Faith is now being subjected to a series of
questions arising from a profound change in mentality of the people. People
limit the field of rational certainties to that of scientific and technological
discoveries only. Humanity is currently experiencing to a greater extent than
in the past a profound change in their attitude. It is in this context Pope Benedict
XVI has announced a "Year of Faith". Pontiff is really aware of
the profound crisis of faith that has affected many people. "It is because
of this Pope Benedict XVI has
recently spoken of the need to
rediscover the journey of faith so as to shed ever clearer light on the joy and
renewed enthusiasm of the encounter with Christ. The theme of the General
Assembly of the Synod of Bishops that the Pontiff have convoked for October 2012 is The New
Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith'. Apostolic letter
for the year of faith “Door of Faith” speaks about a renewed conversion to the
Lord Jesus and to the rediscovery of faith so that the members will be credible
and joyful witnesses to the risen Lord in the world today.
The Year of Faith will run from October 11, 2012
to November 24, 2013. 11th October 2012, marks the fiftieth
anniversary of the opening of Vatican Council II and also marks the twentieth
anniversary of the publication of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, a text
promulgated by Blessed John Paul II. On
November 24th the universal church celebrates the Solemnity of
Christ the King. This will be a good opportunity to usher the whole Church into
a time of particular reflection and rediscovery of the faith.
The 'door of faith' is always open for us,
ushering us into the life of communion with God and offering entry into His
Church. It is possible to cross that threshold when the word of God is
proclaimed and the heart allows itself to be shaped by transforming
grace". To enter through the door is to set out on a journey that lasts a
life time. It begins with baptism and ends with the passage through death to
eternal life.
. "A Christian may never
think of belief as a private act. Faith
is choosing to stand with the Lord so as to live with Him. This 'standing
with Him' points towards an understanding of the reasons for believing. Faith, precisely because it is a free act,
also demands social responsibility for what one believes.
"The Year of Faith, from
this perspective, is a summons to an
authentic and renewed conversion to the Lord, the one Saviour of the world.
In the mystery of His death and resurrection, God
has revealed in its fullness the Love that saves and calls us to conversion of
life through the forgiveness of sins. For St. Paul, this Love ushers us into a
new life. ... Through faith, this new life shapes the whole of human existence
according to the radical new reality of the resurrection. ... 'Faith working
through love' becomes a new criterion of understanding and action that changes
the whole of man's life"."Through His love, Jesus Christ attracts to
Himself the people of every generation: in every age He convokes the Church,
entrusting her with the proclamation of the Gospel by a mandate that is ever
new. Today too, there is a need for stronger ecclesial commitment to new evangelization
in order to rediscover the joy of believing and the enthusiasm for
communicating the faith. In rediscovering His love day by day, the missionary
commitment of believers attains force and vigor that can never fade away. Faith
grows when it is lived as an experience of love received and when it is
communicated as an experience of grace and joy". "Only through
believing, then, does faith grow and become stronger; there is no other
possibility for possessing certitude with regard to one's life apart from
self-abandonment, in a continuous crescendo, into the hands of a love that
seems to grow constantly because it has its origin in God".
"We want to celebrate this Year in a worthy
and fruitful manner.
1.
Reflection
on the faith will have to be intensified, so as to help all believers in Christ
to acquire a more conscious and vigorous adherence to the Gospel.
Reflection on faith will help
the believers to acquire more conscious and vigours adherence to Gospel
2.
Intensify in
every believer the aspiration to profess the faith in fullness and with renewed
conviction, with confidence and hope.
We will have to profess our
faith in the Risen Lord in our cathedrals and in the churches of the whole
world; in our homes and among our families so that everyone may feel a strong need to
know better and to transmit to future generations the faith of all times.
Religious communities as well
as parish communities, and all ecclesial bodies old and new, are to find a way,
during this Year, to make a public profession of the Credo.
3.
Intensify
the celebration of the faith in the liturgy, especially in the Eucharist.
Celebration of faith is taking
place in the Eucharistic celebration. The entire salvation mystery is revealed
during the Eucharistic celebration which has to be celebrated in the fullness
of faith.
4.
Rediscover
the content of faith that is professed, celebrated, lived and prayed and to
reflect on the act of faith.
Knowledge of the content of
faith is essential for adhering fully with intellect and will to what the
church proposes. Knowledge of faith opens a door into the fullness saving
mystery revealed by God. Catechism of the Catholic Church an important tool of
the Vatican council II gives a systematic knowledge of the content of faith
5.
Retracing
the history of faith marked by the unfathomable mystery of interweaving
holiness and sin.
It is here the great
contribution of men and women for the growth and development of the community
by the witness of life and the continuing work of conversion in order to
experience the mercy of the Father is to be understood.
6.
The Year of
Faith will also be a good opportunity to intensify the witness of charity.
Faith and charity each
require the other; in such a way that each allows the other to set out along
its respective path. Indeed, many Christians dedicate their lives with love to
those who are lonely, marginalized or excluded, as to those who are the first
with a claim on our attention and the most important for us to support, because
it is in them that the reflection of Christ's own face is seen. Through faith,
we can recognise the face of the risen Lord in those who ask for our love".
7.
Faith
commits every one of us to become a living sign of the presence of the Risen
Lord in the world
Intent on gathering the signs
of the times in the present of history,. What the world is in particular need
of today is the credible witness of people enlightened in mind and heart by the
word of the Lord, and capable of opening the hearts and minds of many to the desire
for God and for true life, life without end. Thus the renewal of the
Church is achieved through the witness offered by the lives of believers: by
their very existence in the world, Christians are called to radiate the word of
truth that the Lord Jesus has left us.
The celebration of the year of
faith focuses on an authentic and renewed conversion to Lord the one Saviour of
the world. It is through the mystery of death and resurrection Jesus has
revealed the love of God in its fullness which calls us to a conversion by
forgiving our sins. There should be a renewed conversion to the Lord Jesus to
the rediscover our life of faith. Faith grows when it is lived as an experience
of love received and when it is communicated as an experience of grace and joy
so that the members will be credible and joyful witnesses to the risen Lord in
the world today.
