Letter of an Inquirer

Beloved, I am sending you inquiries and questions, because I am compelled to seek further instruction from you on many points. Do not refuse to hear me. My spirit urges me to bring many subjects before you, so that you may open up for me the spiritual understanding of your mind, and show me all that you have grasped from the holy books. In this way my lack may be supplied by you, my hunger satisfied by your teaching, and my thirst quenched from the fountain of your instruction. Yet though many things are set in my mind to ask you, I am nevertheless keeping them all back, so that when I come to you, you may instruct me on every subject. [a]

But before everything else, I want you to write and instruct me about the thing that presses on me, namely our faith: what it is like, what its foundation is, on what structure it rises and on what it rests, in what way it is fulfilled and brought to completion, and what works it requires. For my own part, I firmly believe that God is one, who made the heavens and the earth from the beginning. He adorned the world by his handiwork. He made man in his image. It was he who accepted the offering of Abel. He took Enoch away because of his excellence. He preserved Noah because of his righteousness. He chose Abraham because of his faith. He spoke with Moses because of his gentleness. It was he who spoke in all the prophets, and he also sent his Christ into the world. Since I believe, then, my brother, that these things are so, I ask you, brother, to write and show me what works this faith of ours requires, so that you may set my mind at rest. [c]