CHILDREN’S STORY:
One day, after Jesus returned to his Father in heaven, the apostles were all together in Solomon’s Portico at the Temple in Jerusalem.
Although the people were afraid to join them, they held the apostles in esteem.
The people also brought their sick onto the streets on mats and cots. They hoped that Peter’s shadow would fall on the sick people as he walked by and they would be healed.
People from nearby towns also came to Jerusalem with their sick and those afflicted by unclean spirits, and all were cured.
The high priest and his companions, who were all Sadducees, became jealous. They rose up and laid hands on the apostles and put them in jail.
During the night, the angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and led them out.
“Go and take your place in the Temple area, and tell the people everything about this life,” the angel said.
The apostles went to the Temple area early in the morning and taught the people.
Not realizing that the apostles were in the Temple area, the high priest and his companions arrived and convened the Sanhedrin, the full senate of the Israelites. They sent court officers to retrieve the apostles from the jail.
The court officers returned empty-handed from the securely locked and guarded jail. As everyone wondered what to do, a report came that the apostles were in the Temple area. The captain of the Temple guard and the court officers brought in the apostles without force, for they were afraid of being stoned by the people.
The high priest questioned the apostles before the Sanhedrin. He reminded them that they had been given strict orders to stop teaching in Jesus’ name.
“We must obey God rather than men,” Peter and the apostles replied. “The God of our ancestors raised Jesus. … God exalted him at his right hand as leader and savior to grant Israel repentance and forgiveness of sins. We are witnesses of these things, as is the Holy Spirit that God has given to those who obey him.”
READ MORE ABOUT IT:
Acts 5
Q&A
1. Who put the apostles in jail?
2. Whose name did the apostles teach in?
TRIVIA: What happened to the apostles after they appeared before the Sanhedrin? (Hint: Acts 5:40)
Answer: They were flogged and released.
BIBLE ACCENT:
There are several other times in the Bible when God helped apostles who were in jail.
For example, in Acts 12, we learn that King Herod was persecuting Christians. He had the apostle James killed, and he had Peter arrested and put in jail. He planned to put Peter on trial after the Passover.
On the night before Peter was to stand trial, he was secured in double chains and sleeping in his cell between two soldiers. Outside the door, guards kept watch on the prison.
The angel of the Lord suddenly appeared and woke Peter. The angel told him to gather his things and follow him.
The angel led Peter past two guards and to the iron gate that led out into the city. The gate opened by itself, and the angel led Peter outside the jail and into an alley before disappearing.
And in Acts 16, Paul and Silas were put in jail when they were preaching in Philippi. At midnight, there was a great earthquake, and the prison doors flew open and the chains on the prisoners were loosened. Even though they had a chance to escape, Paul and Silas stayed to evangelize the jail guard and his family, who were all baptized. In the morning, the authorities set Paul and Silas free.
SPOTLIGHT ON THE SAINTS:
St. Mary Mazzarello
St. Mary Mazzarello was born into a peasant family in Italy in 1837. She worked long hours in the fields and vineyards.
She joined a sodality whose members nursed victims of typhoid fever in 1860. Mary caught the fever and nearly died.
Her weakened health prompted her to change jobs, so she created a dressmaking business to employ local girls. This endeavor turned into the Salesian Sisters of St. John Bosco, which now has 1,400 houses in 54 countries.
Mary died in 1881, and we remember her on May 14.
PUZZLE:
Using the hints provided, fill in the blanks in the sentences about the first followers of Jesus.
1. Ananias and his wife, _______, sold a piece of property. (Acts 5:1)
2. In the community of believers, no one claimed their _______ were their own. (Acts 4:32)
3. Philip went to _______ to proclaim the Messiah to the people there. (Acts 8:5)
4. Tabitha was a follower of Jesus who lived in _______. (Acts 9:36)
Answers: 1. Sapphira; 2. possessions; 3. Samaria; 4. Joppa