Side by side with our daily scripture reflections, it is good to widen our knowledge of what the church presents us to remember the saints of the day. The 9
th of July is the memorial feast of
Saint Augustine Zhao Rong and 119 companionswho were tortured and martyred for their faith in the 19
th century, a persecution against Chinese Christians. St Augustine Zhao Rong, was a soldier converted by the France Missionaries and was baptized. He then studied to become a priest. The cause for their persecution was that the Chinese Imperial Edicts, imposed the death penalty for evangelization, as well as the education and ordination of priests. These martyrs were canonized by Pope John Paul II in 2000.
This week we have been reading and reflecting from the book of the prophet
Hosea =(
savior, safety). Hosea preached in the northern kingdom of Israel, during the troubled times of the fall of Samaria in 721 B.C. He was especially concerned about the idolatry of the people and their unfaithfulness toward God. He boldly pictures this faithlessness in terms of his own disastrous marriage to an unfaithful woman
. Just as his wife Gomer turned out to be unfaithful to him, so God’s people had deserted the Lord. Yet in the end God’s constant love for his people would prevail and would win the nation back to himself and restore the relationship. This love is expressed in the moving words: “
How can I give you up, Israel? How can I abandon you?... My heart will not let me do it! My love for you is too strong” (See Amos 11:8).
In the Gospel Jesus advises: “
If anyone will not welcome you or listen to your words…leave that house or town”. The Lord tells us to expect rejection in bringing Good News. Sometimes that rejection can take violent forms as in the case of Martyrs.
Let the Lord help us to be faithful in our Christian faith.
Fr.Mussie