REPENTANCE and FAITH Introduction Christianity is initiated by God.

It is one of God's mysteries why we have been given God's grace to be Christians, followers of Christ. Jesus makes this clear to us in the gospel of St. John when he says You did not choose me ,I chose you and appointed you to go and bear much fruit, that endures. And so the Father will give you what ever you ask for in my name. God extends his invitation to us to follow the life of Jesus Christ and so earn for ourselves the crown of eternal life. This invitation has been with us as long as we have known about Almighty God. For most of us the invitation is not something that is new. We therefore need to respond to this invitation cheerfully and with good hearts. If we received an invitation from someone we considered very important, most of us would take great care in responding to the invitation, we would not want there to be any mistakes made .So how much more care should we take when the invitation is from Jesus Christ himself. In fact our response requires amongst other things repentance, that means reforming our lives and faith which entails belief in the Gospel. Have faith in Him and the message he brings. Repentance Repentance and Faith go together they are linked by an umbilical cord. Each is inadequate without the other. What do we understand by repentance. In this context we mean several things. Firstly the word Repentance comes from the Greek word Metanoia meaning change of mind. It means turning away from evil, sin, wrong doing avoiding trying to run our own lives and thus ignoring the help of God. A good means of being truly repentant is to make a good to confession. It is in the confessional box that we bear our souls to Christ and to man and thus become the humble of heart that Almighty God is seeking in us. A story is told about St. Jerome, that one night while praying the Infant Jesus appeared to him and asked St. Jerome "what will you give me on my birthday". The Saint, replied I will give you my heart. Yes, but give me more. I'll give you all the prayers and affections of my heart. That is good, but I want something more than that. I give you all that I have and all that I am. This gift I already have and there is something more I still desire. I have nothing. What can I give you, who are God? Jerome give me your sins that I may pardon them all in the tenderness of My love . God is infinitely merciful and it is incumbent on all of us that we humble ourselves before Almighty God in the sacrament of confession. We must be truly sorry for our sins, for the hurt it has caused Jesus Christ and the harm it has done to others and have a firm purpose of amendment. It is important to remember this because we are often tempted for various reasons to be sorry for consequences of sin rather than the sin itself. Every time we commit a mortal sin we cause great suffering to Jesus. We must make a conscious effort to put our lives in order. In all this we make a grave mistake if we think we can do this through our own efforts. We can do nothing worthwhile and meaningful in the eyes of God without his grace which we receive through regular prayer and receiving the sacraments as often as possible. In Repentance as with Faith we must not rely on feelings. Our feelings are constantly changing, always blowing hot and cold. No, we must depend on God's grace and the strength we draw from it. If we are really serious about wanting a lasting and loving relationship with God, we ought to be specific about the sins we renounce. We should calmly recall our sins, in what we have done with

the full knowledge and full consent against Gods commandments. In our confessions we should straightforward, honest, open, concise, and to the point. Sin together with ignorance separates us from Jesus and the love of God. In Friends of God St. Josemaria writes: You well know the obligations of your Christian way of life; they will lead you safely and surely to sanctity. You have also been forewarned about the difficulties, or practically all of them, because you can already get a rough idea of them at the beginning of the road. Now I wish to emphasise that you must let yourselves be helped and guided by a spiritual director, to whom you can confide all your holy ambitions and the daily problems affecting your interior life, the failures you may suffer and the victories. If, alas, one falls, one must get up at once. With God's help, which will never be lacking if the proper means are used, one must seek to arrive at repentance as quickly as possible, to be humbly sincere and to make amends so that the momentary failure is transformed is into a great victory for Jesus Christ. You should also get into the habit of taking the battle to areas that are far removed from the main walls of the fortress. We cannot go about doing balancing acts on the very frontiers of evil. We have to be firm in avoiding the indirect voluntary. We must reject even the tiniest failure to love God, and we must strive to develop a regular and fruitful Christian apostolate, which will have holy purity both as a necessary foundation and also as one of its most characteristic fruits. We ought as well to fill all our time with intense and responsible work, in which we seek God's presence, because we must never forget that we have been bought at a great price and that we are temples of the Holy Spirit. What other advice do I have for you? Well, simply to do what the Christians who have really tried to follow Christ have always done, and to use the same means employed by the first men who felt prompted to follow Jesus: developing a close relationship with Our Lord in the Eucharist, a childlike recourse to the Blessed Virgin, humility, temperance, mortification of the senses ('it is not good to look at what it is not licit to desire,' was St Gregory the Great's warning) and penance. You might well tell me that all this is nothing but a summary of the whole Christian life. The fact is that purity, which is love, cannot be separated from the essence of our faith, which is charity, a constant falling in love with God, who created and redeemed us, and who is constantly taking us by the hand, even though time and again we may not even notice it. He cannot abandon us. 'Sion said: "The Lord has forsaken me, my Lord has forgotten me." Can a mother forget her infant, be without tenderness to the child of her womb? Even should she forget, I will never forget you.' Don't these words fill you with immense joy? In Christ is Passing By the Saint writes: A Christian's struggle must be unceasing, for interior life consists in beginning and beginning again. This prevents us from proudly thinking that we are perfect already. It is inevitable that we should meet difficulties on our way. If we did not come up against obstacles, we would not be creatures of flesh and blood. We will always have passions which pull us downwards; we will always have to defend ourselves against more or less self-defeating urges. We should not be surprised to find, in our body and soul, the needle of pride, sensuality, envy, laziness and the desire to dominate others. This is a fact of life, proven by our personal experience. It is the point of departure and the normal context for winning in this intimate sport, this race toward our Father's house. St Paul says: "That is how I run, intent on winning; that is how I fight, not beating the air. I treat my body hard and make it obey me for, having preached to others, I do not want to be disqualified."

To begin or sustain this conflict a Christian should not wait for external signs or nice inner feelings. Interior life does not consist in feelings but in divine grace, willingness and love. All the disciples were quite capable of following Christ on the day of his triumph in Jerusalem, but almost all of them left him at the shameful hour of the cross. If you are really going to love, you have to be strong and loyal; your heart has to be firmly anchored in faith, hope and charity. Only people who are inconstant and superficial change the object of their love from one day to the next: that's not love at all, it's the pursuit of selfishness. When love exists there is a kind of wholeness a capacity for self-giving, sacrifice and renunciation. In the midst of that self-denial, along with painful difficulties, we find joy and happiness, a joy which nothing and no one can take away from us. In this adventure of love we should not be depressed by our falls, not even by serious falls, if we go to God in the sacrament of penance contrite and resolved to improve. A Christian is not a neurotic collector of good behaviour reports. Jesus Christ our Lord was moved as much by Peter's repentance after his fall as by John's innocence and faithfulness. Jesus understands our weakness and draw us to himself on an inclined plane. He wants us to make an effort to climb a little each day. He seeks us out, just as he did the disciples of Emmaus, whom he went out to meet. He sought Thomas, showed himself to him and made him touch with his fingers the open wounds in his hands and side. Jesus Christ is always waiting for us to return to him; he knows our weakness. Faith In St. Paul's letter to the Hebrews we have that inspired definition of faith "To have faith is to be sure of the things we hope for, to be certain of the things we cannot see. "St. Paul goes on to tell us that "It was by their faith that the people of ancient times won God's approval". And the same is true for us. It is by our faith that we shall be saved. What does this mean? well amongst other things it means believing that Jesus came to be our personal saviour. God knows each and everyone of us, He knows what is in our hearts and he has given us the means to grow in faith by his grace, through prayer and the blessed sacraments. Faith is not just a feeling or wishful thinking or taking a blind leap into the unknown. If our faith is based on feelings and the like, it will always be changing, never constant. We cannot trust our feelings but we can trust the grace of God. We can take concrete and practical steps in keeping faith such as daily prayer, visit to the Blessed Sacrament, going to Mass as often as possible receiving the sacraments regularly, practising presence of God, daily mortifications, spiritual reading, praying the rosary and fellowship. St. Paul goes on to further define faith: By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. 5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. 6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him. 7 By faith Noah, being warned of God of things not seen as yet, moved with fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; by the which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is by faith. 8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. 9 By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: 10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose

builder and maker is God. 11 Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised. 12 Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable. 13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. 14 For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. 15 And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. 16 But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city. 17 By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, 18 Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: 19 Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure. 20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come. 21 By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff. 22 By faith Joseph, when he died, made mention of the departing of the children of Israel; and gave commandment concerning his bones. 23 By faith Moses, when he was born, was hid three months of his parents, because they saw he was a proper child; and they were not afraid of the king's commandment. 24 By faith Moses, when he was come to years, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter; 25 Choosing rather to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; 26 Esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures in Egypt: for he had respect unto the recompence of the reward. 27 By faith he forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king: for he endured, as seeing him who is invisible. 28 Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them. 29 By faith they passed through the Red sea as by dry land: which the Egyptians assaying to do were drowned. 30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down, after they were compassed about seven days. 31 By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when she had received the spies with peace. 32 And what shall I more say? for the time would fail me to tell of Gedeon, and of Barak, and of Samson, and of Jephthae; of David also, and Samuel, and of the prophets: St. Josemaria defines faith in Friends of God as: Faith is a supernatural virtue which disposes our intelligence to give assent to the truths of revelation, to say Yes to Christ, who has brought us full knowledge of the Blessed Trinity's plan for our salvation. 'In old days, God spoke to our fathers in many ways and by many means, through the prophets; now at last in these times, he has spoken to us through his Son, whom he has appointed heir of all things, through whom also he created this world of time; a Son who is the splendour of his glory and the figure of his substance; all things depend, for their support, on his word of power. Now, making atonement for our sins, he has taken his place on high, at the right hand of God's majesty.' If we turn now to St Mark we will find he tells us about another blind man being cured. As Jesus 'was leaving Jericho, with his disciples and a great multitude, Bartimaeus, the blind man, Timaeus' son, was sitting there by the wayside, begging'. Hearing the commotion the crowd was making, the blind man asked, 'What is happening?' They told him, 'It is Jesus of Nazareth.' At this his soul was so fired with faith in Christ that he cried out, 'Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.' Don't you too feel the same urge to cry out? You who also are waiting at the side of the way, of this highway of life that is so very short? You who need more light, you who need more grace to make up your mind to seek holiness? Don't you feel an urgent need to cry out, 'Jesus, son of David, have pity on me?' What a beautiful aspiration for you to repeat again and again! I recommend you to meditate slowly on the events preceding the miracle, to help you keep this fundamental idea clearly engraved upon your minds: what a world of difference there is between the merciful Heart of Jesus and our own poor hearts! This thought will help you at all times, and especially in the hour of trial and temptation, and also when the time comes to be generous in

the little duties you have, or in moments when heroism is called for. 'Many of them rebuked him, telling him to be silent. As people have done to you, when you sensed that Jesus was passing your way. Your heart beat faster and you too began to cry out, prompted by an intimate longing. Then your friends, the need to do the done thing, the easy life, your surroundings, all conspired to tell you: 'Keep quiet, don't cry out. Who are you to be calling Jesus? Don't bother him.' But poor Bartimaeus would not listen to them. He cried out all the more: 'Son of David, have pity on me.' Our Lord, who had heard him right from the beginning, let him persevere in his prayer. He does the same with you. Jesus hears our cries from the very first, but he waits. He wants us to be convinced that we need him. He wants us to beseech him, to persist, like the blind man waiting by the road from Jericho. 'Let us imitate him. Even if God does not immediately give us what we ask, even if many people try to put us off our prayers, let us still go on praying.' Consequences of Repentance and Faith The consequences of repentance and faith are salvation from sin, Satan, death, forgiveness, eternal life with God. Thomas A'Kempis writes in Imitation of Christ: "Always keep in mind your last end, and how you will stand before the just Judge from whom nothing is hid ,who cannot be influenced by bribes and excuses, and who judges with justice. O wretched and foolish sinner, who tremble before the anger of man, how will you answer to God, who knows all your sins? Why do you not prepare yourself against the Day of Judgement, when no advocate can defend you or excuse you but each man will be hard put to answer for himself? While you live, your labour is profitable and your tears acceptable, for sorrow both cleanses the soul and makes peace with God" Through repentance and faith we enter into a new life in the Holy Spirit. "He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness says Our Lord. In these words Christ counsels us to follow his life and way if we desire true enlightenment and freedom from all blindness of heart. Let the life of Jesus Christ, then be our first consideration".