Friday in the Octave of Easter
It is not always tiresome to confess that some good thing was accomplished with God’s help. It is not always overly pious. Sometimes it needs to be said, even in public. When Saints Peter and John were pulled out of jail and asked to give an account of themselves, they knew that the time had come. They had to mention that it was all thanks to Jesus Christ that they had become successful. Even though Jesus had been killed, “God raised [him] from the dead” (Acts 4:10). These two great apostles spoke boldly, reminding their interrogators that it was they who had, in fact crucified Christ, but that all this had been predicted by Psalm 118:22 “the stone which the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” Not only is Jesus not gone, but he remains standing as the only way by which salvation can be achieved: “There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved” (Acts 4:12).
It has not been recorded, but we can imagine that these statements of Saints Peter and John made their opponents very uncomfortable. Perhaps they murmured to each other: “How tiresome, this pious naivete!” Well, let them murmur. Christians strive for purity, simplicity, truth, and, above all, charity. If that strikes some people as tiresome, pious, and naïve, so be it. When the time comes for the truth to be spoken, let all Christians do so, just like St Peter and St. John.