Confidence in God

Servant of God, Father Isaac Thomas Hecker wrote:

St. Philip Neri was heard to say by a friend of his, “I despair, I despair.” “How so Philip,” the friend asked. He replied, “I despair of myself but place my entire confidence in God.” Trusting entirely in God is the corollary of mistrusting ourselves.

The soul says in its trial, “The Lord has withdrawn from me, but I will not despair. He has abandoned me, but I will not cease to labor for his glory, He has rejected me, but I will not withstanding have his praises in my mouth. The Lord has condemned me, but the Lord is just and I will never seek to magnify his justice. Happy is the man whose confidence in Divine Providence is without bounds, for he shall enjoy a perpetual serenity of mind and peace in the soul. For it is this which brings the felicity of the angels and the blessed in heaven, and the consolation of the saints on earth. 

 To be always conscious of our entire dependence upon God for what we are, have and hope for is the source of an entire confidence in God and the ground of perfect humility. He who trusts all in God, God trusts all in him.

Response from the Father Paul Robichaud, CSP

Servant of God Isaac Hecker loved St. Philip Neri, the great evangelist of Rome in the 16th century. St. Philip Neri devoted his ministry to non-practicing Catholics in Rome, for which there were a great number. He re-introduced them to the Catholic faith through song and story. He once said that without a sense of humor it is impossible to have a spiritual life. Father Hecker, during his first visit to Rome in 1857-1858, grew to admire the story of St. Philip Neri and often visited his tomb at the Chiesa Nuova. St. Philip Neri had gone through a dark period of sadness and depression and when it lifted he was transformed into a person of great joy and playfulness. In discussing hope and confidence in God, it is not a surprise that Father Hecker would begins with a quote from the great saint.

Father Hecker calls us to trust in God no matter what we face, even if we fear that God has abandoned us we should never give up our confidence in God’s care for us. Learning to trust in God gives us serenity of mind and allows us to be at peace no matter what the world throws up against us. Confidence in God is the basis of true humility, for what we cannot do, God will do for us if we trust. This sense of confidence allows us the freedom to accept our powerlessness, which is the first step in the traditional twelve steps of recovery from addiction. Finally Father Hecker notes that as we learn to have confidence in God, God has confidence in us and as we grow in hope so too we grow in faith and love.

About this series

Father Paul Robichaud, CSP, is the historian of the Paulist Fathers and postulator of the Cause of Father Hecker. His office is located at the Hecker Center in Washington, D.C.

If you have asked Father Hecker to pray for you or another person who is ill and you believe something miraculous has happened, please phone Father Paul at 202-269-2519 or write to [email protected] and tell him your story.