Note: On Tuesdays, you can find me at Your Daily Tripod, owned by my friend TonyD. A longer version of the post below appears there.
Luke’s Acts of the Apostles is, as one might infer from the title, full of action. It’s almost like an action-adventure movie 
as the disciples go from one place to another, converting souls, encountering persecution, evangelizing again and again and again to Jews and Gentiles.
Then there are the quiet moments, the ones we may read over a bit too quickly as the narrative moves on to the next great event. In today’s first reading, Paul and Barnabas are on the move for the Lord, traveling from city to city in Turkey and Greece before returning to Antioch. There, they spend “no little time” with the other disciples (Acts 14:28). Can’t you just imagine this group, sharing stories with each other, catching up on the news, inquiring about each others’ health and families? Of course there would have been some lively discussion about where this new faith was headed; the Council of Jerusalem would follow. But time also would have been spent recharging their spiritual batteries, if you will. Evangelizing is invigorating, challenging… and tiring. What a gift to again be with people who shared the same fire and beliefs, to be fed as well as to feed.
From the earliest days, this Church understood the importance of community. There’s only so much we can do for the Lord when we’re bone tired and brain dead. May we all find communities in our parishes and our ministries that replenish and fortify us as we soldier on, spreading the Good News.
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