Throughout the Acts of the Apostles Luke brings the protagonists of the Gospel over and over again before the Sanhedrin: the Apostles, then St. Stephen, and now St. Paul. The Sanhedrin threatened, punished, and murdered, but none of that stopped the Gospel from spreading: from that first group of fearful disciples in Jerusalem the Church is now spread throughout Asia Minor and has just made her first fledgling steps into Europe. The Romans have imprisoned Paul because of the public disorder his visit to Jerusalem causes, but are also protecting him; due to his place of birth, Tarsus, he is a Roman citizen, and therefore afforded more legal protection than other subjects of the Roman Empire. Paul knows all the tools at his disposal: he knows his rights, and he knows the crowd, and he uses that to full effect. Even if he almost sparks another riot, it is a riot over accepting the truth.
Jerusalem was the center of the Jewish world, and now Paul has come full circle. From asking for letters from the Sanhedrin to persecute Christians (as Saul) he is now presenting them the core of the Gospel: the Resurrection, just as every disciple when faced with the Sanhedrin did, risking their life, reputation, and security. Paul had visited Athens, the cultural center of his world, with few results, and now the Lord was encouraging him to head to the undisputed center of his world: Rome.
The phrasing of this encouragement in Luke’s account is profound, “the Lord stood by him.” The Lord stands by us too. When it seems our belief is on trial it’s not a moment to put distance between us and those who would question and discourage us, but to present the heart of the Gospel message without fear, showing we believe it to be true by not fearing ridicule, imprisonment or death for what we believe.
Readings: Acts 22:30, 23:6–11; Psalm 16:1–2a, 5, 7–11; John 17:20–26. See also 7th Week of Easter, Thursday.