I Believe; Help My Unbelief!
A Reflection On Mark 9:17-31
At that time, a man came to Jesus kneeling and saying: “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a dumb spirit; and wherever it seizes him it dashes him down; and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid; and I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able.” And he answered them, “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” And they brought the boy to him; and when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth. And Jesus asked his father, “How long has he had this?” And he said, “From childhood. And it has often cast him into the fire and into the water, to destroy him; but if you can do anything, have pity on us and help us.” And Jesus said to him, “If you can! All things are possible to him who believes.” Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You dumb and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him, and never enter him again.” And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse; so that most of them said, “He is dead.” But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose. And when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer and fasting.” They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he would not have any one know it; for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “The Son of man will be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him; and when he is killed, after three days he will rise.”
Mark 9:17-31
Here in the fourth week of Great Lent, the words of a desperate father—spoken out of love for his son—point to the struggle we all find ourselves in. In our lives, we all cry, “I believe; help my unbelief!” for we are each, in one way or another, in the midst of a struggle of faith. To deepen our faith during these times, we must remember that faith is a journey, strengthened through prayer and perseverance, even when it feels fragile.
In today’s Gospel, taken once again from Mark, we hear the story of a man who brings his son to Christ. The boy is struck mute by a demon and often thrown into violent convulsions that threaten his life. The father explains that he first brought his son to the apostles, but they were unable to heal him.
Hearing this, our Lord proclaims, “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” In these words, we hear both the weight of human struggle and the compassion of Christ. He sees the suffering of the father, the torment of the son, and even the weakness of His own apostles. The question, “How long am I to be with you?” points toward His coming Passion. Yet in “How long am I to bear with you?” we see that, through His continued ministry in the Church, the answer is always: He remains with us.
When Christ refers to a “faithless generation,” He is speaking of a world afflicted by sin—one that separates us from the presence of God. Yet with His coming, that separation is overcome. Still, because we live in an age that is passing away, it can be difficult for us to perceive this reality. Our struggles can paralyze us, halting our movement toward Christ. Thus, we find ourselves caught between two ways of living: either centering our lives in the age to come, journeying forward in faith, or remaining in the despondency of a fading world.
Acknowledging this struggle, our Lord calls the boy to Himself. The father, striving to trust, pleads with Christ: “If you can do anything, have pity on us and help us.”
Christ responds, “If you can! All things are possible to him who believes.” These words reveal that all things are possible through Him, for He is truly God. Yet to perceive this truth, we must have faith—a faith that is itself a gift from Him. Without Christ, we do not even know where to direct our struggle.
It is then that we witness one of the most honest and profound confessions in Scripture. The father cries out, “I believe; help my unbelief!” Through the word of God, the demon is cast out, and the child is restored and raised up by our Lord. In this, we see the condition we are all called to: lifted up into His loving and saving presence.
This Gospel reminds us that faith is not merely an intellectual exercise. Rather, it is the movement of the whole person toward God. To grow in faith, we must actively seek Christ through prayer, service, and trust—aligning our hearts with our beliefs and encountering His presence more fully. This intentional pursuit enables us to reflect Christ in our lives and recognize Him more clearly.
The presence of Christ is already transforming the fallen reality we inhabit. Yet when we stop pursuing Him, we become blind to the salvation He offers. To recognize His presence, we must remain attentive in prayer, open to His guidance, and trusting that He is near—even when we do not feel it. In moments of silence or doubt, Christ has not departed. If we continue to seek Him, our faith will be renewed, and in our greatest struggles, we will again cry, “I believe; help my unbelief!”
We are reminded, too, that our Lord is always with us, aiding and guiding us even in our weakness. The father in this Gospel struggles to care for a son afflicted by the consequences of sin. Yet out of love, he perseveres—even as his faith falters. In doing so, he shows that he has not lost hope.
Such is the case for all who struggle—especially those caring for infirm loved ones. When our eyes drift from Christ, those we care for can begin to feel like burdens. But when we seek Him in the midst of our struggle, we discover that He is present with them as well.
Whatever our struggle may be, we must remember that Christ never abandons us. We see this not only in His earthly ministry but most fully in His willingness to take up the Cross. Through His Resurrection and Ascension, this promise continues in the life of the Church. He strengthens us through the Holy Spirit, who dwells within us and directs us toward true life.
When we take our eyes off Christ, our struggles can seem meaningless, and we risk sinking into despair—like St. Peter, who turned away while walking on the sea. Yet when Peter fixes his gaze on Christ, he finds strength, for he is pulled up from the depths and walks again in Christ’s presence. The same is true for us, especially in our struggles: Christ is present, sustaining us as we move toward Him.
So let us continue our journey toward Christ. And when the weight of life feels overwhelming, let us, like the father in today’s Gospel, cry out: “I believe; help my unbelief!” For though we all struggle, our Lord sees us in that struggle and provides everything we need to stand in His presence. He walks with us, bearing our burdens and leading us into His loving and saving life.
To truly believe is a struggle for us all. Yet it is precisely in this struggle that we come to see all that our Lord offers—so that, in the end, we may receive true life in His eternal presence.
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