25-Apr-2011 Dear Friend,
In business we demand evidence, and proof, we do not take anything at face value and we tend to doubt and question what people say. The mantra is ‘Show me!’ Unfortunately, our business attitudes have coloured our relationships as well. If someone says:‘I love you!’ we want to reply, ‘Show me by your deeds!’ Jesus showed us on the cross that he loved us. But his resurrection and ours remains a mystery of faith. We cannot demand signs or proofs that He is alive. We are blessed if we don’t see yet believe! Have a grateful Divine Mercy Sunday! –Fr. Jude Sunday Reflections: Second Sunday of Easter “Blessed are those who don’t see yet believe” 1-May-2011 Readings: Acts 2: 42-47; 1 Peter 1: 3-9; John 20: 19-31; Today’s first reading from the Acts describes the early Christian community and the deep community spirit that flowed from the Easter event. “They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and prayers.’ Because of the presence of the risen Lord in their midst a deep bond was forming among his followers, they drew close to one another, and shared everything in common. The Risen Lord is the basis and the bond of community life. Community Life In this book, Small Christian Communities, Jim O’Halloran tells the following story about a young woman from Nairobi called Sylvia. She says:- When I left school I would say that I had the faith. I lived on the outskirts of Nairobi, and every Sunday I traveled by bus to the centre of the city where I attended Mass at the Holy Family Basilica. But the basilica was very big and I knew hardly anyone. I felt alone. Then going home one Sunday and feeling a bit depressed, I said to myself, I don’t have a spiritual friend in the whole world. However, soon afterwards I came across a small Christian community in my own area and became a member. With that everything changed. In the community I didn’t simply hear about love, as in the basilica, I actually tasted the sweetness of togetherness. And little by little I grew spiritually, made good friends, and was able to take part in work for my neighbourhood. I blossomed as a person. No longer am I that girl who traveled alone into Nairobi, was lost in the big church, and returned home sad. Flor McCarthy in ‘New Sunday and Holy Day Liturgies’ Today’s gospel tells us of how Jesus appeared to his disciples on that first Easter Sunday saying to them, ‘Peace be with you!’ There were no words of condemnation or reproach because of their cowardice or infidelity. Instead, he reassures them and affirms them. ‘As the Father has sent me, so I send you…receive the Holy Spirit.’ The Spirit of the Risen Lord builds and affirms and empowers the Church and us his followers. But Thomas one of the twelve was missing and when told that Jesus had appeared to the twelve he not only doubted but put conditions to his belief. ‘Unless I see for myself in his hands the mark of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I refuse to believe!’ Often, our own problems of faith arise because we are not with the community, we stay aloof or withdraw from the Church. The Risen Lord comes to us in and through the community. Most early Christians had not seen the risen Christ. They were in much the same position as we are. So St. John uses the story of Thomas to assure them and us that Jesus indeed is truly risen. Jesus says to them and to us what he said to Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet come to believe.” If we believe in the Risen Lord and let him take over our lives with His spirit, we will see our lives change radically as He did the lives of the first Christians. Doubting Thomas Jesus sold St. Thomas, according to the Acts of Thomas, an apocryphal book, as a slave to Gundaphorus, an Indian King. Gundaphorus commanded Thomas to build a palace. Thomas readily agreed and took the money from him. Whenever the king inquired about the palace, Thomas said that it was being built. One day the king became suspicious and asked Thomas to show him the palace. Then Thomas said to the king, “You cannot see it now, but when you depart from this life, then you will be able to see it.” The king was furious and Thomas was in danger of losing his life. Kings in those days were depots. Their words were law. To displease a king was to court death. But Thomas was a man who feared Jesus so much that he never feared the face of any man on this earth, least of all, this king. He boldly faced the king and explained to him about the Christian faith-a faith that imparts eternal life. Eventually, he converted the king to the new religion. St. Thomas sowed the seeds of Christianity in India and later paid with his blood for his faith. St. Thomas’ path to his martyrdom was marked with doubts and deep scepticism. He was a man for whom it was always difficult to believe, but once he believed he went the full length even to the extent of laying down his life. Today, we consider his misery, his doubts and his faith. John Rose in ‘John’s Sunday Homilies’ Living the Word Thomas was not the unbelieving one really. It was not that he did not want to believe in the Lord’s Resurrection but that he foresaw the consequences. While Peter and the others were overjoyed at the Master’s return, Thomas realised that if he were really risen, the consequences were enormous and he was not ready for them. The Resurrection would mean that Jesus was who he claimed to be, the Son of God and not just a prophet. Thomas was holding tough. There was no room for pussy-footing now. Either Jesus was God or he was not. There could be no in-between. Thomas wanted to be sure that Jesus was truly risen. He got what he wanted then; he gave himself totally to the Lord. His decision for Jesus determined the course of the rest of his Life. - Something similar happens in our lives. It may be less dramatic and happen gradually over years but the decision is the same. By default, or by decision, each person chooses to believe that Jesus is God, or that he is not, and lives accordingly. To be able to take the faith option is a gift from God. It is a gift to be protected, nurtured and shared. It is to be fully lived or it dies. Middle-of-the-road people are carried by the crowd whichever way it happens to be going and faith is too personal to thrive in that atmosphere. Daily prayer and service nourish this faith and the Sunday Eucharist celebrates the belief that Jesus is the risen Lord. Tom Clancy The Stranger Without the Scars There was once an event in the life of Pastor Bernard Rom, who shepherded a church in Madison, Wisconsin, for over 30 years. One Sunday, after the church services, a stranger with a beard appeared before Pastor Rom and said, “Hello, I’m Jesus.” The pastor, though surprised at the behaviour of the stranger, just took the man’s hands in his and turned it over, looking for any scare. Then he asserted, “No, you are not.”-Do not believe imitators and opportunists, but look to the nail-pierced hand of the Lord Jesus. Daniel Sundarajaj in ‘Manna for the Soul’ Not Seeing Yet Believing In Robert Browning’s poem A Death in the Desert the last of the apostles, John, is dying. He looks over his life and wonders what will happen after the death of the last person to know Jesus personally. What will happen when There is left on earth, No one alive who knew (consider this!), Saw with his eyes and handled with his hands, That which was from the first, the Word of Life, How will it be when none more saith “I saw”? -How can the Church speak about Jesus in a compelling way when no one can see him? This is precisely the problem that the evangelist John faces in today’s Gospel. The apostle Thomas is absent when Jesus appears to the others, and he cannot believe that Jesus is risen because he cannot see him. This is a story for everyone who was not present with the disciples on Easter evening – and that obviously includes ourselves. Today’s Gospel builds a bridge between those who saw Jesus and those who do not: “Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.” That is a blessing directed at us: we who believe in Jesus without seeing him. Denis McBride in ‘Seasons of the Word’ Grave of the Unknown Warrior One of London’s oldest and most historic buildings is the Westminster Abbey. Britain’s most famous figures including the royalties and nobles are buried beneath its walkways. The details of each individual are given on the tombstone. But the most regarded of all the graves is the Grave of the Unknown Warrior. This grave is at the entrance of the Abbey and is the first one to be noticed by anyone. This tomb is given the highest honour. Any visitor to this building, as he goes around actually walks over the stones. But no one is allowed to walk over the tomb of the Unknown Warrior. Most of the important dignitaries who visit London lay a wreath on this tomb. This tomb is considered as a symbol of all men from all nations who died in all wars. The name of the warrior is not known. At the end of the First World War, five unrecognizable bodies from the armed forces of Britain were brought home from Europe. One of these five bodies was picked out by a blind man, King George V ordered the body to be buried with full military honours. This grave is commemoration of “the many multitudes who… gave the most that man can give, life itself. “The grave stone lies over the remains of the unknown soldiers, and it is closed, though highly regarded. All these graves will continue to remain closed. -But there is one grave in the world which is open – the tomb of Jesus Christ, the one who was rejected by men and was put in a borrowed grave. He rose victoriously on the third day. He gave His life that every one accepting Him may live for ever. “The grave of victory.” Daniel Sundararaj in ‘Manna for the Soul’ May we not demand signs but believe that Jesus is alive! Fr. Jude Botelho [email protected] PS. The stories, incidents and anecdotes used in the reflections have been collected over the years from books as well as from sources over the net and from e-mails received. Every effort is made to acknowledge authors whenever possible. If you send in stories or illustrations I would be grateful if you could quote the source as well so that they can be acknowledged if used in these reflections. These reflections are also available on my remodelled web site www.netforlife.net Thank you.
