Not in size but in depth

What do the words of the Gospel, “Lord, increase our faith,” mean to us? Do they signify the strength to endure grief, worries, and life’s challenges? Do they mean having the wisdom to remain steadfast in our Catholic faith? Or is it about continuing to believe despite doubts and struggles, and maintaining hope in the face of sickness and death?

Can faith really be quantified?

It’s remarkable that Jesus envisions the faith we need as minuscule: faith the size of a mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds. While the apostles sought a substantial amount of faith, Jesus suggested they only need faith as small as a mustard seed. This is a surprising teaching. Why would Jesus want us to have such small-sized faith?

The reason is that growing in faith involves dying to oneself, similar to how a seed must die to sprout new growth. Having faith means letting go and allowing God to take control of our lives. It means not fearing the loss of oneself, embracing humility, and adopting the role of a servant. It means letting Jesus take the wheel of our lives.

Faith is not just about outward expressions; it’s not merely lifting our hands in worship or praising God in a crowded stadium. It’s not confined to winning debates about belief in Jesus. True faith reflects the actions and attitudes Jesus preached and exemplified: His compassion and service to the poor and marginalized, His welcoming of sinners, and His challenge for them to sin no more. Faith is about mercy, not just sacrifice.

Faith is not about size, but about depth. Remember the song by The Bee Gees, “How deep is your love?” Similarly, we might ask, “How deep is your faith?” Is it deep enough to die to oneself? To embrace life’s complexities and mysteries, like sickness and death? Is it deep enough to forgive and love unconditionally, to listen and dialogue with others?

Faith involves recognizing Jesus in other religions, as long as they practice Gospel values like love, peace, humility, and justice. It sees how God works through others, even those who don’t regularly attend church.

Faith is not just about creating strategies or programs for evangelization; it’s about realizing how our simple acts of love and generosity can profoundly impact others. We celebrated the Feast of St. Therese of Lisieux, The Little Flower, last Wednesday, October 1. Her life in the convent was ordinary, but her childlike faith and relationship with Jesus were extraordinary. Her influence began posthumously, through her diary, “The Story of a Soul,” which touched lives worldwide, including my own.

I read her diary as a freshman in a college seminary, confined to bed with the flu. Her life and spirituality deepened my own and strengthened my priestly vocation. The simple acts she performed, like talking to Jesus while washing dishes, inspired me to embrace a similar child-like spirituality.

It’s the small sacrifices and our faithfulness to daily duties that help increase our faith—not necessarily grand plans and projects. Last  Sunday’s Gospel reminds us of the humility to recognize that “we are unprofitable servants; we have done what we were obliged to do.”