Ukrainian Orthodoxy		Orthodoxie ukrainienne

Faith and Desire!

Very Reverend Ihor Kutash kutash@unicorne.org

(Second Sunday of the Great Fast )

Today's Gospel reading (Mark 2:1-12) invites us to find inspiration and direction for our lives in the example of the four friends of the paralysed man who were exceedingly determined to help their friend. They were not discouraged when they could not get into the crowded house where Jesus was speaking. They made an opening in the roof to let their friend down on his pallet. The Lord recognized the amazing faith expressed by their unflagging determination, and healed the sick man, first proclaiming that his sins were forgiven.

Note that determination, persistence and resourcefulness are linked to faith! We may fail at times in our efforts to achieve something worthwhile because of a lack of precisely these things. See what happens when there is faith! Because the four men believed that Jesus could and would help their friend, they did not give up. They found a way to get the man to Jesus. We can see that faith is also linked to desire. Their intense desire to help their sick friend helped them find faith and guided them in acting upon that faith. We, too, can find answers to our problems and challenges by looking through the eyes of faith. Just think of all that has been achieved by faith! Recall last Sunday's Epistle with its litany of faith (Hebrews 11:24-26,32-12:2).

It is also important that we place our faith in something truly worthy of it. Our century has shown over and over again that faith placed in unworthy objects not only disappoints but ultimately destroys. Think of all the people who have suffered because of faith in political ideologies such as Communism and Nazism. Even religion can easily degenerate into an ideology whereby its adherents persecute and even kill other people in the belief that this will enhance the cause of their faith community. That is why some people avoid religious institutions like the plague, all the while professing a spirituality outside such institutions. They say: "I don’t have to go to Church to believe in God". But ultimately, every spirituality that is followed by a group of people will produce an institution with all its complexity and paradoxes.

Christians are called upon to put their faith in God as revealed in the words and deeds of Jesus. It is true that some have claimed the authority of their particular branch of Christianity as they persecuted and oppressed others. But what they really did was turn their faith into an ideology by ignoring and/or wrongly interpreting those words and deeds. How else could someone, a follower of Jesus, hurt anyone in the name of the One Who refused to let His followers defend Him by force, and Who prayed for His persecutors with the unforgettable words: "Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do".

Faith in this Person, the Lord Jesus Christ, gives life. It awakens love and concern for others. It inspires confidence and persistence. It gives courage to not only endure hardships but also to overcome those hardships believing that the best lies always before us. The time of Lent reminds us that our main goal is to grow in a faith relationship with God through Jesus Christ. St. Gregory Palamas whom we remember today bore a victorious testimony that such a relationship can truly be achieved and developed. Lets do it together!

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