Do Not Be Afraid

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Easter Feria (White)

Eve of Easter III (White)

Today's Readings:
[ Acts 6:1-7; Ps 33:1-5, 18-22; Jn 6:16-21 ]

The early Church in Acts faces a very human problem: people are being overlooked. The Hellenists complain that their widows are neglected in the daily distribution. It’s not dramatic or miraculous—it’s administrative, even mundane. (Welcome to the reality of church life) Yet the apostles respond with care, discernment, and a deep trust in the Spirit, appointing others “full of the Spirit and of wisdom”. The result is not just efficiency, but flourishing: “the word of God continued to spread”.

Likewise, St. Francis saw no divide between the spiritual and the practical. Feeding the hungry, tending to the overlooked, repairing what is broken... these are not distractions from the Gospel; they are the Gospel embodied. The Spirit moves not only in preaching, but in the quiet faithfulness of service.

Psalm 33 reminds us where our confidence lies: “Truly the eye of the Lord is on those who fear him, on those who hope in his steadfast love”. Not in our own competence, not in perfect systems, but in God’s loving gaze upon us. Even our best efforts at justice and care are rooted in trust, not control.

And then the Gospel: the disciples are alone on the sea, the waters rough, the night uncertain. Jesus comes to them walking on the water, and their fear turns to awe. “It is I; do not be afraid”. These are words not just for storms on the sea, but for the quieter anxieties—the feeling that we are drifting, that things are not as they should be, that we are not enough.

Franciscan spirituality invites us to hold all of this together: the storm and the service, the fear and the trust, the practical need and the divine presence. Christ comes to us not after everything is fixed, but right in the middle of it.

So today, do the small thing in front of you with love. Tend to what—or who—has been overlooked. And when the waters feel unsteady, listen: “It is I; do not be afraid.”

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