Our first reading is a unique in its style and offers to us a glimpse of the workings of the early Church.The disciples are in a foreign land, spreading the Good News, and there seems to be some local customs and traditions that come into conflict.

During the Easter season, our First Readings are based on the lives of Jesus’ disciples. In today’s First Reading, we hear about Paul and Barnabas and how they “strengthened the spirits of the disciples and exhorted them to persevere in the faith.”