“One night when Paul was in Corinth, the Lord said to him in a vision, ‘Do not be afraid. Go on speaking and do not be silent for I am with you’.” There are days when all of us need to be silent and do more listening but we cannot be silent out of fear. A friend of mine shared with me that their neighbor is very open about rejecting God and professing atheism. In a situation like that one can understand that one might be afraid to alienate the neighbor by saying anything. But there is the danger that our silence may be interpreted as our agreement. St. Paul must have had a similar situation as he dealt with some people in Corinth, he must have flirted with fear leading him into silence. As we pray today, it may be of benefit to reflect on our own situations when we are afraid to speak. Do I sometimes forget that the assurance given to Paul is also given to me? There are occasions in family or among friends when I do. It seems easier to proclaim our faith with love outside of these social settings. There are times when we have to ask God for the courage to let others know how we feel. We cannot do this with condemnation or a “holier than thou” attitude but with sensibility and love. -- Msgr. John Barry
Posted on: Fri, 30 May 2014 13:00:00 +0000
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