The Memorial of St Athanasius

Acts 6:8-15, Jn 6:22-29. Today's first reading presents us with the record of the persecution of Stephen, one of the seven first Deacons of the Church. He was confronted by the opponents of the Church, those who refused to believe in God and His truth as revealed through the Lord Jesus and His Apostles. The Sanhedrin and all those who have arrested and oppressed the Apostles tried a lot of effort to suppress the rapidly spreading Christian teachings and faith. In order to do that, they chose to employ false witnesses and other methods to try to persecute Stephen. Yet, he remained firm in his faith and convictions, without being afraid of the repercussions and threats against him. In flamed by the Holy Spirit, encouraged and strengthened, he preached about the Lord and Saviour, openly proclaiming Him before the people, revealing all that God had done for them through His Son, whom they had recently persecuted and gave to the Romans to be crucified, died and then rose in glory for the salvation of all the people.

Today's Gospel presents us with the interactions between Jesus and the multitudes of people who followed Him. Jesus pointed out that they followed Him because of their desires to be satisfied and fulfilled, by the amazing miracles that He performed, particularly that of the feeding of the five thousand men and many more. The Lord knew that in the hearts and minds of those people, there were still doubts and lacking in genuine faith and hence, He wanted to convince and persuade them to truly believe in Him and His truth and not just superficially showing their faith. This reminds all of us of the important mission that God has entrusted to us as Christians, that we ought to proclaim the Lord, His love and compassionate mercy, His kindness and truth. We are called to imitate St Athanasius in his efforts to bring the people of God and the Church out from erroneous teachings. He was one of the great and renowned Church fathers and Doctors of the Church, who is especially remembered for his dedication in defending the orthodox and true Christian faith. He fought against the dangerous influence and the falsehoods of many heresies that rampant during his time, threatening to destroy the unity and harmony within the Church and mislead countless souls down the path towards damnation.

May the Lord satisfy our hunger for spiritual food and guide our steps along the path that leads to God! Amen!! Good morning and have a fruitful week!!!