29th Sunday in Ordinary Time, C October 16, 2022
Fr. Alexander Albert St. John the Evangelist, Jeanerette
“When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” Maybe that’s too abstract. Let’s try this, if Jesus were to appear right here, standing before you the same way I am, what would he find? Would you, for example, be able to tell him about what you’ve just heard in the readings? After all, those readings were from God’s word and as St. Paul tells Timothy in our second reading, “all Scripture is inspired by God.”
Now, if it’s inspired, why is it so difficult to understand? Why do so many passages of scripture seem to be wrong? The seven days of creation don’t match what geology and physics tell us. The story of Adam and Eve doesn’t fit with what we know from genetics and biology. Some passages make it sound like the earth is the center of the universe, but astronomy shows that that’s not true. Jesus promises to answer prayers, but who hasn’t had an unanswered prayer?
So, what do we even mean by calling scripture “inspired?” Are we just saying that reading scripture makes us feel good, like we’re inspired when we read it? Not quite. Sometimes reading Scripture is tough work and it can often challenge more than it inspires. No, when we say scripture is inspired, we mean that God is the author of scripture. We mean it is true and reliable. We also call scripture “inerrant,” which means “without error.” Yes, to be Catholic, we are required to believe that all of scripture is true and from God.
That does not mean we have to believe in a literal seven days or reject modern astronomy. What it means first and foremost is that we must approach scripture with faith. Really understanding scripture starts with an act of trust that God spoke it and communicated real truth through it. This also means that we have to read it the way the Church reads it. Scripture is not addressed just to individuals, but to the whole Church. So it is with the mind of the Church that we must interpret it.
And the Church teaches us that God wrote Scripture, but that so did human beings. God didn’t mystically override their hands to write words they had no control over. He inspired them, working through their human minds and bodies to incarnate the truth in human language and expression. This means that linguistic and cultural differences are included in God’s word. It means there are different genres and styles. It means that understanding what God is saying often requires carefully sorting through all of this to recognize the heart of truth in it.
That is why the Church both encourages and discourages reading scripture. She encourages reading scripture because, as St. Jerome said, “ignorance of scripture is ignorance of Christ.” She discourages reading scripture in the sense of warning people against interpreting it in isolation or as if it’s the only source of truth. We should read the bible, but we should not let bible reading be the only thing we do to find truth.
This is why St. Paul doesn’t just tell Timothy to make a bunch of copies of scripture and let them read it on their own. He tells him to “proclaim the word” and use it “for teaching, for refutation, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” He reminds him that he knows “from whom [he] learned” what he believes. From whom, not from what. Jesus did not come to give us a book. He came to give us himself and to establish his body, the Church, here on earth. Scripture is valuable primarily because it connects us to Jesus Christ.
So we know that scripture requires careful and prayerful interpretation. I assure you, there is a way to understand the story of creation while still accepting the Big Bang and to understand God’s creation of human beings while holding to some of the major points of evolution. Just as Timothy was a wise pastor and interpreter of scripture in ancient times, so the pastors of the Church of today– the Pope, Bishops, and Theologians – so they provide guidance.
But you do still need to actually read scripture. Indeed, it is precisely because it is difficult to understand that you need to read it. As Jesus says about his parables, the word of God is difficult on purpose so that it can cause us to grow. The process of reading scripture, struggling to understand it, seeking out answers, and coming to a deeper understanding is crucial to our own salvation. The point isn’t that we finally get to a bullet-point list of doctrines and beliefs. The process itself changes us. The struggle, the search leads us to spiritual maturity, which is more important than knowing correct expressions of doctrine.
This is why Timothy is told to “be persistent whether it is convenient or inconvenient,” and to “convince, reprimand, encourage through all patience and teaching.” As always, it comes back to perseverance, to sticking to it when difficult because you know the end goal is worth it. Pastors are meant to insistently challenge their people, calling them to spiritual maturity by leading them through the difficulties of scripture, of resisting sin, and of loving God and neighbor.
This perseverance in scripture is also part of persistence in prayer. Jesus’ parable is pretty straightforward: you should pray to God so much that you feel like you’re annoying him. Keep at it. If perseverance works even on unjust human beings, we can be confident that it works even better with our just and loving God and Father. Keep praying.
Truly, the biggest obstacle to this perseverance in prayer is probably the feeling that you’re not being heard, that no one is answering. People tell me they stop praying because “it’s hard to talk to someone who never talks back.” But that’s just it. God does speak to us… in scripture. When we say scripture is inspired, it’s not just a past tense thing. He didn’t just inspire words back then, he inspires those words here and now. When read with faith, they become a channel of the Holy Spirit. God speaks to us today through scripture read in faith.
This is why you should learn the ancient practice of Lectio Divina. It’s why the Come Lord Jesus Bible Study is so helpful. It not only teaches you to pray and share your faith with others, it also teaches you to recognize God’s voice in Scripture. Persevering in both prayer and scripture offers guidance in daily life, improves our prayer, and gradually teaches us both what to expect from God, and what answered prayer actually looks like. But you have to start and not stop, because that’s what real faith is: not a single assent to ideas, but a lived commitment of trust. When the Son of Man comes, he won’t be satisfied with people half-heartedly saying the creed from memory, he’ll want people who’ve been genuinely praying to him… who have been really listening to him in scripture all along.