Memorial of Saint Catherine of Siena, virgin and doctor of the Church

Lectionary: 275

There broke out a severe persecution of the Church in Jerusalem, and all were scattered throughout the countryside of Judea and Samaria….


The madness that swept through Jerusalem and crucified Jesus apparently subsided and lay dormant for several weeks during the Pentecost season. Dazed and exhausted, Jerusalemites watched as Jewish pilgrims were caught up in the Spirit of Jesus and were baptized. But the rage flared up again to stone Stephen to death, and then to drive many of the newly baptized out of town.
Saint Luke doesn’t say that they never came back; perhaps they only sought refuge with family and friends in the hinterlands until they could safely return. But, as a result, Luke says, the Gospel spread and took root far beyond Jerusalem.
We should appreciate this great irony, that the persecution of Christians inspired joy rather than terror. It’s hard to imagine such a scenario. These refugees must leave their city, families, jobs and careers, their synagogues, and familiar haunts to find a secure place where they might live the gospel in peace. They will enjoy the freedom Zechariah described in Luke 1:

…rescued from the hand of enemies, without fear we might worship him in holiness and righteousness before him all our days.

They would know “knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins, because of the tender mercy of our God.”

Scripture scholar recognize that Saint Luke idealized those halcyon days of the early church; and we would mistake his intent if we compared our own half-hearted fearfulness to his model community. The Evangelist demonstrated how the same Holy Spirit which animated Jesus fell upon the Church and drove believers. They were joyful and fearless, and they generously shared everything in common. As the story unfolds, that Spirit will direct the disciples to go two-by-two on missionary journeys. Peter and John first, and then Paul and Barnabas. On its way to the ends of the earth, the Gospel will bring Paul to the center of the earth, Rome.
Christians today challenge the assumption that the Spirit faded after the “apostolic age.” When the pope and his bishops could not routinely perform miracles, many supposed the glory days were past. Saint Luke would certainly not accept that theory. And it’s refuted by the innumerable movements that mark the history of the church, from the flight to the wilderness of the early hermits, the appearance of monasteries, the journeys of the mendicants, the congregations of healing sisters and teaching brothers, the vitality of Protestant denominations, and the charismatic movements of the twentieth century. Nor have the miraculous healings stopped.
If “Catholic culture” has faded during this secular age, it has left a core of inspired Catholics who demonstrate the courage, generosity, and zeal of Saint Luke’s ideal church. We’re still here. Praise God for that!