Friends for life, and then forever
Men and women of faith, friends in the Lord, travel together
We do experience windows into the coming joy. If we’re looking for them, they are everywhere. We still weep and mourn, but like Paul, we must persevere and exhort others to stay the course. It’s a path with friends in pain, to a certain peace, where there will be no end to our time together.
Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter
Acts 14:19-28
John 14:27-31a
We’ve been plowing through the Book of Acts for over two weeks, covering everything from martyrdom to sacrifice. All of it is a message of suffering for the faith. This message continues through the daily Mass readings in May, and even on Sundays. Our lectionary sticks with the Book of Acts throughout this month.
Along the journeys we hear about in Acts runs another consistent theme. Men and women of faith, friends in the Lord, are traveling together.
On this Tuesday, after preaching in Lystra, Paul is stoned by some angry Jews from Antioch and Iconium. Seemingly dead, Paul is dragged out of the city and left for the birds and animals to pick him apart. Some commentators say he was killed and rose from the dead. Not sure about that, but in any case, he stands up on his own after his friends arrive, ready to attend to him, and then he heads right back into Lystra.
The next day, Paul and Barnabas head out on a tour of several other cities — Derbe, back to their friends in Lystra, and then on to Antioch. How can someone do this — get right back in the saddle? Only in the company of pals and cohorts, which is what the Spirit makes of us when he gathers believers together.
Paul knew about his past, poor treatment of Christians. His history of participation in stonings, as in the killing of St. Stephen, before his conversion. Was his stoning at the hands of Jewish competition merely retribution for his past? God’s response to his callous, fatal compliance returned to him with a vengeance.
A little bit, perhaps, but this is the story for all the apostles, and ultimately all of the disciples. The apostles, except for John, are martyred. Still, expecting their coming fate, Paul and the others persevere. Paul knew the stoning wasn’t just a tit for tat rock throwing contest. Their faith, the very gospel they taught, was a dangerous affront to the powers that be. Specifically, it appears, to the ruling Jewish leadership. Yet, it’s not only the Jews who end up martyring the rest of the apostles. They are killed by ruling factions all over the known map of the world at that time.
Luke, the author of Acts, explains the framework for Paul’s persistence and the ongoing mantra for everyone in the mission of spreading the good news.
They strengthened the spirits of the disciples
and exhorted them to persevere in the faith, saying,
"It is necessary for us to undergo many hardships
to enter the Kingdom of God."
The catalyst for the exhortation by the disciples and their perseverance in faith positions the future reward of a sacrificial life. Through God's brilliant plan to establish a Church, Paul and others are assisted in performing their preaching mission in the face of deadly danger. The disciples know they are not alone. Jesus is with them in the Spirit. But they are not forging the path. They are following the Spirit’s leading. Together. It’s a mighty band of men and women willing to give up their lives to spread the faith.
Compare what they did against the grand schemes of political might and the bloody revolutions common in human history. The secular missions of winning over others are founded upon raw guts for glory, a reward to be found here and now. Quite often, efforts to persuade and influence others will rely upon an ideology, something similar to the tenets of a faith. Yet, here-and-now glory is not the faith of the apostolic early Church.
Military folks know this sacrifice, a giving of self to others. The pitch they receive calls for the same future glory founded in the Christian faith. In almost every case, it is the Christian or faithful soldier to some higher God who readily places himself between the enemy and the innocent.
The 145th Psalm for today outlines the original genius of God, formed at first in the Hebrew families and tribes. He builds upon a coming glory in Heaven.
One generation praises your deeds [Gods deeds] to the next and proclaims your [God’s] mighty works. They speak of the splendor of your majestic glory, tell of your wonderful deeds (Psalm 145:4-5).
Verse 12 identifies the goal of his deeds. Your friends make known, O Lord, the glorious splendor of your kingdom. This is the story we tell, not in a classic marketing plan or by promoting customer satisfaction, but testified through a love relationship—believers with testaments to tell.
This life is a passing phase, the shortest time of our eternity. Our eyes are upon the future, but we tell about it now. We needed to hear it from our friends to confirm what God whispers. Our new friends need to hear it from us, assuring them that the voice of God is telling the truth.
We’ll continue with Acts through the rest of May. We have also been wading through John in May, and will do so through May 30. The message in John largely parallels Acts. Today is a good example. Jesus’ earthly ministry is coming to an end.
“I will no longer speak much with you,
for the ruler of the world is coming.
He has no power over me,
but the world must know that I love the Father
and that I do just as the Father has commanded me."
At the end of this month, May 30, Jesus puts a period on what doing what the Father means. He will be crucified.
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Amen, amen, I say to you, you will weep and mourn,
while the world rejoices;
you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.”
The Alleluia Antiphon at Mass today explains the reason for the disciples’ grief.
Christ had to suffer and to rise from the dead, and so enter into his glory (Luke 24:46, 26).
Jesus sets this same stage for all of his followers. If we follow him, we too will suffer and die. Quite often, I hear Catholics and Christians say that we are not subject to the same outcry and anger as the early Church. We do not have to suffer as they did. This is not true.
We are keenly aware of the suffering of our friends. Not a week goes by that we don’t hear about another disease, death, or some debacle that sets back those we love. We are constantly hassled and harrangued by courts, bureaucracies, and little to big miseries, too.
Without our friends in Christ, we will succumb to the difficulties. We must practice living through the sufferings as steps toward another, more lovely and loving coming age. One where our friends do not need to comfort and console us because we will be under the protective wings of God’s full presence.
We do experience windows into the coming joy. If we’re looking for them, they are everywhere. We still weep and mourn, but like Paul, we must persevere and exhort others to stay the course. It’s a path with friends in pain, to a certain peace, where there will be no end to our time together.