Gospel Reflection

John 20:19-31

Today the Church throughout the world celebrates the greatest and primary feast of the Christian faith. Today we once again come together to recognize, to acknowledge and to profess that event in human history which sheds a bright light on all other events, whether joyful or tragic – the Resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. On Good Friday, we remembered and, hopefully, somehow shared in the immense sorrow felt by those who loved Jesus and looked upon Him as one sent by God – the sorrow that resulted from his unjust condemnation and tragic death. We reflected on the weakness of many of those persons who, though well meaning, religious and, on some level at least, devoted to Him, gave way to fear and a disappointment nearing despair. Today, we relive the extraordinary experience they had when Jesus, risen in silence early on the day after the Sabbath, presented Himself to one and another and finally to the Eleven Apostles. If we exclude Mary, whom tradition acknowledges as the first   person the Risen Christ, her son, met on that morning, it was the faithful women who had so often assisted Him that were the earliest witnesses of the Resurrection. At some point not long afterwards, Peter, still deeply remorseful over his denials, was lifted up from his sadness by Jesus Himself with affectionate words that included divine and human forgiveness. A few other meetings in different places and at different times preceded Christ’s emotional reunion with the Eleven in the very room where they had shared the Passover meal, the ‘Last Supper’.

The Resurrection of Our Lord has been portrayed in dramatic ways in works of art and even in film. More often than not artists have imagined Jesus emerging from the tomb in the sight of the soldiers and with symbols of triumph. They have wanted, perhaps, to picture his adversaries overwhelmed and his disbelievers convinced by sheer forcefulness of the event. In reality, it must have happened quite differently. What the soldiers saw was not Christ, but an angel, whose appearance did indeed overwhelm them but they were not forced into any particular acknowledgement of Jesus Himself. Nor does Jesus confront the High Priest, or Pilate or Herod. He arose in the silence of night or early morn, left the tomb undetected by the soldiers, and without moving the stone that sealed his burial place. Later, He only made himself known to those who loved Him, to those who sorrowed at the loss of Him, in order to re-enkindle in them the faith that had already begun to take root in their hearts.

God does not force Himself upon us. He does not seek to overwhelm us. What is sometimes called the vengeance of God is only the working of His justice to redress evil. It is not revenge. It is not the reaction of hurt pride. Our Lord showed us by His passion and death His patience and humility. He shows us the same qualities by His Resurrection. For those who are open to belief, what emerges from this singular event are God’s way of    saving our souls through persuasion – the persuasion of Jesus’ teaching, of his miracles, of the Resurrection itself as witnessed by chosen ones. What they came to know and          understand through what they saw with their eyes and touched with their hands was that Jesus was truly the Son of God, God incarnate. What they came to know in turn was God’s love, which knows no bounds. What they came to understand was that God wanted them to be his ambassadors, his persuaders to win over even those who did not believe, those who had opposed and those who had ignored. Such has been and always will be the mission of the Church Jesus founded. There are however, from time to time, certain souls that God, for the love of all, chooses to overwhelm. Such was St. Paul, the disbeliever and opponent of early Christianity who became the great apostle of those beyond the Jewish world. Perhaps it was because, deep down, this man was ready to believe since he, in his own misguided way, sought to serve God. As we near the end of the Year of St. Paul, we can ask the Holy Apostle to win for us the grace to be good persuaders, in the service of the risen Jesus.