One of my students made this statement to me the other day, “You Catholics are psycho; you believe in things you can’t see, you hear voices, and see things that aren’t there!”
My reply was, “Yes, it does sound crazy to believe in something I can’t see and I do hear God calling me and I have had a vision of an angel! It might make all of us Catholics seem crazy but we are not psycho!”
Having faith, believing in God, following God’s call, laying down your life for another, sacrificing your needs and wants for others, giving your money, time and talent to strangers, reading a book inspired by God, going to Church; all of these things are counter cultural. Our culture says if you cannot scientifically prove something it is not real. You should look out for your needs first, then your wants. Other people should help themselves, they are not our responsibility, every man for himself. No one deserves our hard earned money but the one who earned it, my time is valuable and I should spend it on ways that bring me pleasure. There is no need to share my talents with others unless I am being paid for it. Reading an ancient book and believing that a “god” inspired it is just unrealistic. Going to Church is just a waste of my precious time.
Faith doesn’t make logical sense to someone who doesn’t have it. If you don’t have faith in God it is very difficult to listen for his voice and to wait for his direction in our lives. If you do not feel the love of God it is difficult to understand how much fulfillment will come from giving everything to others without counting the cost, including your life. If you do not have an intimate relationship with God you will not understand the words he has inspired to guide us through the Bible. If God is not a part of your life then church is empty and meaningless. Without faith you will just think the rest of us are crazy. If having faith, knowing God well, sharing my life with others and becoming selfless is counter cultural I am happy to be outside this culture! Just call me crazy but I have faith and my life has purpose because of it.
What about you? Are you crazy like me? Do you have faith?
