Wisdom 2:1, 12-22 / John 7:1-2, 10, 25-30
We might presume that people who work for peace and justice will be respected and even treated with honour.
But the reality is that these people are persecuted and even in the most offensive sense.
For example, Archbishop Oscar Romero who championed the rights of the poor was shot to death while celebrating the Eucharist.
Rev. Martin Luther King pleaded for equal rights and he was assassinated. Gandhi also advocated non-violence and he was also innocently assassinated. Pope John Paul II urged peoples and nations to be reconciled and someone tried to assassinate him too.
Enough of examples to reiterate what the 1st reading said about the thoughts of evil people - Let us lie in wait for the virtuous man; let us test him with cruelty and with torture; let us condemn him to a shameful death.
But the 1st reading denounces such evil thoughts by saying that they are misled, their malice makes them blind. This is the lot of the godless with their misguided reasoning.
But the persecution of those who work for peace and justice, those who embark on works of charity and charity missions, shouldn't come as a surprise for us.
In the gospel, we heard that people even wanted to kill Jesus, even though He had done nothing wrong.
Jesus suffered persecution and a violent death, but the victory of His resurrection brings us hope and gives us courage.
Let us stand firm on the side of what is right and just, and when we stand firm to the end, we will see the fruits of our perseverance.