Wherever Christ Leads

Easter Feria
Eve of Easter VI

Today's Readings:
[ Acts 16:1-10; Ps 100; Jn 15:18-21 ]

In today’s Gospel reading, Jesus offers a difficult truth: “If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you”. These words can feel heavy, especially in a culture that often prizes comfort, approval, and success above faithfulness. Yet the readings today remind us that discipleship has never been about ease. It has always been about following where the Spirit leads.

In Acts, Paul receives a vision calling him onward into Macedonia. The journey is uncertain. There is no guarantee of welcome or safety. Yet Paul and his companions go because they believe God is leading them. Franciscan spirituality speaks deeply to this kind of trust. St. Francis of Assisi understood that the Gospel often calls us away from worldly security and toward radical dependence on God. To walk with Christ is to accept that we may not always fit comfortably within the values of the world around us.

Still, Psalm 100 anchors these difficult readings in joy: “Know that the Lord is God. It is he that made us, and we are his”. The Christian life does not concern itself with fear of rejection, but is rooted in the deep assurance that we belong to God. Franciscan theology continually returns to this truth: all creation is held in divine love, and our worth is not measured by the approval of others but by the loving gaze of our Creator.

Jesus does not tell his disciples to seek conflict, but he reminds them to remain faithful even when misunderstood. The world may reject humility, mercy, simplicity, and sacrificial love—but these are precisely the marks of Christ. In his day, Francis himself was mocked for embracing poverty and peace, yet his joyful witness transformed countless lives.

Today, we are invited to listen carefully for where God is calling us, even when the path feels uncertain or unpopular. And we are reminded that wherever Christ leads, he goes before us.