Seeing the seen with faith

Today's first reading (Hebrews 11:1-7) begins with the famous description of faith:

Faith is the realization of what is hoped for
and evidence of things not seen.

But today’s readings also remind us that faith is about much more than “things not seen”. Faith teaches us the true and fundamental meaning of the things that we do see.

By faith we understand that the universe
was ordered by the word of God,
so that what is visible
came into being through the invisible.

We hear likewise in the Gospel (Mark 9:1-13) how faith gives understanding of people and events

But I tell you that Elijah has come
and they did to him whatever they pleased,
as it is written of him.

In the parallel to this text, Matthew adds (17:13)

Then the disciples understood
that he was speaking to them of John the Baptist.

May we always ask the Lord to give us the light of faith: to strengthen our hope in the good things not yet seen and to make clear to our minds the grace and the goodness that underlies the things we see and feel.