1. What is the Year of Faith?
On 11 October 2011 Pope Benedict XVI issued his Apostolic
Letter, Porta Fidei, Door of Faith (PF),
and declared a Year of Faith from 11 October 2012 to 24 November 2013. The Year
of Faith would be “a good opportunity to usher the whole Church into a time of
particular reflection and rediscovery of the faith” [PF, no 4]. It would be a
year “to rediscover the joy of believing and the enthusiasm for communicating
the faith” [PF, no. 6]. The Year of Faith is a “summons to an authentic and
renewed conversion to the Lord, the one Savior of the world,” a year to intensify
the renewal of the Church [ibid.].
2. What is the
significance of the starting and ending dates of the Year of Faith?
The starting date, October 11, 2012, is the 50th
anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council, Vatican II
(1962-1964). This Council led to the deepening and greater understanding of our
faith and to the comprehensive renewal of the Church as it confronted the many
changes of our times. The same date is the 20th anniversary of the
Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) which is the summary of our Christian
faith. The ending date, November 24, 2013, is the Feast of Christ the King who
is the center of our profession of faith.
3. What is faith?
“Faith is first of all a personal adherence of man to God.
At the same time… it is an assent to the whole truth that God has revealed” [CCC,
no. 150; CBCP-ECCE, Catechecism for Filipino Catholics (CFC), 1997, nos.
114-15]. Faith, therefore, is a personal acceptance of God as the source of
everything that we are and have. It also means to obey God. To obey comes from
the Latin word ob-audire, to hear or
to listen. Faith means to “submit freely to the word” of God [CCC, no. 144] who in many ways speaks to us, such as
in the Sacred Scriptures, in the Church, in the celebration of the Liturgy, in
prayer, or in ordinary situations of life.
4. When do we receive
faith?
At the beginning of the rite of Baptism the priest asks:
“What do you request of the Church?” The godparents of the child to be baptized
answer: “Faith.” It is through Baptism, the “sacrament of faith” that God gives
us the gift of faith. Through Baptism we are born into new life and become
adopted children of God and heirs of heaven. We are incorporated into the family of faith, the Church.
5. Is faith
necessary?
Yes, faith is necessary for salvation. The CCC, no. 161,
teaches us: “Believing in Jesus Christ and in the One who sent him for our
salvation is necessary for our salvation” [cf. Mk. 16:16; Jn 3:36; 6:40 ff].
Without faith it is impossible to please God. Without faith no one will ever
attain eternal life [see
Mt.
6. Why is the Year of
Faith necessary?
Pope Benedict observes that today we can no longer presume
that a person has faith [see PF, 2]. Faith is sometimes openly denied and rejected.
It is no longer a norm for everyday life. There is now a crisis of faith. Many
developed countries that were once Christian no longer practice the faith. Our
own Filipino faith has many weaknesses. Because of this situation, the Year of
Faith is necessary. It is a special year for us to know our faith, deepen the
understanding of our faith, live our faith and share our faith.
7. Should our faith
keep up with changing times?
Yes, our faith should keep up with changing situations. Like
the Church that began a period of renewal with Vatican II and opened its
windows to the modern world, faith should be immersed into our modern
situation. However, the Church has “to transmit the doctrine pure and integral,”
in a new way, “according to what is required by our times,” without weakening
or distorting it [see Pope John XIII, Address at the Solemn Opening of Vatican
II, October 11, 1962, cited by Pope Benedict XVI, Address to the 64th
General Assembly of the Italian Episcopal Conference, May 24, 2012]. Therefore,
our faith must remain fundamentally unchanged in content, while its expression
may change so as to be understood by modern man. Our faith must dialogue with
the modern spirit, adopt what is authentically of the Gospel, reject or purify
what is not. As always we have to heed the prayer of Christ to the Father for his
disciples after the Last Supper: “…they are in the world…Holy Father, keep them
in your name….they do not belong to the world any more than I belong to the
world. Consecrate them in the truth. Your word is truth” [Jn. 17: 11-17].
8. What is the
secular and materialist spirit?
We may distinguish between moderate secularism and radical
secularism. Moderate secularism accepts the mutual relationship between secular
and the spiritual and religious. Vatican II states that the demand for the
autonomy of secular affairs is proper only when it is not in conflict with the
moral law or claim independence from God [see Vatican II, Gaudium et spes, no. 36]. This primer focuses on what Pope Benedict
XVI has called “radical,” “aggressive,”or “reductive” secularism [see, e.g., Benedict XVI, Address to U.S. Bishops on Ad limina visit, January 19, 2012]. Henceforth
in this primer the term secularism refers to radical or reductive secularism.
This kind of secularism does not respect
the spiritual and religious sphere of life. It is sometimes called the “modern
spirit.” It emerged from the Age of Enlightenment or Age of Reason (from about
1650 to 1805) and asserted that reason and science are above faith. It also
taught that universal truth comes only from reason and science. This philosophical
idea gradually displaced faith and became the prevailing attitude in economically
developed countries in the West. In the second half of the 20th
century, new secular teachings challenged the “modern spirit” and changed it
into an even more radical form. It is called “the post-modern spirit.” As a
result of these secular and materialist philosophies for many countries of the
West faith no longer has any major role in human behavior and official government
policies. Faith is reduced to the
private sphere and is not allowed to play any role in the public sphere. Religious
symbols and prayer are even banned in public places in some countries.
9. What does
secularism as understood above in this Primer say about truth?
Whereas the modern spirit asserted that reason and science
can establish universal truths, the post-modern spirit states that there are no
universal truths, either from reason and science or from faith. The post-modern
spirit asserts that all truth is relative. Truth, whether doctrinal or moral,
depends on the individual, on the opinion of people, on culture, etc. This is
called “relativism.” The post-modern spirit teaches that truth does not depend
on the word of God or on the authority of the Church. Sadly the culture of secularism
is now the emerging global culture that has even influenced predominantly
Christian countries such as the Philippines .
10. What does secularism
positively contribute to society?
The secular, materialist, and relativist spirit promotes
individual freedom and democracy. It upholds human equality and dignity. It
promotes the empowerment of women. It rejects discrimination based on religion,
gender, culture, and social status. It respects religious pluralism and fosters
religious tolerance. It has promoted the immense advances and possibilities of
science and technology, such as in medical treatment.
11. What is the negative
impact of secularism?
Because of the secular, materialist and relativist spirit, the
world is experiencing a loss of a sense of the sacred and a loss of faith as
well as a loss of the sense of sin. The secular spirit ignores God. It makes
faith irrelevant to public life and policy and makes it only a private affair.
It has resulted in a severe weakening of divine and church authority and a
rejection of enduring and permanent moral values, such as in marriage.
Moreover, it advocates the error of utilitarianism. This philosophy states that
what is useful, practical and convenient is the right thing to do, and not what
is morally right. The language of morality which was once a language of
goodness and evil has been substituted by the language of “political
correctness.”
12. What are other
negative influences of secularism?
The secularist, materialist and relativist spirit has
resulted in the legal approval of artificial contraception, abortion,
euthanasia, and eugenics (selection of only normal offspring). The spirit has likewise
resulted in excessive individual freedom even at the expense of the common
good. For example, on the basis of unconditioned freedom of speech and
expression, disrespect of revered religious persons, symbols and doctrines has
generated protests and violence in different parts of the world. The secular
spirit has also resulted in sexual freedom, such as in the approval of
pre-marital sex, various forms of sexual unions, divorce, and even the approval
of prostitution in some countries. From these negative influences comes the
breakdown of family life.
13. What does secularism
say about the Church?
We now see the influences of the secular and materialist
spirit in some opinions ventilated in public. These opinions state that the
Church is outdated. The Church, they say, is still living in the “dark ages”
and has not been enlightened by the light of reason. It is not in touch with
the changing times. Instead the Church is responding to modern ways of thinking
and valuing by asserting old doctrines and outdated moral values. Those who are
faithful to Church teachings are labeled “conservatives” and those who dissent
are “progressives” or “liberals.” An
example of the secular and materialist view may be found in the present debate
between pro-life and pro-choice, between opponents and promoters of the
Reproductive Health Bill now being discussed in the Philippine Congress.
(To be continued)
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