Third Sunday after Easter AD 2026

Jesus was not a revolutionary, though He is sometimes portrayed as one. It is true that the Christian understanding of God and of the human person has profoundly shaped social order, and that modern Western democracies would be unthinkable without it. Yet at the heart of Christianity lies neither the building of a new social order nor the dismantling of the old. As Saint Peter says: “Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake: whether it be to the king, as supreme; or unto governors. Honour the king.”

This does not mean that everything done by those in authority should be approved without question. If a government, a governor, a president, or even a king clearly acts against the will of God and seeks to compel others to do the same, then one must firmly refuse, for evil must never be cooperated with under any circumstances. Yet this refusal should not take the form of rebellion or violence, but rather of bearing witness to the truth—and, if necessary, even embracing martyrdom for its sake. The truth must be spoken and lived in love.

Saint Peter says that all people are to be honored. At the same time, he emphasizes that we must fear God—for it is from God that every person receives their dignity, which, as a gift from Him, must be preserved by living in accordance with it. This is not always easy, for the godless world seeks to draw us into living otherwise—mocking the will of God and striving to cast Him aside, just as those did who crucified Jesus.

Jesus encourages us: “A little while, and ye shall not see me: and again, a little while, and ye shall see me… Ye now therefore have sorrow: but I will see you again, and your heart shall rejoice, and your joy no man taketh from you.”