Third Sunday of Easter, Yr B. April 14, 2024
Readings
1st: Acts 3:13-15, 17-19
2nd: I John 5:1-5a
Gospel: Luke 24:35-48
Theme: You Too Are A Witness To These Things
My dear people of God, today is Third Sunday of Easter. Our reflections would focus on the theme. "Experience is the best teacher", goes the popular adage. In a similar sense, we could also assert that "an eye witness is the most credible reporter". For better appreciation of today's Gospel, one should keep in mind the awesome experience of the two disciples of Jesus who, out of apparant frustration, left Jerusalem (in the east) and were going to Emmaus (in the west). - From the beginning of light to the beginning of darkness - from Sun rise to sun set. (Luke 24:13-35 - Wednesday of the Octave of Easter). No one moves from light to darkness and remains in the truth. We should also not lose sight of the varied kinds of excitements that characterised the immediate post-resurrection period. The two "frustrated disciples", for instance, met and experienced the Risen Lord in many ways. It is still same with us today. One experience of Jesus often leads to another, more amazing one, in most cases. First, they experienced the Lord as "the only Stranger in Jerusalem" who was totally ignorant of the recent happenings. They met him in Sacred Scriptures which He explained in details to them. In their attempt to show hospitality, the "Stranger" rather played Host at table in the Breaking of Bread. Luke reports that the frustrated disciples were first startled (shocked/alarmed). However, after they've been enlightened by Holy Scriptures and empowered by Broken Bread, they got carried away by great joy, a proper consequence of meeting Jesus. No one truly meets and encounters Jesus and remains the same. If joy is absent there must be something missing. A sad Christian is a serious contradiction in terms.
Freed from freezing fear and empowered by the Word and Broken Bread, they couldn't even wait to finish their "Meal" but hurried quickly to spread the Good News to the Apostles back in Jerusalem. Incredible, to say the least. At Jerusalem they found the eleven apostles who wasted no time explaining to them their own awesome experiences. Fortunately or unfortunately, when the "returned disciples" took their turn to narrate their experiences with great excitement, they didn't finish and Jesus came and stood amongst them, offered them the gift of peace and showed them the fresh scars on his hands and feet. He again took time to elaborately remind them of all that Scripture prophesied about Him - "Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in His name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem". He then gave them the great mission: "You are witnesses of these things". It is against this backdrop that our theme is paraphrased and formulated: "You Too Are A Witness To These Things" at our own time, this time, not beginning in Jerusalem but in the Home, the basic unit of society. Suffice to say that Witnessing to these things at our time demands a radical change of dimension and approach - from preaching to practice, from words to works, from saying to doing/action - because, after almost 2024 years, the world has heard enough of "Christ has died, Christ is risen and Christ will come again". What the world now longs and yearns eagerly for is, "What is the practical meaning of this mystery of the Christian faith? There is time for everything: time to profess and preach and time to practise, time to say and time do/act, time of theories and time of practicals, etc, because actions speak louder than any amount of words.
Our First Reading of today follows the healing of the cripple at the "Beautiful Gate" by Peter and John. Biblically, lameness is the result of one's sins. We may be surprised, and rightly so, that Peter who, in recent past, proved every bit a worst coward in human history, is heard today boldly challenging the Jews in the face to repent from their sins and receive forgiveness in the name of the one they recently rejected and condemned - Jesus Christ the Holy One, the Just One, the Prince of Life, the Christ. By these appellations Peter wants to state, in no uncertain terms, that Jesus is the Son of the God who was God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. At a deeper level, however, Peter wants to drive home a point that permanent dependence on human charity (like the cripple used to do) is not, and should not be the supreme will of God. People should be taught/empowered to fish for themselves rather than reduced to depending all the time on human charity. This is where our witness is put to its greatest test. Does our encounter with people leave them better or worse? What would people remember us for? Is our witness to the gospel mere lips service or saving works? We thank God for making the Cross of His Christ a Tree of life, raising cripples, like you and I, to our feet so we can fish for ourselves rather than depending permanently on human charity. Today at Mass when the minister says, "This is the Body of Christ", ask yourself, "What do I also give to others to make them better selves?" Remember! that " You are also a witness to these things, beginning from where you live and worship daily. Continue to recite the Holy Rosary daily. God richly bless you and your family.
Rev. Fr. Thomas L. Debuo - Catholic Diocese of Damongo, Ghana. (0244511306/0243711926)