| Bread From Heaven Meditations on the Sunday Gospel for the Year of the Eucharist |
| Second Week of Easter - Divine Mercy Sunday Beginning Sunday April 3rd, 2005 |
| The Word of the Lord |
| On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, "Peace be with you." When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you." And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained." Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples said to him, "We have seen the Lord." But he said to them, "Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nail marks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe." Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, "Peace be with you." Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe." Thomas answered and said to him, "My Lord and my God!" Jesus said to him, "Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed." Now, Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name. John 20:19-31 |
| THE BACKGROUND |
| Jesus the Apostles and You |
Imagine that you are one of the Apostles locked in the room on Easter Sunday evening
when Jesus passes through the locked doors. Do you think He is a ghost? Would you
rather Him leave because you are ashamed of your denial or fleeing? What thoughts enter
your mind when He shows Himself to be physically present? Are you put at ease with His
words of peace? What thoughts or questions do you have when He commissions you to
carry out His mission of reconciling the world to the Father?
Now imagine that you are Thomas. Imagine taking a week’s worth of testimonies and
rumors and running them through your mind. Do you hope that what your brother apostles
told you is true? Are you afraid that it is true? Do you wonder why Jesus doesn’t just
appear to you during the course of the day? What goes through your mind as He passes
through the doors again and walks straight toward you? Do you dare place your hand in
His side or your fingers in His hands?
when Jesus passes through the locked doors. Do you think He is a ghost? Would you
rather Him leave because you are ashamed of your denial or fleeing? What thoughts enter
your mind when He shows Himself to be physically present? Are you put at ease with His
words of peace? What thoughts or questions do you have when He commissions you to
carry out His mission of reconciling the world to the Father?
Now imagine that you are Thomas. Imagine taking a week’s worth of testimonies and
rumors and running them through your mind. Do you hope that what your brother apostles
told you is true? Are you afraid that it is true? Do you wonder why Jesus doesn’t just
appear to you during the course of the day? What goes through your mind as He passes
through the doors again and walks straight toward you? Do you dare place your hand in
His side or your fingers in His hands?
| TALKING WITH GOD - Lord Jesus, Your mercy is infinite. You forgave Peter who denied knowing You. You also forgave the other apostles who fled the garden where Judas betrayed You. Lord, not only do You offer forgiveness to all who would accept it You also offer Your peace. Lord, help me to have the courage to make the sacrament of Reconciliation a regular part of my spiritual life. Help me to make a daily examination of conscience and a monthly confession of my sins. Give me the strength to humble myself, examine my life, and confess my sins to You through your priest. As I kneel here before You physically present in the Most Holy Eucharist I cry out like the prodigal son, “I have sinned against heaven and against you”, and I cry out with Saint Thomas, “My Lord and my God.” |
| Conversation Starters with God: Jesus, You taught us over and over that mercy will be given to those who are merciful. Help me to see the areas in my life where I need to show more mercy. Reveal to me the times in my life where I have withheld mercy and give me the strength to go back and offer peace. [pause and listen] Lord, I often look for signs and wonders. I often ask You to prove Yourself to me by working some small sign that I might recognize. I realize that when I act in this manner I am acting foolishly if not sinfully. Lord, help me to think back on the times when I doubted You and asked for a sign. Then help me to see Your plan for me and how things worked out in that situation. [pause and listen] Lord Jesus, I must be honest. Sometimes it is hard for me to see or believe in Your Real Presence. I hear the whisper of the world and rumors about You and I get distracted and unbelieving. So as I kneel here before You I will spiritually place myself within Your wounds and I will pray as Thomas prayed, “My Lord and my God”. [pray and meditate on Thomas’ prayer for five minutes] |
| QUOTES ON THE EUCHARIST |
"I will not allow myself to be so absorbed in the whirlwind
of work as to forget about God. I will spend all my free
moments at the feet of the Master hidden in the Blessed
Sacrament. He has been tutoring me from my most tender
years."
- from St. Faustina Kowlaska of the Blessed
Sacrament's Diary Divine Mercy in My Soul
of work as to forget about God. I will spend all my free
moments at the feet of the Master hidden in the Blessed
Sacrament. He has been tutoring me from my most tender
years."
- from St. Faustina Kowlaska of the Blessed
Sacrament's Diary Divine Mercy in My Soul
LET US PRAY - The Chaplet of Divine Mercy
(to be recited on ordinary rosary beads)
Begin with:
Our Father... Hail Mary... The Apostles Creed...
On the Our Father Beads say:
Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your
dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and
those of the whole world.
On the Hail Mary Beads say:
For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole
world.
Conclude with (after five decades):
Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the
whole world. (3x)
(to be recited on ordinary rosary beads)
Begin with:
Our Father... Hail Mary... The Apostles Creed...
On the Our Father Beads say:
Eternal Father, I offer You the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Your
dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and
those of the whole world.
On the Hail Mary Beads say:
For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole
world.
Conclude with (after five decades):
Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the
whole world. (3x)
| BACK TO Year of the Eucharist Page |
| The disciples had locked themselves in this place for fear of the Jews. They were afraid that the Jewish leaders would be looking to do to them what they did to Jesus. When Jesus passes through the locked doors He offers them “peace”. He offered them peace first to calm their fears and reassure them that He had truly risen and was not a ghost. He also offered them peace as a way of forgiveness for their disloyalty and as a way of recreating the filial intimacy they once shared. Once they realize that He is truly risen and in the depths of their hearts they accept His mercy and forgiveness He gives them the power to offer that same forgiveness and mercy to the Church. This is an extremely important event in the Gospel. Jesus, in short, sums up His mission and commissions these eleven men to carry on that mission (v. 20-22). Twice in scripture we read of God breathing on or into man. The first gave man physical life and the second gives man new spiritual life. Thomas’ doubting was not an obstacle for Our Lord to reach him. Often in scripture Jesus does not work miracles because of the lack of faith. Thomas has faith in Christ but doubts. He doubts not so much the possibility of the Resurrection but rather he questions the witness of his brother apostles. Thomas’ doubting invokes a blessing from the Lord for the rest of us, “blessed are those who have not seen and have believed”. |