SAVED BY FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST

VI EASTER SUNDAY - Acts 15:1-2,22-29

Throughout the ages, the Church has gone through many difficult times, which seemed impossible to overcome. In spite of facing crisis after crisis, led by the Holy Spirit, the Church has made strides towards a better expression of the universality of God's saving plan. In the Acts of the Apostles, we find a narrative of the first great crisis. We may say that the Church started as a movement within Judaism. The first Christian community lived in Jerusalem and the Christians worshipped in the Temple. Due to persecution, they scattered, thus spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, leading to the creation of the second big Christian community in Antioch, where a growing number of Gentiles became Christians. This success would bring a big crisis that needs to be solved in order to guarantee the openness and the universality of the Church. Seeing themselves as the defenders of the faith and as the model for all other Christian communities, some Christians of Jerusalem, passing through Antioch, scolded the community, accusing them of deviating from the right path by allowing the Gentiles in the community without demanding obedience to the Law of Moses, signified by the circumcision. For them, the Law of Moses is the foundation upon which the faith in Jesus Christ can be built. This left the Christians of Antioch in big turmoil and so upset that they could not solve the problem by themselves. So they decided to take the issue to Jerusalem, that is to the mother Church, sending some representatives to see the apostles. A meeting was organised to discuss and deliberate over the issue. The Apostles sat together with the elders and, after a long discussion, James proposed a compromise: the Gentiles would not be forced to undergo circumcision and to follow all the Jewish rules and traditions that go with the Law of Moses; however, they should keep some of the rules, like “to abstain from food sacrificed to idols; from blood, from the meat of strangled animals”. Reading the letter which the Apostles wrote to the Christians in Antioch, we may think that dispute was settled once and for all. However, if we read the letters of Paul and the whole book of the Acts of the Apostles, we discover that this dispute accompanied Paul wherever he went and we even sense that the defenders of Judaization were having the upper hand. In the end, they did not win, because of the destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman army, leading to the dispersion of the Christians and the loss of influence of the Church of Jerusalem.

Cultural, social and political issues had always a big influence in the life of the Church, but, guided by the Spirit, she has managed to sail through rough waters, leading her children to a safe harbour, the harbour of salvation in Jesus Christ, who is “the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (Rev 22:13).

THE FIRST EFFORTS AT ORGANISING THE CHURCH

V EASTER SUNDAY - Acts 14:21-27

During Easter time, in the liturgy of the word, we read the Acts of the Apostles and the Gospel of Saint John. The Acts of the Apostles present the first steps of the Early Church, mainly the way she opened up to the Gentiles and the way she established herself. independently from the synagogue, building up communities that had at their centre the proclamation of the Gospel and the celebration of the Eucharist.

The beginnings of the Church were very humble and took place mainly in Jerusalem. After receiving the Holy Spirit in the feast of Pentecost, the Apostles engaged themselves with enthusiasm in the preaching of the Gospel and they managed to get a big following very quickly. This success brought them into conflict with the leaders and they suffered persecution because of that. The persecution scattered many of the new converts and they took with them their faith in Jesus Christ. Wherever they went, they gave witness to the Good News of salvation, which was spreading like wildfire. Very soon, many gentiles believed in Jesus Christ and Antioch would become the centre of a new effort to take the message of the Gospels further and further. Paul and Barnabas were chosen to play the leading role and they excelled in their effort to make Jesus Christ known, believed, followed and loved. Wherever they went, they tried to establish communities of believers, who came to be known as Christians. Being rejected by the leaders of the synagogue, the Christians had to establish their own communities, which were centred on Jesus, the Christ, the Son of the Living God. From the liturgy of the synagogue, they kept the reading of the Scriptures, which were understood as leading to Jesus Christ. And certainly, they learned a lot from the structures and the organisation of the synagogue.

This Sunday’s first reading, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, informs us that, before going back to Antioch in order to report on their mission, they visited the disciples, “encouraging them to persevere in the faith”. Then, “in each of these churches, they appointed elders” so that each Christian community could have the basic structures to function, that is, to bear witness to Christ, to proclaim his gospel, to instruct in the faith (catechesis) and to celebrate the faith in communion with all the communities, helping each other to excel in love, fulfilling Christ’s commandment. The appointment of the elders was of paramount importance for the newly created communities and, recognising that Paul and Barnabas organised a time of prayer and fasting, knowing very well that the communities and their leaders should be entrusted to the Lord. Having done that, Paul and Barnabas returned to Antioch and presented a report of their work to the community that had sent them.

THE DOORS ARE OPEN TO ALL

IV EASTER SUNDAY - Acts 13:14,43-52

In this passage of the Acts of the Apostles, we find the pattern of Paul’s preaching, which he would always follow. Sent by the community of Antioch in a mission to proclaim the Gospel, wherever they arrived, Paul and Barnabas would go first of all to the synagogue. Since there was an established network of Jewish communities spread throughout the Roman empire, they could go to the synagogue and easily find people that would welcome them. In the synagogue, the centre of all Jewish communities, they made the first announcement of the Gospel of Jesus, proclaiming that he is the Messiah. A few would welcome their preaching, but a good number would consider them as troublemakers, rejecting their message and expelling them from the synagogue. Faced with this rejection, Paul and Barnabas would turn toward the Gentiles: “… since you have rejected it, since you do not think yourselves worthy of eternal life, we must turn to the pagans.” It is as if they were pushed out of Jewish communities and forced into a new unchartered road. Paul’s ability to carry out his mission was facilitated by the fact that he was able to look after himself and to get enough money to provide for himself and for some of his companions. As the number of gentiles who accepted the gospel grew, he could use the pattern of the Jewish community organisation, thus establishing little by little new communities based on the faith in Jesus Christ and not on the Law of Moses. Certainly Paul and all the other disciples made good used of the experience they had of the Jewish communities, and so they started organising themselves, putting up the basic structures: choosing elders to preside the community, supervisors to make sure that the communities maintained their communion and celebrating the Eucharist (the breaking of the bread) during the weekly community gathering. The weekly celebration of the Eucharist on the day of the Lord (Sunday) was preceded by the reading of the Scriptures, which formed the framework for the understanding of the role of Jesus as the Messiah.

This Sunday is the Good Shepherd Sunday, dedicated to the vocations. We may look to Paul and learn with him, so that we may be faithful to our vocation, never getting tired of giving witness to Jesus Christ.

THE PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS

III EASTER SUNDAY - Acts 5:27-32,40-41

In the Acts of the Apostles, we find the narrative of the first persecution, when the Apostles were put in prison and then forbidden to speak in the name of Jesus. As they refused to obey such an order, they were flogged. As they left, “they rejoiced that they were considered worthy to suffer dishonour for the sake of the name” (Act 5:41), that is Jesus’ name. Since the very beginning, plenty of Christians have suffered violence, torture and death, having committed no other crime than to be followers of Jesus Christ. For the Christians, the cross is not a symbol of power, but of suffering and persecution. Throughout the centuries, we always find Christians who are ready to associate themselves with the cross of Jesus, sharing his passion and his death. Nowadays, Christians are being persecuted in many countries. 

In countries dominated by communist dictatorships, like North Korea and China. And in countries of Muslim majority, like Pakistan, Iran, South Arabia, Afghanistan. Even in countries that seem moderate, like Egypt and Turkey, Christians have no freedom to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In many countries of the world, Christians are becoming victims of vicious hatred and nobody speaks for them. The world ignores their suffering, doing nothing to denounce this unjust persecution. When on Easter Sunday there was an attack on three churches in Sri Lanka, some politicians  could not mention the Christians (who were the majority of the victims) and belittled them calling them "Easter worshipers." Even in this Europe of Christian roots, most politicians are ashamed of mentioning Christ or of associating themselves with Christian symbols. The martyrs of Sri Lanka were slaughtered on the most sacred and festive day of the Christian calendar with the declared aim of sending a message that the feast of the infidels should end. 

We cannot forget our brothers and sisters who are being tortured and killed because of their faith in Jesus Christ, receiving worse treatment than criminals. They need our solidarity and our voices to speak for them and to defend their human rights. The world needs to understand that faith in Jesus Christ is not a crime and true faith in Jesus Christ puts us at the service of humanity.

We may ask ourselves what gives Christians the courage and the strength to stick to their faith, in spite of all the hardships, difficulties and persecutions. Today’s gospel gives the answer: like Simon Peter, they have experienced Christ’s love and they cannot depart from it any more. At the end of his Gospel, John presents a final question - the question that Jesus asked Peter: “Do you love me more than these?” It is a question that cannot remain without answer. And if in spite of our weaknesses and shortcomings, we can say yes, then it means that we have discovered and experienced Jesus’ love for us and we cannot live without it. Knowing that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ, the Christians are ready to endure the cross for the sake of Jesus.

Let us pray for all Christians that suffering persecution. May the Lord give them strength and perseverance. And may the world recognise the pain and the suffering unjustly inflicted upon thousands of Christians. They are suffering in union with Christ’s passion and with their suffering, they cooperate with Jesus in the salvation of the world.