“SPRINGS OF LIVING WATER”
Daily Spiritual Reflections
24th November 2021
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WEDNESDAY, THIRTY FOURTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME
Memorial of Saint Andrew Dung-Lac and Co., Martyrs
Dan 5:1-6,13-14,16-17,23-28; Dan 3:62-67; Lk 21:12-19
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PERSECUTION IS PART OF THE CHRISTIAN LIFE
Persecution has been part of the Christian life from the very beginning. The Church has suffered many kinds of persecution. The first persecution happened under the emperor Nero in the first century. Till today we have faced persecution in one or another form. In the midst of it, we need to remember that there is someone more stronger than evil, Jesus Christ. We also have the example of the martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the sake of the Gospel.
During the 1974 Lausanne International Congress on World Evangelization, it was said that “persecution is a storm that is permitted to scatter the seed of the word, and disperse the sower and reaper over many fields. It is God’s way of extending his kingdom”. Persecution is not in contradiction to the Gospel but rather a part of it. Early Christians believed that the seed bed of faith, was watered by the blood of the martyrs.
Today’s Gospel passage can be divide into two parts. In the first part, Jesus foretells that his followers will be persecuted. He does not promise an easy life for his disciples. His words indicate persecution from religious as well as secular leaders, that will lead them to be witnesses to the fulness of the Christian life to those they could otherwise never reach. In the second part, he encourages them to endure persecution to the end. He assures them special grace in such situations. To endure, one needs to have perseverance, and to persevere is to hold fast to the word of God, relying on the strength and the mercy of God which transforms us into people who are whole and complete despite undergoing the cross of suffering.
Let us reflect on what will be our stand in the time of persecution. Are we ready to endure persecution and be a witness of our faith to the world? Let us ask the grace of God so that we may be rooted in his word to find happiness in persecution and give glory to his name.
Response: Sing praise to him and highly exalt him forever.
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