Jesus makes us the amazing promise: "I assure you, if you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you would be able to say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it would move. Nothing would be impossible for you" (Mt 17:20). We can do the impossible through faith (Mt 17:20). We can express our faith in many ways, but the way on which Jesus focuses is prayer and fasting (Mt 17:21). Pope John Paul II has prophesied that this way of expressing our faith is of special significance in our culture of death. He reveals: "Prayer and fasting are the first and most effective weapons against the forces of evil" (The Gospel of Life, 100).

To replace this culture of death with a civilization of love and life, we need to do the impossible again and again. We need faith to move not only mountains but even mountain ranges. The Lord promises to give us that great faith, and He even tells us how to express this faith. In this year of God the Father, on the threshold of the Great Jubilee, believe, pray, and fast. Be part of the Holy Spirit's renewing the face of the earth (Ps 104:30).

Nihil Obstat:  Reverend Robert L. Hagedorn, February 22, 1999

Imprimatur:  †Most Reverend Carl K. Moeddel, Vicar General and Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, February 24, 1999