Defining and keeping the Christian Faith in the Church

Defining and keeping the Christian Faith in the Church

(A reflection on Porta Fidei)

In the 1500s, the Catholic Church had finally reformed herself after a long struggle of reform. Reforms at the ranks and at below were unsuccessful since there was no universal desire to undergo such change. Reform had been separately dealt by few secular clergy, few temporal rulers, few religious congregations and others. However, in 1545 the Catholic Church had finally settled the struggle of reform after the havoc and distortions that had been caused by the Protestant Reformation. The Ecumenical Council of Trent was primarily a reaction against the controversies and inquiries raised by Martin Luther and his followers. In the first phase of the Council, 1545-1547, one of the issues discussed was the opposition of Luther against the source of faith. For Luther there is only one source that is the Holy Scripture or Sola Scriptura. However, the Church responded to it that there is only one source or deposit of faith. It was revealed to mankind and channeled into two ways, Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition. Trent did not cater the two-source theory that was being accused of to the Church. This is one of the significance of Trent in the history of the Church by defining finally through a decree. Nevertheless, faith was kept in this matter into two ways, Sacred Scripture and Sacred Tradition.

On October 11, 2011 Pope Benedict XVI wrote the Muto Propio, Porta Fidei, by declaring a Year of Faith starting October 11, 2012. He called for a year of faith at the anniversary of the convocation of the Vatican Council II in 1962. He wrote some of his personal reasons on why he declared a year of Faith, “It often happens that Christians are more concerned for the social, cultural and political consequences of their commitment, continuing to think of the faith as a self-evident presupposition for life in society.” (Porta Fidei, 2). He further adds that in reality, this presupposition has been openly denied. At the same time, he had convoked for a Synod of Bishop on that same day on October 11, 2012 to rediscover and reflect faith using the documents of Vatican II as the point of departure in the synod. He gave the theme, “The New Evangelization for the Transmission of the Christian Faith”. Benedict XVI also believes in the same purpose of Paul VI, his venerable predecessor, to declare another Year of Faith in order for all Christians to have the “exact knowledge of the faith, so as to reinvigorate it, purify it, confirm it, and confess it” (Porta Fidei, 4). Nevertheless, in context with the realities of the 21^st century, the Church tries to find ways on how faith should be kept by looking for new evangelization and how Christian faith should be transmitted to people.

            Our faith has been defined already long since the foundation of Christian faith through our Lord, Jesus Christ, but it was later only proclaimed and clarified in Trent. However, knowledge on faith wasn’t enough to make people live a holier and fulfilled Christian life that until now it is still the constant call of the Church. Keeping the faith is nonetheless the need to be addressed in the Synod of Bishops of October 2012 calls for.

            This faith then that we constantly yearn for is “to profess faith in the Trinity – Father, Son and Holy Spirit – is to believe in one God who is Love (cf. 1 Jn 4:8): the Father, who in the fullness of time sent his Son for our salvation; Jesus Christ, who in the mystery of his death and resurrection redeemed the world; the Holy Spirit, who leads the Church across the centuries as we await the Lord’s glorious return.” (Porta Fidei, 1).