October 4th is the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals. There are five scientific reasons why people love their dogs:
There is a story told about Patrick, who went to the parish priest because his dog had died, and he wanted a Mass said for his dog.
But the priest said, “We don’t do services for dogs, but there is a non-denominational church down the street. Maybe they will do something for your dog.”
Partick replied, “Thank you, Father. I will ask them. By the way, Father, do you think that $5,000.00 is enough to donate for the service?”
“Oh, Patrick,” Father said, “why didn’t you tell me that your dog was Catholic?”
Our country needs more humor. There is too much mudslinging and negativity. It is a systemic problem. We seem to be imploding with anger and frustration. We need to stop it. None of us should be jumping on the hate bandwagon.
Free speech does not translate into disrespect, name-calling, or humiliating others. Respectful dialogue can take place among people with differing views. Civility is a virtue.
The polarization and discord we face can cause us to wonder, as the prophet Habakkuk did in the first reading. “How long, O Lord? I cry out for help, but you do not listen!”
We have all experienced crying to God for help, yet sometimes God doesn’t seem to care. The reality is that God does listen to our pleas but doesn’t always answer them according to our personal desires. God knows what is best for us, but we don’t understand that, because we want it our way and we want it now.
Perhaps, like the apostles in the gospel, we too need to beg the Lord to increase our faith.
Today’s gospel cannot be understood without reading the preceding verse, Luke 17:4 “… and if he sins against you seven times in the day, and turns to you seven times, and says, ‘I repent,’ you must forgive him.”
Vindictive revenge was the cultural norm in the time of Jesus, and unfortunately, it is still true today. There is little wonder, then, that the apostles asked for an increase in faith in order to accept Jesus’ difficult teachings on forgiveness.
In the gospel, when the apostles asked for an increase in faith, what happened? Jesus doesn’t increase their faith but tells them a riddle about the tiniest seed and the largest tree in the area around the Sea of Galilee.
In other words, if they just use the faith they have, it will be enough for them to live the teachings that Jesus is leaving with them.
The response of Jesus teaches us:
I like the story of a priest and a soap maker who were walking together.
The soap maker said, “What good is faith? Look at all the trouble and misery in the world. After thousands of years of preaching and teaching truth and peace, after all the prayers and sermons, what good is it to believe in God?”
The priest said nothing for a while as they continued walking. Then he turned to the soap maker and said, “Look at those children playing in the mud and all the mud on them. Doesn’t soap make people clean?”
“Yes,” said the soap maker.
“But see the mud on that child,” said the priest. “What good is soap? With all the soap in the world, that child is still dirty.”
“But Father, soap isn’t any good unless it is used,” replied the soap maker.
The priest simply said, “That is the point. Faith isn’t any good unless it is used.”
There is plenty of soap in the world, and there is plenty of faith. But they have to be used.
Lame excuses do not work in life, and they do not work with Jesus. Jesus is blunt in the gospel. You have faith. Build on it. Use what you have. What are you saving it for?
It is like the story of the husband whose wife died unexpectedly. He was selecting an outfit from his wife’s closet to take to the mortuary. He reached the upper shelf and found a sweater that his wife had bought when they were on a trip many years ago. The price tag was still on the sweater as she had never worn it – she had been waiting for a special occasion.
“Well,” he thought to himself. “I guess this is a special occasion.” He cut off the price tag, thinking, “Don’t ever save anything for a special occasion. Every day that you live is a special occasion.”
Faith is like a muscle. You have to exercise it every day to make it strong. Faith is the courage to believe, even when we do not fully understand.
We all have enough faith, even if it is the size of a mustard seed. It is faith that leads us to be a forgiving people.
I recall being at a trial of a killer of three little girls when the father of one of the victims suddenly rushed at the killer screaming, “I’ll chase you all the way to hell!” I understand the father’s fierce anger, but there was something prophetic about his words. If we allow our hatred to go unchecked, it will eventually destroy us. We will follow our bitterness “all the way to hell.”
It was in 2006 that a 32-year-old husband and father of three walked into a one-room Amish schoolhouse. He shot and killed five students and wounded many others before he killed himself. Within hours, the Amish community gathered together and visited the home of the killer to offer condolences for the loss of their son, husband and father. Later, the Amish explained that their willingness to forgo vengeance did not undo the tragedy or pardon the wrong but rather constituted a first step toward healing and a future that is more hopeful.
This act of mercy is one we can strive to follow.
Perhaps we do not need an increase in faith so much as to use the faith we have so we can also be forgivers.
© Copyright 2025 All Rights Reserved