Memorial of Saint Athanasius, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Saint Athanasius, who had been present at the first Council of Nicea as a deacon, spent much of his life as a bishop defending the faith of the council that Jesus Christ is the Eternal Son of God, who became incarnate for our salvation. Against those who fought against this faith, Saint Athanasius stood firm. When he was forced to flee from threats of violence in his diocese of Alexandria, Egypt he chose to flee rather than stop believing in the Eternal Son of God. When he was being hunted down while in exile, he chose to live in hiding rather than stop proclaiming in his writings the faith of the Church. There were many who opposed him, and once someone asked, “Athanasius, do you not see that the whole world is against you?” A bit of hyperbole which provoked Saint Athanasius to respond, “And there you are wrong. It is not the world against Athanasius, but Athanasius against the world!” Even in desperate times, Saint Athanasius could have great confidence that he was sharing the message that God had entrusted to the Church to share with the world.
In this confidence, Saint Athanasius shows the work of Christ’s grace in his life just as it was at work in the lives of the apostles and as they saw for themselves in Our Lord’s actions. The apostles, greatly opposed in their initial mission, could still preach with confidence, knowing that they were sharing the message that Christ had entrusted to them. Speaking to some of their opponents, the teacher Gamaliel gives the caution that even though the apostles are outnumbered, that does not mean that God is not working through them. And during the earthly ministry of Our Lord, in the face of the overwhelming numbers of the hungry crowd, the apostles were amazed to see what abundance the Eternal Son of God could bring about through their little efforts and scanty resources. Let us pray to be attentive to the faith that God gives us to live out and to share with others, so that even in moments where our humble efforts seem insufficient, God may supply what is lacking so that we may meet the spiritual and material needs of those He has given us to serve.