himself, in whom are hidden all the treasures of
wisdom and knowledge.”
30
“Mystery of Faith” in 1 Timothy
1 Tim 3:9 –
“they [deacons] must hold fast to the mystery
of the faith with a clear conscience.”
1 Tim 3:16 –
“Without any doubt, the mystery of our
religion is great: He was revealed in flesh,
vindicated in spirit, seen by angels,
proclaimed among Gentiles, believed in
throughout the world, taken up in glory.”
31
Eucharistic Prayers: “Mystery of Faith”
Roman Missal, 3rd Edition (2011)
 “We proclaim your Death, O Lord, and profess
your Resurrection until you come again.”
 “When we eat this Bread and drink this Cup,
we proclaim your Death, O Lord, until you
come again.”
1 Cor 11:26 – “For as often as you eat this
bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the
death of the Lord until he comes.”
 1 Cor 16:22b – “Our Lord, come!” (Marana-tha)

32
Eucharistic Prayers: “Mystery of Faith”
Roman Missal, 3rd Edition (2011)
 “Save us, Savior of the world, for by your
Cross and Resurrection you have set us free.”
 Matt 8:25 – “Lord, save us! We are perishing!”
 John 4:42 – “…we know that this is truly the
savior of the world.”
 Rom 8:21 – “…creation itself will be set free
from its bondage to decay and will obtain the
freedom of the glory of the children of God. ”
33
What Is “FAITH”?
Definitions & Descriptions
Handout:
 Ancient/Biblical Vocabulary
 Catechism of the Catholic Church
 United States Catholic Catechism for Adults
 “That’s What Faith Must Be” (Michael Card)
 “Year of Faith” (10/11/12 – 11/24/13)
Another Question for YOU:
34
“What Is Faith?” – Your Response?
If someone (from another planet) asked you,
how would YOU answer this question?

Faith as “religious system”?

Faith as “collection of doctrines”?

Faith as “trusting relationship”?
2nd Q: What verb is related to noun “faith”?

Not “to faith”; but “to believe” or “to trust”

Also “to have faith” or “to be faithful”
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Dictionary.com
Faith [feyth] noun
1. confidence or trust in a person or thing.
2. belief that is not based on proof.
3. belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion.
4. belief in anything, as a code of ethics, standards of merit, etc.
5. a system of religious belief.
6. the obligation of loyalty or fidelity to a person, promise, engagement, etc.
7. the observance of this obligation; fidelity to one’s promise, oath,
allegiance, etc.
8. Christian Theology: the trust in God and in His promises as made through
Christ and the Scriptures by which humans are justified or saved.
9. a female given name.
[See also Wikipedia’s “Disambiguation” page: towns, songs, films, TV, etc.] 36
FAITH: Ancient Vocabulary

Ecclesiastical Latin:
 fides (n: faith, faithfulness)
 fidelis (adj: faithful, reliable)
 credere (v: to believe)

What English words contain -fid- or -cred- ?

Biblical Greek:
 pistis (n: faith, trust)
 pistos (adj: faithful, trustworthy)
 pisteuein (v: to believe, trust)
37
FAITH: Subjective and Objective

Subjective side:
 Faith as Believing
 Act of Faith: trusting, entrusting oneself to s.o.
 Trusting relationship with a person (human or God)

Objective side:
 Faith as Belief
 Content of Faith: beliefs, doctrines, creeds
 Intellectual assent to truths (scientific or religious)

Different Emphases: Protestant vs. Catholic?
38
BOTH / AND Approach

Best Answer to ANY Theological Question
 Always “both/and”, never “either/or”
 Contrary to “sola” approach (“only” or “alone”)

Two sides (or more) to every issue:
 Coins: both heads and tails
 Earth: both North Pole and South Pole
 Batteries: both positive and negative terminals
 Real life: both positive and negative aspects
 Joys and sorrows; Strengths and weakness
 Successes and failures; Goodness and evil
 Etc. etc. etc.
39
BOTH / AND Approach
 Examples
from Theology:
 God: both transcendent and immanent
 Jesus: both fully human and fully divine
 Church: both community and institution
 Mass/Eucharist: both meal and sacrifice
 Bible: authored both by God and by humans
 So
also, “Faith” is both action and content
 Both subjective and objective
 Both believing and beliefs
 Both relational trust
and intellectual truths
40
Illustrations of Faith
41
Illustrations of Faith
42
“Faith” defined in Epistle to the Hebrews

Heb 11:1 – “Now faith is…
 the assurance of things hoped for,
 and the conviction of things not seen.”

“assurance”
 Gk. hypostasis (“substance, nature, essence”)

“conviction”
 Gk. elenchos (“verification, evidence”)

References:
 “things hoped for” = future realities
 “things not seen” = spiritual realities
43
“That’s What Faith Must Be”

Song by Michael Card
Refrain:
To hear with my heart, to see with my soul,
To be guided by a hand I cannot hold,
To trust in a way that I cannot see,
That’s what faith must be.
Verse 3:
Now I understand that there is a key
It's Jesus in me, a reality
That God is in Christ
and that Christ's in me
That with faith I see what is unseen.
44
Catechism of the Catholic Church
CCC Glossary (USCCB, 2000)
FAITH: Both a gift of God and a human act by which
the believer gives personal adherence to God who
invites his response, and freely assents to the whole
truth that God has revealed. It is this revelation of God which the
Church proposes for our belief, and which we profess in the
Creed, celebrate in the sacraments, live by right conduct that
fulfills the twofold commandment of charity (as specified in the ten
commandments), and respond to in our prayer of faith. Faith is
both a theological virtue given by God as grace, and an obligation
which flows from the first commandment of God (see pars. 26,
142, 150, 1814, 2087).
45
Four Main Parts of CCC
 PART
ONE: The Profession of Faith
(Faith & Creeds)
 Section One: “I Believe” – “We Believe”
 Section Two: The Profession of the Christian Faith: The Creeds
 PART
TWO: The Celebration of the Christian Mystery
(Liturgy & Sacraments)
 Section One: The Sacramental Economy
 Section Two: The Seven Sacraments of the Church
 PART
THREE: Life in Christ (Moral Life)
 Section One: Man’s Vocation: Life in the Spirit
 Section Two: The Ten Commandments
 PART
FOUR: Christian Prayer (Spirituality)
 Section One: Prayer in the Christian Life
 Section Two: The Lord’s Prayer: “Our Father!”
46
United States Catholic Catechism for Adults
USCCB, 2006 (pp. 37-39)
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)
F)
Faith is a personal and communal relationship.
Faith seeks understanding and is a friend of reason.
Faith is necessary for salvation.
Faith is a gift of grace.
Faith is a free, human act.
Faith believes with conviction in
a message.
47
Pope Benedict XVI, Porta Fidei
Apostolic Letter, announcing a “Year of Faith”
(celebrated Oct. 11, 2012, to Nov. 24, 2013)
Par. 1: “The ‘door of faith’ (Acts 14:27) is always open
for us, ushering us into the life of communion with
God and offering entry into his Church…
To profess faith in the Trinity…
is to believe in one God
who is Love.”
48
Pope Benedict XVI, Porta Fidei
Par. 2: “Ever since the start of my ministry as
Successor of Peter, I have spoken of the
need to rediscover the journey of faith so as
to shed ever clearer light on the joy and
renewed enthusiasm of the encounter with
Christ.”
49
Pope Benedict XVI, Porta Fidei
Par. 7: “Today too, there is a need for stronger
ecclesial commitment to new evangelization in
order to rediscover the joy of believing and the
enthusiasm for communicating the faith…
Faith grows when it is lived as an experience of
love received and when it is communicated as
an experience of grace and joy.”
50
Pope Benedict XVI, Porta Fidei
Par. 10: “I would like to sketch a path intended
to help us understand more profoundly not
only the content of the faith, but also the act
by which we choose to entrust ourselves fully
to God, in complete freedom. In fact, there
exists a profound unity between the act by
which we believe and the content to which
we give our assent.”
51
FAITH: Biblical Vocabulary

Hebrew less abstract, more concrete
 No exact equivalent for abstract idea of “faith”

Hebrew root aleph-mem-nun (aman):
 niphal verb (“to be firm, solid, reliable, secure”)
 hiphil verb (“to be steadfast, acquire stability”)

Related Hebrew nouns:
 emunah (“fidelity; faithfulness”)
 emet (“stability; security”)
 amen (“so be it; we affirm”)
52
Related Nouns in Hebrew Bible

emunah (“reliability, fidelity; faithfulness”)
 People: honesty, truth, security, worthy of trust
 God: faithfulness, faithful

emet (“stability; security”)
 Used for people or God
 God’s word, works, promises, etc.

amen (“so be it; we affirm”)
 Deut 27:15-26 – All say “amen”
 Psalms – “Amen and amen!”
 Isa 65:16 – “God of Amen”
53
Biblical Foundations of “Faith”

Genesis 15:6 (narrator about Abram)
 “And he believed the LORD; and the LORD
reckoned it to him as righteousness.”

Exodus 4:8 (God to Moses at burning bush)
 “If they will not believe you
or heed the first sign, they
may believe the second sign.”
54
Old Testament: GOD

is Faithful
Deuteronomy 7:9 (Moses to Israelites)
 “Know therefore that the LORD your God is
God, the faithful God who maintains covenant
loyalty with those who love him and keep his
commandments, to a thousand generations”

Psalm 40:10
 “I have not hidden your saving help within my
heart, I have spoken of your faithfulness and
your salvation; I have not concealed your
steadfast love and your faithfulness
from the great congregation.”
55
Biblical Concept of Trust/Obedience

Characters obey God and act
 Noah
 Abraham
 Isaac, Jacob, Twelve sons
 Moses and the Israelites

Joshua 24:1-18 (Joshua to the Israelites)
 “Now if you are unwilling to serve
the LORD, choose this day whom
you will serve…;
but as for me and my household,
we will serve the LORD.”
56
“Faith” in the New Testament

Biblical Greek Vocabulary:
 pisteuo (v: to believe, trust)
 pistis (n: faith, trust)
 pistos (adj: faithful, trustworthy)

Derived Words:
 apisteo, apistia, apistos
 oligopistos, oligopistia

Related Words:
 Pos: know, see, obey, follow…
 Neg: doubt, reject, not listen…
57
Gospel according to Mark

Mark 1:15 –
“The time is fulfilled, and the
kingdom of God has come near;
repent, and BELIEVE in the good news.”

First words of Jesus in Mark’s Gospel
58
Miracle Stories in Synoptics

Paralytic at Capernaum
 Faith shown by friends’ actions
 Faith shown by paralytic’s reactions

Jairus & Hemorrhaging Woman
 Intertwined stories
 Mark 5:34 – “Daughter, your faith has made
you well; go in peace, and be healed of your
disease.” (par. Matt 9:22; Luke 8:48; cf. Luke 7:50
 Mark 5:36b – “Do not fear, only believe.”
(cf. Luke 8:50b; not in Matt)
59
Rejection of Jesus at Nazareth

Jesus visits his hometown
 Teaches in the synagogue
 People question him: “Where did this man get all
this? ...What deeds of power are being done by
his hands! Is this not the carpenter…?”
 Jesus: “Prophets are not without honor except…”
 Evangelist: “And he could do no deed of power
there, except that he laid his hands on a few sick
people and cured them. / And he was amazed at
their unbelief.”
 (Mark 6:1-6a; cf. Matt 13:53-58; Luke 4:16-30)
60
More Miracles in Matthew & Luke

Roman Centurion (Matt 8:5-13; Luke 7:1-10)
 Centurion: “Lord, I am not worthy to have you
come under my roof; but only speak
the word, and my servant will be healed….
 Jesus to crowd: “Truly I tell you, in no one in
Israel have I found such faith.”
 Jesus to centurion: “Go; let it be done for you
according to your faith.” (cf. Matt 9:29; 15:28)
61
More Miracles in Matthew & Luke
 Canaanite
Woman (Matt 15:21-28)
 “Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for
you as you wish.”
 Ten
Lepers (Luke 17:11-19)
 “Get up and go on your way; your faith has
made you well.”
62
Blind Man/Men at Jericho

Mark 10:52
 “Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he
regained his sight and followed him on the way.

Matt 9:29
 “According to your faith, let it be done to you.”

Luke 18:42
 “Receive your sight; your faith has saved you.”
63
Gospel according to John
 No
“Faith” in John!
 Noun “faith” is never used;
but verb “believe” often is (98x)!
In
FG, believing is an action, not an object.
 Synonyms: knowing, seeing, receiving, coming
to, accepting, remaining, etc.
 Antonyms: not believing, rejecting, denying, not
receiving, going away, etc.
 Purpose
of Jesus’ “signs” & “works” in John?
 To bring people to believe in him!
64
Contrasts among the Four Gospels

Synoptic Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke):
 Faith as a prerequisite for Jesus’ miracles
 Minor characters manifest strong faith
 Jesus’ core disciples often have “little faith”

Fourth Gospel (John)
 Believing as a result of encountering Jesus
 Gospel characters manifest various reactions
 Jesus’ core disciples grow in believing in Jesus
65
Reactions to Jesus in John
1. Those who hear Jesus’ words and/or
see his signs, yet refuse to believe
2. Those who hear and/or see and begin to believe,
but don’t fully recognize Jesus’ identity
3. Those who come to believe in Jesus,
but are afraid to acknowledge it publicly
4. Those who see/hear/encounter Jesus and come to
believe in him, and are recognized as his disciples
5. Those who believe without seeing signs, based on
hearing the words of Jesus and/or other witnesses
66
Results of Believing in Jesus
Becoming “children of God” (1:12)
 Having “eternal life” already now
(3:15-16, 36; 5:24; 6:40, 47)


Not perishing (3:16); not being condemned (3:18);
not coming under judgment (5:24); never being hungry/thirsty (6:35)
Knowing Jesus and the Father (4:42; 6:64, 69; 10:38)
Passing from death to life (5:24); living and never dying (11:25-26)
Abiding/living/remaining in Jesus and in God (6:56; 14:17; 15:4-10)
Having “living water” flow out of one’s heart (7:38); receiving the
Spirit (7:39)
Being disciples of Jesus (8:31; cf. being Jesus’ “friends”; 15:14-15)
Seeing the glory of God (11:40; cf. seeing greater things 1:50)
Becoming children of light (12:36); not remaining in darkness (12:46)
Doing the works that Jesus does, or even greater works (14:12)

Having “life in his name” (20:31)








67
Key Texts on “Believing” in John

John 6:67-69 (Jesus and Peter)
 Jesus: “Do you also wish to go away?”
 Peter: “Lord, to whom can we go?
You have the words of eternal life. /
We have come to believe and know
that you are the Holy One of God.”
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Key Texts on “Believing” in John

John 11:25-27 (Jesus and Martha)
 Jesus: “I am the resurrection and the life. Those
who believe in me, even though they die, will
live, / and everyone who lives and believes in
me will never die. Do you believe this?”
 Martha: “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the
Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into
the world.”
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Key Texts on “Believing” in John

John 20:17-18 (Jesus and Mary Magdalene)
 Jesus: “Do not hold on to me, because I have
not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my
brothers and say to them, 'I am ascending to
my Father and your Father, to my God and
your God.‘ ”
 Mary Magdalene went and
announced to the disciples,
“I have seen the Lord”;
and she told them that he
had said these things to her.
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Key Texts in John

John 20:24-29 (Risen Jesus
appears to his disciples)
 Disciples: “We have seen the Lord!”
 Thomas: "Unless I see… I will not believe.”
[one week later]:
 Jesus: “Peace be with you…
Do not doubt but believe.”
 Thomas: “My Lord and my God!”
 Jesus: “Have you believed because you have
seen me? Blessed are those who have not
seen and yet have come to believe.”
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John’s Gospel: First Ending

John 20:30-31
 “Now Jesus did many other signs in the
presence of his disciples, which are not written
in this book. / But these are written so that
you may [come to] believe that Jesus is the
Messiah, the Son of God, and that through
believing you may have life in his name.”

Textual Variations:
 Orig.: “… come to believe…”
 Rev.: “…continue to believe…”
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The Acts of the Apostles

Faith in the Gospels:
 Jesus’ trust in God; people’s trust in God/Jesus

Acts of the Apostles:
 Apostles, filled with Holy Spirit,
continue to trust in God
and act in Jesus’ name
 Faith arises when people
respond positively to the
apostles’ preaching about Jesus
 Repentance; baptism; community
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Acts 2: Peter’s Pentecost Sermon



“Repent, and be baptized every one
of you in the name of Jesus Christ
so that your sins may be forgiven;
and you will receive the gift of the
Holy Spirit.”
So those who welcomed his
message were baptized…
They devoted themselves to the
apostles' teaching and fellowship,
to the breaking of bread and the
prayers. / All who believed were
together and had all things in
common…
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Acts 14: Barnabas & Paul Report
End of 1st Missionary Journey,
returning to Antioch:
 “When they arrived, they called
the church together and related
all that God had done with
them, and how he had opened
a door of faith for the Gentiles.”

(Acts 14:27)
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Faith in Paul’s Letters

Key Concept for Paul
 Very frequent use of “faith” vocab.

Many short creedal statements:
 Focus on Jesus’ Death, Resurrection, Parousia
 Focus on Jesus’ relation to Father and Spirit

Trio of Theological Virtues:
Faith, Hope, Love
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Paul: Dynamics of Faith

Rom 10:9-17 – “If you confess with your lips that
Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God
raised him from the dead, you will be saved. / For
one believes with the heart and so is justified, and
one confesses with the mouth and so is saved. //
But how are they to call on one in whom they have
not believed? And how are they to believe in
one of whom they have never heard? And how are
they to hear without someone to proclaim him? /
So faith comes from what is heard, and what is
heard comes through the word of Christ.”
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Theological Virtues: Faith, Hope, Love


1 Corinthians 13
“…if I understand all mysteries and all knowledge,
and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains,
but do not have love, I am nothing. / Love is
patient; love is kind… It bears all things, believes
all things, hopes all things, endures all things. /
And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three;
and the greatest of these is love.”
Combined in other Pauline letters:
 1 Thess 1:2-3; 5:8
 Phlm 4-5
 Eph 4:1-6
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Paul’s Letter to the Galatians

Gal 2:16
“We know that a person is justified not by the works
of the law but through the faith of Jesus Christ.
And we have come to believe in Christ Jesus,
so that we might be justified by the faith of Christ,
and not by doing the works of the law, because
no one will be justified by the works of the law.”

Meaning of “Justification”?
 Not just a state of being, but also divine process!

“Faith OF Jesus” vs. “Faith IN Jesus”?
 Cf. Gal 3:22; Rom 3:22, 26; Phil 3:9
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Faith and Works?

Gal 5:5-6
“For through the Spirit, by faith, we eagerly wait
for the hope of righteousness. / …the only thing
that counts is faith working through love.”

James 1:22-27
“Be doers of the word, and not merely hearers
who deceive themselves… Religion that is pure
and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to
care for orphans and widows in their distress, and
to keep oneself unstained by the world.”
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Paul & James – Contradictions?
 Incorrect
interpretations & apparent contradiction:
 Paul supposedly said: Justification comes by our faith
in Jesus alone, not by our good works.
 James supposedly said: Justification comes by our
good works, not by our faith in God.
 Different
audiences, different situations/problems,
different presuppositions, different emphases!
 Paul opposes opinion that “works of the law” are
necessary for Gentile converts; foundation of our
salvation is death of Jesus, not Law/Torah of Moses
 James combats opinion that professing faith in God is
enough for salvation; Christians must build on their faith,
put our faith into action.
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James 2:14-26 – FAITH & WORKS
14 “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if you say
you have faith but do not have works? Can faith save you?
15 If a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food,
16 and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace; keep warm
and eat your fill,’ and yet you do not supply their bodily
needs, what is the good of that? 17 So faith by itself,
if it has no works, is dead. 18 But someone will say,
“You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart
from your works, and I by my works will show you
my faith. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even
the demons believe—and shudder. 20 Do you want to be
shown, you senseless person, that faith apart from works
is barren?
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James 2:14-26 (cont.)
21 Was not our ancestor Abraham justified by works when
he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith
was active along with his works, and faith was brought
to completion by the works. 23 Thus the scripture was
fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was
reckoned to him as righteousness," (Gen 15:6) and he was
called the friend of God. 24 You see that a person is
justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 Likewise,
was not Rahab the prostitute also justified by works when
she welcomed the messengers and sent them out by
another road? 26 For just as the body without the spirit is
dead, so faith without works is also dead.”
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Contrasting Paul & James
 Different
definitions of “faith”:
 Paul: “trusting” God, or “entrusting
oneself” to God’s plans (Rom 4:3-22)
 James: assenting to theological truths, e.g.,
“believing that God is one” (James 2:19)
 Different
meaning of “works”:
 Paul: not “good works” but “works of the Law”
(Gal 2:16; 3:2-12; Rom 3:28) = Jewish laws on
circumcision, sacrifices, dietary restrictions, etc.
 James: “works” are concrete “acts of charity”
(James 1:27; 2:8; 2:15-16)
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Contrasting Paul & James
 Different
emphases:
 Paul: not opposed to “good works / charitable
deeds”; they’re consequences of authentic Christian
living (see Gal 5–6; Rom 12–15)
 James: not opposed to faith; presupposes it, but
authentic faith must be put into action (2:14-26)
 Different
subjects of faith:
 Paul: focus on “faith of Jesus” in God (Gal 2:16, 20;
Rom 3:22, 26); our faith is response, not foundation
 James: focus on our faith, believing in God (2:23)
and believing in Jesus (2:1)
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Contrasting Paul & James
 Martin
Luther’s Addition:
 Paul did not write “alone” in Rom 3:28; Luther
added “allein” to his German transl. of the Bible
 James never writes “by works alone” but
stresses “not by faith alone”; both go together
 Who
Wrote First?
 James was likely written after Paul’s letters
 Yet he isn’t disagreeing with Paul himself
 Rather, he is trying to correct some people’s
misinterpretations of Paul’s letters
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“Faith” defined in Epistle to the Hebrews

Heb 11:1 – “Now faith is…
 the assurance of things hoped for,
 and the conviction of things not seen.”

“assurance”
 Gk. hypostasis (“substance, nature, essence”)

“conviction”
 Gk. elenchos (“verification, evidence”)

References:
 “things hoped for” = future realities
 “things not seen” = spiritual realities
87
Models of Faith in Hebrews

Heb 11 – Ancestors in Faith (OT)
 Intro, Creation, Abel, Enoch, Comment, Noah
 Abraham, Comment, More Abraham
 Isaac, Jacob, Joseph
 Moses, Israelites crossing Red Sea
 Israelites at Jericho; Rahab at Jericho
 Many others
Heb 12:1 – “Jesus, the Pioneer
and Perfecter of our faith”
 Heb 13 – Living Faith in Practice

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Dynamics of Faith in Hebrews
 Comments
by the Author:
 “Without faith it is impossible to please
God, for whoever would approach him must believe
that he exists and that he rewards those who seek
him.” (11:6)
 “All these died without having received the
promises, but from a distance they saw and
greeted them...” (11:13-16)
 All these OT figures died without having received
the fulfillment of God’s promises! (11:39-40)
 A “great cloud of witnesses,” examples for us
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Faith of JESUS in Hebrews
 “Therefore,
since we are surrounded by so great a
cloud of witnesses… let us run with perseverance
the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus
the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for
the sake of the joy that was set before him
endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and
has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne
of God. Consider him who endured such hostility
against himself from sinners, so that you may not
grow weary or lose heart.” (12:1-3)
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Summary: Biblical Foundations of Faith
Old Testament – God is faithful, so trust/obey/act
 Synoptic Gospels – Trusting in Power of Jesus
 Gospel of John – Believing for Eternal Life
 Acts of Apostles – Faith in Response to Kerygma
 Letters of Paul – Justification by Faith of Jesus
 Epistle of James – Faith and Good Works
 Epistle to the Hebrews – Definition & Models


[other Catholic Epistles & Book of Revelation]
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“MYSTERIES” OF THE ROSARY
 Joyful: Annunciation, Visitation, Nativity/Birth,
Presentation in Temple, Finding in Temple
 Luminous: Baptism of Jesus, Cana Wedding,
Preaching God’s Kgdm, Transfiguration, Eucharist
 Sorrowful: Agony in Garden, Scouring at Pillar,
Crowning with Thorns, Carrying Cross, Crucifixion
 Glorious: Resurrection, Ascension, Pentecost,
Assumption, Coronation
It’s
all about JESUS (and Mary)!
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MYSTERY
How ? Wow !
?
!
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ROLE OF CATECHISTS
Not just answering HOW?
But also, very important:
Instilling a sense of
WOW!
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Concluding Prayer: Rom 16:25-27
“Now to God who is able to strengthen you
according to my gospel and the proclamation
of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of
the mystery that was kept secret for long ages
but is now disclosed, and through the prophetic writings is made known to all the Gentiles,
according to the command of the eternal God,
to bring about the obedience of faith –
to the only wise God, through Jesus Christ,
to whom be the glory forever! Amen.”
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Questions? Comments? Discussion?
Thank You for attending Congress!
 May your own faith continue to grow!
 Audio-CD Program (Now You Know Media):
What Is Faith? Gift, Mystery, Life!

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