“Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” Matthew 14:27
On October 22, 1978, Pope St. John Paul II looked out at the many gathered in St. Peter’s Square for his inaugural Mass and urged the crowd: “Be not afraid.” With these words, he set the tone for his papacy, words that had long defined his life, and would so until his death in 2005. St. John Paul II was fearless. When he defied the Nazis as part of the Polish cultural resistance, when he spoke tirelessly against the evils of Communism, when he forgave his would-be assassin, and when he spent his final years succumbing to illness, his courage never faltered. This bold proclamation of the faith and his example were a vibrant witness in a world battered by a century of global wars and genocides. His joy and courage hardly ever wavered because the world was not his source; he wasn’t even the center of his life. Christ was always the focus of his life; Christ was always at the center of his life.
We can easily get lost in our problems, the problems of others, or the problems of the world. We can easily let the “storms” or “torments” that surround us, drown us. We can easily then forget that we’re not the center of the world or even of our own lives; moreover, we’re not alone in our boat. There is someone yet more powerful in our boat with us who can overcome any force that tries to unsettle our lives. He’s the one that can calm the seas or the storms and pull us out of the water and restore us with joy and courage, peace and clarity. This is Jesus Christ who we place at the center of our lives just like St. John Paul II modeled for us. In the Gospel, Christ communicates to his disciples this centrality to keep our gaze always on him. He could very well be saying to us, “I’m already in you, protecting you from fear, anxiety, or anger. I’m the calming voice reminding you to seek solutions and avoid creating a storm. I’m the one walking beside you during difficult times and carrying your pain. I’m the one encouraging you to reach out to others, love one another, and always treat others with dignity and respect. I’m the one saying, take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”
This week, the Church offers us several great examples of saints who placed Christ at the center of their lives, surrendering to God’s will especially during hardships and persecutions – saints who were martyred for their faith. Let us then ask for the intercession of these martyrs throughout the week to help us remain courageous in our faith, especially when the storms in our lives or even around us seem unmanageable – trusting that Christ is there holding our hands, ready to pull us out of the storm. Saints Teresa Bendicta of the Cross, Lawrence, Pontian, Hippolytus, and Maximillian Kolbe … pray for us.
In Christ
Fr Robert Marquez
Parochial Administrator – Saint Charles Borromeo Catholic Community