The True Cost of Faith:​​​​​​​ Beyond the Electric Blanket

A sharp, insightful quote of Flannery O’Connor’s that was recently shared on Sacred Heart Catholic Radio cuts right through modern illusion & expectation: “What people don’t realize is how much religion costs. They think faith is a big electric blanket, when of course, it is the cross.” Hearing that hits hard in the gut. Isn’t our faith our shield, our protection? It keeps hope alive & sustains a level of inner peace within us, yes, but it is certainly not sheltering us from life’s pain & suffering — in fact, it can be the cause of it when it comes to the sacrifice of putting God & our Catholic faith first.

Living in a world craving comfort & avoiding pain at all costs, many of us envision our faith as a cozy assurance, a passive warmth insulating us from life’s chills. The popularity of mega churches with inspiring messages, flowing coffee, & an entertaining concert as the Sunday service — all feel-good messages lacking challenges, convictions, or difficulties — is understandable. Yet, as O’Connor reminds us, authentic faith demands a radical commitment, echoing Christ’s call for one to “… deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me” (Lk 9:23). It’s not a security blanket or a hokey Hallmark card sentiment, but a path of trust, effort, sacrifice, self-mastery & self-denial. A familiar sting to those of us authentically striving for holiness, even at the cost of self-induced suffering & uncomfortable tension with friends & family. “I have said this to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world” (Jn 16:33).

Catholic faith thrives on trust, not unshakeable certainty. While faith offers profound assurance —”more certain than all human knowledge” (CCC 157) because it rests on God’s unerring word, on THE truth, it does, however, coexist with human frailty. We entrust ourselves to a God who reveals Himself in Christ, yet personal weaknesses cause confusion in recognizing the truth of God’s plan for our salvation. As Pope Benedict XVI, in his General Audience on October 24, 2012, explained, faith is “a confident entrustment to a ‘You’ who is God,” providing hope amid crises, but it requires free adherence to divine love revealed on the Cross. This trust isn’t blind; it’s a participatory gaze through Christ’s eyes, seeing reality’s deepest meaning in His incarnation & resurrection. It is a surrender to that reality. Doubt may shadow our journey, as in “…the search of the Magi under the guidance of a star,” but it doesn’t erode faith’s foundation in God’s promise (Pope St. John Paul II, Catechesi Tradendae 60).

Far from passive comfort, this faith exacts a high price through profound effort of dying to oneself & adherence to Christ’s path. It calls for moral commitment, where “faith becomes confession” before God & others, manifesting in humility, mercy, charity, and self-gift (Pope St. John Paul II, Veritatis Splendor, 89). Self-denial is essential: renouncing bodily desires, sacrificing lawful goods for divine love, and embracing the cross as proof of the greatest love (Pope Benedict XVI, General Audience, October 24, 2012). For all believers — poverty of spirit, chaste love, obedient will — frees us for our mission, vocation, family, and community.

Our bodies, too, teach the temporal nature of secular treasures. O’Connor, a devout Catholic wrestling with illness herself, embodied this cost, her stories unflinchingly portraying grace amid suffering. As frail vessels prone to pain & decay, they remind us of our earthly pilgrimage, urging detachment from the materials we grasp so tightly. Yet, this isn’t despair; the body is destined for redemption. Through Christ’s resurrection, it will be glorified in everlasting life, where faith’s cross yields eternal joy. As St. Paul affirms, our sufferings “…complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions…” (Col 1:24) for the Church’s body.

In embracing faith’s cost, we find not deceptive warmth, but transformative fire. It invites us to peacefully trust amid doubt, deny ourselves for Christ’s sake & hope in bodily glory. O’Connor’s cross-bearing life challenges us: Will we settle for a comfy blanket, or follow the thorny Way?

Written by, Evie Estes,
Curriculum Production Manager,
Editor, Sales & Website Support