Homily: Sixth Friday of Easter
Sixth Friday of Easter (Acts: 18:9-18) “Good Trouble”
Paul seemed to get in a lot of trouble, but that was a deliberate choice he made. John Lewis of the U.S. House of Representatives said before he died of cancer, “People need to go out and get into good trouble.”
What is good trouble? We can get into good trouble when we are willing to cross secular powers to achieve a just end. Lewis was arrested numerous times when he was fighting for civil rights in the 1960’s. He was beaten. He was hauled into court, but he chose to take these risks. The publicity that occurred led to people changing their minds about racial injustice. America read about this in the paper and images were shown on television. Lewis wanted to draw attention to his cause.
There were no newspapers in Paul’s day. Nor was there radio or television. There was a court of law. Usually, the proceedings of the court took place in public square. Everyone could come and watch. The court proceedings would be the talk of the city. News would be passed by word of mouth around town.
Paul, in a sense, wanted to get arrested. He would then have the chance to give a testimony about what he believed about Jesus. Paul would at times end up being punished. He was beaten and dragged out of town on several occasions. He also spent nights in jail.
When people saw what Paul and the apostles, he traveled with, were willing to endure for their faith it caused them to inquire about this new religion. If these Christians were willing to suffer so much, maybe this religion was worth learning about.
Hopefully, Paul’s tenacity causes us to be curious about what made him so adamant about his faith. Paul said he had a mystical experience when he became a follower of Jesus. It was that supernatural encounter that made him the fearless apostle he was.
Reflection Questions:
- Have I ever gotten in good trouble? When was it and what was it about?
- What motivates a person to risk all for a cause? Have I known a person who put their life on the line for a just reason?
Dear Parishioners,
I would like to remind everyone that we will be having an outdoor Mass this Sunday at 9:15 a.m. This will be in the green space in front of Culemans Hall. Please bring your own chair and remind others to do so.
Who can forget that an outdoor Mass was the only way we could gather two years ago? Since people enjoyed this experience, we thought we would try to have outdoor Masses once a month this year.
When we gather this Sunday, we can remember all of those who have gone before us in faith. We remember soldiers who have died in our war. We can also remember the million people who have died of COVID the last few years. This has been a great sadness for us all. We can also remember those who have died in mass shootings. There are a lot of people grieving right now.
I hope you can join us Sunday for this special Mass.
May Our Lady of Peace bring an end to violence in our society.
Fr. Mark