Friday of the Seventh Week of Easter
(Acts 13b-21; John 21:15-19)
Today’s first reading relates the Roman governor’s desire
that the Jewish king Agrippa hold a hearing of St. Paul. Oddly, it does not give the result of the
hearing. After hearing Paul, the king does
not think him guilty of any crime. In
Luke’s gospel, Jesus similarly goes before the Jewish king (in his case Herod Antipas)
and is also judged innocent.
A parallel to this result is seen in today’s gospel. Jesus indicates to St. Peter that he will die
a martyr’s death. Quite directly he
tells Peter, “Follow me.” Eventually
Peter like Jesus will die by crucifixion.
The lesson for us is obvious. Like the two great apostles, we should follow
Jesus. Probably our pursuit will not end
in martyrdom. But it will likely cause
us suffering. Early Christians were
happy to suffer like the Lord. We might
find it stressful but should recognize its value. The more we suffer for Jesus, the closer we
come to him both now and forever.
