2nd Sunday of Easter, 19th April, 2020

May God grant us the grace to have a strong faith in the risen Christ so as to come to a personal, intimate and deeper union with Him.

Happy Sunday!

DOCTRINE AND FAITH

Acts 2,42-47; 1 Peter 1,3-9; John 20, 19-31; 2nd Sunday of Easter, 19th April, 2020)

The first reading of this Sunday shows a picture of the life of the first Christian community, based on the unity and growth of the group of early Christians, and recalls the sharing of goods and miracles performed by the apostle. We see, first of all, the community gathered for worship, consisting of the teachings, fraternal meal (communion) with the Eucharist (the breaking of the bread) and prayers; worship took place in homes, in joy and simplicity. This fraternal communion is not limited to worship, but is expressed, very concretely, through the sharing of goods, according to the need of each person. The community of the believers (one of the first names given to the Christians to distinguish them from the Jews) had not broken ties with the temple, a favourable place for the preaching and miracles of the apostles, and they had no reason to keep away from God’s praise practiced by the people. The community survived and grew, through the work of the Lord, with the testimony of the unity of the group and the strength of the apostles. Read on Easter Sunday 2, this summary, certainly idealised, resounds as an invitation to our communities, renewed by Lent and the profession of faith of the Easter Vigil, to be inspired by this model for a more authentic Christian life.

Several themes emerged in the Gospel episode: the apparitions of the Lord brought the life of the primitive communities in the rhythm of eight days in eight days (Sunday to Sunday); Christ the Lord displayed his risen power transmitting them to the Apostles; finally, the resurrection of the Lord led the disciples to discover, like Thomas, the real meaning of faith. From the gospel narrative Christ is no longer a man like the others, since he passes through the walls; on the other hand, he is not a spirit, since he can be seen and touched on his hands and side (v. 20). His resurrection, therefore, gave him a new way of bodily existence. While in the gospel of Luke the Lord was entirely referred to the past to prove that his resurrection was foreseen, the gospel of John laid more emphasis on the future and worried about sending his Apostles into the world. This sending of the Apostles into the world proves what the Father has given to the Son (John 17,18). The Apostles were then empowered to complete the work that Christ has accomplished in his earthly life (John 17,11). From then on, the meetings of the disciples around the Lord took place around the Apostles themselves. Christ's concern to put the various elements that will prolong his resurrected activity on earth is an important theme of the apparitions. These various elements are: the hierarchy, sacraments, the meal and the assembly (note in the Gospel account the double mention of the "meeting" of the Apostles: vv. 19 and 26, and already its Sunday rhythm: v. 26). In the gospel narrative Jesus imparts the gift of the Spirit. How then can John describe the coming of the Spirit on the Apostles on Easter Sunday, while Luke announces it for Pentecost (Luke 24,49)? With his resurrection, Christ, therefore, became the spiritual man animated by the breath which will perdure until the ultimate times and purify humanity. By conferring on his Apostles the power to forgive sins, the Lord, not only, establishes a sacrament of penance, but makes penitents share in his triumph over evil and sin. It is, therefore, clear why John wanted to combine the transmission of the power to forgive with the story of the first appearance of the Risen. The spiritualisation that was produced in the Lord through the resurrection progresses in humanity through the purifying sacraments of the Church.

On this second Sunday of Easter we see that the resurrection of Jesus brings us many graces. Jesus did not rise only for himself, but also for us: his resurrection has considerable effects on our existence. Today's liturgy texts show us that his resurrection brings us peace, joy, love, and all this is based on faith. Jesus’ first word, when it appeared to the disciples gathered in the Upper Room behind closed doors for fear of the Jews, is: Peace be with you! Risen Jesus brings us peace. We can find ourselves in painful and difficult situations, but Jesus brings us peace. To the timorous disciples he brings peace. In fact, Jesus obtained peace through his victory over death. This victory, manifested in the resurrection, generates peace, reconciliation, and puts us in a positive, very promising situation. Risen Jesus brings not only peace, but also joy. We read in the Gospel: The disciples rejoiced at seeing the Lord. The resurrection of Christ is a source of joy for us. The First Christian took meals with gladness and simplicity of heart, says Luke in the Acts of the Apostles. And Peter, in the second reading, speaks of Christian joy: You are full of joy …; Rejoice with unspeakable/indescribable and glorious joy. The resurrection of Jesus is the source of joy in our lives. The resurrection of Jesus is also a source of brotherly communion and love. The first Christians, as we read in the Acts of the Apostles, were assiduous in listening to the teaching of the apostles and in fraternal union. This union was expressed in the complete sharing of goods: All those who had become believers were together and kept everything in common; whoever had properties and substances sold them and put them at the disposal of everyone, according to the needs of each. The resurrection of Christ frees hearts from all selfish tendencies, placing in them a generous love, a source of peace and joy. All these are based on faith. The resurrection of Jesus tells us about faith in his victory and glory. In the Gospel we see that faith was not such a foregone and spontaneous thing for the apostles. Especially Thomas, who was not with the other apostles when the risen Jesus came for the first time to the Upper Room, does not want to believe, he puts conditions to believe, conditions that he considers impossible. In fact, he says: If I do not see the sign of the nails in his hands and do not put my finger in the place of the nails and do not put my hand in his side, I will not believe. Thomas wanted to recognise the Lord from the signs of passion. In this he was well inspired: the risen Jesus was recognised, precisely, by the signs of his passion. In fact, the resurrection did not abolish passion. It is not a glorification that suppresses all that Jesus suffered before. On the contrary, it highlights the passion, showing all its effectiveness and values. It makes us understand that passion, which seemed like a defeat, is actually a wonderful victory: the victory of generous love. Jesus gave himself up to death for us with infinite love, and thus obtained the victory of the resurrection. Jesus overcame death and changed its meaning. Instead of being a breaking event, his death was an alliance event. At the Last Supper he said: This is my blood of the covenant (Matt 21,28 ff.). His death, therefore, is a victory over death, a victory over all the divisive forces, and his resurrection manifests, precisely, this aspect of his victory. Risen Jesus meets Thomas' requests. Eight days later he returned to the Upper Room, stood among the disciples and said: Peace be with you!, for the third time. Then he said to Thomas: Put your finger here and look at my hands; stretch out your hand, and put it in my side; and be no longer incredulous, but become a believer! At this point Thomas welcomed in his heart a truly complete and perfect faith, and said to Jesus: My Lord and my God! In the entire Gospel there is no expression of faith stronger than this. Thomas not only recognised Jesus as his Lord, but also as his God. Peter recognised Jesus as the Son of the living God (cf. Matt 16,16); Thomas recognised that this filial dignity meant a true divinity of Jesus. Then Jesus says: Because you have seen me, you have believed: blessed are those who, although they have not seen, will believe. The Gospel was written - says John - so that you believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God and by so believing, have life in his name. The life of the risen Jesus is communicated to us through faith.

In the second reading Peter makes a very beautiful eulogy of faith. He says that God regenerated us [gave us a new life] through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, for a living hope, for an inheritance that is not corrupt, does not stain and does not rot away. It is preserved in the heavens for you, who by the power of God are protected by faith, for your salvation. Faith in Christ is the source of peace, joy, love and new life. To tell the truth, the source is the person of Christ, but faith is needed to draw it out. It is about faith, says Peter, that is much more precious than gold. We must ask ourselves if we really consider our faith as being more precious than gold, if we have a profound sense of the extraordinary value of our faith in Christ. All material goods are nothing compared to the great value of faith. And Peter specifies that this faith needs to be deepened through trials, which are necessary. Certainly, the trials are painful, they make us suffer; but it is the suffering that is, by no means destructive, but rather positive at best. The trials purify, deepen the faith, and this will turn out to be our praise, glory and honour at the manifestation of Jesus Christ. And Peter then affirms: You love him, even without having seen him; and now without seeing him you believe in him. Jesus said to Thomas: Blessed are those who, despite not having seen, will believe; and Peter echoes this bliss, because he says: Without seeing him you believe in him. Therefore exult in unspeakable and glorious joy as you achieve the goal of your faith, that is, the salvation of souls. On this Sunday we proclaim our faith, and recognise its great value. It is a source of peace, joy and love. It is above all, a source of personal, intimate union with the risen Jesus and, through him, with the heavenly Father. Our faith is, therefore, a treasure, which we are happy to possess and must accept better and better in all circumstances. May we always pray for its growth in our lives. +John I. Okoye

(graphic by Charles)