CHRISTIAN LIFE

FORMATION 7
(CHAPTER 3- WEEK 3)

“RESPONDING THE GOD’S

CALL TO LOVE AND
FRIENDSHIP: FAITH”
OPENING
God calls us to lovingly respond to his revelation in faith. For Catholic Christians, this means
developing a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, and through him, with
the Father, and the holy spirit, in and through the community of believers that make up the body
of Christ. “It is to know, love, and follow Christ in the church he founded” (PCP II 36).

CONTEXT
We, Filipinos, pride ourselves in being the only predominantly Catholic nation in Asia. On
Sundays all our churches are filled with people, from the biggest cathedrals in the cities to the
smallest chapels in far-flung regions. On special feast days and memorials, like MahalnaAraw
(Lent), a large number of Catholics all over the country join processions and participate in
various religious rituals. We also have numerous devotes who regularly visit and pray novenas in
our shrines.
While these religious practices are important, are they enough to show genuine faith in God?
What does our Christian faith have to do with our daily lives?
The truth is, for many Filipino Catholics, “faith life” is still separate from “daily life.” Hence, we
often think that as long as a person spends a lot of time in the church or participates in religious
activities, he or she is already considered a person of great faith regardless of how he or she acts,
and treats others outside the church. We fail to realize that our faith is part and parcel of our daily
life.
This shows the great need for many of us to understand what authentic Christian faith is about.
As Filipino Catholics, we must learn that Christian faith is experienced and reflected not only in
the way we pray or celebrate our beliefs, but also in the way we understand these beliefs and live
them out in our daily, lives.

EXPOSITION

TWO LEVELS OF FAITH

Faith in People
Faith is a central part of our daily lives. We may not always be aware of it, but it is something
that we exercise every day. In fact, without faith, lit is impossible to live our lives. Faith or
paniniwala is the most natural way that we relate with people around us. Every time we believe,
obey, and entrust ourselves to others, we are experiencing faith.
Our first experience of faith is with our parents. They are the ones who brought us into this world
us and raise us to become who we are now. We trust their words and actions. We follow their
rules and obey their instructions even if at times, we do not fully understand them. We believe
that everything they say or do is out of love and for our own good.
We also learn what it means to have faith through our friends. Next to our parent and loved ones,
it is to these people that we fully entrust ourselves. We share with them our hopes, dreams, fear,
and sorrows. We trust that they will understand and accept us for who we are. We believe that
true friends are there to support us when we are right and guide us when we are wrong.
Faith is also exercised in everyday dealing with other people. We go to school because we
believe that our teachers will impart the lessons we ought to learn for our education. Whenever
we go to a restaurant, we eat the food that is served to us because we trust that the cook or chef
prepared our food with utmost care. We follow the doctor’s prescription for our sickness because
we believe that it will make us well. The list goes on and on. In all these situations, we see the
necessity of having faith in people.
FAITH IN GOD
Our experience of faith in people, especially with our loved ones and friends, gives us an idea of
what Faith in God or pananampalataya means. Like a person who wants to become our friend,
God reaches out to us and makes the first move. He reveals himself to us in various ways, but
most of all, in and through his son, Jesus Christ. He calls us to know, follow, and trust in him,
just as we would with our closest friend. More than this, he invites us to accept so that we may
share in his divine life and love. Our “yes” to God’s call to love and friendship is what we call
faith.
Faith is our personal and loving response to God’s self-revelation. The Catechism for Filipino
Catholics (CFC) teaches us that for us Christians, faith is essentially Trinitarian. It is our
adherence to the triune God, as revealed to us by Jesus Christ. Through Christ’s life and mission,
especially through his Paschal Mystery, we come to believe in him as our Lord and Savior, in
God our loving Father, and in the Holy Spirit sent into our hearts (cf CFC 124). Hence if we are
to become true and faithful Christians, we need to develop and nurture our faith-relationship or
friendship with Christ, and through him, with the Father and the Holy Spirit.
The faith- relationship with Christ is both a gift and a task. It is a gift from God for two reasons.
First, faith is grounded on the father’s initiative to reveal himself to us. If God did not make
himself and his will know to us, then there is nothing to respond to. Second, faith as our response
to Christ’s call of love and friendship is always a graced response for it is sustained by the power
of the Holy Spirit. As St. Paul says, ‘no one can say ‘Jesus is Lord’ except by the Holy Spirit”
( 1Cor 12:3).
However, this gift of faith does not work automatically. Just like any friendship, we need to work
at our faith-relationship with Christ for it to develop. Faith, therefore, is also a task. It is a
lifelong task which requires our cooperation with God’s grace. It entails a constant effort on our
part, supported by God’s grace, to express, and live out our faith-relationship with Christ.
Another important characteristics faith- is that it is both personal and communal. Jesus as
friendship cannot develop without the support of the greater community, our faith- relationship
with Christ canot develop without support. We receive the gift of faith when we are baptized as
members of Church. We also grow and mature in the faith through the teaching and witnessing
of the members of the church.
Although the Church is there to help us grow in faith, the Christian community cannot make the
act of faith for us. Faith is still a personal act because it involves the whole person. For us
Catholic Christians, faith I never individualistic. It is always a personal sharing and participation
in the faith of the Church (cf 153).

FAITH INVOLVES THE WHOLE PERSON

The Blind Bartimaeus
“They came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd,
Bartimeaus, a blind man, the son of Timeaus, sat by the roadside begging. On hearing that it was
Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “’Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” And
many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, ‘Son of David,
have pity on me.” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called the blind man, saying to
him, “Take courage; get up, he is calling you.” He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to
Jesus. Jesus said to him in reply, ‘What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man replied to
him, “Master, I want to see.” Jesus told him, “Go our way; your faith has saved you.”
Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.” Mk
10:46-52
THE THREE DIMENSIONS OF FAITH
Christian faith touches every part of a person in his believing (mind), doing (will) and trusting
(heart). These acts correspond to the three dimensions of faith, namely, doctrine, morals, and
worship.
1. DOCTRINE. Faith is believing in God. It is being able to say, “My Lord and my God”(Jn
20:28) with utmost conviction. It means having a great desire to know God in a deeper
and personal way by accepting and understanding the truth he has revealed. The truths of
our faith are summarized in the creed. In the Creed, we proclaim the central doctrine of
our faith: our belief in the triune God, who is the Father, Son and Spirit.
2. 2. MORALS. Faith is doing God’s will. It is a commitment to follow and to obey God’s
will was revealed in his commandments and the beatitudes. We cannot proclaim our
belief in God and act as is God does not make any differences in our lives. Christ himself
taught us that “not everyone who says to me,” Lord, Lord” will enter the kingdom of
heaven, but only the one who does the will of my father” (Mt 7:21). It is our actions,
especially toward other people that will show our response to Gods call.
3. WORSHIP. Faith is entrusting our lives to God. It is being aware of God’s constant
presence in our lives and celebrating his presence through the prayer and the sacraments.
 In a heartfelt prayer, whether personal or communal, we surrender ourselves to God and
anchor our hope in his everlasting love and goodness. We trust in his promise that
“everything is possible to one who has faith” (Mk 9; 23).

MARY, OUR MODEL OF FAITH

As we strive to grow in our Faith in God, we turn to our Mother Mary, the perfect model
of faith. In all her simplicity and humility, Mary showed her great faith in God at the
annunciation when she said, “Behold, I and the handmaid of the Lord. May it be done to
me according to your word” (Lk 1:38). With these words, Mary fully submitted herself to
God: mind, will, heart. She believed in God as her Lord and Savior. She obey God’s will
to become the Mother of Jesus. She whole-heartedly entrusted her life in God’s hands.
Aside from the Annunciation, Mary also showed her faith in God in the daily and
ordinary events in her life, such as visiting her pregnant cousin Elizabeth or finding her
lost son, Jesus, in the temple. In both events, Mary expressed her faithfulness and
committing herself to his divine plan, even in times of uncertainty.
She especially demonstrated her faith in God during the most trying of times, standing by
her son, Jesus at the foot of the cross. For a mother like Mary, perhaps, the most painful
experience is watching her own son suffer and die. Despite her great sorrow, Mary’s faith
did not waver. She continued to anchor her life in God and believe in the promise of the
resurrection.
Indeed, faith is the key to Mary’s while life and being. From her divine motherhood tom
“her falling asleep in the Lord,” we see in her a true pilgrim of faith (cf CFC 159). What
makes her the exemplar of Christian faith is not a single instance when she displayed
great faith in God, but the truth that she lived out her faith in God all days of her earthly
life. As we walk our own pilgrim journey toward God, both as individuals and as
members of the church, may we also learn to say “yes” to God the way Mary did with the
help of the Holy Spirit who dwells in us.

INTEGRATION

DOCTRINE-Faith is our loving response to God who reveals. Christian faith is our personal
relationship with Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior—a decision to commit oneself to Christ, follow
him, and strive to know and accept the truths he continue to teach through his church (cf PCP
II64-65).
MORALS- We live our Christian Faith by committing ourselves to God’s will as Mother Mary
did. We respond to God’s call to love and friendship by obeying his commandments and
Beatitudes.
WORSHIP- We nourish and strengthen our Christian Faith by entrusting our lives to God in
prayer. We become aware of God’s constant presence in our lives by celebrating and actively
participating in the sacraments of the church.
SUMMARY

1. We experience faith every day when we relate with people. Our faith in people,
especially our loved ones and friends, gives us an idea about our faith in God.
2. Faith is our personal and loving response to God’s self-revelation. As Christians, our
faith is essentially Trinitarian, for we adhere and commit ourselves to the Triune God, as
revealed by our Lord, Jesus Christ.
3. Faith in God is both a gift and a task. Our human response to God’s call to love and
friendship is always a graced response. Faith is both personal and communal. It is our
personal sharing and participation in the life and mission of the Church.
4. We learn from the story of Bartimeaus that true faith in God involves the whole person:
mind, will and heart. It is this kind of faith which enables us to see who God truly is and
who we truly are in relation to him.
5. Christian faith has three dimensions which corresponds to the whole person. It is
believing in God (Doctrine), doing God’s will (Morals), and entrusting our lives to God
in prayer (worship).
6. Mary is the perfect example of faith to Catholic Christians. We see in her life and person
a true pilgrim of faith.

REVIEW
1. Describe the two levels of faith. How can our faith in people help us understand our
faith in God?
2. What human relationship can be analogous to our relationship with Christ?
3. Explain Christian Faith in your own words. Why is faith Trinitarian? How is faith a
gift and a task? How is it personal yet part of a community?
4. What are the three dimensions of faith? Explain how faith is believing in God, doing
God’s will and entrusting our lives to God by giving examples from your own life.
5. Why is Mary the perfect model of faith for us Christians?
Describe how her life is a true journey of faith in God?

JOUR
NAL
Illustrate your own journey of faith. Use symbols to represent the high and low points of your
faith-relationship with God. How can you continue to grow and mature in faith?
ACTIVITY 1

Accomplish the following activities.

1. Research on the internet about the faith of Filipino Catholics.
Cite at least 5 unique religious practices that Filipino Catholics do to express their
faith in God.
2. Write about these practices on your notebook.
a. Among the religious practices you’re cited, which are you most familiar with?
b. What is the purpose of each religious practice?
c. What do these practices tell you about the Filipino faith?

ACTIVITY
2
On a short bond paper, paste a picture of your best friend or the person closest to your heart.
Describe this person and your relationship with him or her. Why do you consider this person as
your best friend or closest to you? What do you do to keep your friendship strong?

ACTIVITY 3
Accomplish the following activity
What other form of blindness do we experience s human persons that hinder us from seeing the
truth about God, ourselves, and other people?