16 September 2022 - St Cornelius and St Cyprian - Memorial - Friday of the 24th week of Ordinary Time - Luke 8:1-3

      In the 7th chapter of Luke’s Gospel, which comes right before today's Gospel, we hear about different people who come to Jesus for help:  a centurion who has a sick slave, a widow who mourns her deceased son, the disciples of John the Baptist who want to get to know Jesus, and a sinful woman who anoints Jesus feet with costly ointment. Each of these individuals comes to Jesus out a desperate, harsh reality, out of the pain, sorrow, and suffering of their lives. Today, we hear about a group of women who follow Jesus together with his group of disciples, women who came to Jesus for healing and renewal and who chose to become his disciples. Out of the healing and strength that they find in their identity as disciples, they generously give to Jesus and to others. 

      Today, as we hear about this group of disciples who came to Jesus out of their brokenness and their humanity, we celebrate two martyrs from the Early Church: Cyprian and Cornelius, both of whom have very interesting stories. Cyprian spent most of his adult life as a professor of rhetoric in the city of Carthage. He was not baptized until the age of 45, but he later became the Bishop of Carthage in the year 248. Under the persecutions of the Roman Emperor Decius, many priests and bishops were martyred. Cyprian went into hiding. Cyprian’s writings emphasize the unity and solidarity the followers of Christ are to have, unified under the leadership of the Bishops and the Pope, a message that still rings true in our modern world today.  Cyprian was martyred in another wave of persecutions under the Emperor Valerian in the year 257. Cornelius was Pope at the time that Cyprian was writing about unity and solidarity under the leadership of the papacy. Many who had denied the faith during the persecutions wanted to return to the faith, which was a point of controversy in the Early Church. Cornelius, who called for forgiveness, mercy, and moderation, was sent into exile under the persecutions of the Emperor Gallus, where he died a martyr. 

      Perhaps as we hear more and more about persecutions against Christians in our world today and as we get more backlash from our secular world, we can better identify with martyrs like Cornelius and Cyprian.  May we find strength and courage in our faith from these examples from the Early Church.