Wednesday,LUKE 21:12-19

The creepy image of God’s hand writing on the wall may terrify anyone. But the image of Daniel, an alien, risking everything to speak truth to a tyrant is even more haunting.
The movie, “A Man for All Seasons” shows the moral courage of St. Thomas More like Daniel. Because they were sane people with a lot to lose, they didn’t want to be heroes. They took a stand even though they knew the potential cost. Today’s saint Catherine of Alexandria is another model for courage.
Catherine lived in early Christian times. She was the daughter of a wealthy pagan couple of Alexandria, Egypt. She was a very beautiful girl whose great interest was in learning. Catherine loved to study deep questions of philosophy and religion. One day she began to read about Christianity. Soon she became a Christian.

St. Catherine was only eighteen when Emperor Maxentius began persecuting the Christians. Fearlessly, the lovely young Christian woman went to tell him what she thought of his cruelty. When he spoke of the pagan gods, she very plainly showed him that they were false. Maxentius could not answer her arguments. Therefore, he sent for fifty of his best pagan philosophers. Once again, it was Catherine who proved the truth of her religion. All fifty philosophers were convinced that she was right. In great fury, Maxentius had every one of them killed. Next, he tried to win her by offering her a queen's crown. When Catherine absolutely refused it, he had her beaten and thrown into prison.
While Maxentius was away at camp, his wife and an officer were very curious to hear this amazing Christian girl speak. They went to her cell. The result was that they and two hundred soldiers of the guard were converted. For this, they were all put to death. Catherine herself was placed on a wheel full of spikes to be tortured to death. When the wheel began to spin, it mysteriously snapped in two and fell apart. Finally, St. Catherine was beheaded.
In today’s Gospel from Luke, Jesus suggests that this is what every Christian must be prepared to do.
“They will seize and persecute you. They will hand you over to the synagogues and to prisons and they will have you led before kings and governors because of my name.”

We may wonder, Is this what we signed on for when our parents had us baptized? Most of us just want to stumble through life as painlessly as possible.

However if we take our faith seriously, we will face times when we will be called to take a stand or to speak truth to power. But the closing words of today’s Gospel should give us the strength to do so:
“You will be hated by all because of my name but not a hair on your head will be destroyed. By your perseverance you will secure your lives.”

Ask the Holy Spirit for the gift of perseverance and the courage to witness our faith like Daniel, Thomas More and Catherine.