Mar 10, 2025 Written by 

2nd Sunday in Lent (C) - (Gen 15:5-12.17-18)

(Gen 15:5-12.17-18)

 

Genesis 15:5 Then he led him out and said to him, "Look into the sky and count the stars, if you can count them," and he added, "Such shall be your offspring."

Genesis 15:6 And he believed the LORD, who credited it to him as righteousness.

Genesis 15:7 And he said to him, 'I am the LORD who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees to give you possession of this land.

 

 

"Then he led him out and said to him, Look into the sky and count the stars, if you can count them, and he added, Such shall be your offspring." God leads Abraham out of the human way of seeing. Earthly eyes do not see so much. But when they rise up to contemplate the infinite, God's promise takes on its full value and scope. The foundation is laid for a salvation that concerns man and is infinitely above created reality. 

 

"He believed the Lord, who credited it to him as righteousness". There are three components of Abraham's faith:

 

(a) Abraham believes (in Hebrew, the verb believe is "'āman" the same one that gives rise to the amen with which we conclude our prayers and means "to lean on...", "to trust in...". The patriarch trusts God and consigns himself and his future to him.

b) God "credited" this to him. The verb "accredit" is "ḥāšav", it is used in the Bible to indicate validly performed sacrifices. The new, true sacrifice to be offered to God is therefore the inner act of faith. It is no longer by grace that the Lord will give Abraham a numerous offspring. He will give it to him out of righteousness. God does not only give out of grace, he also gives out of righteousness.

c) "...as justice": Abraham becomes "righteous", that is, faithful to the covenant commitment that binds him to his God: faithful and righteous.

 

In what did Abraham believe? Not in a lineage limited and finite in time, but in an eternal lineage. And with that, the promise of a descendants becomes in itself the promise of salvation. In time, the figure of this salvation, which in reality will be a Saviour, will become more and more clearly delineated and manifested.


The act by virtue of which Abraham believed is the emblem and model of faith pleasing to God. Henceforth Abraham will live only by this divine promise, beyond and above all human appearances. It is not enough to come out of a world of perdition to find oneself immediately in a world of salvation. There is a time of patient waiting, of obedience, of perseverance, without which the journey stops halfway.


"And he said unto him, I am the Lord that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give thee possession of this land". God tells Abraham that he was brought out of Ur of the Chaldees precisely to possess the land of Canaan. The first step of faith, which is that of coming out, seems to be attributable solely to the work of God. Abraham was brought out of Ur. It is not imputed to him in justice that he came out of the old life, but that he entered into the new one, which is faith in God's promise, faith in the future coming of a Saviour.


Some might say: I believe in the existence of God, therefore I have faith in God. Believing that God exists does not necessarily entail a life of faith. Mere belief in the existence of God does not bring one into the life of God. True faith is more than mere mental assent to God's existence, it brings with it a radical change in how one stands before Him. Not to the God of my own thinking, but to the God who has historically manifested Himself. It is not enough to believe in a Creator God, we must believe in a God who is also Saviour.


And here the discourse of faith does not admit plurality of faiths. Faith, while presupposing the historical event of the death and resurrection of Christ, descendant of Abraham, Saviour of the world, necessarily entails the proclamation of this event, what we call by the name of Gospel. There can be no ecumenism unless we place before everyone the need for knowledge of the Gospel. One dialogues by announcing and one announces by dialoguing. Dialogue is not the search for a solution and a compromise that will please everyone, but to pass on the Word of God, the only one that saves, through the forms in which man can make it his own. Ecumenism must only deal with the form of the proclamation, it cannot and must not alter its substance.


There is only one door that leads to Paradise and that is the one opened by Christ and guarded by Peter. It is one thing to reflect on how the Gospel can be proclaimed to all, quite another to discuss salvation outside of Christ. One dialogues with those who do not believe for the purpose of proclaiming, one does not argue for failure to proclaim. There is no such thing as the good faith of those who do not believe; there is, and this is a fact, the bad faith of those who are deceived by Satan. Too many people believe in their own sincerity, goodness, to justify non-belief.


Why do we find the model of true faith in Abraham? Because listening to the Word of God in him overcomes and bypasses the ways of reason and the heart. Those who seek God must turn away and be wary of a faith other than that of Abraham. A precondition of faith is the willingness to come out of the old life (Ur of the Chaldees) and enter the new one (the promised land). He does not enter who has not gone out, and he has not gone out except he who is aware of sin. Having entered the faith in itself does not guarantee remaining in the faith. One can also fail and not be persevering to the end. 


For many Catholics, all it takes is Sunday Mass, confession once a year, a few good works, not killing, not stealing... and everything is done. What is missing is the idea that being a Christian means living for Christ and not for oneself. As far as the Protestant church is concerned, the affirmation of a salvation that is given solely and exclusively by faith in Christ, is resolved in the easy psychological type of faith, as the conviction that we are only asked to accept with our hearts and minds the salvation wrought by Jesus. And if we sin we can rest easy, because eternal life is already given by divine election. If salvation is already given and assured, we can also set aside the instruments and gifts of grace bestowed by Christ through his Church and Tradition, the only guarantees of a correct understanding and a true relationship with Revelation.


In Protestantism, it is enough to appeal to one's own conscience, on a path of self-confirmation and self-approval. All by oneself, on one's own, without effort, without being disturbed in one's convictions, in a maximum exaltation of that individualism that is increasingly asserting itself in the world as a sign of the dominion of the devil, prince of this world.

 

 

 

 Argentino Quintavalle, author of the books 

- Revelation - exegetical commentary 

- The Apostle Paul and the Judaizers - Law or Gospel?

Jesus Christ true God and true Man in the Trinitarian mystery

The prophetic discourse of Jesus (Matthew 24-25)

All generations will call me blessed

 Catholics and Protestants compared - In defence of the faith

 

(Buyable on Amazon)

                                                     

186 Last modified on Monday, 10 March 2025 21:14
Argentino Quintavalle

Argentino Quintavalle è studioso biblico ed esperto in Protestantesimo e Giudaismo. Autore del libro “Apocalisse - commento esegetico” (disponibile su Amazon) e specializzato in catechesi per protestanti che desiderano tornare nella Chiesa Cattolica.

Email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Unity is not made with glue [...] The great prayer of Jesus is to «resemble» the Father (Pope Francis)
L’Unità non si fa con la colla […] La grande preghiera di Gesù» è quella di «assomigliare» al Padre (Papa Francesco)
Divisions among Christians, while they wound the Church, wound Christ; and divided, we cause a wound to Christ: the Church is indeed the body of which Christ is the Head (Pope Francis)
Le divisioni tra i cristiani, mentre feriscono la Chiesa, feriscono Cristo, e noi divisi provochiamo una ferita a Cristo: la Chiesa infatti è il corpo di cui Cristo è capo (Papa Francesco)
The glorification that Jesus asks for himself as High Priest, is the entry into full obedience to the Father, an obedience that leads to his fullest filial condition [Pope Benedict]
La glorificazione che Gesù chiede per se stesso, quale Sommo Sacerdote, è l'ingresso nella piena obbedienza al Padre, un'obbedienza che lo conduce alla sua più piena condizione filiale [Papa Benedetto]
All this helps us not to let our guard down before the depths of iniquity, before the mockery of the wicked. In these situations of weariness, the Lord says to us: “Have courage! I have overcome the world!” (Jn 16:33). The word of God gives us strength [Pope Francis]
Tutto questo aiuta a non farsi cadere le braccia davanti allo spessore dell’iniquità, davanti allo scherno dei malvagi. La parola del Signore per queste situazioni di stanchezza è: «Abbiate coraggio, io ho vinto il mondo!» (Gv 16,33). E questa parola ci darà forza [Papa Francesco]
The Ascension does not point to Jesus’ absence, but tells us that he is alive in our midst in a new way. He is no longer in a specific place in the world as he was before the Ascension. He is now in the lordship of God, present in every space and time, close to each one of us. In our life we are never alone (Pope Francis)
L’Ascensione non indica l’assenza di Gesù, ma ci dice che Egli è vivo in mezzo a noi in modo nuovo; non è più in un preciso posto del mondo come lo era prima dell’Ascensione; ora è nella signoria di Dio, presente in ogni spazio e tempo, vicino ad ognuno di noi. Nella nostra vita non siamo mai soli (Papa Francesco)
The Magnificat is the hymn of praise which rises from humanity redeemed by divine mercy, it rises from all the People of God; at the same time, it is a hymn that denounces the illusion of those who think they are lords of history and masters of their own destiny (Pope Benedict)
Il Magnificat è il canto di lode che sale dall’umanità redenta dalla divina misericordia, sale da tutto il popolo di Dio; in pari tempo è l’inno che denuncia l’illusione di coloro che si credono signori della storia e arbitri del loro destino (Papa Benedetto)
This unknown “thing” is the true “hope” which drives us, and at the same time the fact that it is unknown is the cause of all forms of despair and also of all efforts, whether positive or destructive, directed towards worldly authenticity and human authenticity (Spe Salvi n.12)
Questa « cosa » ignota è la vera « speranza » che ci spinge e il suo essere ignota è, al contempo, la causa di tutte le disperazioni come pure di tutti gli slanci positivi o distruttivi verso il mondo autentico e l'autentico uomo (Spe Salvi n.12)
«When the servant of God is troubled, as it happens, by something, he must get up immediately to pray, and persevere before the Supreme Father until he restores to him the joy of his salvation. Because if it remains in sadness, that Babylonian evil will grow and, in the end, will generate in the heart an indelible rust, if it is not removed with tears» (St Francis of Assisi, FS 709)

duevie.art

don Giuseppe Nespeca

Tel. 333-1329741


Disclaimer

Questo blog non rappresenta una testata giornalistica in quanto viene aggiornato senza alcuna periodicità. Non può pertanto considerarsi un prodotto editoriale ai sensi della legge N°62 del 07/03/2001.
Le immagini sono tratte da internet, ma se il loro uso violasse diritti d'autore, lo si comunichi all'autore del blog che provvederà alla loro pronta rimozione.
L'autore dichiara di non essere responsabile dei commenti lasciati nei post. Eventuali commenti dei lettori, lesivi dell'immagine o dell'onorabilità di persone terze, il cui contenuto fosse ritenuto non idoneo alla pubblicazione verranno insindacabilmente rimossi.