Monday of the Fourth Week of Easter
April 26, 2021
Daily Reading from the USCCB: Acts 11:1-18
A basic question the young Church had to face was whether it was necessary to become a Jew in order to benefit from the salvation brought by Christ. Peter had had a vision that indicated to him that the Jewish dietary laws were no longer in force. A voice from heaven had declared all foods clean.
Then he had been sent by the Spirit to evangelize an uncircumcised–that is not Jewish–Roman centurion. The Spirit descended on the Roman and his entourage and it became clear to Peter that Gentiles could–indeed should–be baptized.
The members of the Church who were practicing Jews found this hard to take. Peter finally convinced them that God could grant salvation to Gentiles, too. But still further complications awaited.
