5 May 2021 - Wednesday of the 5th week of EASTER - Acts 15:1-6

      Today, we hear about a meeting in Jerusalem amongst the leaders of the Early Church.  The big topic of discussion concerned the Gentiles who wanted to convert to the faith, whether they had to be circumcised and adhere to the Jewish laws of Moses before becoming converts  to the Way of Jesus.  How do we evangelize the world and bring people into the faith? That was the question confronting the leaders of the Early Church.  That is the question confronting us today as well. Through the last three Popes, we have been called to a new evangelization.  Recently, with the increasingly secular tone of our society, we may wonder how we can evangelize the world and bring the unchurched into the faith, if our message would ever be heard.  It is interesting that in a recent survey to those who do not attend church, they were present the following statement: “If a friend of mine really values his faith, I don’t mind them talking about it.”  80% of the respondents agreed with that statement.  This should motivate us to share our faith stories with others. We may think that others  are not interested in hearing our faith story and in hearing how we see God working in our lives. We hear so many negative stories about our faith in the news.  It is refreshing to hear news like this, isn’t it?  Paul and Barnabas shared faith stories with the Gentiles about how God was working among them.  Their stories point to the goodness of God.  The stories we share about our faith will point others to the goodness of God as well. Perhaps sharing our stories will encourage us on our journey of faith as well.