Friday of the Seventh Week of Easter
So many people do not REALLY have faith in Christ or in his resurrection. They see Jesus as a nice guy who said good things like "Love each other." But today's reading in Acts (25:13b-21) shows that faith in Jesus must be something deeper than that. In my reflection today, I set some context for this passage in Acts, in order to discuss this deeper faith.
Festus is the current governor of Caesarea, an area that includes Judea; Agrippa is grandson of Herod and king of an area north of Judea; Bernice is his sister. Festus has been holding Paul in prison because of charges made by some of the Jewish members of the region. Paul is charged with inciting violence, disturbing the peace, and desecrating the temple and has been imprisoned for two years already. He was first charged with these crimes when the previous governor, Felix, was in charge.
Festus (and Felix before him) are in charge of this largely Jewish province, and they want to keep the peace: that is their job. And so they do not release Paul, because they want to make nice with their constituents (see verse 9). Much like Pontius Pilate, Festus wants to wash his hands of this pesky problem and asks Paul to go to Jerusalem to face charges. But Paul refuses, saying: " I have committed no crime against the Jews, as you very well know. If I have committed a crime or done anything deserving death, I do not seek to escape the death penalty; but if there is no substance to the charges they are bringing against me, then no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar." (vv. 10-11)
In the next chapter following today's passage, Festus, Bernice and Agrippa hear Paul's enchanting story. Agrippa almost becomes converted himself: "You will soon persuade me to play the Christian." And then Agrippa says that Paul has indeed committed no crime and would have been let go if he had not appealed to the emperor.
In later chapters, Paul will continue to Rome, first having survived a ship wreck and then a venomous snake bite, healing the sick as he goes, before finally arriving in the city. He remains under house arrest for two more years, and he evangelizes every chance he can get. And ultimately he will receive the death penalty, but at the hands of the Romans.
Paul just keeps going and going, through all of this. I am struck, again and again, with how content Paul is to be proclaiming Jesus' resurrection. No matter where he is, no matter whom he meets, Paul seeks opportunities to tell others about Jesus. Feeding lambs and tending sheep, as Jesus requests of Peter in today's gospel (John 21:15-19) requires going where we do not want to go, but doing it for the sake of Jesus. Paul and Peter both are amazing examples of this. I think they must have been absolutely on fire with knowledge of Jesus' resurrection to do the things they did. They knew Jesus rose, as a fact. Do we have this kind of faith? Let us today pray for faith so that we, too, can go out to witness, even in uncomfortable and hostile situations.
- Jana M. Bennett