Saturday of the Fifth Week of Easter
Today’s readings discuss both the joys and the challenges that Jesus and the early church experienced as the Good News was proclaimed. St. Paul travels to many areas where the church is growing in numbers as the Spirit directs his journey. Jesus warns that living as His disciple will not always be easy but will involve persecution and hatred because we are His. These joys and challenges continue to be lived out in our daily walk as we follow Christ. Our dependence on the Spirit of Christ is essential for us to help grow the faith.
In the reading from the Acts of the Apostles, Sts. Paul and Timothy travel from town to town proclaiming the news of Jesus and His message. The Spirit leads them to places and even prevents them from traveling to certain areas. In a dream, St. Paul is directed to Macedonia to continue the spread of the gospel. The Spirit is alive, and “Day after day the churches grew stronger in faith and increased in number.”
In the gospel, Jesus warns the disciples that they will face challenges as they continue to share the faith. Jesus reminds them that they have “hated me first”, and therefore they should expect the same. Jesus warns all of His followers that the world will not accept them, since they are not of this world but have been chosen out of this world by Christ.
So how are we called to grow our faith in our current world? This is a challenging time where hatred seems to be evident in so many aspects of our society. For those of us who have been “chosen” by Christ, how can we live in a way that nurtures our faith and our church? Just as St. Paul is directed by the Spirit of God, we must be open to the Spirit in our lives. It is only this Spirit that can provide the power and grace that is needed to help our churches grow in faith and increase in numbers.
The Spirit is powerful, but not everyone will recognize the significance of God’s presence. Many people are so enmeshed in the world and the principles of greed, power, and hatred that they find the love and mercy of God to be a source of weakness. The gospel does not bring them glory, so Christians who proclaim the Truth become rejected and persecuted. If we truly live the life of a disciple of Jesus focused on love, service, mercy, and peace, we will most likely experience times when others scoff at our attempts to bring goodness and justice to our world.
As I look around our church on Sunday, I wonder how we can grow in numbers in our church. Speaking God’s truth is important, but I believe the most effective means to invite others to “come and see” is by the way that we live our lives as followers of Jesus. It is true, that lives of peace, mercy and love may incur hatred from some, but others will recognize the blessings that are available from living faith filled lives. As Christians, our faith should make us stand out from the world in a way that others want to know where we find our joy and purpose.
Although the challenges of discipleship are present, we are not alone. Jesus promises to be with us always guiding our path. If we want to grow our faith, it is through prayer, scripture, sacrament and grace that we are able discern how we are called to live. Every moment in our lives is an opportunity that allows us to think, talk and act like Jesus and thereby deepen our relationship with Christ.
Living like Christ amidst this world is not easy. As St. Catherine of Siena proclaims, “Nothing great is ever achieved without enduring much.” It is only the love of Christ that will transform the hatred of our world, and we are the ones called to share this love with others. Filled with the Spirit, may we grow in our faith and allow the love of Christ to bring peace and healing to all we encounter.
Loving God, Jesus shows us that the path of love will not be easy. Send down your Spirit to fill us with grace, so we may grow in our faith and share the Good News to all. May our lives bring healing and hope to the world around us. We pray this in Christ’s name. AMEN
—Marylynn Herchline