Today is May 20, Tuesday of the Fifth Week of Easter.
We read at today’s Mass, “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'” (Acts 14:22).
Today, in the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles, we hear about the bold missionary activity of the early Church. This line stands out from Paul and Barnabas as they strengthen and encourage the disciples.
What’s the context for this verse? St. Paul had just been stoned, dragged out of the city and left for dead. And yet, here he is — strengthening others, urging them not to give up. He doesn’t complain. He doesn’t question why God would allow such suffering. Instead, he calmly explains that this is part of the journey. Hardship, he says, is part of discipleship.
That courage and resilience reminded me of something Pope Leo XIV recently said in his homily during the Missa pro Ecclesia — the first Mass celebrated by a new pope, offered with the College of Cardinals in the Sistine Chapel. A cardinal recently remarked to me that this Mass is, in fact, the true conclusion of the conclave. While the world sees the white smoke and the appearance of the new pope on the Loggia as the end, it’s actually this gathering around the Eucharist that completes the election — when the newly elected pontiff celebrates Mass with his brother cardinals.
Living our mission
At that Mass, Pope Leo said, “(There) are contexts where it is not easy to preach the Gospel and bear witness to its truth, where believers are mocked, opposed, despised or at best tolerated and pitied. Yet, precisely for this reason, they are the places where our missionary outreach is desperately needed. A lack of faith is often tragically accompanied by the loss of meaning in life, the neglect of mercy, appalling violations of human dignity, the crisis of the family and so many other wounds that afflict our society.”
St. Paul wasn’t a masochist. He wasn’t glorifying suffering for its own sake. But he understood what Pope Leo articulated so clearly: we can’t shy away from the hard places. The Gospel is needed precisely where it is hardest to proclaim — where faith is mocked, where life is devalued, where families are broken, where human dignity is ignored.
Places marked by pain and confusion — whether cultural, moral or spiritual — are the very places where Christ wants to bring healing. That’s our mission.
So today, we ask for courage. Like Paul, may we not be afraid of difficulty. Like Pope Leo reminded us, may we run toward the wounds of the world, confident that the Holy Spirit is with us. Let us not retreat in fear but press on with hope, preaching the saving truth of the Gospel wherever the Lord sends us.
Let us pray,
O God, who restore us to eternal life in the Resurrection of Christ, grant your people constancy in faith and hope, that we may never doubt the promises which we have learned from you. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen.
