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Tobit 13:6 "If you turn to him with all your heart and with all your soul, to do what is true before him, then he will turn to you and will not hide his face from you. But see what he will do with you; give thanks to him with your full voice. Praise the Lord of righteousness, and exalt the King of the ages. I give him thanks in the land of my captivity, and I show his power and majesty to a nation of sinners. Turn back, you sinners, and do right before him; who knows if he will accept you and have mercy on you?"

 

This is a long verse, but I want to focus on the line "I give him thanks in the land of my captivity, and I show his power and majesty to a nation of sinners." The land of our captivity is this world. We are strangers in a strange land, as Archbishop Chaput put it. The devil is the prince of this world, as Jesus told His disciples at the Last Supper (John 14:30), and among those who have not turned to God for assistance in resisting him, we stand out like sore thumbs.

 

It is that very standing out that shows God's power and majesty to the world. Because we are do different, people look at us, sometimes with contempt, but usually with some degree of curiosity. Why are we willing to be so different? Why would we give up so much, or suffer persecution, for the sake of our faith? It doesn't make any sense, unless we truly believe in the God we profess. So then they are compelled to at least think about this God, to confront in their own hearts and minds whether He might be the God we proclaim Him to be. When they see how God blesses his faithful ones, how He is with us even through our adversity, how we handle that adversity with peace, and how the arc of history bends toward God's justice and goodness, they may open the door to belief themselves.

 

Being faithful in captivity is one of the strongest tools of evangelization there is. It is difficult, and we will suffer for it, but through that suffering, we show God's power and majesty to the world.