By Amalraj A csc –
Readings: Acts 16: 11-15; Jn 15: 26-16: 4
The gospel reading is a warning to the disciples about the challenges they would face once Jesus leaves them. The book of the Acts narrates the sufferings that the Church went through in the initial days. As Jesus had predicted, the persecutors knew neither the Father nor the Son.
It is very much clear in the life of St. Paul. As long as he was Saul, he did not know both the Father and Son. But the experience that he had on the way to Damascus made a lot of impact on his life and changed his life. As mere human beings, it would not have been possible for the disciples to go through the persecution. In all the persecutions that they went through, the Paraclete was with them, strengthening and guiding them.
In the present day, it is pretty much similar. All around us, there are lots of challenges and persecution that people go through. It is all the more challenging to live as a Christian in India as we witness a lot of persecution of Christians. Just as Jesus said, maybe the people who wish
to persecute the Christians do not know him and his suffering, death, and resurrection in the true sense. As Tertullian says, ‘the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.’ The more the church is persecuted, the more it grows.
Now I have a great responsibility to look at my life and see how much I have contributed to her growth. How willing am I to testify to the importance of the presence of God in my life through my daily choices, words, and deeds? How much do I bear witness to the risen Christ and the Holy Spirit?