Jesus places His heaven-sent ministry in the hands of Simon and Jude, along with ten other apostles. Simon was called the Zealot (Lk 6:15). Zealots were similar to what we would today call "terrorists." Why would Jesus entrust His ministry and His reputation to a terrorist? Imagine the outcry today if a bishop hired a terrorist to lead a major diocesan ministry!
Before meeting Jesus, St. Paul often acted like a terrorist. "He entered house after house, dragged men and women out, and threw them into jail" (Acts 8:3). He even said of himself: "So wild was my fury against [Christians] that I pursued them even to foreign cities" (Acts 26:11).
Groups who wreak terror, such as ISIS and Al Qaeda, invoke great fear throughout the world. Do you believe that Jesus is able to convert even the most hardened terrorist? He converted St. Simon the Zealot and St. Paul, and He is the same today as He was at that time (Heb 13:8). Not only did Jesus convert these men to faith, He raised Simon and Paul to the level of apostles. These men are now the foundation of the Church! (see Eph 2:20; Rv 21:14) Now Saints Simon and Paul cause terror in the kingdom of darkness!
Jesus' approach to terrorists was to cover them with love, convert them, and then entrust them with ministry. In the Litany of St. Joseph, he is invoked with the title "Terror of Demons." Let us terrify the kingdom of darkness by our redemptive suffering and loving, obedient, confident faith in Jesus.
| PRAYER: | Father, may I trust You and have no fear in loving anyone. |
| PROMISE: | "You are fellow citizens of the saints and members of the household of God." –Eph 2:19 |
| PRAISE: | Sts. Simon and Jude received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. "They began to express themselves in foreign tongues and make bold proclamation as the Spirit prompted them" (Acts 2:4). |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College