Acts 2:42-47; Ps. 118: 2-4, 13-15, 22-24; 1 Peter 1: 3-9; Jn. 20: 19-31
It is the evening of the resurrection referred to as “the first day of the week” and Jesus appears to the disciples ready to deliver a great gift. The gift is wrapped with a bow he declares as “Peace be with you”. The bow of peace brings joy to the disciples in order to be ready and open to receive the greater gift of the Holy Spirit. This is the gift that comes with power to give witness to the resurrection of Jesus. This is the gift that transforms the lives of the disciples into vessels of authority to forgive sins, to heal the sick, to cast out demons, to offer up the body and blood of Jesus in the Eucharist.
The resurrection brings us the joy of peace. It is the peace to know his victory over death. It is the peace of eternal life. It is the peace to live in peace regardless of what this world brings us. It also is the peace to open our minds and hearts to receive the Holy Spirit and give testimony to the resurrection of life. Even in this life we are to become a new creation through the sacramental life of the church. The Lord offers us his peace which we can accept by the act of trusting in him or we can refuse by holding onto our own worries and anxieties. This day is also the celebration of Divine Mercy Sunday in which the words he gives us to accept are “Jesus, I trust in you”.
We are all familiar with the expression Let go and let God”. The mercy of God requires our trust in him. It does not mean we sit still waiting for life to happen, to the contrary it means we go forth in peace trusting the guidance of the Holy Spirit to direct our hearts, minds and actions towards the will of the Father. The disciples devoted themselves to “teaching” and to “communal life, the breaking of bread and to prayers”. They had a mission to fulfill and it started with understanding their purpose in building up the church. The mission remains the same to add to the number being saved. It is our mission and it begins with bringing our children to the sacrament of baptism and being raised in the faith.
We hear today that our “inheritance” is kept in heaven “safeguarded through faith” to be revealed in the final time. In other words, we must persist in faith and not lose heart because of the trials we encounter in this life. Each time we are “tested by fire” we have a choice to turn from God asking “where were you God when I needed you” or responding with “Jesus, I trust in you”. We are weak but the power of God is waiting for us to stand by our faith and persevere through our trials.
Thomas represents all of us when our faith questions God even though we have already accepted Jesus by faith. Our faith wants to see evidence of his presence in order to believe. Thomas wanted to see the nailmarks in his hands and the wound on his side. We start with prayers that are conditional “if you do this for me Lord, I will believe, I will go to church, I will stop committing this sin”. God hears the prayer of an unconditional heart who surrenders to his love and remains hopeful for God’s time as the right time.
Here we are 2000 years later believing in Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. Is this the faith of our parents who we follow simply by tradition or is this the faith built on a strong foundation of trust, trials, and having a personal relationship with the one we love? The life we have by faith comes with the power of the risen one who is opening the window to his mercy or we remain wandering in the desert still searching for what is this life all about.
“Jesus, I trust in you.”
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