Fr. Louis Birabaluge
As we take part in our Sunday Mass we are here not just to remember the historical Jesus but to meet the risen Christ in person. Sharing in the Eucharist is a statement of loyalty, both of personal and shared faith. In praying together we also help each other to stay faithful; it strengthens our Christian community. It was because the members of the early Church in Jerusalem met so regularly in public that the number of people who came to believe in the Lord increased steadily.
To meet with the Risen Lord, it is also to live as he commanded us to do. In today’s Gospel he says : « Peace be with you ». By these words, he made us peaceable people, people who stand for harmony not discord, for reconciliation, not conflict. In standing for peace, his disciples manifest that they have encountered the Risen Lord.
But the Risen Lord gives even more : « “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” When the first disciples received the gift of peace and the Holy Spirit,
their response was utter joy. The gift of the Spirit was the breath of the Risen Christ. When the disciples experienced that life-giving Spirit it took over their lives. Soon they left the Upper Room as changed characters, full of missionary purpose. They go out animated, fired and propelled by the Holy Spirit. From fearful people, they became courageous disciples called to be witnesses of the Risen Lord.
With the gift of the Holy Spirit, they are called to forgive, to be merciful. Now we understand why this Sunday is called Sunday of the Divine mercy. Indeed, Christ’s death was a ransom for our sins. Risen with him, we are now sinners -forgiven. We are called to be like him : merciful. True that they are called also to retain sin, to judge. But judgement belongs to God who is the Only Holy. As for us, we can just repeat the words of the prayer of our Father : Forgive us as we forgive our brothers and sisters. We are not peaceful and merciful people, may be because we are like Thomas, absent when the Risen Lord gave his gifts to the Disciples. Should we not follow Thomas in his spiritual Journey ?
Indeed, Thomas the Twin was missing that day and so did not share that experience. Though he was an apostle of Jesus, he was an independent individual, suspicious and sceptical. He could not believe just on the word of the others. He wanted his own experience. Eventually Thomas came to believe in the resurrection like the other disciples, when he saw the risen Jesus with his own eyes. The story ends with a message for all who have not seen the Lord, but who are called to believe in him just the same. We are among the later generations of believers to whom this message applies: ‘Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.’
We are blessed because we can touch Jesus in sacraments ; especially in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. There we can say, yes I have seen and touched the Lord. There we can have our experience with Jesus. But the same can be said about the sacrament of reconciliation. In it, we encounter God who forgives us through the mediation of the Church. Do we believe it ? Or are we just like Thomas ?
Our faith is a great gift from God. It is a living gift that needs nurturing, to grow and mature. Like other life-forms, faith can wither from neglect. We need to pray about it, think about it, and express it in actions arising from love. This does not mean that we will never have any doubts. But if like Thomas we continue seeking, we too will come into the presence of Jesus and say “My Lord and my God!” May we become peaceful and merciful people as signs of encountering with the Risen Lord.
As we take part in our Sunday Mass we are here not just to remember the historical Jesus but to meet the risen Christ in person. Sharing in the Eucharist is a statement of loyalty, both of personal and shared faith. In praying together we also help each other to stay faithful; it strengthens our Christian community. It was because the members of the early Church in Jerusalem met so regularly in public that the number of people who came to believe in the Lord increased steadily.
To meet with the Risen Lord, it is also to live as he commanded us to do. In today’s Gospel he says : « Peace be with you ». By these words, he made us peaceable people, people who stand for harmony not discord, for reconciliation, not conflict. In standing for peace, his disciples manifest that they have encountered the Risen Lord.
But the Risen Lord gives even more : « “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.” When the first disciples received the gift of peace and the Holy Spirit,
their response was utter joy. The gift of the Spirit was the breath of the Risen Christ. When the disciples experienced that life-giving Spirit it took over their lives. Soon they left the Upper Room as changed characters, full of missionary purpose. They go out animated, fired and propelled by the Holy Spirit. From fearful people, they became courageous disciples called to be witnesses of the Risen Lord.
With the gift of the Holy Spirit, they are called to forgive, to be merciful. Now we understand why this Sunday is called Sunday of the Divine mercy. Indeed, Christ’s death was a ransom for our sins. Risen with him, we are now sinners -forgiven. We are called to be like him : merciful. True that they are called also to retain sin, to judge. But judgement belongs to God who is the Only Holy. As for us, we can just repeat the words of the prayer of our Father : Forgive us as we forgive our brothers and sisters. We are not peaceful and merciful people, may be because we are like Thomas, absent when the Risen Lord gave his gifts to the Disciples. Should we not follow Thomas in his spiritual Journey ?
Indeed, Thomas the Twin was missing that day and so did not share that experience. Though he was an apostle of Jesus, he was an independent individual, suspicious and sceptical. He could not believe just on the word of the others. He wanted his own experience. Eventually Thomas came to believe in the resurrection like the other disciples, when he saw the risen Jesus with his own eyes. The story ends with a message for all who have not seen the Lord, but who are called to believe in him just the same. We are among the later generations of believers to whom this message applies: ‘Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.’
We are blessed because we can touch Jesus in sacraments ; especially in the Sacrament of the Eucharist. There we can say, yes I have seen and touched the Lord. There we can have our experience with Jesus. But the same can be said about the sacrament of reconciliation. In it, we encounter God who forgives us through the mediation of the Church. Do we believe it ? Or are we just like Thomas ?
Our faith is a great gift from God. It is a living gift that needs nurturing, to grow and mature. Like other life-forms, faith can wither from neglect. We need to pray about it, think about it, and express it in actions arising from love. This does not mean that we will never have any doubts. But if like Thomas we continue seeking, we too will come into the presence of Jesus and say “My Lord and my God!” May we become peaceful and merciful people as signs of encountering with the Risen Lord.