It is one of those perplexing paradoxes of the spiritual life that an increase in signs of God’s power at work in our world can actually weaken both faith and authentic freedom. If we recall that Hebrews defines faith as the assurance of things hoped for, and the conviction of things never seen, then great signs and miraculous power can weaken faith in the sense that faith becomes less necessary and is replaced by a greater assurance based on fact and on what one knows rather than believes. And while this deeper assurance is a good thing it also has the potential to undermine human freedom to respond in love to the invitation to divine intimacy and union. This is because there can be a coercive quality to all displays of power by a being greater than ourselves. And, thus, whereas our first reading describes the positive effects resulting from the signs that Philip was doing, these same displays of power can weaken a free response to God’s love by instilling a subservient fear rather than a worshipful wonder and awe at God’s unlimited power. And this seems to be why God’s power and majesty are typically hidden and more often than not work in disguised and muted forms in our everyday lives. And so, displays of God’s power and majesty in our world are such as to be ambiguous enough to invite rather than coerce faith and belief, and yet sufficient enough to render faith reasonable and our belief resting on a firm foundation.