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3 DENVER CATHOLIC | SEPTEMBER 2021 303.468.9885 • TheCatholicFoundation.com Call to learn more. Calling All Catholics $1,000 Legacy Challenge For The Deacon Steve Stemper Lisa Kukura Joshua Gideon fear of being arrested and persecuted. Instead, we witness his bold proclamation of the Gospel to all those present, resulting in 3,000 people being baptized and becoming Christians (Acts 2:41). Peter and the rest of the apostles had deep confidence in the transformative power of the Gospel, and this gave them great courage, joy and hope. These are hallmarks of an apostolic mindset. The events of Jesus' life, death and resurrection also convicted the first believers that the faith they had received as Jews was the true version of reality, not the pagan portrayal of a world ruled by many flawed gods. In our time, the competing worldview we encounter is that the spiritual realm and God either don't exist or don't matter. As a quick look at the last century clearly demon- strates, we see that sin and other spiritual actions do matter. We can also observe that when God is removed from society, such as during Communism, humanity begins to self-destruct. Into this void, we must proclaim that there is no other god, technology or person who has defeated death and sin as Jesus did. No one else has promised that same victory to all who believe in and follow him. Salvation is made pos- sible by encountering Jesus and living the Gospel in one's life, even its difficult messages. This belief is central to the apostolic mindset. This is the conviction that allowed St. Peter and the apostles to proclaim the Gospel in the Temple without fear of being jailed and to respond to being flogged by rejoicing "that they had been found worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name" (Acts 5:41). It's also the conviction that compelled the many missionary saints over the centuries to undertake difficult journeys to faraway lands, including our country, to share the Gospel. And it's precisely the truth we should rely upon as we seek to be bold witnesses to Christ in a society that thinks it can save itself. Rather than being depressed or despairing about the difficulties of losing the cultural support the Church has had for so long, we should be hopeful. We were formed in our mothers' wombs and brought into this world by God for these very times. God is not worried about the situation and we shouldn't be either, because he has definitively won the battle. As we work to build the kingdom of God on earth, we can be confident because our good Father has a multitude of graces ready to give us if we ask for them Success in the mind of the Apostles was not measured by the number of converts or communities that were established. Rather, just as it was with Jesus himself, success in an apostolic time is measured by whether the Gospel tests the hearts of those who hear it and calls them to the greatness God has for them (cf. FCAM, 37). May God give us the confidence, courage, joy and hope to be witnesses to the great adventure of mercy and redemption that he invites every person to join in. May God the Father pour out his Spirit upon us and help us follow in the footsteps of the Apostles!