Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

For the past two weeks we have been reflecting on the theological virtue of faith. In particular, we have examined how the object of faith is the Person of Jesus Christ and the context of faith is the Church. Today, we finish our reflection on faith with an examination of the result of faith. In other words, what does faith produce in the life of a believer?

There is a famous Augustinian expression that says, "Faith is letting oneself be grasped by the Truth." The more we are "grasped by the Truth," the more we become witnesses of the Truth. This is the result of faith: it produces a witness. The more the faith becomes an active part of our life, the more our entire life becomes a witness to Jesus Christ.

What does it mean to "witness to Jesus Christ?" Although there are many ways we offer a witness to Jesus Christ, there are two that I would like to reflect upon in this letter. First, we offer witness to Jesus Christ through suffering. The late Monsignor Lorenzo Albacete, a Catholic priest who used to be a regular contributor to the New York Times, once wrote, "Suffering is not a problem to be solved but a mystery to be lived." He who suffers well, offers a beautiful witness to Jesus Christ. How?

God uses the experiences of the world to engage the human person in a transcendental dialogue. In other words, God speaks to us in and through this world to draw the human person to invisible mysteries. Suffering yields itself to mystery. A common question we often ask when we are in the midst of suffering is, "Why?" Every person in the midst of suffering asks this question. Yet, when we ask this question, to whom are speaking? We are speaking to God. To question "why" in the midst of suffering is to initiate a conversation with mystery. This is why suffering is an essential aspect of witness. Our culture struggles to reflect upon its experiences. When a person sees a Christian embracing suffering and uniting suffering to the crucified Christ, it causes that person to initiate their own conversation with mystery, thus providing a beautiful witness to transcendence. Suffering compels us to think through the great questions about life and God.

The second way we offer witness to Jesus Christ is through humility. Pope Benedict XVI once wrote, "Living out faith means recognizing God's greatness and accepting our smallness, our condition as creatures, letting the Lord fill us with his love and thus develop our true greatness." Jesus Christ humbled Himself by becoming one with us through the Incarnation and by dying on the Cross for our salvation. Thus, a life of humility gives beautiful witness to Jesus.

How does one live a humble life? The 24 th paragraph of the Second Vatican Council's document, Gaudium et Spes, gives us the answer: "Man…cannot fully find himself except through a sincere gift of self." Humility is about giving. In a life of humility, I hold nothing back for myself, but offer my entire self as a gift. When we live our life as a gift for others, we begin to see God's greatness pouring out through our smallness. In this way, humility is not hating or despising oneself, but freely placing oneself at the disposal of Jesus Christ so that He is free to work as He so desires.

As we continue on in this Easter season, may the Lord give us the grace of being drawn deeper into the person of Jesus Christ and His Church so that we might provide a beautiful witness of the glory of God.

Peace in Christ,
Fr. Will

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