Chapter
3
MAN’S
RESPONSE TO GOD
We
said at the beginning of this presentation that God revealed himself to man.
Now we shall see the response of man to God. What is man’s response to God? Or
what is our response to him? The adequate response to God’s invitation is
faith. By faith, man completely submits his intellect and his will to God. With
his whole being man gives his assent to God. Sacred Scripture calls this human
response to God, the obedience of faith. And the Church teaches us that, by
Divine grace, we respond to God with the obedience of faith. This means, we
fully surrender ourselves to God and accept the truth because it is guaranteed
by God, who is truth himself.
Article 1 – I BELIEVE
Obedience of faith is quite broad, can you give examples about this?
Yes, the
Sacred Scripture is very rich in witnesses to this faith.
a) We
have Abraham, who is the model of such obedience. We all know the story of
Abraham’s faith. Abraham believed God, and because he was “strong in faith”, he
became the “father of all who believe”. “Faith is the assurance of things hoped
for, the conviction of things not seen”.
b)
We have the
Virgin Mary, who embodied in a perfect way, the obedience of faith.
She accepted the Angel’s word and
believed the message that she was to become the Mother of God. Trusting in
Joseph, her husband, she took Jesus to Egypt to save him from Herod’s
persecution. With the same faith, she followed the Lord in his preaching till
Golgotha. And by faith, she experienced the joy of Christ’s resurrection,
treasuring every memory in her heart, passing them on to the apostles gathered
together with her as they wait for the coming of the Holy Spirit. She never
ceased to believe in the fulfilment of God’s Word. The Church venerates in her
the purest realisation of faith.
c)
By faith,
the apostles left everything to follow their Master. They believed the Words of
Jesus, and lived with him who instructed them. He left them the new rule of
life, that they would be recognised as his disciples after his death, and this
rule of life is their love for one another. By faith they did not fear death to
proclaim the good news, the joy of the resurrection of which they were faithful
witnesses. By faith, the disciples formed the first community, gathered around
the teaching of the Apostles, in prayer, in celebration of the Eucharist,
putting their things in common to help their other members in need. By faith,
the martyrs gave their lives, bearing witness to the truth of the Gospel that
gave the strength and courage to give up their lives to the highest degree of
the gift of love for God, forgiving their persecutors.
d)
By faith,
men and women have consecrated their lives to Christ, leaving all things behind
so as to live obedience, poverty and chastity for the sake of the Gospel. By
faith, countless Christians have promoted action for justice so as to put into
practice the Word of the Lord who came to proclaim deliverance from oppression
and a year of favour for all.
e)
By faith
across the centuries, men and women of all ages have confessed to follow the
Lord wherever they were called to bear witness of being Christian: in the
family, in the workplace, in public life, in the exercise of the charisms and
ministries to which they were called.
f)
By faith, we
too live: by the living recognition of Lord Jesus, present in our lives and in
history.
Resources: The Catechism of the Catholic Church,
Paulines Publications Africa, 11th Reprint 2012.
The Door of Faith,
Paulines Publicans Africa, Year of publication 2011.
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