Sunday 31 March
2013
Easter Sunday C
Acts 10:34. 37-43 Psalm 117: 1-2.16-17. 22-23. Rv. 24 Colossians 3:1-4
Luke 24: 13-35 (alternative reading)
Three days later God raised him
to life and allowed him to be seen.
The Lord’ right hand has
triumphed, his right hand raised me up.
You must look to the things of
heaven, where Christ is, sitting at God’s right hand.
Was it not ordained that Christ
should suffer and so enter into his glory?
First reading
Acts
10:34,37-43
Peter addressed Cornelius and his
household: ‘The truth I have now come to realise’ he said ‘is that God does not
have favourites, You must have heard about the recent happenings in Judaea;
about Jesus of Nazareth and how he began in Galilee, after John had been
preaching baptism. God had anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power,
and because God was with him, Jesus went about doing good and curing all who
had fallen into the power of the devil. Now I, and those with me, can witness
to everything he did throughout the countryside of Judaea and in Jerusalem
itself: and also to the fact that they killed him by hanging him on a tree, yet
three days afterwards God raised him to life and allowed him to be seen, not by
the whole people but only by certain witnesses God had chosen beforehand. Now
we are those witnesses – we have eaten and drunk with him after his
resurrection from the dead – and he has ordered us to proclaim this to his
people and to tell them that God has appointed him to judge everyone, alive or
dead. It is to him that all the prophets bear this witness: that all who
believe in Jesus will have their sins forgiven through his name.’
Our faith in the Resurrection of
Jesus is not a fairy tale. It is based also on human eyewitnesses. The disciples
had been devastated by the death of their Master on the Cross. However on
Sunday and the following days they came to realise that Jesus was alive and had
come back to them. It was this experience that transformed their lives and from
fearful men and women they became bold proclaimers of the Truth. However, our
faith is not only based on human witness, we also through the Holy Spirit can
experience the risen Saviour and we also are transformed. It is this
transformation that proves to us that Jesus is alive and with us. Our faith is
not a doctrine but an experience.
____________________
Psalm
Psalm
117:1-2,16-17,22-23
This day was made by the Lord: we
rejoice and are glad.
or
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
Give thanks to the Lord for he is good,
for his love has no end.
Let the sons of Israel say:
‘His love has no end.’
This day was made by the Lord: we
rejoice and are glad.
or
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
The Lord’s right hand has triumphed;
his right hand raised me up.
I shall not die, I shall live
and recount his deeds.
This day was made by the Lord: we
rejoice and are glad.
or
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
The stone which the builders rejected
has become the corner stone.
This is the work of the Lord,
a marvel in our eyes.
This day was made by the Lord: we
rejoice and are glad.
or
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
EITHER:
--------------------
Second reading
Colossians
3:1-4
Since you have been brought back to true
life with Christ, you must look for the things that are in heaven, where Christ
is, sitting at God’s right hand. Let your thoughts be on heavenly things, not
on the things that are on the earth, because you have died, and now the life
you have is hidden with Christ in God. But when Christ is revealed – and
he is your life – you too will be revealed in all your glory with him.
Christ is our life. If we have
experienced the risen Lord then he will become the most important person in our
lives and we will live and die for him like the first disciples.
Gospel
Acclamation
1Cor5:7-8
Alleluia, alleluia!
Christ, our passover, has been
sacrificed:
let us celebrate the feast then, in the
Lord.
Alleluia!
Gospel
Luke
24:13-35
Two of the disciples of Jesus were on
their way to a village called Emmaus, seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were
talking together about all that had happened. Now as they talked this over,
Jesus himself came up and walked by their side; but something prevented them
from recognising him. He said to them, ‘What matters are you discussing as you
walk along?’ They stopped short, their faces downcast.
Then
one of them, called Cleopas, answered him, ‘You must be the only person staying
in Jerusalem who does not know the things that have been happening there these
last few days.’ ‘What things?’ he asked. ‘All about Jesus of Nazareth’ they
answered ‘who proved he was a great prophet by the things he said and did in
the sight of God and of the whole people; and how our chief priests and our
leaders handed him over to be sentenced to death, and had him crucified. Our
own hope had been that he would be the one to set Israel free. And this is not
all: two whole days have gone by since it all happened; and some women from our
group have astounded us: they went to the tomb in the early morning, and when
they did not find the body, they came back to tell us they had seen a vision of
angels who declared he was alive. Some of our friends went to the tomb and
found everything exactly as the women had reported, but of him they saw
nothing.’
Then
he said to them, ‘You foolish men! So slow to believe the full message of the
prophets! Was it not ordained that the Christ should suffer and so enter into
his glory?’ Then, starting with Moses and going through all the prophets, he
explained to them the passages throughout the scriptures that were about
himself.
When
they drew near to the village to which they were going, he made as if to go on;
but they pressed him to stay with them. ‘It is nearly evening’ they said ‘and
the day is almost over.’ So he went in to stay with them. Now while he was with
them at table, he took the bread and said the blessing; then he broke it and
handed it to them. And their eyes were opened and they recognised him; but he
had vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, ‘Did not our
hearts burn within us as he talked to us on the road and explained the
scriptures to us?’
They
set out that instant and returned to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven
assembled together with their companions, who said to them, ‘Yes, it is true.
The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon.’ Then they told their story of
what had happened on the road and how they had recognised him at the breaking
of bread.
Hidden presence
The two
disciples were leaving Jerusalem
and the community. The death of Jesus had shattered their lives. They were talking about his death on Friday.
They did not realize that Jesus was with them. Their eyes were closed. They did
not recognize him because they did not understand ‘Moses and the prophets’.
They did not understand the necessity of suffering in the life of Jesus. Do
you? Jesus was a Lamb among wolves and
so was torn to pieces. In a world of selfish hardhearted men, he had carried
out the will of his Father. He revealed the love God has for humankind and
taught them about the Kingdom
of God St. Jerome .
Our hearts too will burn within us when we hear the Word of God with a faith
that seeks to understand and meet Jesus himself, the hero of the Scriptures.
Are you set on fire when you hear the Word proclaimed in the Sacred Assembly?
If not, then why not? The Vatican Council says, ‘Every time we hear the Gospel
proclaimed in the church, Jesus speaks to us’. Does he to you?
The
Word of God is the gateway to meeting Jesus. With burning hearts, the two
disciples invite ‘the stranger’ into their house. He dines with them but it is
no ordinary meal. It is a moment of
intimacy. He breaks bread and their eyes are opened. The two disciples
recognize that Jesus has been with them all the time and that though they
cannot see him, he is with them now under the appearance of the Eucharistic
bread. The Word of God and the Eucharist go hand in hand to reveal the living
Jesus who is always with us. They immediately get up and go on mission to
proclaim the Living Lord whom they have met.
There
is always a tendency in the Church to worship the Eucharistic presence of
Jesus. However, the Eucharist is meant first to be food. We are to become the
Eucharist, to become Christ and the result of the celebration is a transformed
life and the joy and enthusiasm to go on mission. Our life and words will
proclaim the Living Lord whom we now know and have become.
Through
Word and Eucharist have you become Christ? Where is your mission?
Father, may I no longer live but may Jesus live in me.
No comments:
Post a Comment