by Fr. Demetrios Serfes

In these troubled times it is very difficult to find people with faith in Christ our God Looking at the Holy Scriptures, we can see that Christ had some difficulty in teaching His Apostles, simply because of their lack of faith, and they showed this to our Lord. He tells them of the perverse “faithless generation” (Mat.t. 17:17). For to Jesus faith is the assurance that everything is possible to God, the assurance that He gives. what He promises and what He ordains. Faith is a power which moves mountains. To move mountains is to know that there is P0 burden so heavy that God cannot help us carry it, no problem so insoluble that He cannot remove

it. If Jesus accused His first disciples of unbelief, what does He think of us today? What patience must He have to continue to tolerate us?

The term “faith” denotes a level of spiritual knowledge, of in ner perception, of higher truth. This is how St. Paul viewed it when he defined faith as the substance of .things hoped for (Heb. 11:1), and when again he said: now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face. . now I know in part; then I shall understand in full (I Cor. 13:12-13). Therefore, the Christian, or the believer in Christ, must have some knowledge of the truth, and once he has this knowledge it is possible to have faith stirred up in him. It can be said that love is grounded in true faith.

It is because faith is the very foundation of love and the whole Christian way of life that Christ and His Apostles, as wdl as the Holy Fathers of the Church, speak much more often of faith than of love, although they emphatically assert that love is the highest virtue for the Christian believer. However, our faith must be a living faith, confirmed by the works of the new man, and not the good works of a fallen nature, which are repulsive to faith.

Our religious outlook today can be described as being slack and complacent, with an expedient kind of faith. This is especially suited to a society which wants everything made easy-a “guaranteed or your money back.”

We as individuals must struggle along the unknown road of life. Therefore, we must acquaint ourselves with faith in God now so that we may be at peace and then good will come to us on this road. It is only with faith and love in Christ our Saviour that we begin to have that peace of mind which enables us to live peacefully with others, ourselves, and God Yes, there will be problems, crosses to bear, anxieties, frustrations, sickness, and loneliness in our lives, but our struggle will have a new dimension if we have the virtue of faith. With this new dimension and outlook on life, we will be able to live with our neighbor and achieve our goals. We will begin to act and think as Christians-forgiving, as He so willingly forgave; loving, as He so humbly loved His enemies; and giving, as He so generously gave Himself upon the Cross for us sinners. Are we ready and willing to have faith in God? Do we truly desire to become acquainted with our Lord? Only we ourselves can answer these questions. And if we have true faith we can in deed move mountains.

He saith to them: For truly I say to you, if you have faith as a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, Move hence to yonder place, and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you (Matt. 7:20)

In this age of little faith, we are tempted to interpret these words of the Lord allegorically. But let us turn our eyes to behold the wondrous life of St. Mark the Ascetic, that Desert Father who, during his 95 years of struggle in the desert-against the demons and his own passions-did not see a single man until, just before his death, it was pleasing to God to reveal his whereabouts to another holy monk, Abba Serapion, that the example of his faith would edify Christians for centuries to come. In the following excerpt from his Life, he asks Abba Serapion about the state of the world at that time:

“Tell me, does the world still stand and blossom ac cording to its ancient manner?” And Abba Serapion answered, “Yes, Father, with the grace of Christ even more so than before the world exists and blossoms to this day”.. And the elder rejoiced and asked again, “Are there to be found in the world today c e r t a i n saints who are able to work miracles and wonders? And who have works according to the faith of Christ, as it is written in the Gospels, that if you have faith as a mustard seed you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from your place and fall into the sea and it will do so?”

And as St. Mark was saying this, the mountain which was above them moved and went toward the sea. And the saint picked up his head, and seeing the mountain moving, he hit the stone with his hand and said, “I did not say to you to move, soulless mountain, which are more obedient than man. remain in your place!” And it stood in its place and Abba Serapion fell down and St. Markpicked him up and asked him, “Have you not seen such a miracle in your days?” And St. Serapion answered, “No, elder!” And St. Mark sighed and wept and said, “Woe unto the world, because there are Christians in name only, and not according to their works.”Mount Holly Springs Pennsylvania

(from The Orthodox Word, Jan.-Feb., 1966.)