Monday, April 24, 2017

Monday of the Second Week of Easter

(Acts 4:23-31; John 3:1-8)

A Jewish man had, as a boy, been taken from his parents and imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp. He survived only because a German soldier reached out to him in kindness.  He now says that he made a decision not to be bitter about the experience but would always return to them the kindness he had received.  Well into old age the man’s countenance reflects his decisions.  He beams with peace.  Whether or not the man was ever baptized, he has been born of the Spirit of which Jesus speaks in today’s gospel.

Jesus is explaining to Nicodemus that people must not follow the ways of the world.  Those ways dictate that people are to “look out for number one”; “get even with those who wrong you”; and a hundred other maxims of the ever dominant ego.  In contrast Jesus teaches that people have to love one another and to forgive those who persecute them.  His message may be difficult for those who have undergone significant hardship.  But it leads to a life of everlasting peace for all.

The season of Lent should have chastened us, and now Easter graces have been poured out on us.  We can commit ourselves to Jesus Christ.  Models like the Holocaust survivor exist.  More than ever it is time for us to live in the Spirit.

Friday, April 21, 2017

Friday within the Octave of Easter

(Acts 4:1-12; John 21:1-14)

Ken Untener was bishop of Saginaw, Michigan, for twenty-four years.  He organized the diocese so well that he found time to give workshops on preaching nation-wide.  Two years ago a book of his homilies was published posthumously.  It was entitled My Name Is Ken and I Will Be Your Waiter a Long, Long Time.  The name of Jesus might be substituted for Ken to understand today’s gospel.

Like a waiter, Jesus has food prepared for his guests.  He will be serving his disciples until the end of time.  His food will nourish them so that they might go forth and tell others about God’s love.  In the gospel his food is bread and fish.  These are symbols for his very self – his body and spirit – that sustain his disciples in hardship and bring them true happiness.

We come forward to receive Jesus’ body and spirit in the Eucharist.  Doing so, we identify with Christ’s disciples.  We then have to go out to others telling them of God’s ever-gracious care. 

Thursday, April 20, 2017

Thursday within the Octave of Easter

(Acts 3:11-26; Luke 24:35-48)

There is an old “good news-bad news” joke about a messenger reporting to the apostles of Jesus’ resurrection.  The messenger first announces the good news -- the Lord indeed rose from the dead.  Then he gives the bad news -- he wants to speak to them about what happened in the garden on Thursday night.  Luke's gospel does not mention the disciples fleeing Jesus when he is arrested. Nevertheless, there is a sense in which their meeting Jesus after the resurrection is not pure pleasure.

The resurrection account we hear today establishes that Jesus rose from the dead in body as well as soul.  He offers his flesh and bones, to be touched if desired, as proof that his disciples are not imagining his presence.  Then he bites into a piece of fish as further evidence.  The disciples can rejoice that their leader has returned.  Now comes the hard part.  The Scriptures, which foretold Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection, also predicted that repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be preached in his name.  As the chief witnesses to the wonders of the resurrection, the disciples inherit the responsibility of preaching it to the world.

It is a formidable task for at least two reasons.  First, the disciples must reform their lives in perfect conformity with the gospel.  Dom Helder Camara once warned confirmed Christians, “Your lives may be the only gospel your sisters and brothers will ever read.”  Second, they will be resisted as many will hear the call to change their ways as a threat to their well-being.   We, likewise, can be sure that just in living the gospel we will incur hostility at times.

Wednesday within the Octave of Easter

Wednesday within the Octave of Easter

(Acts 3:1-10; Luke 24:13-35)

The name Christian registers negatively in the minds of many today.  At Christmas people refuse to use the word.  The Crusades are seen as unforgiveable sins even as current Muslim atrocities beg Christian forbearance.  Standing Christian morality respecting life from conception and preserving sexual intimacy for marriage is viewed as quaint.  It should be noted, therefore, how St. Peter employs the name of Jesus in today’s reading from the Acts of the Apostles.

Peter, John, and all Christians of the day go to temple for prayer.  They do not see themselves as separate from their countrypersons although they recognize they have an advantage.  A crippled man begs them for alms as is his custom.  Peter does not turn away but acknowledges the beggar’s need by looking at him intently.  He tells the man that as a human being, he is powerless to help him.  Then he invokes the name of Jesus which has the power to save.  Pulling the man up from the ground, Peter watches him walk. 

Invoking Jesus’ name allows us to overcome natural limitations.  We should hardly be ashamed of using it name except, of course, in vain.  We need to recognize publicly that it is Jesus who gives us the grace to visit the sick and speak up for immigrants.  We have to keep in mind as well that his name represents love and peace, never oppression and violence.  If the world is to be saved, it will be through his name.

Tuesday, April 18, 2017

Tuesday within the Octave of Easter

(Acts 2:36-41; John 20:11-18)

In listening to the gospel today, two questions come to mind.  First, why does Mary Magdalene have difficulty recognizing the risen Lord?  Second, why does Jesus tell Mary not to cling to him?  Answering these questions gives a better understanding of the resurrection.

Mary does not recognize Jesus because the resurrection has transformed him. He does not have the same kind of body as before he died.  It has been eternalized.  It is more than cleansed and more even than restored with blood.  It is recreated so that it beams life.  As a meager comparison, we might think of the difficulty of recognizing a formerly shiftless youth who just undergone basic Marine training.  His body now vibrates energy.

The resurrected body is not to be clung to because it does not belong to this world.  Its eternal nature belongs with the Father in heaven.  When Jesus has ascended, he will send his Spirit which has a place among us.  That Spirit guiding, inspiring, and informing us will be Jesus’ abiding presence to us. It will lead us to eventual full union with Jesus.