Blessings of peace, mercy, and the love of Christ to all of you, my brothers and sisters.
Today, we gather under the watchful eyes of heaven, mindful of the struggles that weigh upon our world—struggles that call us, as followers of Christ, to rise in faith, in courage, and in action. The Lord has placed us in this time, in this age, not by accident, but by divine purpose. And so, we must ask ourselves: What is our purpose? What is our duty?
The Cry of the Persecuted
We hear the echoes of Christ’s words in the Gospel of Matthew: "Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven." These words are not merely a comfort—they are a call to arms for the faithful. In Tanzania, a priest—a shepherd of God’s flock—was brutally attacked for speaking truth in the face of oppression. This is not an isolated tragedy. Across the world, men and women of faith face violence, imprisonment, and death for daring to uphold justice, to defend the weak, to proclaim the Gospel.
But let us not only mourn—let us act. The kingdom of heaven belongs to the persecuted, but the duty of protection belongs to us. We must raise our voices, we must demand justice, we must stand in solidarity with those who suffer for righteousness. If we remain silent, we become complicit in their suffering. And if we do not act, the darkness of tyranny will spread, choking the light of truth until even our own faith is threatened.
The Temptation of Power Without Morality
In the realm of technology, we see another battle—one not of flesh and blood, but of ethics and human dignity. Saint Paul warns us: "I have the right to do anything—but not everything is beneficial." How true this is in our age! Corporations, wielding immense power, often choose profit over people, control over compassion. Apple, a titan of industry, stands accused of stifling competition, of placing barriers before the very innovation that could lift up the poor, educate the ignorant, and heal the sick.
Technology is not evil—but without morality, it becomes a tool of oppression rather than liberation. We must demand that those who shape our digital world do so with justice, with fairness, with the common good in mind. If we do not, we risk a future where the powerful dictate truth, where the marginalized are silenced by algorithms, where human dignity is traded for convenience.
The Stranger Among Us
And what of the migrant, the refugee, the desperate soul who flees war, poverty, and despair? The Lord commands us in Leviticus: "When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt." Yet today, we see smugglers preying on the vulnerable, selling false hope at the cost of human lives. Dozens perish at sea, abandoned by greed, forgotten by the world.
This is not merely a political issue—it is a moral crisis. The Church must be a beacon of mercy, a sanctuary for the displaced. We cannot turn away from those who knock at our doors, for in their faces, we see the face of Christ. If we harden our hearts, if we build walls instead of bridges, we betray the very Gospel we proclaim. And if we do not act, the waves of suffering will only grow, until they crash upon our own shores.
A Crisis Within the Church
Yet even as we look outward, we must also look inward. One of the great wounds in the Body of Christ today is the scandal of division—the way factions within the Church quarrel while the world burns. How can we preach unity if we are divided? How can we call others to love if we harbor resentment among ourselves?
I call upon you, my brothers and sisters—laypeople, clergy, and leaders alike—to heal this rift. To pray for unity. To work for reconciliation. The world does not need a fractured Church—it needs a united one, strong in faith, bold in love, unwavering in mission.
The Choice Before Us
The path ahead is clear. We can choose to act—to defend the persecuted, to demand ethical technology, to welcome the stranger, to heal our divisions—or we can choose complacency. But know this: complacency is the ally of evil. If we do nothing, the persecution will worsen. The powerful will grow unchecked. The desperate will drown in the sea of our indifference.
But if we act—if we rise as one body, inspired by Christ—then we will see miracles. We will see justice roll down like waters. We will see the hungry fed, the oppressed freed, the lost brought home. This is not a dream—it is the promise of God, fulfilled through our hands.
Let us go forth, then, not as passive observers, but as soldiers of mercy, as builders of the Kingdom. The time is now. The choice is ours.
Amen.
What can we do?
The world faces deep challenges—religious persecution, ethical dilemmas in technology, and the suffering of migrants. But each of us, in small and practical ways, can contribute to a better future. Here’s how:
1. Stand Against Religious Persecution
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