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the same way that, in the Easter liturgy, the light
of the paschal candle lights countless other can-
dles. Faith is passed on, we might say, by contact,
from one person to another, just as one candle is
lighted from another. Christians, in their poverty,
plant a seed so rich that it becomes a great tree,
capable of filling the world with its fruit.
38.âÂÂThe transmission of the faith not only
brings light to men and women in every place;
it travels through time, passing from one gen-
eration to another. Because faith is born of an
encounter which takes place in history and lights
up our journey through time, it must be passed
on in every age. It is through an unbroken chain
of witnesses that we come to see the face of Je-
sus. But how is this possible? How can we be
certain, after all these centuries, that we have en-
countered the âÂÂreal JesusâÂÂ? Were we merely iso-
lated individuals, were our starting point simply
our own individual ego seeking in itself the ba-
sis of absolutely sure knowledge, a certainty of
this sort would be impossible. I cannot possibly
verify for myself something which happened so
long ago. But this is not the only way we attain
knowledge. Persons always live in relationship.
We come from others, we belong to others, and
our lives are enlarged by our encounter with oth-
ers. Even our own knowledge and self-awareness
are relational; they are linked to others who have
gone before us: in the first place, our parents,
who gave us our life and our name. Language
