The Journey to Faith
Fr. Lawrence Jagdfeld, O.F.M., Administrator
Our Lenten journey takes us through the desert to the land flowing with milk and honey. Just as the Israelites made this actual trek, we make a similar journey in our spiritual lives. The desert taught the Israelites the need for caravans. No man or woman makes it through the desert alone.
As we traverse the road to Easter, we meet several characters along the way who teach us how to give birth to faith. Just as a woman goes through the pain of delivery, so too our souls go through the travail of giving birth to faith. Whether we speak to the woman at the well, the man born blind, or to Naaman the Syrian (today’s fellow traveler), the lesson is always the same. Faith in Jesus means accepting the pain of the journey. Just as Jesus carried the cross to the hilltop known as Calvary and found glory on its summit, we too must carry our cross if we wish to find the same glory.
Naaman finds faith by accepting the instructions given him by the prophet. He resisted and failed to obeyed at first. However, his servants persuaded him to let go of his resistance. When he obeyed the command of the prophet, he was healed.
Like Naaman, we too often resist the words of Jesus who calls us to a life lived for others. The grip of selfishness does not yield to selflessness easily. During Lent we try to strip ourselves of the things that we want in favor of the things we need. We are doing battle with ourselves, with our streak of independence. Then, and only then, can we join the caravan that is moving to the land flowing with milk and honey.
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