Daily Reflections - January 29, 2012

Say it in Faith

In today’s Gospel, we hear a declaration of the true identity of Jesus: “I know who you are — the holy One of God!” Biblical scholars call it an indirect theophany, i.e., a manifestation of the Divinity of Jesus by another other than God Himself. It is just ironic that such declaration came from an unclean spirit that possessed a man in the synagogue. In response to such declaration, Jesus rebuked the evil spirit sharply and commanded, “Be quiet! Come out of the man!” Jesus obviously was not flattered by the declaration.

In some other parts of the Gospels, Peter also made an indirect theophany when, in response to Jesus’ question, “Who do you say that I am?” he declared in behalf of the Apostles, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). Jesus commended Peter for such declaration. It is worth noting that Jesus said to Peter, “Blessed are you, Simon…” while to the evil spirit Jesus said, “Be quiet!” Both Peter and the evil spirit made the same declaration. But the same declaration received a different response from Jesus. What accounts for the difference? The evil spirit simply made a declaration of fact. Peter made a declaration of faith. The devil cannot avoid the fact. Jesus is God. But it is simply a dry fact for the devil. Even if he does not want to, the devil has no choice but to acknowledge it. The devil may have even uttered it in fear.

For Peter, it was different. It was a declaration borne out of love, out of a personal relationship with Jesus.

Every Sunday, we go to church and profess and declare our faith in the living God. But we are not simply there to declare a fact. If we do that, our declaration will be no different from that of the devil. We need more than a declaration of fact. God does not need to be reminded of the fact of His divinity. He does not need a massage to the divine ego. He knows it from eternity. But God does long to hear a declaration of faith and love from His children.

So what is it for you — fact or faith?Fr. Joel Jason

REFLECTION QUESTION: Do you cultivate a personal relationship with God in your prayer, study, and a life of righteousness?

“Lord, You have no need of our praise, but our desire to thank You is itself Your gift. Our prayer of praise adds nothing to Your greatness but makes us grow in Your grace. Amen!”