The Persistence of Faith: From Ardent Seeking to Ardent Service

Mal 3:13-20a, Psalm: 1, Lk 11:5-13

Memorial of Saint John Henry Newman, priest and cardinal

My dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

On this memorial of Saint John Henry Newman, a great mind and a greater heart who sought truth with relentless perseverance, the Word of God speaks to us about the very nature of faith. It is a faith that is tested by the world’s cynicism but is ultimately rewarded by the Father’s boundless generosity.

The prophet Malachi presents a scene that feels strikingly modern. God’s people are complaining: “It is vain to serve God… for we call the blessed arrogant; evildoers indeed prosper.” They see the wicked flourishing and question the value of their own fidelity. This is the voice of discouragement, the temptation to believe that holiness does not pay. But God hears their murmuring. He promises a day of reckoning, a day when the distinction between the just and the wicked will be made blazingly clear. “For you who fear my name,” says the Lord, “the sun of justice will arise with its healing rays.” The call is to persevere in faithfulness, even when the immediate evidence seems to contradict God’s justice.

This persevering faith is precisely what Jesus teaches us in the Gospel. Through the parable of the persistent friend, He illustrates the nature of prayer. It is not a single, polite request. It is a bold, even shameless, persistence. The man receives bread not because of friendship, but because of his “importunity,” his refusal to give up. Jesus then gives the magnificent promise: “Ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.” He contrasts earthly fathers, who, despite their flaws, give good gifts, with our Heavenly Father, who gives the supreme gift: the Holy Spirit to those who ask.

Saint John Henry Newman is a magnificent icon of this twofold dynamic. His long intellectual and spiritual journey from Anglicanism to the Catholic Church was a lifelong “asking, seeking, and knocking.” He persevered in his quest for truth despite misunderstanding and criticism. He did not settle for comfortable half-truths. And his perseverance was rewarded not merely with intellectual assent, but with a profound encounter with the love of God that fueled his priestly and cardinal ministry. His famous prayer, “God has created me to do Him some definite service… He has not created me for naught,” reveals a heart that trusted completely in the Father’s promise to give the Holy Spirit—the Spirit who guides and empowers us for that unique service.

So, what does this mean for us? When we are tempted to echo the complainers in Malachi—when we see evil prospering and our own efforts seeming fruitless—we are called to the persistence of the Gospel. We are to knock again and again in prayer, trusting that the Sun of Justice, Christ Himself, will indeed arise with healing.

Our persistence is not an attempt to change God’s mind, but to align our hearts with His will and to deepen our trust in His timing. As Pope Francis has said, “Prayer is not a magic wand! It is a dialogue with the Lord.” It is in this dialogue that our faith is purified and strengthened.

Saint Newman’s life teaches us that this persistent prayer leads to a profound confidence in God’s providence. We may not always receive the exact thing we ask for, but we will always receive the Holy Spirit—the courage to endure, the wisdom to understand, and the charity to serve.

Let us, therefore, go forth from this Eucharist with the perseverance of the seeker and the confidence of the child. Let us ask, seek, and knock, not with a sense of desperation, but with the trust that our Heavenly Father is listening, and that He will give us, in His perfect time, exactly what we need for our salvation and for the “definite service” to which He has called each one of us. Amen.