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Family,
Forty days after His Resurrection, we know Jesus ascends from Earth to His Glory in Heaven to the right of His Father, and He left the disciples—and us now—with this message:
“…you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts chapter 1)
“Ascension of Christ” by Garofalo (1481-1559)
When we follow Jesus we are His witnesses, and I’ve always thought of it like a witness at court: you provide proof of something. We provide proof that God is real.
In our walk with Jesus we are witnesses, and it doesn’t necessarily mean we have to do anything extraordinary in our lives—like St. Paul who would go to the Public Forums and preach, or Saints who felt called to go and talk to the Pope—but it means that we should take our faith life seriously and try our best to live it well. Some of us are living in vocations—marriage, religious life, etc.—so our calling and actions can be kind of specific, but for any Christian it would mean to live seriously God’s call to be “disciples,” be “baptiz[ed],” and observe what He “commanded,” and to not shy away from speaking the truth of the Gospel, no matter to whom (Gospel of Matthew chapter 28). Being a witness also means that since the orientation of our life is more and more like God wants it to be—like Jesus’—including in sacrificial love, we can face hardships and persecution from others and the world, but this isn’t a cause to fear; God is with us always, and doesn’t abandon us. King David praises this about God:
“…you will not abandon my soul to the netherworld,
nor will you suffer your holy one to see corruption.” (Acts Chapter 2)
Taking our faith seriously is understanding God’s solemn, real call to us, to come to the light, because living in darkness only ends in tragedy and doesn’t give us life. And in living in this way, we provide proof that there is another way of living, the True way of living, that leads to our real, eternal fulfillment.
I think so often of how our sexuality has been “liberated” since the advent of birth control in the 1960s and cultural acceptance of different ways of living—everyone preaches safe sex and promiscuity but does that really bring us any lasting satisfaction? It’s rare for people to form families—or for people to even to want to form families anymore—but is that really a good thing? By following Christ—and taking his call seriously—we provide proof of another way to live, and in our heart of hearts we know it is the most appealing call, and it makes sense because it’s God’s original plan for us, the plan of the One who created us: to seek a love in this life that never ends, and is abundant, fruitful, and whole. Of course, following Christ isn’t only sexual matters, it’s following His plan for life in the Ten Commandments, which includes giving God His due worship and devoting time and energy to Him through the week, acting uprightly, not tearing down/sabotaging our neighbor and brother through gossip or in harmful acts, and of course observing the Commandment to love, bearing patiently with others in their weakness, ignorance, or malice, and giving of ourselves freely—not seeking profit—for the benefit and good of others, and other matters. We can give of our time, talent, and treasure in love, like an hour a month in a parish ministry (like helping during Masses, helping those who visit the Sick/Homebound, or in Catechism, or in behind-the-scenes positions in these ministries), or in giving at least 1-2% of our income to the parish for her operations, and helping where possible family and friends who need help, or food banks/housing shelters). Of course, it’s God’s grace that helps us to live in this way.
When declaring that we will be His witnesses, Jesus says that “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you” (Acts Chapter 1). The Holy Spirit gives us the power to live this way. St. Paul famously said that it’s like him no longer living, but God living in him (Galatians chapter 2). The issue is that willfully living our lives against God—sinning mortally—cuts us off from God’s kingdom (Catechism #1861), so how can we live in this way that God calls us to? We are no longer on the vine that is God (Gospel of John chapter 15).
Another part of bearing witness is speech: Isaiah talks in chapter 11 that the Messiah will “strike…with the rod of His mouth.” He will speak boldly and sharply, out of mercy, out of a desire that people straighten their ways, as Jesus so often did in the Gospels. But Jesus says that “Blessed is he who takes no offense at me” because His gospel isn’t to offend or to call out for the sake of calling out, but to bring us back home to God (Gospel of Matthew chapter 11). Christ’s word stings all of us, but it also heals. Pope Francis used to say that sometimes the Gospel “slaps us in the face.”
In Jesus’ likeness, we are also prophets in this way. Yes, Christians are meek, but we also are bearers of a message that sometimes opposes the status quo. And this is per design: for those who are not connected to God as we are—or for those who have gone away—how are they to know what God wants if someone doesn’t tell them? Or for those who don’t care what God wants, the Church is called to be the conscience of the world and speak out boldly, because our sins have very real consequences: should the actions of a violent group in your neighborhood be accepted “out of love?” No, the Church is called to call people to conversion, to stop menacing their neighbors and live well for the sake of their souls and for the good of the community.
Scripture, history—and maybe experience—tell us that speaking the truth sometimes has unjust consequences, but it is our calling. Some will take offense at the Gospel. As I mentioned before, if people are ignorant—or even willfully ignorant—to the consequences of their actions, Christians are called to remind them that certain actions are against God’s will. If we don’t do it, who will? And involving law enforcement also isn’t against our Christian faith, because unfortunately a lack of punishment for certain grave deeds sometimes enables very anti-social behavior, and leads to injustice and misery for victims, but of course, judgement and punishment is up to the established legal systems—police, judges, juries, etc. We can’t take action into our own hands. Pope Francis in His encyclical said that punishment helps with anti-social behavior (Amoris Laetitia #268).
But persecution because of living our faith, in deed or word, shouldn’t be cause for us to fear. We may even face intense spiritual battle. God never abandons us, even if we suffer, and greatly. Think of the giants who have gone before us—The Lord Himself, St. John the Apostle (jailed), St. Paul, St. Thomas More (jailed and martyred). Our victory is always guaranteed with God. During His passion, the Gospel says Jesus said Psalm 22, which helps us to understand and reminds us that God doesn’t abandon those who act for Him; viewed with Eternity in mind, God will always rescue us:
“…you are enthroned as the Holy One;
you are the glory of Israel.
In you our fathers trusted;
they trusted and you rescued them.
To you they cried out and they escaped;
in you they trusted and were not disappointed.”
Our God is the God of miracles, who led the Israelites through the Red Sea out of Egypt and slavery (Exodus chapter 14), who sent down fire from Heaven at the request of His prophet Elijah (1 Kings Chapter 18), who commanded birds to take meat and bread to Elijah (1 Kings Chapter 17), who preserved His men thrown into the fire by a tyrant King (Daniel chapter 3), who raised Jesus from the dead (Matthew chapter 28).
Friends, The Lord Jesus calls us to be his witnesses, to confidently and seriously live our faith. By doing so, we show the world another way—a true, beautiful, and good way—of living. We shouldn’t be afraid to speak out, to share our faith, or to live confidently in what we believe, even if it brings us hardship or persecution. The Church is called to be the conscience of the world, a world that unfortunately in its broken state, us included, is capable of horrors.
Peace be with you and may God bless you,
Juan B
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*Thank you for your patience as there was a break in the regular publishing schedule!
Citations:
Pope Francis, Amoris Laeitia…, Rome, 2016, https://www.vatican.va/content/dam/francesco/pdf/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-francesco_esortazione-ap_20160319_amoris-laetitia_en.pdf
Pope Francis, Vatican News, “Pope at Mass: May Europe be united in dream of the Founding Fathers” https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope-francis/mass-casa-santa-marta/2020-04/pope-francis-mass-european-fraternal-unity.html, accessed 16 Jun 2026
Image credits:
1 – Public domain
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