11 The Catholic meaning of “Faith” (1)

What does it mean to have Faith? What is the Catholic meaning of Faith? There are so many ways in which the word “faith” is used that it can almost mean anything you want!

The Catholic meaning of faith can be found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church #150.

“Faith is the supernatural virtue which is necessary for salvation. It is a free gift of God and is accessible to all who humbly seek it. The act of faith is a human act, that is, an act of the intellect of a person - prompted by the will moved by God - who freely assents to divine truth.” (Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church #28).

As St. Thomas Aquinas says it in his Summa Theologica: “Believing is an act of the intellect assenting to the divine truth by command of the will moved by God through grace.” (S.Th. II-II, 2, 9. You can also see the Vatican Council I, Dei Filius #3.)

All the concepts discussed can be found in the Catechism, #142-184.

The main reason why we believe: we believe in the truths revealed by God through Jesus Christ, because Jesus Christ is God. (Catechism #156).

Because of this, it is reasonable to look for signs that indicate that indeed, it is God that has spoken through Jesus Christ. We call these signs “motives of credibility” or “reasons to believe”. (fulfillment of prophecies of the Old and New Testament; the miracles performed by Christ and the saints, the holiness of the teachings of Christ and the Church; the growth of the Catholic Church throughout the world; the permanence of the Catholic Church throughout the centuries (in spite of persecutions and interior heresies); and the holiness of a multitude of saints.

We discuss the life and the heroic martyrdom of St. Polycarp, in the year 155, who was the Bishop of Smyrna and direct disciple of St. John the Evangelist, and how his perseverance in the face of such terrible torments was a witness to his heroic faith in Jesus Christ, whom he received through the witness of St. John the Evangelist.

LINKS to Miracle obtained through St. John Newman’s intercession:

July 2019: https://www.chicagocatholic.com/chicagoland/-/article/2019/07/03/local-woman-s-cure-leads-to-cardinal-newman-canonization

February 2019: https://www.chicagocatholic.com/chicagoland/-/article/2019/02/19/miracle-attributed-to-blessed-john-henry-newman-has-local-ties

Host: Fr. Patrick Wainwright, a priest of the Miles Christi Religious Order.

Podcast Website: www.forcollegecatholics.org

Miles Christi Religious Order’s site is www.mileschristi.org

To know what are the Spiritual Exercises retreats, and to see the dates and locations for our upcoming retreats in the US, visit https://www.mileschristi.org/spiritual-exercises/

Intro music from www.pond5.com

Recorded at the Miles Christi Family Center, South Lyon, Michigan