Sent in Faith

"Peace I bequeath to you, my own peace I give you, a peace the world cannot give, this is my gift to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid."

A reflection from Father Tudgay for the Fourth Sunday of Easter.

As we make our way through the remaining days of the Easter Season, the Acts of the Apostles brings us face to face with a reality similar to what we face today: the need to courageously proclaim the message of Jesus Christ in the freedom of faith. Having preached the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles and having witnessed their conversion, Paul and Barnabas move toward Jerusalem to share their experience. The power of the message of the Gospel and the Christian Faith shows that not even the cultural limits of Judaism could impede the power of Jesus Christ, risen from the dead! 

In our own time, the same power that was at work in Paul and Barnabas is the same power that is at work in us. By Baptism, the life of Jesus Christ and the power of the Holy Spirit radiate through each of us who are his disciples. This life, given at Baptism, is continually sustained and nourished by our participation in the sacramental life of the Catholic Church. The gifts given to us at Confirmation are those attributes of God’s life that are at work in the world through us, built on our fidelity to Christ. 

But where and how does this life and the mission that it brings radiates through us? The style of Paul and Barnabas may be different than what we are gifted to do or demonstrate. Scripture records the variety of ways that the life of Christ is lived out through the early disciples. The common theme, however, is the unity that they experience in charity and forgiveness. Each of us are sent by God to proclaim the life of Christ in us. Are we sent to a far-off place, unfamiliar, and unknown? Perhaps not. But the same invitation to love remains wherever we find ourselves. Whether at home or abroad, the life of Jesus Christ and our faith in him allows us to be missionaries of his love wherever we find ourselves.