Fr. Frank Majka, SJ – The Bridge

Increase our Faith

The disciples’ request to Jesus was simple: Increase our faith. Presumably, Jesus could have answered them “Yes” or “No” and that would have been that. Instead, Jesus said that even a little faith can do a lot, which seemingly didn’t speak to what they were asking. But maybe he wanted them to think more about their request.

Haven’t we been in the position of the disciples? Surely most of us have prayed for more faith and probably still do. But Jesus might ask us, “Why do you want more faith? What will that do for you?” These are fair questions, and I wonder if, on some level, we think that having more faith means having an easier faith, one which we won’t have to examine or question.

Though we might be reluctant to examine or question our faith, most of us have to do it; and most spiritual writers agree that questioning our beliefs is normally a sign of spiritual health, even if it may provoke some anxiety in us. After all, we can’t expect that the faith we had as children or teenagers will be adequate as we face the increasingly more difficult and complicated challenges of adulthood. Though examining our faith can be unsettling, as we grow and mature in every other aspect of our lives, shouldn’t we grow and mature in our faith, too?

So by all means let’s ask Jesus to increase our faith. Only let’s not do it out of a fear of taking a critical look at our beliefs, but as a way to help them develop into a more mature adult faith.