MY LORD AND MY GOD!

II EASTER SUNDAY - John 20:19-31

That Sunday - the first day of the week - was an extraordinary Sunday by all accounts. Early in the morning, it was discovered that the body of Jesus was not anymore in the tomb and such a finding left the disciples very much upset. Who could have taken Jesus’ body? The women reported to Peter and he with another disciple went there to check for himself. And they were surprised by the order and harmony which they found, interpreting that as a sign of the resurrection. Then, throughout the day, several people reported experiences of the Risen Christ. He appeared to Mary of Magdala, to Peter, and those two disciples going to Emmaus walked with him, received from him the interpretations of the Scriptures that spoke about him and recognised him in the breaking of the bread. Then, in the evening of that same day, the disciples were gathered together and Jesus came in to be present in their meeting. After greeting the disciples, Jesus entrusts them with the same mission he had received from the Father and, in order to carry out that mission, he gives them the Holy Spirit, and with the power of the Holy Spirit, they will be able to exercise the ministry of reconciliation, forgiving sins. This passage of the gospel makes it clear to us that the forgiveness of sins is central to the role of the Church, so that she may bring people back to God and reconcile them with Him. 

Since Pope St. John Paul II, this Sunday is celebrated as the Sunday of Divine Mercy, so that we may recognise, accept and celebrate God’s mercy, who is always ready to accept us and to welcome us back. He never closes the door on us, because he is the loving who cannot forget or forsake his beloved children.

The second half of this Sunday’s gospel reading presents the figure of Thomas, the Twin. He had absented himself from the community meeting and then did not believe in the testimony of his friends. Thomas’ attitude represents well our modern man, dominated by a positivist attitude, accepting only what can be seen and touched, weighed and measured. Any conclusion or affirmation of truth must be based on experiment, repeated over and over again, following a specific and well-controlled method that always produces the same result, a result that can be measured and verified. Our age is dominated by a scientific spirit in which doubt, interrogation and search are essential, and any conclusion that is not the fruit of such research effort is looked upon with contempt. Thomas wants to check before believing, without realising that there is no need for belief on what has been seen and touched. We should be reminded that the most profound things in life are difficult to touch, weigh and measure. If we pay attention to the signs of life, we may come to an inner certainty about a God that reveals himself. This is an experience that each one gas to do for himself, and that must be shared and lived in community. Having met the Risen Christ, we cannot remain silent; like the apostles, we must give witness that he is risen and is alive. We must listen to him  as he reassures us, presenting himself as the Living One:

“Do not be afraid; 

it is I, the First and the Last; 

I am the Living One, 

I was dead and now I am to live 

for ever and ever, 

and I hold the keys of death 

and of the underworld.” (Rev 1:17-18)

With Thomas, we can proclaim our faith, saying:

“My Lord and my God!”