This ancient feast, observed on July 15, commemorates the tradition that after the Ascension the Twelve cast lots to determine which regions of the world each would evangelize, and then scattered from Jerusalem to preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth. Though not a scriptural account per se, it gives liturgical expression to the missionary vocation of the apostolic office and the universal reach of the Church’s witness. An old tradition, attested as early as the fourth century, holds that before their dispersal the Apostles together composed the Apostles’ Creed — each contributing one of its articles — as a common rule of faith to carry with them. The feast reminds us that the Church is not an institution that waits for the world to come to it.
Catholic Jonesboro 