Believe to Know

The pope shows that God gives us signs that point to the truth. If we do not believe the signs, then we will never know.  Thus, we must believe without yet knowing. Believe because the author of the message has proven to be trustworthy.  Then you will know Him. 

Benedict XVI explains the need to believe in order to understand.  Full text

"Seeing that many of his disciples left, Jesus turns to the Apostles saying: "Do you also wish to go?" (John 6:67). As in other cases, it is Peter who answers in the name of the Twelve: "Lord, to whom shall we go?" – We too can repeat: "To whom shall we go?" – "You have the words of eternal life and we have believed and have known that you are the Holy One of God" (John 6:68-69). We have a beautiful commentary from Augustine on this passage: "See how Peter, by the gift of God and the renewal of the Holy Spirit, understood him. How else than because he believed? You have the words of eternal life. For you have eternal life in the ministration of your body and blood. And we have believed and have known. Not have known and believed, but believed and known. For we believed in order to know; for if we wanted to know first, and then to believe, we should not be able either to know or to believe. What have we believed and known? That you are Christ, the Son of God; that is, that you are that very eternal life, and that you give in your flesh and blood only that which you are" (Tractates on the Gospel of John, 27, 9).



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