Monday of the Second Week of Easter
While reflecting on the readings today, I am struck by how the Apostles prayed with their fledgling community in Jerusalem. As this is the year of Prayerful Discipleship in our parish, it seems logical they would have something to teach us. The times we live in may be very different from the first century Jerusalem; however our commission as disciples of Jesus has not changed.
The first reading is from chapter 4 of the Acts of the Apostles. Peter and John, arrested for proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus, have just been released by the Chief Priests and Sadducees. Immediately upon returning to their community, the Apostles and their people, began praying to the Lord (Acts 4:23-25). I imagined myself in this little fragile community of disciples living as outcasts, daily facing disdain and persecution, imprisonment and torture. I suspect each one of them had friends or family members who had been put to death for their Christianity. In light of these circumstances I was thinking about what would be reasonable petitions to place before God. Here are few that came to mind: thank God for the release and safe return of Peter and John, plead with God to protect the community and grant them personal safety, forgive those who persecute and mistreat them, change the hearts of those who are not believers, and so forth. These are probably all things they prayed for in their gatherings. They are similar to the prayers we place before God at each Eucharist. But in this passage Luke shows the community begging God for something else. Verse 29 says, “…enable your servants to speak your word with all boldness”. Even under constant threat of harm, this young community did not lose sight of their commission or their focus. They did not give in to the temptation to fear. They had so claimed their identity and purpose as a community of disciples that their most fervent prayer was for all the more boldness to preach the Gospel. I am amazed at this testimony.
I find myself wondering when I last prayed that God would grant me boldness in proclaiming the Gospel. For that matter, when did I last pray with my discipleship community that we be emboldened to proclaim his Word? And how would that boldness be expressed in my personal life or in the life of my discipleship community? It does not take boldness to proclaim the Gospel in the company of fellow disciples. Boldness is only necessary when there is risk involved! So it is in all the other circumstances of daily life –out there in the trenches of the ‘secular’ world--when boldness is needed. That is where we are presented with opportunity upon opportunity to proclaim the Gospel. And that is where we need this special grace from God. Limited by our own strength, it is very tempting to remain timid and let the opportunities pass right on by.
This day let us pray for boldness. Let us beg for the grace to recognize and embrace opportunities for us and our community to boldly proclaim the Gospel of Jesus. When that little community in Jerusalem prayed to the Lord for boldness Luke writes “…the place where they were gathered shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:31). This is the same Spirit of God waiting to respond to us today.
O Holy Spirit, mysterious and powerful Advocate!
It is only with your help we can ever hope
to live out our call to discipleship.
Protect and strengthen us as we go forth
to proclaim the Gospel with all boldness.
With the intercession of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
Through Jesus Christ, our Risen Lord. Amen
- Gail Lyman