Memorial of Saint Justin, Martyr
It is indeed a bold claim that we belong to the Lord. And indeed, especially when such belonging calls forth changes in us, there can be resistance. The Pharisees and Saducees in today’s Gospel have been called upon by the Lord’s preaching and miracles and rebukes again and again so that they may change and live more in accordance with the One to whom they belong. They respond with questioning His authority.
Likewise, when St. Justin, through his efforts to defend and propagate the Catholic faith in the second century, proclaimed to the peoples of the Roman Empire that they belonged to Jesus the Lord, there was resistance. Questions of his authority to make such claims were raised. St. Justin replied with numerous works, showing the divine basis for the claims he was making about God’s love. And in the end, he laid down his life for the Lord to whom he belonged.
Let us pray for the grace to witness to the world that God calls us to live as the sons and daughters that we are. Let us pray for the grace to know that no matter what challenges or trials we face in such proclamation, nothing at all (not even bodily death) can change the fact that we are the Lord’s.