Spiritual Fabric

39. Do not say that you are the temple of the Lord, writes Jeremiah (cf. Jer. 7:4); nor should you say that faith alone in our Lord Jesus Christ can save you, for this is impossible unless you also acquire love for Him through your works. As for faith by itself, ‘the devils also believe, and tremble’(Jas. 2:19).

St. Maximus the Confessor Four Hundred Centuries on Love: #39

Consider the soul as a holy temple, sanctuary within which divine presence may dwell. St. Maximus appeals to the prophet Jeremiah, warning us from saying of ourselves as temples of the Lord inconsiderately. The imagery reminds us that spiritual purity and the indwelling of God do require a radical transformation, a sanctification of the inner sanctuary by our actions and intentions. A factor, as St. Maximus underlines, for faith in this spiritual walk. Consider faith to be the base whereupon we found our relations with the Divine, the cornerstone which enables us to look through the transcendent—this salvation's light. However, St. Maximus warns us from any misunderstanding of faith as being adequate unto itself for salvation.

To prove his point, he brings up the image of devils trembling, who believe too. This, then, is what we behold in this picture: faith without life, without love, and without active constructive work, is dead, incapable of salvation. Faith is a seed laying in dormancy, ready to spring forth, demanding a diet of love and works to grow into a great tree of righteousness.

As an example of the interconnectedness of faith, works, and love, St. Maximus says that they are like the threads of a spiritual fabric woven together. Faith opens our eyes toward divine things, works reveal our faith in action, and love is the power of transformation with respect to God. Picture this as though it's a tapestry woven—threads in the weave would then be able to take part in the beauty and strength of the whole.