Faith and Vigilance: Living Justly in the Sight of God
Reflections on James 2:12–17 and Luke 12:35–40
In the spirit of St. John Cantius, Confessor | Monday in the 19th Week after Pentecost Octave | III Classis | October 4
“So speak ye, and so do, as being to be judged by the law of liberty.” (James 2:12)
Today’s liturgical readings call us to a life not only of interior faith but of outward charity and vigilant service. Set in the rich tapestry of the post-Pentecost season, the Church, ever mindful of her children’s sanctification, exhorts us to perseverance in both doctrine and deed, especially under the tutelage of one of her most humble scholars—St. John Cantius, Confessor and model of sanctity in academic life.
We are given two passages to ponder: St. James 2:12–17 and St. Luke 12:35–40—texts that together form a call to action for the soul: to live in active faith and watchful readiness.
I. Faith That Works Through Charity
James 2:12–17 strikes at the heart of a Christian misconception that faith alone, apart from works, is sufficient. The Apostle does not undermine the necessity of faith (which is the root of all justification), but rather affirms what the Fathers of the Church consistently taught: that true faith must be alive—a faith that manifests in mercy, justice, and love.
“Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone.” (James 2:17)
St. Augustine comments on this passage:
“Do you say, ‘I have faith’? Show me your faith without works, if you can: I will show you my faith by my works. That is the faith which is fruitful in good works, and not the faith which demons have and tremble.”
(Sermon 153.6)
Similarly, St. John Chrysostom warns against complacency:
“Faith profits you nothing without charity and a pure life. God seeks a soul that is clean and illumined, not just one that believes.”
(Homily 24 on Matthew)
St. James, the first Bishop of Jerusalem and called “the Just,” understood that the Christian, freed from the yoke of the Mosaic Law, now stands under the “law of liberty”—the law of Christ (cf. Gal. 6:2), which fulfills the old through the perfection of charity. Thus, the apostle warns us: we shall be judged not only by our belief but by how that belief has transformed our conduct.
Let this remind us of the words of our holy patron of the day, St. John Cantius, whose life as a scholar and priest was marked by profound humility and acts of mercy. Though he taught at the University of Krakow, his greatest lessons were in the streets, feeding the poor, giving away his own coat, and bearing injuries with patience. His orthodoxy was animated by love—he did not separate truth from goodness.
II. Watch, for the Master Comes
Turning to Luke 12:35–40, we hear Our Lord’s command to remain vigilant:
“Let your loins be girt, and lamps burning in your hands.”
This is the posture of the servant awaiting the Master—not idle or drowsy, but alert, prepared, and filled with zeal. The early Church Fathers saw this readiness as essential to the Christian life.
St. Cyril of Alexandria teaches:
“To have loins girded signifies readiness in the virtues… To have lamps burning is to be inwardly alight with divine love and the knowledge of the truth.”
(Commentary on Luke, Homily 89)
St. Gregory the Great, whose writings so deeply influenced the medieval mind, echoes this in his Homilies on the Gospels:
“The lamp signifies the brightness of good works; the girded loins the restraint of the flesh. We must be found prepared both in virtue and action.”
(Hom. 13 on the Gospels)
Our Lord warns that He shall come at an unexpected hour. The implication is clear: the final judgment, whether at the end of time or the hour of death, is not a matter of speculation but of preparation.
The vigilant soul is not fearful but faithful. He watches not out of dread but out of love—eager to greet the Bridegroom.
III. The Convergence of Faith and Watchfulness
Today’s readings challenge us not to a passive orthodoxy, but to a living and working faith, guided by divine charity and ever-watchful for the Lord’s coming. The righteous will be known not merely by their confession of the Creed, but by their imitation of Christ.
This is the legacy of St. John Cantius—who, though a doctor of theology, never ceased to be a servant of the poor; whose knowledge was sanctified by humility; whose faith was alive with good works. His life exemplifies the golden thread that runs through both epistle and gospel today: the union of faith and vigilance in daily holiness.
Let us then heed the call:
- To speak and act as those to be judged by the law of liberty, that is, by the law of Christ’s mercy and truth;
- To keep our lamps burning with deeds of charity, purity of heart, and attentiveness to the Divine Will.
In the words of St. Jerome:
“Let us not be found asleep with our lamps extinguished. For when He comes, the time for buying oil will be past.”
(Commentary on Matthew 25)