Yesterday, we heard in the book of Acts about that
Breakthrough moment, where the Gospel begins to be preached and received by the
Gentiles. Today we hear of the
inauguration of Saint Paul’s first missionary journey—the first of three—a sojourn
of about a 1000 miles. This first
journey is going to take Paul and Barnabas through some pretty dangerous
territory.
We may not personally be called travel through rapid rivers,
steep mountains, malaria-plagued lowlands, and bandit-ridden passages, like
Paul and Barnabas. But, look at their
readiness to go and serve. Look at their
readiness to pick-up and go to where the Spirit directs them. Look at their courage, leaving the comfort of
what they know to serve God.
In the Gospel today, Jesus speaks about the important of
faith—faith that brings light in darkness, faith that leads to eternal life. Paul and Barnabas are men of great faith, you
can tell, for not only have they been enlightened, but now they are ready to
bring the light of faith into the darkest parts of the world. They engage in a mission that is in no way,
self-serving, rather, they endure great hardship for the purpose of spreading
that light.
Saint Margaret Mary said, “faith is the torch which
illuminates, animates, and sustains you, so that all your actions and
sufferings may be for God.”
The person of faith is deeply committed to the evangelizing
effort because he understands that faith means the difference between eternal life
and eternal death.
When Pope Benedict announced the Year of Faith last year he
described it as “a summons to an authentic and renewed conversion to the Lord,
the One Savior of the world.” Yet,
conversion to the Lord entails turning towards others, to bring the Lord more
deeply into their lives.
Every Catholic is called by virtue of his or her baptism to
follow Christ and proclaim the Gospel. Faith, like love, only comes alive when
it’s given away. But you cannot love what you do not know, and you can’t give
away something you don’t have. “Faith grows,” Pope Benedict said, “when it is
lived as an experience of love received and when it is communicated as an
experience of grace and joy.”
In grace and joy today, may we work to spread the light of
the Gospel in world grown so dark, for the glory of God and salvation of souls.
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