The readings for this Sunday speak to us of how God wishes to extend his mercy to us and how we often reject it by continuing to sin. The readings speak about how little we truly understand the gravity of our sins. It is so much more serious than we can imagine and would impel the God-man, our Lord Jesus to pray in his dying breaths, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do” Luke 23:24.
We also have no idea how much God the Eternal Father loves us, but even more so, how much he infinitely loves his Only Begotten Son who laid down his life so valiantly out of love for us and to accomplish the will of the Father.
In the first reading, the Apostle Peter lays the charge: “… you rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked to have a murderer given to you, and you killed the Author of life, whom God raised from the dead” Acts 3:12. Yes, he has levelled this true accusation against his fellow countrymen, but have not all of us traded in Jesus for so many other despicable downgrades in our lives? The Jews preferred a murderer to Jesus, a ruthless man obstinate in his sin, to the God-man who knew no wrong, and only did good and worked miracles of mercy in their midst. What have we preferred more than Jesus in our lives? If we love even our parents or our children more than we love him, he said we are not worthy of him yet. It’s a lifelong journey in which each day he allows us an opportunity to get closer to this ideal.
In his first epistle, as if to reinforce the awareness of the horrors of sin in our lives, Saint John the Evangelist begins today’s readings in this way: “My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin.” Listen to the tenderness in his words and his concern. And then, he is a realist: “But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous..” 1 John 2:1. In other words, Jesus the sinless and spotless Lamb of God, invites us to receive his mercy when we battle with temptation and come out wounded. He invites us to his mercy even if we didn’t put up a good fight. He’s there in the emergency ward ready to bandage our wounds with his mercy, no matter what. Only, we need to ask ourselves if at times we do not abuse of his mercy so generously given.
In the gospel, Jesus appears to his apostles. They’ve all sinned by now, having lost the faith, traded in the God who created the universe, with their fears, their doubts, their hesitancies, and their giving up on the mission he gave them. The entire passage today is about Christ continuing to reassure them as they continue their special and unique vocation as apostles, that he is the truth. Let’s meditate on his words to them: “Why are you frightened, and why do doubts arise in your hearts? Look at my hands and my feet; see that it is I myself. Touch me and see; for a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you see that I have… Have you anything here to eat? They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate in their presence…Then he opened their minds to understand the scriptures, and he said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Messiah is to suffer and to rise from the dead on the third day, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things” Luke 24:38-46. Did you notice that he did the same thing with the apostles what he had previously just done with the two disciples on their way to Emmaus? He opened up their minds to understand the scriptures. Our minds need to be activated by him when examining scripture. It’s not just a matter of reading it. This is why it’s a long tradition of the Church to pray to the Holy Spirit before reading scripture, and why we never, ever interpret it in a way which runs contrary to the sole authoritative interpreter— the Church.
Jesus knew that they would need to retain in their memories, almost like a permanent video looping on replay mode, every single detail, every single gesture, every single word, every single second of what is happening right before their eyes. Almost like how he prepared the three pillars, Peter, James and John for his passion, through his transfiguration on Mount Tabor. Peter will need this resurrection experience, even if he doesn’t know it, for when they stretch out his arms and fasten his body to a cross with the brutality of the crucifixion and while he’s hanging upside down and suffering all this, the memory of this event, in this gospel, and many things he experienced as a specially chosen apostle, would run through his mind.
He’d remember walking on water. He’d remember his betrayals and that Jesus foretold them. He’d remember being handed the keys of the Kingdom of heaven. He’d remember Jesus appearing to them Easter Sunday morning and saying, “Peace be with you. Do not be afraid” John 20:21.
I know that it I were an apostle, I would hope that these memories would accompany my last moments before reuniting with the Lord forever. So we ask: When our time comes, in whichever way we will exit this world, what will be running through our minds? If we are still alive when Jesus returns and won’t taste the death experienced by others in this life, what will our thoughts be? If we’re in a hospital bed somewhere about to commend our souls to God, what will be our last memories, our thoughts? Will they be earth-bound, or heaven-bound?
So the apostles Peter and John in today’s readings are encouraging each of us to develop and work on our relationship with Jesus in such a way, where our death can be holy… where when the time comes, he will be on our mind, on our lips and in our hearts. Like Saint Clare of Assisi who spoke to herself as she took her last breaths: “Go securely and in peace, my blessed soul. The One who created you and made you holy has always loved you tenderly as a mother her dear child. And you, Lord, are blessed because You have created me.” And then, once we see him beyond the Eucharistic veil, may all of us hear what she must have heard, “Well done my good and faithful servant. Come. Enter now, that Kingdom prepared for you from the foundations of the world.”
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