This month our parish is blessed with many opportunities to grow in faith. The Alpha Program continues, men are attending the Oceans: MAX26 MenAlive Conference this weekend, our RCIA journey begins on Saturday 5 September, and later in September many of our young people will attend the Ignite Youth Conference in Brisbane.

Working with our RCIA team recently prompted me to reflect on a simple but important question: What is faith, and why does it matter that we continue to grow it?

The Oxford Dictionary defines faith as “complete trust or confidence in someone or something.” Yet in a world of misinformation, uncertainty, anxiety and constant demands for proof – faith can seem difficult to understand. Where does it fit? Why does it matter?

Like many people, I took my questions to Google. One biblical summary described faith as confident trust in God, expressed through our daily actions, and essential to our relationship with Him (Hebrews 11:1; James 2:14–17; Hebrews 11:6). St Paul reminds us that faith itself is God’s gift: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith… it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8–9).

Two expressions of faith especially captured my attention: saving faith, which transforms our lives, and miraculous faith, the confidence that God is at work in powerful ways. What struck me most was that authentic faith is never just an idea – it grows from a personal relationship with Jesus. The deeper that relationship becomes, the stronger our faith grows.

I also discovered a helpful reflection by Joe Paprocki (Loyola Press), who summarises the four pillars of the Catechism using the acronym H.E.L.P.

• H – Hold our faith by embracing Scripture, Tradition and the Creed, and by sharing our faith with others.
• E – Express our faith through the Sacraments, where we encounter Christ in visible signs.
• L – Live our faith by reflecting Christ’s love and recognising the dignity of every person.
• P – Pray our faith by remaining in daily conversation and communion with God.

This simple framework reminded me that faith isn’t merely something we believe – it is something we practise.

Hebrews tells us that faith is “confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” But the “unseen” is not unknowable. Relationship with Jesus is our source of confidence in the unseen because that relationship is tangible! Our experience of relationship with Jesus can be as physically, emotionally and intellectually REAL as that with our partner, siblings, children or friends. Through prayer, the Sacraments and relying on God in our daily life, our relationship with Jesus becomes deeply personal and real. Faith is both our confidence in Him and the way that confidence is expressed in how we live.

So how can we continue growing in faith?

Our parish offers many opportunities. Join a Connect Group or Bible study. Become involved in a parish ministry. Attend a conference, workshop or prayer group. Support one of our RCIA candidates. Stay after Mass for Hospitality and share yourself and your faith in conversation. If you would like to experience God’s presence more deeply, come forward for post-Mass Prayer Ministry and allow others to pray with you.

You’ll also find excellent resources on our parish website under the Ministry Tab – Faith & Formation, including Catholic podcasts, the Hallow app, Evangelisation Brisbane, Going Deeper and Parousia Media.

Faith really is a “use it or lose it” gift! As we Hold, Express, Live and Pray our Faith, we become more open to God’s work in our own lives and better equipped to share His love with others.

May we all take the opportunities before us this month to grow in faith together as a parish community.

Marie Bampton on behalf of the Faith & Formation Ministry Team