Help My Unbelief”
With the Covid-19 fear still wreaking havoc around the world, we are called to stop, think, and pray. In the last two years the world’s needs and expectations have shifted. With roughly 414 million cases and the death toll of over 5.8 million people, anxiety and awe continue to envelop the world. During this period, we have seen various nations, agencies, institutions, and businesses begging and seeking assistance or economic interventions through what many christened “Covid Relief”or “stimulus packages” to ameliorate the economic and social damages.
We have also witnessed an increase in digital cry for help like “Go Fund Me”, Women Crisis Centers, Animal Rescue Centers, Hotlines, Shelters, etc.
In times of uncertainty and fear, we Christians, turn to God as we do in times of joy and celebration. Covid-19 has given many people an opportunity to reflect on what is important in life: God, family and friends, and “to smell the spiritual roses.”
In the Gospel, we heard a voice of a man in need “I do believe, help my unbelief.” This cry came from the depth of a heartbroken man. A cry of a father desperately pleading on behalf of his possessed son, whom Jesus’ disciples couldn’t help. Jesus inquires and encourages the father to have faith, eliciting his heart-wrenching cry, “I do believe, help my unbelief!” After expelling the unclean spirit, Jesus meets in private with his disciples where He tells them “This kind can only come out through prayer.
God hears the cry of the poor. The Psalmist’s cry could be ours “Out of the depths I cry to you, O LORD! O Lord, hear my voice’ (Psalm 130:1)
We all may have been faced with situations when we cried for help, and help seemed to be not forthcoming. Last year, I had a close relative who was very seriously sick. She was in and out of the hospital for over six months. At one point during this episode, we were told that we had only two options: place her in the ventilator and see what happens or allow her to pass gracefully. Our decision was to take the first option and wait for God’s will to be done. As I visited her in the hospital, while she was intubated, I administered the Sacrament of the Sick, prayed the Rosary, and Divine Mercy Chapel by her bedside. One thing I did not do was to administer the Last Rite (Viaticum). There was something in me that told me not to administer the rite. I obeyed the voice; I did not administer the Last Rite to her. She later pulled through the situation and is doing great today. To God be the glory!
Dear sisters and brothers, in moments of difficulties, our faith reminds of the nearness of God even when we do not feel His presence. It is then that the words of Psalm 46: 10, should be our guide “Be still and know that I am God.” Our Christian journey is full of ups and downs. There are times when our love for the Lord is over the roof, there also times when we’ve veered into doubt. We should find great reassurance and hope that our faith can always keep growing. Like the disciples we pray “Lord, increase our faith.” Becoming stronger in our faith is a lifelong process. The great news is that we are not expected to mature on our own, God will do the work in our hearts. Though, we do have an important part to play in His plan.
“Lord, I Believe; Help My Unbelief” is a prayer from the debt of the heart, the cry of the poor. Faith is a walk. God changes us gradually, as the layers of an onion are peeled off. We do not see the entire tapestry of our lives as it is woven by our God.
As we recognize our total dependence on God, our task is only to surrender to God’s will. Like Our Blessed Mother Mary may we pray “Let it be done to me according to your Word.” All I have to do is invite God in, and gently open my hands to offer both my belief and my doubt.
