From the Pastor’s Desk
“Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe.”[From Sermon 4, Saint Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.]
Our patron, Augustine of Hippo, preached these words sometime between 391 and 395 A.D. after he had been baptized into the Catholic faith and had returned to his native North Africa. There, he set up a community of men who lived under a common rule that came to be known as the Rule of Augustine. This particular quote may not be as famous as others, especially from his book Confessions, but it has been a favorite of mine for several years since I first came across it.
As people of faith, we believe in a lot that can’t be seen and we even acknowledge this as such in the Creed – “I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible.” God is invisible to us (for the most part); we cannot see grace or the virtues of faith, hope and love. We cannot see Rome from where we are now, but we know it’s there. (And I certainly believe it’s there because I’ll be there in a little more than a week!)
We count faith as a great gift from God. Augustine’s quote reminds us of the ultimate goal of our faith – so that we can see God, what Saint Thomas Aquinas (+1274) called the Beatific Vision, the attainment of perfect happiness with God. The Blessed Virgin Mary, the saints and angels already enjoy this happiness. Through the intercession of our patron, let each of us, in faith, continue to pursue this goal, too.
Love,
Father Tom