Let us bear witness to the truth. – Episcopal Rorate on the Memorial Day of János Boldog Brenner in Debrecen Hungarian Courier
John Brenner gave his life as a young priest for his faith, his vocation, for Christ, the chief pastor said. He asked the faithful at the beginning of the Mass to pray that they could live for Christ the way a priest who had died a martyr could die for Christ.
(The relic of the martyr János Brenner can be found in the Church of the Incarnation in Debrecen.)
The county bishop Ferenc Palánki spoke about the source of the truth in his reflection at the dawn Mass.
Many times the question may arise in us that God so often leaves us in a precarious position. Is He the only true God we have been waiting for who can help us? The chief pastor asked, adding that even John the Baptist was insecure about it, so much so that he sent ambassadors to Jesus: “Are you the one to come, or shall we wait for another?” (Mt 11.3).
The life of John Brenner was taken with 32 stabs because he persevered in the truth he experienced, he reminded the chief pastor. “Not everything on earth is going the way we want it to.” God does not always push our chariot in the direction we want, but He promises to be in our struggles, in our suffering, because we love us. He did not destiny us for worldly happiness, but for eternal life.
Still, life is so beautiful! And not because everything succeeds, since no one’s life is a walk, but because we can learn to love, we are able to make sacrifices for Jesus, the Truth, Ferenc Palánki pointed out.
“Dew, ye heavens, from above, and ye clouds, let the truth fall among us.” – we must be able to live credibly, stand up for our faith, and testify that the only true God has appeared on earth out of love to give us His life. We are preparing for this in Advent to embrace this truth every day and pass it on to everyone we meet, ”he concluded with the county bishop.
Source and photo: Good News Press Office /Diocese of Debrecen-Nyíregyháza
Hungarian Courier