Author: admin

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Acts 12: 24 – 13:5

“The word of God continued to spread and grow. 

After Barnabas and Saul completed their relief mission,
they returned to Jerusalem,
taking with them John, who is called Mark. 

Now there were in the Church at Antioch prophets and teachers:
Barnabas, Symeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene,
Manaen who was a close friend of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 
While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said,
“Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul
for the work to which I have called them.” 
Then, completing their fasting and prayer,
they laid hands on them and sent them off.

So they, sent forth by the Holy Spirit,
went down to Seleucia
and from there sailed to Cyprus. 
When they arrived in Salamis,
they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues.”

The Word of the Lord.

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Today we hear about the first missionary journey ever recorded in Christianity.

Starting in Antioch, Paul and Barnabas sail west to Cyprus, north into Turkey, south to Jerusalem, and finally back into Syria.

It was a three-year journey filled with risk and reward. Paul was stoned at least once. He and Barnabas fled for their lives several times. They performed miracles, such as healing a crippled man, and converted many along the way.

This journey also inspired Paul to write some of his pastoral letters, including his Letter to the Galatians.

In spite of widespread persecution, the infant Church grew at a rapid pace. 

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How did they do it?

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They were courageous. Even when it meant risking their lives, these first Christians believed so strongly in the resurrection that not even the threat of death could stop them.

They were open to the Holy Spirit. As we hear in our first reading, the disciples send Paul and Barnabas on mission only after much prayer and fasting.

They worked in teams. Saint Paul is one of the most travelled missionaries in history. But he was rarely alone. Barnabas, Silas, Timothy, Luke, Priscilla, and Aquila, among others, accompanied him on his journeys.

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The Lord needs the same type of disciples today: people who are courageous, who are open to the Holy Spirit, and who are team players.

Meaning, if we work together like Paul and Barnabas, then the Good News will undoubtedly spread.

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Image credits: (1) Charolette’s Hope Church (2) www.orthochristian.com (3) Viz.Bible

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Michelangelo’s David is recognized as one of the most renowned sculptures in history for its size, boldness, and unique perspective. 

For example, most artists depict David after he defeats Goliath. 

But Michelangelo shows him before the battle begins. To Michelangelo, the story is about David’s faith; David reminds us to be bold, knowing that all things are possible with God on our side. 

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Secondly, David was chiseled out of a discarded block of marble. While other artists abandoned the project, Michelangelo said afterwards, “I saw the angel in the marble and chiseled away until I set him free.”

David reminds us there’s an “angel” – the presence of the divine – within all of us. 

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Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Damian of Molokai, who was a modern version of Michelangelo.

In 1864, he left his family and his native Belgium for the leper colony of Molokai, an isolated island located in the Pacific.

At that time, little was known about leprosy; only that it deformed your body, was incredibly painful, and eventually led to your death. 

Many who contracted leprosy were forced out of their homes and sent to the island of Molokai, where they died in despair.

Father Damian was so moved by their story that he moved there himself to remind this hopeless colony of humans that they, too, had an angel living within. Jesus died for them, too.

Much could be said about Damian’s daily sacrifices, and how his own life ended, but he, much like King David thousands of years before, reminds us of two things:

Nothing is impossible with God.

And within all of us, there is the presence of the divine.

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Image credits: (1) TheHumanist.com (2) Catholic World Report (3) Blessed Mart

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Acts 11: 1-8

The Apostles and the brothers who were in Judea
heard that the Gentiles too had accepted the word of God.
So when Peter went up to Jerusalem
the circumcised believers confronted him, saying,
‘You entered the house of uncircumcised people and ate with them.”
Peter began and explained it to them step by step, saying,
“I was at prayer in the city of Joppa
when in a trance I had a vision,
something resembling a large sheet coming down,
lowered from the sky by its four corners, and it came to me.
Looking intently into it,
I observed and saw the four-legged animals of the earth,
the wild beasts, the reptiles, and the birds of the sky.
I also heard a voice say to me, ‘Get up, Peter. Slaughter and eat.’
But I said, ‘Certainly not, sir,
because nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’
But a second time a voice from heaven answered,
‘What God has made clean, you are not to call profane.’
This happened three times,
and then everything was drawn up again into the sky.
Just then three men appeared at the house where we were,
who had been sent to me from Caesarea.
The Spirit told me to accompany them without discriminating.
These six brothers also went with me,
and we entered the man’s house.
He related to us how he had seen the angel standing in his house, saying,
‘Send someone to Joppa and summon Simon, who is called Peter,
who will speak words to you
by which you and all your household will be saved.’
As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them
as it had upon us at the beginning,
and I remembered the word of the Lord, how he had said,
‘John baptized with water
but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’
If then God gave them the same gift he gave to us
when we came to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ,
who was I to be able to hinder God?”
When they heard this,
they stopped objecting and glorified God, saying,
“God has then granted life-giving repentance to the Gentiles too.”

The Word of the Lord.

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The Acts of the Apostles describes the life of the early Church, and although in its infancy, it is already filled with tension.

The disciples are questioning each other and disagreeing over many things.

As we hear in our first reading, could the Gentiles be saved? Or was salvation only for the Jews? Did Christians have to follow Old Testament rituals? Could you eat meat sacrificed to idols? What was the work of a deacon or a deaconess?

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Although Jesus instructed his Apostles for three years, he didn’t answer every question they had. Nor did Jesus leave answers for the questions that would arise as the Gospel started mingling with other cultures and religions.

The disciples would have to rely upon the Holy Spirit, praying and discern together as a Church.

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We are no different today.

There seems to be an endless amount of questions and concerns about how the Gospel is relevant to our lives – and how the Church can minister to people from every walk of life.

It’s a challenge we’ll also feel here in our parish.

How will we bring people back? How will we evangelize our young people and make the Gospel relevant to their lives? To our lives?

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As we’re reminded in the Acts of the Apostles, we have to work together. We should voice our concerns – and not be afraid to disagree – but then we have to pray together. Discern together. Work together.

Be open to the Spirit, who often generates new ideas and creative solutions, and at times inspires change.

Come Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your faithful, enkindle in us the fire of your love, and you shall renew the face of the earth.

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Image credits: (1) Vecteezy (2) St. Mary and St. Joseph Coptic Orthodox Church (3) Michigan Conference of the United Methodist Church