As we continue through the readings for Easter we will been given glimpses of encounters with the risen Jesus. This is good news for us, as the risen Jesus of the Gospels is the same Jesus who we have the opportunity to encounter  each day.

In today’s Gospel, we continue where we left off this past Sunday (cf. Jn 20:1-10). Mary does not return with the Peter and John as they head back home after having observed the empty tomb. Mary stayed by the side of the tomb and wept. Mary then peered into the tomb and witnessed two angels. As she turned back she saw who she believed to be the gardener. She questioned the man as to the whereabouts of Jesus. Mary sought for a rational reason for where the dead body had gone. When the man did not immediately answer, she must have turned away again, because Jesus said to her, “Mary” (Jn 20:16)!

Upon hearing her name, Mary Magdalene recognized Jesus.

Peter and John left the empty tomb. We do not know why, could they have wanted to report what they had seen to the other disciples, as Mary had done with them? Mary could have gone back also, but something impelled her to stay. It could have been the sorrow that brought her to tears, it could have been her dedication and faithfulness to Jesus to find him, to anoint him as she had come to do that first early Easter morning, it could have been that she did not know what to do next, or there was a sense beyond her understanding that compelled her to stay. What is revealed is that Jesus came to Mary and when she called him “Rabbouni”, Jesus asked her to, “Stop holding on to me”.

What was Mary holding on to? Though mistaking him for the gardener at first she came to recognize that he had indeed come back to life. But in calling Jesus Rabbouni, teacher or master, Mary was going back to the relationship she had with him before. Jesus was transfigured, he was different than he was before. Jesus actualized the fullness of his humanity, while still retaining the fullness of his divinity. Though the fullness of his mission would not be complete until he returned back to the Father at his Ascension.

There was not only a newness to Jesus, but his relationship with his followers would also be transformed. When Jesus charged Mary to return, she was to convey the message he gave her to his “brothers”. He no longer was calling them his disciples but his brothers. As Jesus would return to the Father, he would unleash the power of that divine communion unto his new brothers and sisters who believed in him through the power of the Holy Spirit.

We are heirs to the same promise that Mary Magdalene, the Apostle to the Apostles, shared with the Twelve. Jesus has become the first born of the new creation and through our baptism in his name: the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, we participate in his death and resurrection, so to share in Jesus’ life and love that he shares with his Father. We too are his brothers and sisters, we too are being configured and transformed into the Body of Christ. This is why we have cause for joy and celebration. This is why, like Mary, we are called to, “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord” in our everyday lives! Alleluia!!!

Painting: “Christ and Mary at the Tomb” by Joseph F. Brickey

Link for the Mass readings for Tuesday, April 3, 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/040318.cfm

The good news of the empty tomb seemed to be over before it started. Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were bewildered from their encounter with the angel and the empty tomb. As they ran to get the news to the disciples, they were also dealing with mixed emotions, feeling both “fearful yet overjoyed,” (Mt 28:8) when in the midst of their travel they were greeted by Jesus. Jesus assured them and sent them to, “tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me” (Mt 28:10). Off the pair went to share the message that Jesus had risen!

At the same time, some of the guards who witnessed the event at the tomb, took a different way and headed into the city to meet with the chief priests. They relayed the incident about the earthquake and the angel appearing to them and the two women. After deliberating, the chief priests and the elders paid the guards a large sum to perpetuate the tale that his disciples took Jesus away.

Who would be believed, the two women or the guards? Apparently both! Mary Magdalene and the other Mary fulfilled their first apostolic role and passed on Jesus’ message to his disciples for them to meet him in Galilee. Galilee was where the public ministry of Jesus began. They would all go back to the beginning. The tale spread by the guards would also be believed, because by the time of the writing of the Gospel of Matthew, the community, to which he wrote, were aware that, “this story has circulated among the Jews to the present day” (Mt 28:15).

Let us ponder some questions today. Which account do we believe? Did Jesus really rise again from the dead as the angel, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary claim or was this an elaborate plot by the disciples of Jesus to stage his resurrection, as the guards portrayed? How we answer these questions ought to make a difference in our lives. If we say yes, we believe in Jesus and that he rose again, do we live our lives any differently than those who say they don’t believe?

We, as followers of Jesus who rose again, are to be like the angel and each Mary. We are to be Alleluia people, those who proclaim hope and life, those who bring light into places of darkness, those who empower and inspire. We are able to live and proclaim in this way when we have aligned ourselves with Jesus who is the Resurrection, who is our Way, our Truth, and our Life.

Painting: The Empty Tomb, Mikhail Nesterov, 1889

Link for the Mass readings for Monday, April 2, 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/040218.cfm

Mary of Magdala comes to the tomb during the early hours of morning while it is still dark and finds the stone rolled away. She runs to Peter and John to share with them the news, that: “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him” (Jn 20:2). Peter and John retrace the steps of Mary at the same running pace and find the tomb empty as well. All three are stunned because, “they did not yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead” (Jn 20:9).

How can we blame them? Do we fully understand the reality and fact that Jesus has risen from the dead? One explanation, that Jesus did not really die and woke up three days later, aching all over from the excruciating effects of the crucifixion is not true. Nor was his rising a mere resuscitation as happened with Lazarus, as I shared in yesterday’s reflection. Jesus, fully God and fully man died, entered death, and conquered it. In so doing he entered into a new life, a new reality. Jesus, in beginning his new life, was transfigured from the three dimensional reality that we all know and experience, such that he now resonates in a higher dimensional reality. Jesus is the first born of the new creation!

All of human history changed in that tomb because of this new fact of the resurrection of Jesus. How this has happened is indeed a mystery, but in our seeking understanding, we will fall short and be frustrated if we only approach the mystery of God in the same way that we tackle a problem to be solved. The Apostles and disciples of Jesus struggled to find meaning and understanding about how Jesus crucified was now gone from the tomb. They came to understand the Mystery of the Resurrection, as they would the mystery of the fact that Jesus is fully human and fully divine, they encountered Jesus again. The Mystery of the Resurrection is not a problem to be solved, but a person to encounter, a relationship to embrace, for the Apostle and for us.

Faith seeking understanding is grounded in having an encounter with a person, Jesus the Christ, the Son of the Living God. Pope Francis writes: “The joy of the Gospel fills the hearts and lives of all who encounter Jesus. Those who accept his offer of salvation are set free from sin, sorrow, inner emptiness and loneliness” (Francis, 9).

May we renew our baptismal vows today, let us renew our commitment to give our lives to Jesus who is the Christ, who has truly risen – Alleluia, Alleluia!!! We are an alleluia people, meaning even in our trials, our temptations, conflict, and pain, we are a people endowed with hope, because not only have we been loved into existence, we have been loved into the promise for eternity!

May you all have a blessed and joyous Easter Sunday and Easter Season. May God bless and infuse you and all you hold in your heart with a soul on fire with his Love and Joy this day, and all days into eternity! Alleluia! Alleluia!

Painting of empty tomb accessed from: http://allchristiandownloads.blogspot.com/2014/06/free-christian-nature-wallpapers-with.html

Francis. Evangelii Gaudium, Joy of the Gospel, Libreria Editrice Vaticana. Frederick, MD: The Word Among Us Press, 2013.

Link for Mass readings for Easter Sunday, April 1, 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/040118.cfm

The first Holy Saturday. Complete darkness, arid earth, no sound. The body remained as immobile as the stone he was placed upon by Joseph of Arimathea and those who attended to him: “Having bought a linen cloth, he took him down, wrapped him in the linen cloth and laid him in a tomb that had been hewn out of rock. Then he rolled a stone against the entrance to the tomb” (Mk 15:46).

How long did Jesus lay there, as cold as stone? What was he experiencing? Had he continued his descent to the agonizing depths of God forsakenness? Did he descend all the way to depths of hell as we recite in the Apostle’s Creed, to bring some sense of comfort to those who had rejected his Father, even to bring release to Adam and Eve, originators of the Fall, as the Church Fathers proclaimed?

At some point during Holy Saturday, in the greatest of darkness, all seemed lost. The stretch of separation from God the Father and God the Son reached its limit, the Love that exists between them, the eternal bond that always has and always will be, the Holy Spirit, called the Son back.  The dead body on the slab, was not merely resuscitated as if in one great breath he returned to the living and was alive again. A piercing light shone in that dark tomb, Jesus was transformed beyond anything humanity had ever experienced before to become the first born of the new creation.  Jesus had, still fully human and fully divine entered the fullness of death, conquered it and rose again in a transcending moment to experience a new reality, a different dimension than what we experience now in our three dimensional realm.

Not aware of any of what had transpired to Jesus in the dark tomb on Holy Saturday, “Mary Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James, and Salome bought spices so that they might go and anoint him” (Mk 16:1). In the rush to entomb Jesus before the Sabbath, he was not anointed for his burial. These three woman came to complete the task, and would be amazed at what and who they would find when they arrived. The stone was rolled away and upon entering the tomb they saw a young man sitting on the right side, clothed in a white robe, and they were utterly amazed. He said to them, “Do not be amazed! You seek Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified. He has been raised; he is not here” (Mk 16:5-6).

Jesus is Risen! This is what we will celebrate at the Easter Vigil tonight. May we keep this day as a simple one, may we periodically give ourselves some time to be still, to be silent, to pray, and to embrace the wonder of the significance of what the resurrection means for our lives. Death no longer has its sting, we no longer have need to fear, no one can oppress us anymore, including ourselves. May we grasp the outstretched hand of the Risen One, our liberator, our Lord and Savior, and be willing to be led by him into his promise of freedom, wholeness, and fulfillment. May we experience and be transformed by his Love, and in following his way love others as he has loves us.

Image of the Shroud of Turin accessed online

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, the Easter Vigil:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/033118.cfm

Jesus was betrayed, arrested, falsely accused, tried, scourged, and beaten. Jesus carried his cross, was crucified, and with his words, “It is finished” (Jn 19:30), Jesus died. The gift of a crucifix is that it represents for us the moment of the death of Jesus. Having a crucifix is not a morbid fascination with the death of Jesus, nor a rejection of his resurrection. The crucifix is not a magic talisman, but a sacramental, that helps us to remember the reality of what the Son of God, who became one with us, did. Jesus embraced humanity all the way even unto his death, giving his life for us that we might have the opportunity to be born again and live with him forever. Without the crucifixion, there would have been no resurrection.

On this Good Friday, let us spend time in venerating Jesus on the Cross. May we meditate before a crucifix, before this expression of the most intimate act of Love ever expressed in human history. This icon expresses the wonderful bestowal of the grace of God upon humanity, in that it reminds us that we have a God who has experienced and understands betrayal, loss, suffering, pain, and anguish. Jesus is relevant to our lives because he meets us where we are. In making time to be still and look upon the cross upon which he died, seeing his body slumped and lifeless, we can call to mind our own struggles, trials, pain, sorrow, experiences of injustice, and loss and be comforted in knowing that Jesus understands because he has experienced them all.

Making time to gaze upon the crucifix in times of fear, anxiety, temptation or indecision, can give us the strength and courage to endure or go through what lies before us. Jesus with his arms outstretched represents for us his eternal welcome, that he loves us more than we can ever mess up. When we resist running from our trials, our suffering, and our pain, and instead face them, we will find that Jesus is waiting for us with his arms outstretched and wide open. Jesus meets us in the midst of our chaos, in the depths of the whirlwind of our deepest hurts, struggles, and confusion, when and where we need him most. This is why we venerate Jesus on the cross today, this is why today is Good Friday, so we remember that death does not have the final word, Jesus conquered death. He did not leave us orphans, we are not alone because Jesus is with us always and forever.

Photo: Crucifix in sanctuary of St Peter Catholic Church, Jupiter, FL

Link for the Mass readings for Good Friday, March 30, 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/033018.cfm

One of the key focal points of the last supper narrative in the Gospel of John is Jesus washing the feet of his disciples. Washing feet was certainly a custom in the ancient Near East, for either people had no foot wear at all or wore sandals. In either event, people’s feet became quite sore and dirty getting from here to there. Washing of the feet was a hospitable way to welcome guests into one’s home, though this action was most menial of tasks and often performed by slaves or servants.

After washing his disciples’ feet and sitting down, Jesus said to them, “Do you realize what I have done for you? You call me ‘teacher’ and ‘master,’ and rightly so, for indeed I am. If I, therefore, the master and teacher, have washed your feet, you ought to wash one another’s feet” (Jn 13:13-14). Jesus is sharing with those who will carry on his message and ministry that they are not to feel so high and mighty that they are above other’s in their being called to follow him. The Apostles, those who are sent by Jesus, are to look at their ministry as seeking how best to serve others, not seeking to be served themselves.

This evening at the Mass of the Lord’s Supper, select members of the parish will come up and have a foot washed by the priests, following the model set by Jesus washing his disciples feet. This is to remind the members of the Church that we are all an integral part of the Body of Christ, and we are at our best when we are willing to serve one another, support one another, and lift one another up. This is to be true when all is well and rosy, in addition to when conflict and challenges arise in the messiness of daily life.

Pope Francis has stepped the imagery of this practice up. In his first year as Pope, he washed the feet of those who were staying in a youth detention center, including women and Muslims. He has washed the feet of people of other faith traditions, prisoners, the elderly and disabled, as well as migrants. This year Pope Francis will be washing the feet of those housed in the Regina Coeli Prison in Rome.

The best way we can exemplify Jesus’ lesson is to resist our temptation of feeding our own pride. May we strive to free ourselves from wanting to be the center of the universe. Everything really does not revolve around us. Another disciple of Jesus who got this right is the Pope’s namesake, St. Francis of Assisi, who though he may not have written the following words, certainly embodied them in the way he lived his life. A good way we can fast from pride, to figuratively wash one others feet is when we: “not so much seek to be consoled as to console, to be understood as to understand, to be loved as to love, for it is in giving that we receive, it is pardoning that we are pardoned, and it is in dying [to our self] that we are born to eternal life.” Jesus never tires of loving and serving us, may we strive to do the same in our encounter and willingness to accompany each other.

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Words quoted from Peace Prayer of St Francis. History and words of prayer can be accessed at: https://franciscan-archive.org/patriarcha/peace.html

Photo accessed from Catholic News Agency. Pope washing the feet of those at Rebibbia Prison, Rome, April 2, 2015. Photo credit: L’Osservatore Romano.

Link for the Mass readings for Holy Thursday, March 29, 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/032918-lords-supper.cfm

As Jesus and his companions shared the Passover, Jesus offered this morsel, “One of you will betray me” (Mt 26:21). I am sure that this bitter herb shifted the mood of the meal. Each apostle asked if they were the one to betray him. There is no recorded response, though the assumption is that Jesus says no to each, except for one.

A unique feature about this exchange was that each of the disciples in asking Jesus if they would betray him, prefaced their request by calling him Lord. In doing so, they acknowledged that Jesus was the Messiah. When Judas addressed Jesus he called him Rabbi. He did not acknowledge Jesus as his Lord. Could this be a tell regarding why Judas was willing to turn Jesus over because he did not believe Jesus to be the Messiah, that he too believed Jesus to be a blasphemer?

Jesus’ response to Judas was an affirmation of truth: “You have said so” (Mt 26:25).

Jesus offered this affirmative response two other times, confirming each time the truth presented to him by Caiaphas that he was the Messiah and then later with Pilate, when he asked Jesus if he was the king of the Jews. In answering in the affirmative to Judas, was Jesus giving him the opportunity to look at himself in the mirror? Jesus knew that Judas would betray him, he did not have to make this point known. Judas could have remained silent, yet he asked, as did the others who went before him. Could he have been contemplating shifting his prior determination of betrayal? Was Jesus inviting Judas to acknowledge what he had agreed to do, confess, change course, and ask for forgiveness?

Judas chose his course of action to betray Jesus, and unfortunately, even with Jesus’ intervention, Judas was not able or willing to stop what he had started. Judas fulfilled his agreement with the chief priests to turn him over. Often this is true for us. We set ourselves on a course of action, and Jesus makes an attempt to intercede on our behalf, yet we do not slow down enough to hear, that is one of the dangers of not making time regularly to be still, to pray for God’s discernment. God may be speaking to us but are we too focused on other things to be able to hear, or determined to do it our way, regardless of the consequences such that we do not even seek God’s guidance? Our interpretation of our experience may be that the momentum is already be too strong to turn around.

We need to know in the depth of our being, that it is never too late to make amends, to repent, and to turn back to God. The first step is being willing to be still or aware enough to hear or see his guidance. The second step is to be willing to look in the mirror and see what Jesus presents to us, accept what we see, and then seek his forgiveness. Yet, sometimes we feel we are digging ourselves into a hole that we can’t escape from. The answer is that we need to just stop digging, put the shovel down. Jesus will meet us where we are and guide us out.

Photo: A still point, hiking in Torrey Pines, CA 2014 visit

Link for the Mass readings for Wednesday, March 28 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/032818.cfm

The Gospel reading for today from John is painful on two fronts. First, Jesus said to Judas, “What you are going to do, do quickly” (Jn 13:27). Did their eyes meet at that moment, was there an unspoken appeal from Jesus to Judas, or had that already been settled in Jesus’ full surrender in the Garden of Gethsemane? Judas aligned himself with Satan and set his course, and removed himself from Jesus and his companions.

The second front appears at the end of today’s reading. Despite Peter’s apparent full endorsement of Jesus and promise to even lay his life down for him, Jesus predicted that “the cock will not crow until” Peter will deny him “three times” (Jn 13:38). The momentum of utter betrayal builds. Judas will agree to turn Jesus over for thirty pieces of silver. He will betray the Son of God, yet in so doing, Judas will play his part in salvation history.

Judas will set in motion Jesus’ arrest that will culminate in his crucifixion. Peter will come to deny Jesus three times as Jesus predicted. I cannot think of any experience worse than to experience the pain of betrayal. Yet, how is it that we betray Jesus each day? Remember what he taught us, “What you did not do for one of these least ones, you did not do for me” (Mt 25:45). Who and how have we betrayed Jesus in our lives? This is an important question to ask, and what is even more important is that we not only answer it honestly, but seek forgiveness and resist the temptation of isolating ourselves in our sin and pride.

Judas separated himself, cut himself off from Jesus and his companions. He realized his sin, he did not seek forgiveness, isolated himself further and took his life. Peter, also regretted his sin, his cowardice, he wept when he heard the cock crow, but he also trusted, and later affirmed his love for Jesus three times, atoning for his three denials and was forgiven. We are a sinful and wounded Church, we each have weaknesses, but if we are humble and honest, admit and confess our sin, seek the support from Jesus and our companions, we will be the Church triumphant!

Photo: Stone crucifix in dining room of Our Lady of Florida Spiritual Center

Link for the Mass reading for Tuesday, March 27, 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/032718.cfm

“Mary took a liter of costly perfumed oil made from genuine aromatic nard and anointed the feet of Jesus and dried them with her hair; the house was filled with the fragrance of the oil” (Jn 12:3). This is indeed some gift that Mary shares with Jesus, though Judas’ critical response showed that he missed the point of her offering, which went well beyond the material cost of the perfume. Mary even exceeded the gesture of hospitality by going beyond washing Jesus’ feet and anointing them as well. This act of caring could have been a bestowal of appreciation and gratefulness toward Jesus who brought Lazarus, her brother, back to life, but it was even more than that.

Jesus’ correction of Judas, “Leave her alone. Let her keep this for the day of my burial” (Jn 12:7), may be the best source for interpreting Mary’s act. Mary comprehended better than any of the Apostles that Jesus’ death was imminent. Mary’s washing the feet of Jesus, anointing them, and drying them with her hair was a gift of love, of giving herself in service to the Son of God. This exchange mirrors the communion between God the Father, God the Son, and the Love shared between them, God the Holy Spirit. Mary inspired by the Holy Spirit follows the will of the Father and plays her part in salvation history.

We do not know how Mary came to possess this precious oil, but what we do know is that she did not grasp or cling to it when she was urged to pour it out to anoint the feet of Jesus. Mary freely gave the perfume in an act of love to serve the need of Jesus by anointing him for his death and burial. Even Peter, James, and John would not able to stay awake in the garden with Jesus in his time of need. What is something that we may hold as precious that God may be calling us to give up, to let go of, not just for the sake of doing so, but in service to Jesus? The path to holiness and sanctity, is coming to a place in our lives in which we can let go of that which we are attached to, so to hear clearly the will of God, know what is required of us, and give freely in love and service, to be as St. Mother Teresa has said, just a pencil in God’s hand.

Painting: Mary of Bethany anointing the feet of Jesus

Link for the Mass reading for Monday, March 26, 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/032618.cfm

In yesterday’s reading, Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin plot to bring about the death of Jesus. The results of their planning will be on full display today in the Gospel account of Mark. Though long, these verses are well worth the time and effort to read (cf. Mark 11:1-10, 14:1-15:47).

The scene from the Passion account that I would like to reflect upon is Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane (Mk 14:32-42). Jesus invited Peter, James, and John, the same three apostles that witnessed the raising of Jairus’ daughter and the Transfiguration of Jesus on Mt. Tabor to be with him again, this time in his hour of need. As Jesus entered the garden, he expressed to them that he felt “sorrowful even unto death”, reflecting the full weight of what was about to transpire. Jesus asked the closest of his inner circle to watch and pray while he went off at a distance. Through Mark’s account we are able to read the fullness of Jesus’ humanity and divinity on display.

The most primal of our human instincts is the preservation of our life. Jesus, faced with his imminent death, acknowledged this primal urge by requesting, “Abba, Father, all things are possible to you. Take this cup away from me”. The agony is palpable. Jesus has done all that the Father asked of him, he has preached, taught, healed, exorcised demons, followed his Father’s will, and now finds himself on death’s door. He can probably sense Judas and the Temple guards drawing close. He will be turned over to those who have turned their back on his Father. All appeared to be hopeless.

Yet, Jesus was not done, he continued, “but not what I will but what you will.” With these words of surrender Jesus echoed the verse from Psalms 42 and 43: “Hope in God, I will praise him still, my savior and my God.” Even faced with his death, Jesus accepted the will of his Father, his Abba. He trusted that there would be a greater good to transpire through his death, through the giving his life. With those words, Jesus surrendered his human will to that of the divine. With each and every yes to his Father’s will through his life, his human nature was more and more conformed to his divine nature. What is on full display for us in the garden is that Jesus is one divine person, the Son of God, while at the same time he has two natures and two wills, the human and divine.

As Jesus arose, he came to Peter, James, and John. He found them asleep. He said to Peter, “Simon, are you asleep? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Watch and pray that you may not undergo the test. The spirit is willing but the flesh is weak.” Jesus returned to prayer and returned two more times to find his three closest followers asleep each time. Jesus was ready to face the cross even if his apostles were not. As with the Apostles, Jesus commands us to watch and pray this Holy Week. How will we do?

Though our flesh too is weak, and we too have sinned, Jesus has faith in us that we will actualize who his Father calls us to be, as he still had faith in his apostles who persisted despite their failures and fulfilled their role in God’s plan. No matter what trial or tribulation arises before us, may we meet it head on, placing our trust in God, as Jesus did in the Garden of Gethsemane. We are to follow the lead of Jesus to give over our will to God the Father in participation with his Son through the Love of the Holy Spirit. Let us hope in God, let us praise him still, our savior and our God!

Painting: Heinrich Hoffman, Christ in Gethsemane, 1886

Link for the Mass reading for Sunday, March 25, 2018:

http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/032518.cfm