Tuesday, May 19, 2020

DIVINE MANIFESTATION



Reflection for Tuesday of the 6th Week of Easter Year A
(Acts 16:22-34; Jn 16:5-11)
1.0. The Divine Absence
Have you ever felt the absence of God? It comes like the silence of a dark night. At such moments, fear, doubt, despair, etc and all the negative sentiments that oppose faith would begin to surface! Now think about the experience of Paul and Silas. The Philippians joined forces with the Jews to attack them, and they were beaten with rods. “And when they had inflicted many blows upon them, they threw them into the prison, charging the jailer to keep them safely.” The man decided to put them at the inner most, the darkest end of the prison and chained their feet. Paul and Silas suffered physically, psychologically and emotionally. It seemed like a total moment of abandonment as the darkness of the prison swallowed them up! This feeling of divine absence hits harder at that moment we cry to God for help as our only hope but nothing happens... A painful silence, when hardships and struggles from different angles gang up against us and divine intervention seems uncertain.
Paul and Silas in Jail | The Pulpit And The Pen
Jesus prepared the minds of His disciples about persecution and His departure. He told them that His ascension is not abandonment. “Nevertheless I tell you the truth; it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Counsellor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you.” Then they would begin to learn how to relate to Him by faith and by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Yesterday Jesus said the Holy Spirit will come to bear witness to the truth as the Counsellor. Today He says the Holy Spirit is coming to convince the world of sin and of righteousness and of judgement. So from that inner darkness where the world and its strokes lock us up, the Holy Spirit comes as our light and freedom.

2.0.  The Divine Manifestation
Therefore, Paul and Silas still believed that God was not silent; He never abandoned them. Instead of crying for their pain, they raised their voices in songs of praise to God! “And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and every one’s chains were unfastened.” They were set free though they were still in prison; in the darkness around them they had the light of the Holy Spirit. The jailer who guarded the gates got the message clearly: He realized he was the real prisoner and begged Paul and Silas for the freedom of the Children of God. Though they were wounded by the beatings, he asked them for healing of his soul! He accepted Jesus Christ and was baptized, with all his family. The man was filled with a joy he never experienced before.

The moment we thought God was absent, He was silently manifesting His power in Paul and Silas. Such moment, dry and painful it might be, is always a moment of our sharing in the Cross of Jesus through which the exonerating power of the Holy Spirit shines out in us. Let us hold firm to the string of faith no matter how tough the situation might be. Instead of complaining how bad things are, let us learn from Paul and Silas and offer fitting praise to God upon that very situation.

Fr Jude Chinwenwa Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
Saints Peter & Paul Catholic Church,
Tedi-Muwo, Lagos.
Tuesday May 19th, 2020.
   

2 comments:

  1. Thanks Fr. For the reflection. Lord may i always give you praise as Paul and Silas did, for you are always with us in all situations.

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  2. God bless u fr. For this inspiring reflection.
    Father u are worthy of all adoration, in every situation of my life, I will always praise u.

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