Gospel (Mt 10,24-33) - At that time, Jesus said to his apostles: «A disciple is not greater than his master, nor is a servant greater than his master; it is enough for the disciple to become like his master and for the servant like his lord. If they called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more so those of his family! »Therefore do not be afraid of them, for there is nothing hidden from you that will not be revealed, nor secret that will not be known. What I say to you in the darkness you say in the light, and what you hear in your ear you proclaim from the terraces. And do not be afraid of those who kill the body, but have no power to kill the soul; rather be afraid of him who has the power to destroy both soul and body in Gehenna. Aren't two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not even one of them will fall to the ground without the will of your Father. Even the hairs of your head are all numbered. So do not be afraid: you are worth more than many sparrows! Therefore whoever acknowledges me before men, him will I also acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven; but whoever denies me before men, I will also deny before my Father who is in heaven."

The commentary on the Gospel by Monsignor Vincenzo Paglia

The evangelist Matthew, while reporting these words of Jesus, probably had before his eyes the experience of his community subjected to strong protests. And he wanted to reassure her. The Lord does not abandon his disciples. Indeed, anyone who spends his life for the Gospel receives the consolations of the Lord, especially if he has to face difficulties and trials. It has never been simple and linear for the Christian community to preach the Gospel of the cross and resurrection. Of course, we must ask ourselves what the exhortation not to be afraid and not to fear means for us, since we do not live in a time of persecution. A defeatist Christianity, which does not know how to hope for a world of peace, is debased in its strength. It happens that we think that the Gospel asks us for a life of modesty, perhaps only made up of renunciations, without real interest for us, and ultimately ineffective for society. Far from it. The disciple who follows the path of the Gospel does not get lost, God supports him: «Aren't two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet, not even one of them will fall to the ground without the will of your Father. Even the hairs of your head are all numbered." This is the true security of the Christian: not being invulnerable, invincible, but loved even in what we ourselves cannot calculate. Nothing of our life will be lost because everything is loved! And love loses nothing. «So do not be afraid: you are worth more than many sparrows!»