Acts 11:21-26; 13:1-3 / Matthew 10:7-13 (2019 / 2024)
St. Barnabas was not one of the twelve Apostles who were chosen by Jesus.
Yet in Acts 14:14, he, together with St. Paul were called apostles, as they were sent by the Church for a mission and to preach or deliver a message.
Yet to be called an apostle was indeed a great privilege for St. Barnabas, considering the fact that he was one of the first converts to Christianity.
And indeed, he lived up to his calling as an apostle. He and St. Paul undertook missionary journeys together and defended Gentile converts against a faction which insisted on circumcision.
We also heard from the 1st reading that they also gained converts in Antioch, and it was there that the disciples were first called "Christians".
He also participated in the Council of Jerusalem, the first Council, which addressed the status of the Gentile converts and formulated the required religious practices for them.
So St. Barnabas was a great figure of evangelization in the early Church.
Yet the 1st reading described these simple but important qualities in him - for he was a good man, filled with the Holy Spirit and with faith.
For us who are called by God to be His people, let us recognize the goodness that God has created in us.
Let us also ask to be filled with the Holy Spirit and with faith so that like St. Barnabas, we too will be instruments for the great work that God wants us to do.