Posted by The WORD in other words (2009) by Fr Raul Cana SVD – Divine Word Seminary Tagaytay
Friday 5th Week of Lent
Gandhi once said, “I believe in Christ but I do not believe in you Christians.” This is a blatant criticism against us Christians. It points to the incoherence between our being and our actions.
In today’s Gospel, Jesus underlines the importance of good works for his mission as of representing the Father. As Jesus himself insisted : “If I do not perform my Father’s works, do not believe me; but if I perform them, even if you do not believe me, believe the works, so that you may realize (and understand) that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.”( John 10,37-38) The ultimate test whether our faith is genuine or not are not speeches and rationalization but plain good works.
Similarly, Saint Francis emphasized the importance of good works by saying, “Preach and preach and use only words when necessary.” Effective preaching comes with good example and witnessing. Saint Francis is not known for eloquent and ravishing sermons. Yet he is one of the most influential saints and Christians of all times. His life of radical simplicity and respect for all creatures no matter how inferior and insignificant a brother or a sister could be remain a measure of well lived faith in Jesus to this day.
It makes me sad when people ask: Why does the Philippines remain a poor country despite the long and strong presence of the Catholic Church? Why is corruption and dishonesty in government service rampant when most of our government officials and employees got their education from Catholic schools?
There is not one explanation to this sad phenomenon, but one thing is clear—there is failure among our leaders and officials to give witness to their Christian faith. There is but a moral bankruptcy and prevalence of empty words expressing lack of accountability. After 100 years of proclaiming God’s word in the Philippines, the SVDs might do well to ask themselves, how much are we to blame for the woes of our nation? Or where did the 500 years of Christianity brought our nation?
May these events remain not as mere milestones but occasions to renew our faith and makes us authentic everyday witnesses of Jesus to one another.
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