The feeding of the five thousand that we encounter in today’s Gospel from John is reported in each of the four Gospels. The only other incident that is recorded in all four is the Resurrection accounts. This point is relevant because biblical scholars look to the multiple attestation theory as one means to determine if an account in the Gospel record is more or less plausible. Having the same account present in each of the four increases the probability that the event actually happened.

From a different perspective, there are those that embrace scientism meaning that they will not believe in anything that can not be measured, experimented upon, or proven within the realm of the five senses. For those ascribing to this strict interpretation, religion and accounts of miracles are often dismissed as superstition, that if something indeed did happen, there is a scientific explanation to dismiss the miraculous. Even some believers may discount the record of the feeding of the five thousand as more of a symbolic representation of the generosity and service encouraged by Jesus such that everyone gave their small share and there was enough for all, not that he actually was able to multiply the bread and fish.

These perspectives of downplaying the miracle of multiplication seek to reduce or limit Jesus to just his humanity, but he is so much more. Jesus is human, fully human, yes, but he is also fully divine. Coming to understand the wonder of the unity of the divinity and humanity of Jesus can help us better understand the reality of the earth and cosmos. One of the core aspects of who we are as human beings is that we are people of wonder. The physical sciences are tools that we have in our toolbox that we can access to help us to understand our physical realm, while at the same time we also have spiritual tools that aid us in understanding both physical and spiritual realities. I would argue that the physical sciences actually emerge precisely because of our spiritual pursuit to understand the wonders of God’s creation. In accessing both faith and reason, we come to have a broader view as well as more pieces of the puzzle in which to put together and better experience our world.

When we limit or explain away the miracles of Jesus, we rob ourselves of a more accurate picture of the reality of creation. One concrete example of this is when our third president, Thomas Jefferson, took a sharp object and painstakingly cut out verses from the Bible and pasted them to blank pages. He did so in columns of Latin and Greek on one side of the paper and French and English on the other. This eighty-four-page tome is commonly called the Jefferson Bible, but the president titled it: The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth. This text offers a human portrayal of Jesus that dismisses anything divine.

If we remove ourselves from the divine, and 99.9% of our life, experience, interests, and thought is spent in the finite material realm, we will miss a deeper expression of who we are as human beings and much of the joy and gift of life. It stands to reason then how we would find it hard to believe in miracles, the mystical, the spiritual. Each of the miracles of Jesus are not a self-aggrandizing move, but a drawing close in love and empathy. Jesus is moved, time and again, to reach out in love, to care for and support those who are in need. Each miracle had a purpose for the individual or group involved as well as pointing to something greater to reveal his Father’s plan. As we read in today’s account of the feeding of the five thousand, he is showing what living life to the full is all about: being in communion with God and one another.

We need to resist the temptation to write off too quickly the miracles of Jesus. May we also not dismiss the gift and value of the sciences. By approaching our world with a both/and approach, we will get a better understanding of and appreciation for not only the gift and wonder of creation but also who we are as human beings. God has imparted within us the ability to access and develop both our faith and reason, to think critically, and to pray and meditate deeply.

Jesus as the firstborn of the new creation embodies the reality of the fullness of who we are called by God and in the depths of our souls, aspire to be, human and divine. Jesus is still present to us today, knocking on the doors of our hearts, minds, and souls. If we only follow the moral and social teachings of Jesus, as did Thomas Jefferson, we will experience some benefit but we will limit ourselves because we will be cutting out the very life force that sustains those virtues we hope to aspire to. We will access the fullness of all that God the Father offers us when we open the door to his Son this Easter Season. Let the Holy Spirit in and offer the little we have and watch how much he can multiply our simple gifts.

Let us continue to journey together, to read and pray together the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. May we resist rejecting outright what we do not understand or comprehend, and instead be willing to ponder the wonders of miracles, the gift of God’s grace building on our natures, the reality of God-incidences all around us, and embrace the eternal foundation and ground of our being which is the Trinitarian Love of God.

Photo: A great time to walk and wonder!

Link to the Mass readings for Friday, April 29, 2022

The question that arises and is foremost regarding Christianity above all else is, “Who is Jesus?” How this is answered has a lot to do with what we believe. We read in today’s Gospel account about how John the Baptist addresses this question to his disciples. They are concerned that Jesus is growing in popularity over and above John. John shares his understanding of Jesus as, the one who “comes from above” and the one who “comes from heaven is above all”; this one “testifies to what he has seen and heard” and he is sent by God to speak “the words of God”; he is also generous in that he “does not ration the gift of the Spirit”; and the Son is loved by the Father and God “has given everything over to him”.

John declares in each of these phrases that Jesus is the Son of God who has come from above, he has come to reveal the truth about the Father and is able to do so because he has seen and has an infinite relationship with him. He preaches the Gospel, the Good News, that God loves us, that he seeks and has always sought, to be in communion with us, his created beings. Jesus has come to reveal the Love of the Father and that his love is unlimited.

The proclamation that Jesus is the Messiah, is not just revealed in the Gospel of John, but each of the three other Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, as well as the epistles. Jesus, as the Son of God, is also the key to unlocking the Hebrew Scriptures, and we can see how the Torah, the Prophets, and the Writings all point to Jesus as well. Jesus shared this outline of salvation history with Cleopas and the other disciple on the road to Emmaus, such that their hearts were burning within them while Jesus spoke as he opened the scriptures to them (cf. Lk 24:32).

John the Baptist gets it. Jesus is the Son of the Living God and he offers a model for us to follow when he shared with his disciples: “He must increase; I must decrease” (Jn 3:30). May we spend some time in quiet reflection today by pondering the phrases John shares with his disciples regarding who Jesus is. Which one calls to you?

“The one who comes from above is above all.”
“The one who comes from heaven is above all.”
“He testifies to what he has seen and heard.”

“For the one whom God sent speaks the words of God.”
“He does not ration his gift of the Spirit.”
“The Father loves the Son and has given everything over to him.”

When we have finished, what is our response to John? Do we disobey or discount that Jesus is who he says he is or do we “accept his testimony” and “certify that God is trustworthy”? If we “accept his testimony”, are we willing to decrease, such that he will increase his influence in our life. Do we believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God?

Painting: Christ Blessing (‘The Savior of the World’), by El Greco, 1600

Link for the Mass readings for Thursday, April 28, 2022

Jesus continues his conversation with Nicodemus in today’s Gospel from John. In the opening verse, Jesus outlines why he came into the world: “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life” (Jn 3:16). God has created us out of love and shepherds with that same love. God loves what and who he has created, and in his order and timing, he sent his Son to enter humanity to become one with us, to heal us and invite us to come out of the shadows and dark recesses of turning in upon ourselves. He invites us to leave the darkness fear and sin, and to enter into his loving embrace.

Loving means to risk being rejected. Jesus entered humanity as we all did, in the utter vulnerability of his mother’s womb. His very life was at risk from the moment of conception. Mary, a young woman,  betrothed to Joseph, in a time and culture in which a woman found to be with child and not from her husband, could be stoned to death. Mary could have made a different choice, Joseph could have made a different choice, but both chose to follow the will of God. They resisted the temptation to close in upon themselves and make an isolated decision based on their own needs, anxieties, and fears. While all of creation held its collective breath, Mary and Joseph trusted God, they chose the light, they chose to protect life.

“Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only-begotten Son of God” (Jn 3:18). Jesus did not come to condemn, he came to redeem, to save, to love us into eternity. For love to be real, it must be truly free. Free to the full extent that it can be rejected. To love is to risk rejection. Otherwise, what is experienced by the other is coercion, manipulation, pressure, but not love. The Son of God entered the womb of Mary risking rejection by her, Joseph, and/or their extended family. The only difference between Jesus in the womb and Jesus who ministered to those on the margins was that he was smaller and more vulnerable. Those who believe and say yes to the will of God, like Mary and Joseph, will come to have eternal life, and those who do not are not condemned by God because he wants all to be saved but by themselves.

Those rejecting God have been invited to receive his love also, but for reasons they may or may not be aware of say no. We who follow Jesus are to be his presence of love among those we encounter, even those who shy away or reject him. We are not to impose but propose and invite. We may be the only Bible someone ever reads. We have been loved from the moment of our conception, hopefully by our parents, be even if not, by God.

We are to love and protect the unborn as well as those who have been born. We are not just pro-birth, but pro-life. That means that each of us has a charism of who we are called to reach out to and touch with the love of Jesus. We are to think, speak, and act by respecting the dignity of each person, in-person and online, supporting a consistent ethic of life from the moment of conception until natural death.

“God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life” (Jn 3:16). We, even in our brokenness, imperfections, and sin, are loved by Jesus. We can reject or accept his love. As Pope Francis wrote: “We are called to be holy by living our lives with love and by bearing witness in everything we do, wherever we find ourselves.” As we receive and experience the love of Jesus, may we seek to love each person we encounter as he has loved us. If there are those that we might not necessarily want to include, may we be willing to allow Jesus to love them through us.

Photo: My maternal grandparents, Helen and Bernard Morcus, models of love for me.

Link for article on Gaudete et Exultate (“Rejoice and Be Glad”)

Link for the Mass readings for Wednesday, April 27, 2022

In today’s reading from the Gospel of John, we are presented with Nicodemus “a teacher of Israel” struggling to understand what Jesus meant when he said, “You must be born from above.” Jesus attempted to clarify for Nicodemus with an analogy of the wind, yet this still did not help. Jesus went on to explain how much of a problem it was if Nicodemus and the leaders of Israel did not understand things that are concrete and plainly in view: “If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?”

Thinking at that point that Jesus would soften his message he instead deepened his discussion, talking about how no one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, that the same Son of Man would be lifted up as Moses lifted up a snake in the desert, and God sent his only Son so that all might have eternal life. If Nicodemus’ head wasn’t already spinning with Jesus’ born from above statement, the follow-up statements would have really done it.

What Jesus conveyed to Nicodemus, his Apostles, and disciples, as well as anyone in earshot, and ongoing for generation after generation and up to us to this present day, is that Christianity is not Gnosticism, some secret sect of knowledge that is passed on for a select, elite few. Neither is Christianity a form of dualism or Manicheism such that our body and all that is material are bad and we need to shed the physical as soon as possible to attain the fullness of our potential through the absolute embrace of the spiritual only. Nor is Christianity Pelagianism, where we just need the proper discipline, will power, and persistence to follow the teachings of Jesus.

Jesus offers us a universal invitation for all to “be born from above”, which means to be baptized in his name, to follow him into his death, to die to our our false sense of self, to our sin, our pride, that attitude and disposition that strives to set apart, diminish, devalue, dehumanize, divide, and polarize, and to rise with him. In being born from above, we receive the offer of divinity and so, instead of rejecting our humanity, embrace the fullness of our humanity. The grace of God builds on our nature, the goodness of the creation he has made and formed into existence with his love. We accomplish this the same way Mary, the Apostles, Mary Magdalene, the disciples, and Nicodemus did. We answer the call to holiness and sanctity. We say yes to Jesus and give him all we are and recognize all that we have is a gift from God the Father.

Day by day we need to be willing to be lead by the hand of Jesus, the firstborn of the new creation, and participate with him by offering our hand to others. We are encouraged to resist the temptation to put up barriers, to keep others at arm’s length. We are all, every one of us, invited to become saints through our participation in the life of Jesus.

I agree with Pope Francis who in his exhortation, Gaudete et Exsultate (“Rejoice and Be Glad”), that we cannot “claim to say where God is not, because God is mysteriously present in the life of every person, in a way that he himself chooses, and we cannot exclude this by our presumed certainties. Even when someone’s life appears completely wrecked, even when we see it devastated by vices or addictions, God is present there. If we let ourselves be guided by the Spirit rather than our own preconceptions, we can and must try to find the Lord in every human life.”

God is present to each and every one of us. May we embrace the gift of our baptism, so as to understand what Jesus was teaching Nicodemus, that we have been born from above. Through our dying and rising in Christ, we have better access and a share in the breath and life of the Holy Spirit. In this way, we are transformed and made new by the Holy Spirit, the very Love of God. This is a gift to be received and shared.

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Painting: Nicodemus talking to Jesus, William Brassey Hole

Link for the Pope Francis article on “Rejoice and Be Glad”

Link for the Mass readings for, April 26, 2022

Jesus appeared to the Eleven and said to them: “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature” (Mk 16:15). Jesus is once again claiming who he is: Kyrios – Lord. The word, gospel, comes from the Greek word, euangelion, meaning good news, but the one who proclaimed “good news” during the time of Jesus was the emperor. Caesar would send his emissaries to announce such good news as a great victory or his birthday. What Mark conveys in the very first line and here at the ending of his Gospel, is that Jesus is Lord! Not Kaiser Kyrios, Caesar is Lord, but Jesus Kyrios, Jesus is Lord!!!

This is true for us as well. Whenever we are dismissed from Mass, one of the dismissal lines I use most often is, “Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord.” This is to echo the command of Jesus for all of us to proclaim the Gospel in our everyday experiences and encounters.

We are able to proclaim the Gospel first and foremost by believing that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, our Savior and Lord. He has risen! He has risen indeed! He is the firstborn of the new creation. This is something to get excited about, something to fill us with joy. We are an Alleluia People, not a Grumpy Gus people. Once we remind ourselves what we believe, who we believe in, and whose we belong to, then we are better prepared to engage with others.

The most powerful witness we can offer is when we seek opportunities to act, speak about and engage others with respect, caring, and joy. When we catch the eye of another offer a smile. We can also say hello, a nod of our head, or offer a wave. Unfortunately, we still need to be careful with the simple engagement of a handshake, a fist bump, a high five, or a hug as we come out of this pandemic. We also need to be aware of other’s boundaries and respect their space at the same time. If someone is not open, we need to respect their posture, and meet them where they are.

We reach out to others to acknowledge their dignity and value. This is the simplest, yet most profound way to spread the Gospel, which really means to share the love of Jesus, willing their good. We are to accept and accompany others as Jesus does with the purpose of building relationships. We are more inviting when we are willing to be patient, gracious, and willing to listen and hear in our interactions with each person we meet and in doing so we may begin to understand each other a little better.

As we encounter others, we are to also remember the common courtesy of saying please, thank you, and I forgive you, whether in a store, restaurant, bank, convenience store, on the sidewalk, in traffic, or online. Remember God gave us two ears and one mouth for a reason because it is better to listen first and speak second.

Especially now, with the world on edge and anxious more than ever, believing in Jesus, embracing his love and message, and putting into practice small actions with great love is a wonderful way to begin to “Go into the whole world and proclaim the Gospel to every creature” (Mk 16:15). I might add, “every creature” is in this statement. All of the above applies to creation as well. We need to be better stewards and caretakers of our planet as well as each other.

With my brother deacons in 2016, photo credit: Giovanna Christian

Link for the Mass reading for Saturday, April 25, 2022

The disciples locked themselves in a room fearing further persecution from the Jewish leadership. Jesus was crucified and as their followers, they believed that they would be next. They were also ashamed of having turned away from Jesus during his time of dire need. Amidst this heavy weight of fear, despair, and shame, Jesus “came and stood in their midst”. Their reaction of amazement and fear of Jesus’ judgment could only just begin to form in their minds because as Jesus came and stood in their midst he said to them, “Peace be with you.”

Jesus forgave them for their betrayal. He did not rub their nose in their shame or say that he had told them so. Jesus came among them and immediately bestowed upon them his mercy. He then commissioned them to be his Apostles as he said: “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” As Jesus is the Son of God, he has the power to forgive, and he is now sending his Apostles to be bearers of his forgiveness and mercy as he works through them.

Thomas, though not present on this first encounter, is present the following week and seeing the marks on Jesus’ hands and his side, he too believed, saying, “My Lord and my God!” Thomas too, even though initially doubting the resurrection of Jesus, became an agent of mercy and reconciliation.

Today, we still have access to the gift of God’s mercy and forgiveness instituted by Jesus as is recorded in today’s Gospel of John. This is a gift of healing made available to each of us, like the Eucharist, so that we may continue to experience Jesus, our Lord, and our God, working in our life. When we come to the priest, we are coming to those, who in an unbroken apostolic succession, have continued to be bearers of Jesus’ forgiveness and mercy. It is to Jesus, through our priests, that we confess, and that we hear the words of and receive absolution.

On this Divine Mercy Sunday, may we spend some quiet time with today’s Gospel and imagine ourselves in the locked room with the disciples. Experience Jesus appearing in our midst as he says, “Peace be with you!” Allow the radiating light of his mercy and forgiveness to wash over and through our whole being. Let us call to mind those sins that have kept us bound, visualize them as words floating up and out of us and dissipating into the radiance of the white and red rays emanating from the merciful heart of Jesus. May we allow ourselves to be transformed by the love and forgiveness of Jesus.

Having been reconciled and healed, Jesus sends us out to practice mercy and forgiveness with others. May we react less and breathe deeply more. Instead of adding fuel to the fire of negativity, let us seek to be advocates for healing and reconciliation. May we also take some time today to think of someone who could benefit from the presence of Jesus through our being present to them, someone who may need “to hear God’s good news of forgiveness and love” (Francis, 25). We may not able to absolve someone of their sin, but we can forgive, make an effort to reach out to others in prayer and in person, and allow the love and mercy of Jesus to flow through us to those in our midst. Alleluia!

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Close up of painting by Robert Skemp. “Have mercy on us and on the whole world.”

McCann, Deborah. 30 Days of Reflections and Prayers: What Pope Francis Says About Mercy. New London, CT: Twenty-Third Publications, 2015.

Link for the Mass readings for Sunday, April 24, 2022

Today’s reading from the Gospel of Mark, 16:9-16, is commonly called, “The Longer Ending.” Most ancient manuscripts of Mark end at 16:8. Whether this Gospel ended there or the original ending was lost is not definitively known. Many biblical scholars also recognize in these verses a different writing style, so attribute this longer ending to a different author. This ending recounts that Mary Magdalene and two disciples, presumably the same on the road to Emmaus, met the risen Jesus. When both Mary and the two disciples share their experiences with the eleven, they are not believed, and “later, as the eleven were at table, he [Jesus] appeared to them and rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart”

How many times had Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for being hard of heart? Now he is saying the same to the eleven for not believing the accounts of Mary and the two disciples. We do not have a reason for their unbelief and maybe that is well and good because that gives us the opportunity to ponder for ourselves when has someone brought us a message from Jesus and we responded to them with hard hearts and were unbelieving? Are there certain people we would not believe no matter what good news they had to share with us? Maybe someone is bringing us a message from a different or no faith tradition…

Jesus does not belabor the point. His rebuke helped them to see that as his followers their hearts needed to be open to him working through others, as he told John when someone was casting out demons in Jesus’ name, “whoever is not against us is for us” (cf. Mk 9:40).

Christianity is not a secret sect, it is a universal call and proclamation to be shared with all. We are celebrating this Easter Octave, and we continue to do so each year. We celebrate the fullness of the Paschal Mystery, that the Son of God became incarnate, entered into our human condition, lived, suffered, and died, conquered death, and rose again, for all of humanity and creation.

This was no mere resuscitation. Jesus conquered death and became the firstborn of the new creation and invites us to participate in his reign of the kingdom of heaven. This is the Good News he wanted his eleven to proclaim when he said to them, “Go into the whole world and proclaim the gospel to every creature” (Mk 16:15).

Jesus is calling us to do the same, as brothers and sisters, working in solidarity, not for a select few in our pew, but for all in our realm of influence. We are to build relationships by bringing the light, joy, and love of Jesus to each individual that we meet, person to person. Let us also be open to God working through others and receive his message from them as well! Alleluia!!!

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Photo: My first seniors at CN, the class of 2014!

Link for the Mass readings for Saturday, April 23, 2022

There are a handful of incidents in today’s Gospel reading from John that refer back to encounters Jesus had with his Apostles before his death and resurrection. Jesus waits on the shore as seven of his disciples; Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, James, John, and two others, return from a night of fishing. This is reminiscent of when Jesus first came to Andrew and Simon, James and John as they were casting and mending nets and he invited them to follow him.

The disciples are on their way back to shore with their nets empty, and Jesus suggests that they cast their net over the right side and they quickly find that they “were not able to pull it in because of the number of fish.” Peter had this experience in one of his first encounters with Jesus when he had been fishing all night and Jesus encouraged him to put out into the deep water, and that time they were able to fill two boats with fish.

After their great catch “of one hundred fifty-three large fish,” John told Peter that the Lord was the one who had instructed them. Just as when Jesus approached his disciples that night walking on the stormy waters, Peter jumped out of the boat and walked on water until he took his eyes off Jesus and began to sink. Peter again “jumped into the sea.” When Peter and the disciples came to shore “they saw a charcoal fire.” The most recent event with another charcoal fire was outside the gate where Jesus was led for his judgment. To keep warm Peter joined the servants and slaves huddled around a charcoal fire. It was at that charcoal fire that Peter denied Jesus. The final scene in today’s account was when Jesus offered cooked fish and bread to his disciples, this is reminiscent of Jesus feeding the five thousand with two loaves and a few fish.

Throughout our lives, we will have encounters with people and experience incidents that we have experienced before. We may not have been as present as we have wanted to be when attempting to comfort someone, we may have given in to temptation we regretted, or we may have been involved in some task and made a mistake, just as Peter had denied Jesus three times at that charcoal fire. Peter wept when he heard the cock crow. The sound brought back Jesus’ prediction, brought to light Peter’s own denial and cowardice. How many times must he have berated himself, as we have done when we have sinned, fallen short of our goals, or made mistakes?

Making mistakes and taking risks, are necessary for learning and growing in any endeavor in life. Jesus does not want us to beat ourselves up when we fall short or fail. What is required for maturation is an honest assessment of the situation, an acknowledgment of our mistakes and sins, and then a movement to correct and learn from them. Often we overcompensate in the beginning, but as we remain persistent we reach a healthy balance.

A concrete example of this was my first experience with bowling. The first time I walked on the lane, took aim, and released the ball, I threw it into the left gutter, and then the next throw went into the right gutter. Eventually, my adjustments were less drastic and eventually, I was able to strike down more pins than hurl my ball into the gutter. The same is true for our everyday lives.

Jesus returns to be with his disciples after his resurrection, he meets them in very similar settings as he had before his death. All of his disciples failed him, yet Jesus did not condemn them. Jesus helped to show them how far they had come since he first called them, while at the same time helping them to see how far they still have to go to actualize their potential. Jesus is not only their teacher but the divine source of their own transformation.

Jesus guides and empowers us with this same love and encouragement, to help us to move beyond our own self, so that hopefully, we will be a little more present to someone the next time we are in a position to provide comfort or understanding, have greater resolve when tempted, and be able to have the humility to identify our sins and mistakes, repent, as well as learn from them.

Jesus has risen! He appeared to his disciples to guide, encourage, and empower them to be who God called them to be. Jesus offers us the same teaching, guidance, and power shared from the wellspring of his humanity and divinity that we will be able to also access when we choose to accept the free gift of his grace and participate in his life. Our repentance and Jesus’ forgiveness go beyond helping us to become better people. Through the love of Jesus, our minds, hearts, and souls change. We will be transfigured and conformed to Jesus and his life of resurrection. This is good news to share not only in word but in deed. Alleluia!!!

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Photo credit: Roman Pohorecki from Pexels

Link for the Mass readings for Friday, April 22, 2022

Just as Jesus came among Cleopas and the other disciple on their road to Emmaus, Jesus does so again as the pair was recounting their encounter with the risen Jesus. What Jesus does differently in this interaction is that he clarifies that he is not a ghost, that he is not a mere spirit. Jesus said to those gathered around him, “Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have” (Lk 24:39). He then requested some fish and he ate and talked with his disciples as he had done during their time together before his crucifixion and resurrection.

We have heard about the resurrection of Jesus, maybe for years, but it is important not to get complacent with the amazing miracle that this is. Also, we need to resist the temptation to diminish in any way the significance of the transfiguration of Jesus. Jesus was and continues to be a hypostatic union, meaning that he is one divine person, fully divine, subsisting in two natures, the human and divine.

The humanity of Jesus through his resurrection was fully actualized and transcended the limitations of the three-dimensional realm that he had experienced in his humanity before. This is how he could disappear after making himself known in the breaking of the bread and how he will come through a locked door to interact with his disciples.

The relevance of the bodily resurrection of Jesus for us is that he, in dying and conquering death, is now the reality of who we will one day be. We will be fully actualized as God has created us to be. The good news is that we do not have to wait to go to heaven for this process to begin! The path of becoming fulfilled and whole begins in this life, now, as we accept Jesus as our Lord, Savior, and Redeemer. Jesus in his encounter with his disciples in today’s reading from Luke continues the message he began at the beginning of his ministry, which is one of repentance and forgiveness.

When we were baptized we were born again as an integral part of the new creation given to us by the death and resurrection of Jesus. Through this grace, our humanity has been redeemed. Each day we are to live in humility, calling to mind our sins and repenting daily. As we do so, Jesus will forgive us, and as we receive his mercy and forgiveness we will not only be more and more conformed to him, we are to offer the same to others. Jesus suffered and died for each and every one of us, and he also seeks to live through us. Jesus is the foundation and source of our life and salvation. Jesus has come to show us that we are not in competition with God, but that his Father, our Father, seeks to be in solidarity with us.

There have been times when I have felt pretty wiped out physically. During this recovery from pneumonia, feeling tired has seemed to be a constant and steady companion. Even so, I find rest and renewal in God’s word through praying the liturgy of the hours, reading the daily Mass readings or just meditating silently. I continue to make slow and steady progress and some of my strength and energy is beginning to return, although, I still need to be careful not to overdo it.

During one particular stretch in which I was particularly drained, I sat down to pray, made the sign of the cross and said, “God come to my assistance.” A ray of sunlight then broke through the grey, billowing clouds. The light washed over me and I felt the warmth fall upon my face. This was not Jesus walking through the locked door as he did with the Apostles, but it was certainly a welcomed loving embrace from him. As Pope Francis has said, Jesus cares more for us than anyone else.

I believe an example like this is more than a mere coincidence but is instead a Godincidence. A moment when God is saying hello and letting us know that he walks with us and that we are not alone. Even in the midst of our trials and tribulations, when we are weary and worn, we can experience joy! Sometimes we just need to take a moment to open our eyes to see and our ears to hear. Alleluia!!!

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Photo: God can speak to us in many ways.

Link for the Mass reading for Thursday, April 21, 2022

Our Gospel reading for today begins with a feeling of despair. The hope of Jesus being the Messiah, the promised one who came to redeem and deliver his people Israel died a brutal death. Even though Jesus sought to prepare his followers for this reality, they could not conceive or believe that the promised Messiah could die.

Cleopas and his companion are in mourning as they walk along the road to Emmaus. They have left Jerusalem and are commiserating among themselves about their dashed hopes. Even though they received word that Jesus had risen, they left Jerusalem! They did not believe he was alive, but that he was still dead. How could he be who he claimed to be if he had died? Now what were they to do? They were not only walking in the wrong direction, away from Jerusalem, but also not believing Jesus’ words that he would rise again on the third day. Jesus met them in the midst of their travail and wove his way into the conversation and their journey.

When the time for them to part arrived, Jesus motioned to them that he was going to continue on. The pair of disciples urged him, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over” (Lk 24:29). Jesus did just that and he revealed himself to them “in the breaking of the bread”(Lk 24:35).

The account of the road to Emmaus has significant relevance for our own spiritual journey. How many times have we had an inaccurate understanding of Jesus in such a way that we felt let down? Have we domesticated Jesus, or limited who he is, seeing only one aspect of his totality, attempted to shape or conform him into our image and likeness? Have we prayed for something and then that petition or intention was not fulfilled in the way we had hoped? Have we sought Jesus and felt that he wasn’t there for us in our time of struggle or during those times that we felt that we needed guidance?

We need to remember that Jesus is the Son of God and we are not. He meets us as we are, accepts us as we are, walks with us even when we are walking in the wrong direction, but he also calls us to be more, to actualize the fullness of our potential according to the plan of his Father. That means stretching us beyond our comfort zones, urging us to let go of our safety nets and training wheels. Jesus invites us to nothing less than being transfigured by entering into the participation of Trinitarian Love. This begins when we resist withdrawing into and curving in upon ourselves, and instead are willing to be loved and to be expanded outward beyond ourselves to love in return.

A good practice this Easter season is to spend time meditating on the wonderful daily readings of the Acts of the Apostles and the Gospels, so as to allow Jesus to set our hearts aflame, like Cleopas and his companion. As this pair returned to the community of Jerusalem, let us gather together each Lord’s Day, in person or whatever technological means we can access if we are not able to attend in person, to hear his word proclaimed until we all can return again to experience him revealed in the breaking of the bread in our worship together in the celebration of the Mass.

As we put into practice what we hear and receive, we too will begin to: see Jesus more active in the midst of our everyday activities, recognize him in our daily events and even the interruptions that arise, be more inspired to share the sacrificial love we have received from Jesus with those in our realm of influence, and come to realize that Jesus is among us, closer to us than we are to ourselves. We just need to allow him to walk with us on our journey, even when we are heading the wrong way, just like Cleopas and the other disciple did on the road to Emmaus. When we invite Jesus into our lives God will happen. Alleluia!!!

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Painting: Road to Emmaus, Robert Zünd, hanging in our campus ministry offices at Cardinal Newman HS.

Link for the Mass reading for Wednesday, April 20, 2022