Word of Life

 

On 8th May 2025 [VM 4]

Meditating the Words of Jesus from Holy Scriptures 

Lord, make us rejoice and be glad while we are persecuted

 

Blessed are you when people abuse you and persecute you and speak all kinds of calumny against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven; this is how they persecuted the prophets before you.  (Matthew 5:11–12, NJB) Whenever we experience abuse and humiliation, we should keep in mind how everyone tormented, mistreated, and degraded Jesus. Jesus says that we shall be persecuted because of his name and his life. According to Jesus, the suffering we shall endure in the last day will be unbearable and extremely terrible, so pray to the Lord during those days when the church will be persecuted. For then there will be great distress, unparalleled since * the world began, and such as will never be again. 22 And if that time had not been shortened, no human being would have survived; but shortened that time shall be, for the sake of those who are chosen.  (Matthew 24:21–22, NJB). The Jews and Roman troops also caused St. Paul a great deal of suffering. However, during his spiritual journey, he never gave up and relentlessly shared the gospel with the masses. No other apostle has endured as much suffering or traveled as widely as he did in order to share the gospel and bear witness to Christ our Lord. This roused the whole city; people came running from all sides; they seized Paul and dragged him out of the Temple, and the gates were closed behind them. 31 While they were setting about killing him, word reached the tribune of the cohort that there was tumult all over Jerusalem (Acts 21:30–31, NJB)

 

The Word of Life

 

On 4th May 2025 [VM 3]

Meditating the Words of Jesus from Holy Scriptures 

Lord, give us strength, perseverance and grace to overcome the persecutions. 

Blessed are those who are persecuted in the cause of uprightness: the kingdom of Heaven is theirs.  (Matthew 5:10, NJB) Jesus always says that the people will persecute us, but we have to pray for them. As he says: But I say this to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you; (Matthew 5:44, NJB). We can see how St Stephen prayed for his persecutors. He did not resist while the Jews were throwing stones on him and beating him but was praying while he was dying.  As they were stoning him, Stephen said in invocation, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.’ 60 Then he knelt down and said aloud, ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ And with these words he fell asleep.  (Acts 7:59–60, NJB) St Stephen prayed fervently for the persecutors and that was a special prayer he has done and many were repented and converted and among them was Saul the persecutor of the Church and he became St Paul the greatest Apostle. When we pray for for our enemies they will become our friends. What St Paul Apostle says about the persecution he has gone through is written in his letters. We are subjected to every kind of hardship, but never distressed; we see no way out but we never despair; 9 we are pursued but never cut off; knocked down, but still have some life in us; 10 always we carry with us in our body the death of Jesus so that the life of Jesus, too, may be visible in our body. 11 Indeed, while we are still alive, we are continually being handed over to death, for the sake of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus, too, may be visible in our mortal flesh. 12 In us, then, death is at work; in you, life. 13 But as we have the same spirit of faith as is described in scripture—I believed and therefore I spoke * —we, too, believe and therefore we, too, speak, (2Cr 4: 8-13, NJB) What St Paul wrote is enough for us to reflect and meditate. Let us pray: Lord, give us strength, perseverance and grace to overcome the persecutions.