Signature Dish

Balancing obedience and faith with St. Paul

10/14/2019

Romans 1:1-7 Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, called to be an Apostle and set apart for the Gospel of God, which he promised previously through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, the Gospel about his Son, descended from David according to the flesh, but established as Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness through resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord. Through him we have received the grace of apostleship, to bring about the obedience of faith, for the sake of his name, among all the Gentiles, among whom are you also, who are called to belong to Jesus Christ; to all the beloved of God in Rome, called to be holy. Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

Of the thirteen letters or epistles penned by St. Paul in the New Testament, arguably his crowning achievement is the Letter to the Romans. You know how people who enjoy cooking often have a “signature dish” which they always bring to potlucks because in that casserole or coconut cream pie all their culinary skills shine brightly? So, too, we might call the Epistle to the Romans St. Paul’s signature dish where all his skills as both apostle and evangelist are performing at their peak. No wonder, then, the Church invites us to feast on this great letter for almost a month: from October 14 (today) until November 8, with a few breaks for special celebrations like All Saints and All Souls. Folks, get out your best china, polish your grandma’s cutlery, and go ahead and use the cloth napkins instead of paper, for this feast of faith called the Epistle to the Romans.

Our first reading today only consists of the first seven verses of Romans chapter one, but it is already more than we can digest at one sitting. Let me say a word about one phrase that is extremely juicy and rich, namely, where St. Paul says, “the obedience of faith.” Paul employs that pregnant phrase at two critical junctures in his letter, at the beginning in 1:5, and at the end in 16:26. Think of the phrase, “obedience of faith,” like bookends to this great letter, both highlighting the central theme at the beginning and at the end. That reminds me of Bob Hope’s classic definition of a good sermon. He said: “A good sermon should have a great beginning and a great end, and the two should be as close together as possible.” Well, Paul certainly started and ended great, but he also included sixteen great chapters in between those two bookends.

The phrase “obedience of faith” beautifully balances the two sides of a healthy Christian life, namely, faith and works. When Paul writes the phrase “obedience of faith,” he makes it clear we are saved by faith in Christ Jesus. But he also adds that we must also do our part, we must obey Christ, we must have some skin in the game. In other words, we cannot sing and praise God on Sunday at Mass, full of faith, and then the rest of the week act like pagans. You remember what the acronym P.A.G.A.N. stands for, don’t you? The old television series “Dragnet” taught us it means “People Against Goodness And Normalcy.” In a sense, you could say “faith” is the Sunday part of Christianity while “obedience” to the Ten Commandments is the Monday through Saturday part of Christianity. Of course, you need faith and obedience everyday.

Today, ask yourself which side of that delicate balance of “obedience of faith” you tend to lean toward, or even use as a crutch. If we lean too far toward faith we can become lackadaisical and lazy in our Christian walk. We exaggerate how much God loves us, that he is merciful, and in the end we are all going to heaven. That attitude is actually the sin called “presumption,” where we presume upon God’s goodness and mercy and make no personal effort or sacrifice.

On the other hand, we can go too far toward “obedience” and become spiritual workaholics. We believe that what ultimately counts for salvation are our spiritual exercises and acts of piety. So we go through a lot of motions of holiness – we pray rosaries, novenas, attend Adoration, Masses, etc. – but without a lot of heart, without a lot of faith. That’s actually a heresy called Pelagianism which emphasized works to the detriment of faith. And by the way, I believe we are always swinging between these two poles, sometimes over-emphasizing faith and other times our own human effort.

It was precisely Martin Luther’s inability to find the delicate balance between both faith and obedience than led him to launch the Protestant Reformation. In a sense, St. Paul’s main concern in the sixteen chapters of Romans is to help us strike that beautiful balance. Keep that in mind as you enjoy every tasty morsel of St. Paul’s signature dish.

Praised be Jesus Christ!