2nd Sunday of Easter year A, 19/04/2020

(Divine Mercy Sunday)

In the midst of very human weakness, doubts, and confusion, the heart of this Sunday’s liturgy is God’s love and mercy.

When the disciples were hiding, the risen Lord appears among them and he grants them the power to go out, and proclaim God’s love, forgiveness, peace, and mercy; he blessed them with the gift of the Holy Spirit. In the midst of a crisis that is pushing us to stay home, filled with fear, anxiety, and confusion, the risen Lord is still entering in our homes with his love, forgiveness and peace. He may also find us filled with doubts and skepticism as Thomas, but again notwithstanding that, as Thomas later did, let us open ourselves to receive him in a personal way.

The second reading reminds us that even in the midst of anxiety, trials, and chaos, and especially in a time like this, Christ has reclaimed through his resurrection our birthright as children of God. Awakening to that truth will change our view of trials, anxieties, and chaos around us and change everything else forever.

By way of contrast the early church community lived its faith by bond of love, communion, prayer but we can no longer gather in our communities to express these values. Still while in our homes, we might be faced with challenges of this life, domestic violence, and even sloth. Nonetheless, let us maintain our bond even as we long to gather again as a Christian community to break the bread, deepen our communion, pray, and face one another with charity.

Faith in the risen Lord, gives us a quiet confidence and loyalty to feel at home in the universe, and to find meaning in the world, and in our lives. The meaning that is profound and ultimate and is stable no matter what happens to us at the level of the immediate events in life. With the Psalmist therefore, we can declare God’s love that has no end, and be quick to overcome our doubts and skepticism knowing that God has made us his children. Receive God’s love and mercy and be the disciple of the same gifts to others.

Stay safe, stay healthy.

Peace.

Fr Lawrence