Saint Gertrude Parish - Lasne

Christian witness is born of friendship with the Lord, crucified and risen for the salvation of all. It must not be confused with ideological propaganda, but is a true principle of inner transformation and social awareness. Jesus chose to call “friends” the disciples to whom he revealed the Kingdom of God and whom he asked to remain with him, to form his community and send them out to proclaim the Gospel (cf. Jn 15:15, 27). Thus, when Jesus tells us, “bear witness,” he assures us that he considers us his friends. He alone fully knows who we are and why we are here: he knows your hearts, you young people, your indignation at discrimination and injustice, your longing for truth and beauty, for joy and peace; through his friendship, he listens to you, motivates you, and guides you, calling each one of you to a new life.

The gaze of Jesus, who always and only desires our good, precedes us (cf. Mk 10:21). He does not want us as servants, nor as “activists” of a party: he calls us to be with him as friends, so that our lives may be renewed. And witness flows spontaneously from the joyful newness of this friendship. It is a unique friendship, which gives us communion with God; a faithful friendship, which reveals to us our own dignity and that of others; an eternal friendship, which even death cannot destroy, for it has its origin in the risen Crucified One.