'Repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations.' Sunday Reflections, 3rd Sunday of Easter

Supper at Emmaus, c.1629

Rembrandt [Web Gallery of Art]

Then the two disciples told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread (Luke 24:35; Gospel).

 

Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland)

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Gospel  Luke 24:35-48  (English Standard Version, Anglicised)

Then [the two disciples] told what had happened on the road, and how he was known to them in the breaking of the bread.

As they were talking about these things, Jesus himself stood among them, and said to them, “Peace to you!” But they were startled and frightened and thought they saw a spirit. And he said to them, “Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? See my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me, and see. For a spirit does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have.” And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his feet. And while they still disbelieved for joy and were marvelling, he said to them, “Have you anything here to eat?” They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate before them.

Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things."

Léachtaí i nGaeilge

Pope Benedict XVI celebrating Mass 

[Wikipedia; photo]

More than 20 years ago while visiting Canada I was invited to speak to a prayer group in Hamilton, Ontario. Afterwards over coffee I was chatting with an elderly woman, an immigrant from Germany, who had been a Lutheran for most of her life. In Canada she had felt drawn for a long time to becoming a Catholic but could not take the final step. 

One particular weekday afternoon while thinking about this she felt rather like the apostles in today' gospel when Jesus asked them, Why are you troubled, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? To calm herself she went for a walk and, as she passed a Catholic church, decided to go in. While she was there a small group of teenage boys came in, went up to the front of the church, genuflected and knelt in silent prayer before the Blessed Sacrament in the tabernacle. After a few minutes they genuflected again and went out. That for the German woman was the moment when, like the two disciples returning from Emmaus, she could say that [Jesus] was known to [her] in the breaking of the bread. Jesus spoke to her through the teenage boys who had silently expressed their faith in the Real Presence of the Risen Lord Jesus, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, in the Blessed Sacrament. 

This is one aspect of today's readings. Another is repentance. In the First Reading St Peter while proclaiming that Jesus was risen from the dead says to the people: And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, as did also your rulers. But what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ would suffer, he thus fulfilled. Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out (Acts 3:17-19). St Peter who had betrayed Jesus shows his understanding of our tendency to sin when he says, I know that you acted in ignorance in handing Jesus over to be killed. But his message is stark and clear: Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out.

Lift up the light of your face on us, O Lord (Psalm 4:6)

Response to the Responsorial Psalm

The Responsorial Psalm shows us where the source of life is: 'What can bring us happiness?' many say, Lift up the light of your face on us, O Lord (Psalm 4:6). The light of God's face can come to us in unexpected ways, as it did through the smile of my young friend in the Philippines above.

The Second Reading, 1 John 2:1-5a, calls us to repent while at the same time offering us God's forgiveness: My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. St John uses very blunt language while showing us where God is calling us: Whoever says 'I know him' but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him. This reminds me of what St Thérèse of Lisieux wrote on the second page of her autobiography, Story of a Soul: Perfection consists in doing His will, in being what He wants to be. This is a dynamic expression calling us to grow in holiness. I am guilty of sometimes having said to people that God loves us 'as we are'. Parents love their newly-born son as he is but don't want him to stay like that. They want to lovingly nurture him in every sense so that he may grow to be a responsible adult. And that will involve on occasion reprimanding him when he misbehaves.

There is a tendency to turn Jesus into a teddy bear. In last Sunday's Gospel St Thomas knew that if the Lord was truly risen he would carry the scars of his crucifixion. St Luke tells us in today's Gospel that Jesus said to the apostles, See my hands and my feet. He was showing his scars. Then Jesus goes on to tell them what their mission is to be: Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.

To preach Christ as other than the Crucified Christ now risen from the dead is to not preach Christ at all. It is to deny that we are sinners in need of conversion. It is to deny that we need a Saviour. It is to deny that we need a God who became Man and died for us. It is to deny that we need Jesus Christ, the One  known to [the two disciples] in the breaking of the bread. It is to deny the reality of the faith of the teenage boys in Hamilton, Ontario. in the presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. It is to deny the faith of the German immigrant who, because of the faith she saw in the teenage boys,  was able to recognise Jesus Christ the Risen Lord, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity, in the Bread that is the Blessed Sacrament and to embrace the Catholic Faith, letting go of her fears.

All in the April Evening

Words by Katherine Tynan Hinkson, music by Sir Hugh S. Robertson

Sung by London Emmanuel Choir

When I was in Fourth Class (Grade Four) in O'Connell Schools, Dublin, 1953-54, we learned Katherine Tynan Hinkson's poem under our wonderful teacher Mr John Galligan, a man of deep faith who prepared us for confirmation that year. And if my memory is accurate, we sang it the same year in the choir of Mrs Agnes Boylan whom I recall as an 'everyone's favourite grandmother' kind of person. The poem/song reminds us of the price of Easter, the price of our Salvation, the sacrifice of the Lamb of God..

High Altar with Bernini's baldacchino, St Peter's, Vatican City 

[Wikipedia; photo]

Traditional Latin Mass

Second Sunday after Easter (Good Shepherd Sunday)

The complete Mass in Latin and English is here. (Adjust the date at the top of that page to 04-14-2024 if necessary).

Epistle: 1 Peter 2:21-23. Gospel: John 10:11-16. 

The Good Shepherd

Byzantine Mosaic Artist [Web Gallery of Art]

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep (John 10:11; Gospel).

'That by believing you may have life in his name.' Sunday Reflections, 2nd Sunday of Easter, Year B

 

The Incredulity of St Thomas

Caravaggio [Web Galleryof Art]

My Lord and my God! (John 20:28; Gospel)

Second Sunday of Easter

Divine Mercy Sunday 

Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland)

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Gospel  John 20:19-31  (English Standard Version, Anglicised)

On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”

Now Thomas, one of the Twelve, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.”

Eight days later, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side. Do not disbelieve, but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”

Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

 

Léachtaí i nGaeilge

The Torture of St Thomas

Giambattista Pittoni [Web Gallery of Art]

The Gospel on Ash Wednesday gives us the first recorded words of Jesus: The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel (Mark 1:15). Repent and believe the gospel is one of the formulas used in applying the ashes on our foreheads.

The closing words of today's Gospel tells us why it was written: so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name (John 20:31).

The First Reading tells us what the Apostles preached: And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all (Acts 4:33). 

St John in the Second Reading emphasises that our faith is in the Risen Christ and that it is through him we are saved: Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him . . . Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God? (1 John 5:1,5). St John goes further in the next two verses: This is he who came by water and blood—Jesus Christ; not by the water only but by the water and the blood. And the Spirit is the one who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.

It is the same St John, who stood at the foot of the Cross, who told us in the Good Friday reading of the Passion and death of Jesus: But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. He who saw it has borne witness—his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth—that you also may believe (John 19:34-35).

I often think that St Thomas is 'underrated', if I may use that expression. He is called 'doubting Thomas'. In today's Gospel he rejects what the others told him but then shows great insight: Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.

Then when Jesus appears he makes the greatest act of faith in the whole of Sacred Scripture: My Lord and my God! Here in Ireland those words may be used as the acclamation after the Consecration when the priest says The Mystery of faith. In the Traditional Latin Mass there is no acclamation after the consecration but, at least in Dublin when I was young, we had a far more powerful acclamation after the Consecration: a 'communal cough' that was a release of the sense of awe at what had just happened, the bread and wine having become the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of the Risen Christ.

For St Thomas the scars of the Crucifixion that Jesus carried were the proof of his Resurrection and the sign of God's love for us as sinners. The Risen Lord carries these scars for all eternity. And he gives the Apostles the authority to forgive sins: Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld. This authority is passed on to all priests through the sacrament of Holy Orders. And in the sacrament of Confession the priest may at times withhold absolution in order to help the penitent to repent of a particularly grave sin when it is evident that repentance is not yet there. This is an act of mercy, not a condemnation, an invitation to continue struggling with God's help to repent and believe the gospel.

One particular lobby accuses the Church of not welcoming sinners when what they mean is that the Church refuses to accept certain kinds of sinful behaviour. The most welcoming place in any church should be the confessional. All who enter it are equal, including the priest. They are like the people lining up to be baptised by St John the Baptist in the River Jordan. Those who saw Jesus there would have presumed that he was just another sinner.

There are at least three churches in Dublin city centre that have confessions every morning and afternoon, Monday to Saturday: Whitefriar Street (OCarm), Clarendon Street (OCD) and the Blessed Sacrament Chapel (SSS), which is temporarily closed at least until 12 April. I sometimes go to confession in the latter two and always find other penitents there. In the Philippines confessions are a major part of the ministry of the Redemptorists, especially on Wednesdays when the Novena  to the Mother of Perpetual Help is celebrated.

Pope St John Paul II made this Sunday Divine Mercy Sunday. The scars of Jesus, as St Thomas understood so clearly, are the proof of God's mercy. The sacrament of Confession (Penance, Reconciliation) is an expression of that mercy, an ongoing invitation from the Risen Lord Jesus to repent and believe the gospel . . . and that by believing you may have life in his name.

I know that my Redeemer liveth

from Handel's Messiah

Sung by Pavla Flámová with the Café International Baroque Orchestra

I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth. And though worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God (Job 19: 25-26). For now is Christ risen from the dead, the first fruits of them that sleep (I Corinthians 15: 20).

The High Altar, Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Chartres, France

by Charles-Antoine Briden

[Wikipedia; photo]

Traditional Latin Mass

The Octave Day of Easter (Low Sunday)

The complete Mass in Latin and English is here. (Adjust the date at the top of that page to 04-07-2024 if necessary).

Epistle: 1 John 5:4-10. Gospel: John 20:19-31. 

The Incredulity of St Thomas

Rembrandt [Web Gallery of Art]

Then he said to Thomas, 'Put your finger here, and see my hands; and put out your hand, and place it in my side; do not be faithless, but believing' (John 20:27; Gospel). 

The masculine piety of soldiers of the Spanish Foreign Legion

 

Every year in Malagá in the morning of Holy Thursday there is a ceremony known as El Traslado del Cristo de Mena (The Transfer of the Christ of Mena) where members of the Spanish Foreign Legion carry El Cristo de la Buena Muerte (The Christ of a Good Death). They sing El Novio de la Muerte (Death’s Bridegroom; lyrics in Spanish and English here) while carrying the very large and heavy crucifix.

This is not a hymn but a song written in 1921 by Fidel Prado Duque (lyrics) and Juan Costa Casals (music). It tells of the death of a soldier in battle, one who is very aware of the possibility of death in action. The Spanish Foreign Legion adopted it as their anthem and slow march. While the Legion now has women soldiers, the crucifix is carried by men.

As a man I find this procession very moving, an expression of masculine piety, soldiers identifying themselves with the Crucified Jesus, ready to lay down their lives for others. 

We are now celebrating the Easter Octave but without the Crucified Christ there would be no Easter.

St Longinus

Bernini (Web Gallery of Art)

And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he[a] breathed his last, he said, 'Truly this man was the Son of God!' (Mark 15:39).

According to tradition St Longinus was the soldier who pierced the side of the dead Jesus with his lance and who uttered the words recorded by Mark, Truly this man was the Son of God. While there seems to be no solid foundation for the tradition, there is no doubt about the words of the centurion, recorded in slightly different ways by St Matthew and St Luke.

Soldiers of the Defence Forces of Ireland have been engaged in UN peace-keeping in a number of countries since 1955. In some places they have served side by side with soldiers from Fiji. Please pray for all peacekeepers.

'Christ is risen, he is alive and he walks with us.' Sunday Reflections, Easter Sunday

 

The Resurrection of Christ

Rembrandt [Web Gallery of Art]

The Easter Vigil in the Holy Night

Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, India [optional], Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa)

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

At the Mass during the Day

Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland)

Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)

Gospel  John 20:1-9  (English Standard Version, Anglicised)

Now on the first day of the week Mary Magdalene came to the tomb early, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved, and said to them, “They have taken the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid him.” So Peter went out with the other disciple, and they were going towards the tomb. Both of them were running together, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. And stooping to look in, he saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not go in. Then Simon Peter came, following him, and went into the tomb. He saw the linen cloths lying there, and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus' head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who had reached the tomb first, also went in, and he saw and believed; for as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that he must rise from the dead.

 

Léachtaí i nGaeilge

Regina Coeli
Sung at a Vigil for Life in Notre-Dame de Paris, 22 May 2012

Queen of heaven rejoice, alleluia!

for he whom you were worthy to bear, alleluia!

has risen as he said, alleluia!

Pray for us to God, alleluia!

The Regina Coeli replaces the Angelus during the Easter Season.

Conclusion of Pope Benedict's Urbi et Orbi Message 

Easter Sunday 2011

Dear brothers and sisters! The risen Christ is journeying ahead of us towards the new heavens and the new earth (cf. Rev 21:1), in which we shall all finally live as one family, as sons and daughters of the same Father. He is with us until the end of time. Let us walk behind him, in this wounded world, singing Alleluia. In our hearts there is joy and sorrow, on our faces there are smiles and tears. Such is our earthly reality. But Christ is risen, he is alive and he walks with us. For this reason we sing and we walk, faithfully carrying out our task in this world with our gaze fixed on heaven.

Happy Easter to all of you! 

+++

I have told the following story before here and on many other occasions, especially giving retreats. Each time I share it or recall it I experience the truth of Pope Benedict's words, Christ is risen, he is alive and he walks with us. I have also learned that persons with a deep, committed faith can sometimes be very fragile.

Forty-four years ago I spent part of a summer working in a suburban parish in the USA. One night at around 11 I did something I rarely did: make a late night phone call, and for no other reason than to say 'Hi'. I phoned a friend who was a teacher whom I had first met twelve years earlier when I was a young priest and she a generous, idealistic but confused 16-year-old. I'll call her 'Lily' since that flower is often associated with Easter in northern climes. Over the years I met 'Lily' very rarely as I was in the Philippines.

Lily

[Wikipedia; photo]

I was shocked when 'Lily' answered. Her speech was slurred. She told me she had taken an overdose of a drug prescribed for a serious illness she had. I told her I would come over immediately but she said she would not let me in. She lived on her own but near her parents, about thirty minutes from where I was. I took another priest with me.

'Lily', of course, let us in. We spent about three hours with her. I was satisfied that what she had taken wasn't enough to kill her and that she wouldn't do anything drastic in the meantime. I promised to return in the morning.

I spent most of the next two days with 'Lily'. I called her doctor and also phoned a helpline for those dealing with or attempting suicide. 

I had seen 'Lily' grow in her faith over the years. After qualifying as a teacher she chose to teach in a parochial elementary school rather than in a public school, even though the salary was lower. She had a sense of mission. She came from a Catholic family but was aware since her childhood of her father's infidelity. But when she had attempted suicide when about 17 she saw her parents' great love for her, despite everything.

Yet it was something her mother said to her that had triggered off this latter attempt at suicide. 'Lily' felt that she wasn't living up to her mother's expectations. I think it was during the second morning I was with 'Lily' that she asked me, 'What are your expectations of me?' I answered, 'I don't have any expectations, only hopes'.

Hearing the word 'only hopes' was the turning point. That was when 'Lily' decided to live.

A few days later ‘Lily’ came to the parish where I was working for confession and Mass and she was truly filled with the joy that only the Lord can give. She also wrote me a long letter - she was a wonderful letter-writer - about her experience. 

Woman Writing a Letter

Gerard Terborch [Web Gallery of Art]

In her letter 'Lily' said: I have come to learn more about myself - as a 'vulnerable' yet 'hopeful' person, and yet even more important - I feel that my relationship with the Lord has deepened. I have a deeper hunger to be united with Him on a more intimate and dependent level.

Further on 'Lily' wrote: Most times we need to see and hear and feel Christ through another, to be able to believe in Him more faithfully and securely . . . I realize that years and years of therapy can amount to nothing unless the Lord is a very central part of it. I was able to share my fears, hurts, confusion, pain and - thank God - tears with you in and through the anointing of your priesthood . . .

'Lily' died peacefully the following year having received the Last Sacraments and ready to accept death at the age of 29. May she enjoy the fulness of the Resurrection.

Jesus is Risen

Flashmob, Beirut, Lebanon

I have posted this video every Easter for some years. For me it is one of the most joyful proclamations of the Resurrection I have ever come across. It is also a reminder to us that most Christians in the Middle East, including Lebanon, are Arabs whose language is Arabic, the language in which this Easter hymn is sung by professional singers.

Traditional Latin Mass

Easter Sunday

The complete Mass in Latin and English is here. (Adjust the date at the top of that page to 03-31-2024 if necessary).

Epistle: 1 Corinthians 5:7-8. Gospel: Mark 16:1-7. 

Breviary, Baking Bread

French Miniaturist [Web Gallery of Art]

Let us, therefore, celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth (1 Corinthians 5:8; Epistle).