NOTES for Mc 9:14-32

Having seen the glory of the transfigured Jesus, the disciples “come down from heaven to earth,” both literally and figuratively. They see the helplessness of their brothers, who are unable to help the unfortunate young man; they see how lack of faith overcomes them and the boy's father more powerfully than any demon. Faith truly is a gift: it cannot be accumulated, it can be lost in an instant, and it may fail us at the most important moment of our lives. Christ's voice sounds almost despairing: “If you can believe even a little...” But even when not even “a little” faith remains, Christ does not disappear. He is an objective reality, far more real than all our moments of darkness. And so we can always cry out to Him: help me; I cannot believe, I do not know how—but You are near, You love me, and You can help.