“For we who life, we are continually given over to death, because of Jesus, in order that also the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal nature.” (2 Cor 4:11)

Which of us still is not persecuted in some form for being Catholic? St. Paul speaks to us on this hard reality to which there is no way to escape. How Christians will be persecuted, not for themselves, but for the cause of Christ. In the history of the Church, millions of Christians were persecuted and killed simple for the fact of following Christ, for preaching His Gospel. Still today, in many countries, Christians continue to be persecuted and killed, as in Vietnam and some African countries.

After two thousand years of Christian history, why do their still exist persecution as this? Why does Jesus Christ allowed that these persons be persecuted and even killed for the cause of Him?

St. Paul himself responds to this question: in order that the life of Christ may be manifested in us! (cf 2 Cor 4:11) When Catholics are persecuted and killed, the life of Jesus is manifested in us. St. Paul glorified God through chains, prisons, through stripes, through sufferings for the cause of Christ, because the life of Christ was manifested in him. This was the cause of his joy!

Christ came to the world to give life in rescue of many (cf Mt 20:28) and when we give life for Him, His life is manifested in us. Therefore, When Paul was being persecuted for the cause of Jesus he could say: “I live, but not I: it is Christ who lives in me.” (Galations 2:20) He says this because he knew that he was being persecuted for the cause of Jesus and supported the suffering because Christ suffered in him.

Look to the testimony of Paul and so many other martyrs, we do not remain fearful, as were fearful all the disciples of Jesus. How then these men were capable of giving life for Jesus cause? How can be have the courage to give all our life to God? There exist basically three roads to confront persecutions: we can be “courageous” and confront them alone; we can ask help directly from God; and we can follow the road of the Apostles, uniting us in prayer and communion with the Virgin Mary to ask the Holy Spirit.

Only afterwards this is what the Apostles and disciples of Jesus Gospel with fearlessness. Beginning here, many began to be persecuted, but they bore it because the spirit of God was with them. This is the secret of giving our life for Christ in order that His life manifests itself in us: We should be united in common prayer, joined with the Virgin Mary (cf Acts 1:14) in order that the Spirit of God is manifested in us.

We should not fail to unite ourselves in community to pray, joined with Our Lady, to ask that the Holy Spirit gives us the strength to testify to Jesus Christ, giving our lives in necessary. It was thus, in the past, with the Apostles and disciples of Jesus, and will continue to be this way. God does not change his way of acting, says St. Louis Mary de Montfort. If we want that the life of Jesus to manifest in us. We unite ourselves  in prayer, joined with the Virgin Mary, to ask the Holy Spirit over us. For, only through the Spirit it is that we may be able to give life for Jesus Christ.

Natalino Ueda
from his Blog Como Maria
translated from Portuguese