EASTER II [B] (Acts 4:32-35, I John 5:1-6, John 20:19-31)

After the death of Jesus, for fear of the Jews the Apostles confined themselves to a closed room. They received the news of the resurrection of Jesus from many sources. He was seen by the women who visited the tomb. Peter saw the empty tomb. He appeared to the apostles themselves. But these testimonies did not give them enough courage to come out and proclaim the reality of resurrection. They remained behind the closed doors. Again Jesus appeared to them and shows his wounds to the disciples and says, “Peace be with you.” They’d all abandoned him when he needed them. Showing those wounds could have been to shame them, but Jesus wanted to communicate a message of mercy, not condemnation.

Sometimes we forget that we’ve been forgiven. Jesus in showing his wounds today says, in a sense, “what happened, happened, but be at peace; I forgive you.”

Every sin we commit wounds Our Lord, and if we don’t realize that, obviously we’re not going to be asking mercy from anyone, and not showing much mercy when others hurt us. Sin destroys the peace and joy of every man.

If Our Lord were merely dead and gone or ascended straight away without appearing to his disciples, we’d never truly know if he’d have forgiven us. He returned, Risen, and his first words were words of peace and a desire to share that peace with others.

 

Jesus was aware that sin destroys the peace of man. So when he wished them "peace" he also granted them the power to destroy sin. To destroy a powerful enemy we need a powerful weapon. Jesus put this weapon in the hands of the church when communicating to his Apostles the power to forgive sins through the sacrament of Reconciliation. Jesus said to the apostles "Those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven: Those whose sins you retain, they are retained."

 

Jesus knew well that the disobedience of man, the excessive desire of man for wealth, the selfishness of man, the hatred that brews up in the heart of man, causes separation from God. And this separation destroys the peace of man. Isaiah warned the Israelites, "Your iniquities have separated you from your God."(Is 59:2) And this separation from God is unbearable. David, the chosen king of Israel, experienced it when he broke the command of the Lord and he Lamented, "Do not withhold your tender mercies from me, O Lord" (Ps 40:1). God commanded Adam and Eve, "Do not eat the fruit of this tree." But when they disobeyed him they were estranged from God and they wanted to hide. This separation was miserable. And they lost their peace.

 

As sin destroys internal peace Jesus strictly commanded his disciples to love their enemies, and to return good for evil (Mt 5:44). Jesus ratified his teaching with his own example as he hung on the cross. He prayed, "Father forgive them" (Lk 23:24).

 

The estrangement that happened because of sin is bridged by Jesus (Eph 2:14) and Jesus gave the power to his Apostles to forgive sins and re-establish peace. St Paul wrote to the Romans affirming this message that God has called us to peace. God expects us to keep His commandment, and in return He gives us his peace. Proverbs tells us "When a man's ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him." (Prov.16:7)

 For peace and joy to prevail in the Christian community, unity should be maintained. That is the message of the First Reading taken from the Acts of the Apostles. The Apostles taught the early Christians that three things are necessary to foster unity.

 

So they gathered regularly in the Portico of Solomon. The early Christians came together regularly under the leadership of the apostles. And today we should gather in the church, the house of God regularly. And this communion will certainly give us power and strength to remain united, forgetting all the differences.

 

Secondly, they listened to the teaching of the Apostles. We, too, must listen to the word of God and reflect over it. It will give us courage to fight our ego.

 When the early Christians remained united under the leadership of the Apostles they worked wonders. The sick were even taken out into the streets and laid on beds and sleeping mats, in the hope that at least the shadow of Peter might fall across.

 

Today the risen Lord stands in our midst and greets us too, "Peace be with you." Let's translate this message into action and pass on to our brothers and sisters. When we take initiative in patching up an estranged relationship with our friend, when we forgive a dishonest act of our friend, when we show kindness to someone, when we appease the anger of our friend, when we find time to re-establish a broken relationship, when we persuade someone to give up some evil habits we are giving the message, "Peace be with you". And the peace that we radiate will come back to us manifold.

Today is Divine Mercy Sunday. Let’s show our appreciation for divine mercy this week by asking someone we’ve hurt or wronged for forgiveness.