Homily Easter 3A: A journey from confusion to faith, from darkness to light

 

Homily for 3^rd Sunday of Easter Year A 2023

Introduction

You probably know the saying: “The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.”  Today’s gospel is literally a story about a journey, a journey of two disciples going to Emmaus.  Let us join them on this journey, which is indeed a journey of the spiritual life, from darkness to light, from confusion to truth.

Scripture and Theology

The story begins by telling us: “Two of Jesus' disciples were going to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus.”  But why are they going in the wrong direction, away from Jerusalem?  Jerusalem is where all the action is.  Yet they are leaving it, maybe even running away from Jerusalem!

Does this not happen us to too?  When we leave the Lord, when we run away from the Lord and run towards lesser goods. Do you know people who have left the Church when something terrible happens?  Perhaps you too also once left the Church, your Jerusalem, and instead went elsewhere to your Emmaus?

The good news is that Risen Lord then approached them.  They are downcast! They are confused!  They do not know what to believe!  He joins them, “but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him” perhaps because of their desolation.

How often Our Blessed Lord meets us when we are drifting into despair and sin.  And we too don’t often recognize him immediately.

Fortunately, the Lord does for us what he did for these two disciples.  He met them where they were, in their disturbed condition, simply asking them: "What are you discussing as you walk along?"  He does not jump in guns blazing, but simply wants to find out in what spiritual state they are.  And although they are confused, they not totally without hope. They describe to him the events that have just happened very accurately, much like we profess them in the Creed.

·       That Jesus the Nazarene was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people,

·       That the chief priests and rulers both handed him over to a sentence of death and crucified him.

·       That on the third day some women from the group astounded them with the news that he was alive, something confirmed by other disciples.

They really seem to know their stuff. It is just that since they have not seen him themselves, they are still doubtful, still confused.

Is this not the same state in which we often find ourselves?  Often, it is not because we completely do not know the Lord that we are down in the dumps, but because there are gaps in our knowledge, we are somewhat confused.

Like any good minister, the Lord transitions from meeting them where they are, to moving them further on the journey of faith.  He chides them: "Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke!” Then he helps them to understand the events of the previous few days in the light of Scripture.  He goes back to the very beginning of the Old Testament, that is, to the writings of Moses and to the writings of the Prophets, and using those passages shows them that all those things that happened to Jesus were foreseen.  But more importantly when seen through the light of Scripture, these events make sense.  He shows them that the Messiah was to come, not in power, but in suffering and sacrifice, just as the Scriptures had promised.  They are slowly beginning to see the light.

How often do we turn to the Scriptures when we are lost? Do we realize that like these two disciples, we can find the answers to our questions in the Word of God? We simply need to open our eyes to see what the Lord has already revealed to us.

When the disciples arrive at their destination, they invite Jesus into their home.  What they do is nothing out of the ordinary for the time; with the lack of quick transportation, highways and highway motels, it was not uncommon for people to host total strangers and stranded travellers.  In this case, how could they leave stranded such a guest, who had just explained the Scriptures to them so well! They probably figured that he would not turn around at night and slit their throats.  

We too, when we are confused, must invite Jesus into our home. Only then will he continue to heal us, and bring us out of our confusion and sin.  For these two disciples, they were in for a great surprise.  Even though their actual journey had come to an end, the spiritual journey was still continuing.

We read in the gospel that “while he was with them at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them.”  You may recall that these are the very four actions Jesus had performed on two previous occasions:

·        When he fed the five thousand people, he also took the bread and fishes, said the blessing, broke them and then gave them to the crowds.

·        At the Last Supper, he also took the bread and gave thanks, broke and gave it to his disciples, saying: “Take and eat.  This is my body.”

Then the story tells us: “With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him, but he vanished from their sight.”  The Lord has thus brought them to light, first through the Scriptures and now through the Breaking of Bread, the Eucharist.  That is why they said to each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?" We too find our answers in the Word and the Sacrament, the two parts of the Mass.

What next?  The gospel passage told us: “So they set out at once and returned to Jerusalem [and] the two recounted what had taken place on the way and how he was made known to them in the breaking of bread.” Imagine that!  They went to Jerusalem to share the Good News that the Lord is risen from dead.  Even though it was nightfall, even though they were getting ready for bed, they had to go.  For after arriving at the end of the journey, after encountering the Lord, they must go and share the good news with others; they cannot keep it to themselves.

Christian Life

My friends, don’t we also make this journey, this spiritual journey to Emmaus, when tragedy hits us, when disappointment visits us?

·        It could be the disappointment that a boyfriend or girlfriend, a fiancé or fiancée, a husband or wife turns out not to be what we thought they were.

·        Our disappointment might come from our job, our career, our future prospects; things don’t turn out to be what we thought they would be.

·        But we are at our worst, when our disappointment is spiritual in nature, when it has to do with our faith, our relationship with God.

Fortunately, the Lord does not live us without help.  Like the disciples, he often restores our hope, especially through the Word of God in the readings of the Mass, the responsorial psalm, the gospel acclamation, the gospel and the homily.  He also restores our hope in the liturgy of the Eucharist, and in the other sacraments, especially the sacrament of confession.  What do we do next?

Conclusion

We too, after hearing the Word of God and receiving his Body and Blood at Mass, must set out at once and share what we received.  That is what the dismissal by the deacon at the end of Mass, in any one of its four forms tells us:

·        Go in peace.

·        or Go forth, the Mass is ended.

·        or Go and announce the gospel or the Lord.

·        Or my favourite: "Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life."

Homily Easter 2A: Sent on a mission of mercy and reconciliation

 

Homily for 2^nd Sunday of Easter Year A 2023

Introduction

Imagine being one of the disciples of Jesus in that upper room. You are in hiding, having run away from the Lord, having deserted him because you feared to suffer and die with him.  And now suddenly he shows up, and the first words out of his mouth are not, “Why did you abandon me in my suffering?  What kind of friends are you?” Instead he says, “Shalom, Peace be with you.”

These are words of mercy, God’s mercy, divine mercy.  On this Divine Mercy Sunday, I would like us to reflect on how Jesus in these simple words, teaches a twofold message of divine mercy. First he showers God’s mercy upon his disciples and then he charges them with sharing that mercy.

Scripture and Tradition

“Peace be with be you.”  The priest in the prayer of absolution says something similar during confession, saying, “through the ministry of the Church, may the Lord grant you pardon and peace.”  For divine mercy is not just about pardon, but also about peace with God, with each other and with oneself.  That is what Our Blessed Lord is giving to these disciples when he first meets them after his resurrection and greets them, “Peace be with you.”

A week later, when Jesus came back to them, again he greeted them, “Peace be with you.”  And this time round, Thomas who was absent the first time, cared enough to show up.  Again the Lord extends his peace, his mercy even to this disciple who has come down in history as the doubting Thomas. He tells him, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.”  Perhaps overwhelmed by this merciful reception Thomas is inspired to profess his faith in Jesus and say, “My Lord and my God!”  Although Jesus chides him a little for his unbelief, he does not berate Thomas and scold him for his unbelief.  He treats him better than he deserves, which is what mercy is.  He slowly brings him to full faith.

But mercy received must be mercy shared.  That is why after saying “Peace be with you,” the Lord adds, "As the Father has sent me, so I send you."  What he had done, preaching and bringing about mercy through his death and resurrection had to be continued, so that each generation until the end of time, will experience that divine mercy, that saving mystery.  That is why the Lord sends them forth, to do this through teaching, through baptising and many other ways.  But in a special way Jesus he tasks them with forgiving sins: "Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained."

The disciples, the Church, however, cannot do this enormous work on their own.  They need power from on high.  That is why Jesus first "breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit.'"  By doing so, he empowered them to be able to do supernatural things, like believing in things that seemed incredible, being courageous to give up their lives for his name, loving their enemy when every bone in them told them to do otherwise, and being able to receive grace and give grace, which is really the life of God.  They can now share God’s mercy with others, because he has not only shared his mercy with them, but has also empowered them with power from on high to do so, telling them.  "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." 

Christian Application

Our Lord also says these words to us today.  He both offers us his mercy and challenges us to share that mercy with others.  This celebration should inspire us to return to our roots, to that upper room where Jesus first appeared to us and hear again the generosity of God who says to us sinners, “Peace be with you.”  We must return to that upper room, to hear the urgency of the mission: "As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you."

As Pope Francis has tried to remind us repeatedly, we as Church are on a mission to bring mercy to this world.  The titles of his writings about mercy are very telling of this truth.  One writing is entitled, The Name of God is Mercy reminding us that God is essentially merciful.  And when he proclaimed the Year of Mercy a few years ago, the document with which he did it was called, The Face of Mercy, reminding us that Jesus is indeed the face of the Father’s Mercy.

We are recipients of this mercy in many ways, but especially in the sacraments of the Church.  Consider the three sacraments of initiation.

·        In baptism, original sin, any other sins and all the punishments due to sin are erased and we are set on the road that leads to heaven.

·        In Confirmation, as the Lord did to the disciples in the upper room, he breathes the Holy Spirit upon us, to strengthen us for the journey.

·        In the Eucharist, where we celebrate the Lord’s death and resurrection, the very events that save us, we are brought once again to the upper room, to receive in Word and sacrament, the peace of the Lord.

We are also recipients of God’s mercy in a perhaps more immediate way, in the sacraments of healing.

·       When we are sick and are thus burdened with the weight of pain and suffering, both physical and psychological, burdened with the prospect of death, the sacrament of the anointing of the sick, brings us God’s mercy, so that we can bear this human condition in peace and hope, and receive the healing of our souls.

·       When we sin and are thus burdened with the prospect of the punishment of hell, and the realization that I have offended “thee my God who are all good and deserving of my love”, the sacrament of penance and reconciliation, brings us God’s mercy.  And then we can leave the confessional relieved when the priest says to us, “The Lord has forgiven your sins.  Go in peace.”

We are truly fortunate to be recipients of such a great gift of divine mercy.

Now what do with it?  How do we do share it?  There are plenty of examples in the Scriptures.  But let us turn to the readings of today for some inspiration.

First, how do we treat those who don’t believe as strongly as we do?  How do we treat sinners?  Consider how the disciples handled the unbelieving Thomas.  Did they condemn him or berate him?  No.  They invited him to come with them to the upper room, the next Sunday, just in case the Lord would show up again – and show up he did.

When is the last time you invited a fallen away friend to Mass, or even just to a Church function, to the picnic or fair?  The disciples stepped up to the plate and were the voice of Jesus to Thomas, so that he would then eventually encounter the Lord himself.  Jesus is sending you and me to do the same for our unbelieving friends, to carry out the spiritual works of mercy, namely, (1) To instruct the ignorant, (2) To counsel the doubtful, (3) To admonish sinners, (4) To bear wrongs patiently, (5) To forgive offences willingly, (6) To comfort the afflicted, (7) To pray for the living and the dead.

Secondly, how do we treat the less fortunate among us?  We should follow the example of the first community of disciples we heard about in the first reading, who provide us with a model of how to be Church.  We heard that they devoted themselves to four things: to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers.  And then, they also shared what they had in common, sharing with the less fortunate, according to each one’s need, not necessarily, according to their contribution.  Today we do that in carrying out the corporal works of mercy, namely, (1) To feed the hungry, (2) To give drink to the thirsty (3) To clothe the naked (4) To shelter the homeless, (5) To visit the sick, (6) To visit the imprisoned, (7) To bury the dead.

Conclusion

"Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you."  Our response to this message is one of gratitude, as we sang in the Responsorial Psalm.  Let us give thanks to the Lord, for his mercy is everlasting.  But for his peace and mercy to be everlasting, we must not keep it to ourselves, but we must share it with others, now and always.