Thought for the Day – 13 April
Jesus taught that His followers would “suffer persecution for the sake of justice” and that is often the lot of the followers of Christ. If we follow our Christian convictions and live them, we will often be opposed and criticised. That is part of the price of following our Lord Jesus Christ, look what happened to Him! The real significance of the word martyr comes not from the dying but from the witnessing, which the word means in its derivation. People who are willing to give up everything, their most precious possessions, their very lives, put a supreme value on the cause or belief for which they sacrifice. Martyrdom, dying for the faith, is an incidental extreme to which some have had to go to manifest their belief in Christ. A living faith, a life that exemplifies Christ’s teaching throughout and that in spite of difficulties, is required of all Christians. St Pope Martin I refused to cut corners as a way of easing his lot, to make some accommodations with the civil rulers and he died a martyr.
St Pope Martin I pray for us!
AnaStpaul 