There’s a significant pivotal shift going on in our first reading from Acts. St. Stephen’s death has acted as a catalyst for the spreading of the Gospel and the growth of this new church as far away as Cypress near Greece and Cyrene in North Africa. Now, not only are Jewish people in Antioch continuing to hear the word, but non-Jews as well. Also, Barnabas, sent from headquarters in Jerusalem to assess this development, encourages this new change of a Gentile-inclusive church. In addition, Paul, the former persecutor, returns to help witness to Christ, and, finally, Antioch becomes known as the first place these followers are known as Christians. A lot is happening! The energy and passion of the Apostles and followers are palpable in this passage.
In our own day, we can see a parallel situation happening. Just last week, our Pope brought his visit to 4 African nations to the world’s attention. Like Barnabas, Pope Leo affirmed and encouraged the growth and vibrancy of the Catholic Church in Africa. Numbers show that in 1910, there were less than 1 million Catholics in Africa. Now it is estimated there are 288 million members of the Church.
The words our Pope spoke in the 25 speeches he gave were gospel messages of compassion and mercy which our suffering world needs to hear in our times. He addressed peace, migration, care for the environment, love in families, and the preferential option for the poor. The energy and the passion, not only of Pope Leo, but also of the people, was palpable.
All this history causes us to reflect on the more than 2,000 years the Church has been faithful in bringing Christ to the world…by celebrating the sacraments, by establishing schools and hospitals, adult literacy centers, and emergency places to care for refugees throughout the world. The church has a long history of promoting social justice and charity, working for the common good, and respecting the dignity of all people.
And for 2,000 years, the church has believed that Christ’s promises will live on. And so, as members of this church, we educate both youth and adults, instilling in them the traditions of our Catholic identity, knowing that our unity in Christ is in our diversity. It’s more than just passing on the doctrines. We are witnesses passing on the solemn power of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Last evening at the 5:30 Mass, Fr. Anthony challenged each person present to bring one person into the church as a new member, or back to the church, by next Easter. We responded aloud in the affirmative.
All of us stand on the shoulders of great women and men who have sacrificed and witnessed before us, and now, we are the church. May we, too, be faithful to our call to preach the gospel, in word and deed, wherever we are.
