Seventh Day
" Without faith it is impossible to please God."1
Faith is the substance of things to be hoped for, the evidence of things unseen.f That is to say, faith makes future blessings so certain and so present to us that they are evolved in our soul and subsist there before we actually enjoy them. St. John of the
Cross says that faith is the foot that journeys to God, and is possession itself in an obscure manner. Faith alone can enlighten us concerning Him we love, and should be chosen by our soul as the means by which to attain divine union. It fills us with spiritual gifts.
Christ, when speaking to the Samaritan woman, alluded to faith when He promised to give those who should believe in Him " a fountain of water, springing up into life everlasting."^ Thus, faith gives us God in this life, behind the veil, yet still
God Himself. " When that which is perfect is come " — that is, say, the clear vision — " that which is imperfect," or, in other words, the knowledge given by faith, "shall be done away."2
" We have known, and have believed the charity which God hath to us."|| This is our great act of faith, the means of rendering love for love to our God : " The mystery which hath been hidden "f in the heart of the Father, which at last we fathom and which thrills our soul. Henceforth we care little whether God sends us joy or suffering ; we believe in His love. The more we are tried, the stronger is our faith, for it overleaps, as it were, all obstacles and finds its rest in the bosom of infinite love. The Master can repeat, in the secret depths of this soul vivified by faith, His words to the Magdalene : " Go in peace : thy faith hath saved thee."*
Footnotes
Chapter 7 of 10