Seeing Past the Pain to Recognise the Risen Jesus

HOMILY: THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER (B)

18 April 2021

Luke 24:35-48 

Fr. Ricky C. Montanez, AA

My Facebook wall is currently swamped with sad news. Friends abroad who are  unable to come home to be with family as they grieve the loss of loved ones have taken to social media to express their sorrow and grief. We are still very much in the Easter Season, but it is such a struggle for me to perceive the power of the resurrection at work in our lives when the number of tombs are growing with the casualties of this pandemic. These are indeed trying and challenging situations even for us priests because our own friends, colleagues and relatives are falling victims to this virus. 

These days, our sadness and disappointment keeps us from recognizing Jesus.  The disciples’ inability to recognise the Risen Jesus as the same friend and teacher whom they had buried, is a predominant feature of practically most, if not all of the post-resurrection accounts in the gospels. We recall the two disciples on the road to Emmaus who failed to recognise the Risen Jesus even if He was literally walking alongside them and conversing with them for hours! They had believed Him to be simply a fellow sojourner as they departed from Jerusalem. At another instance, Mary Magdalene initially does not realize the Risen Christ speaking to her even if they are practically face to face! It isn’t until Jesus calls her by her name that she receives clarity. What’s quite interesting with some gospel accounts such as the one we have this Sunday is that the disciples think they are seeing a “ghost” when they see Jesus. He quickly assures them that He is not a ghost, but in fact alive and well, proving that the resurrection is real. 

Given all the scientific learnings we know now, it is tougher for many to believe in the supernatural.  You may think people back then without the benefit of this knowledge would be quicker to believe the stuff of legend.  It certainly took the disciples some time to grasp the concept of the resurrection and recognize the Risen Jesus, perhaps due to the shock or trauma from losing their friend or the fact that they were really simple-minded men. Nevertheless,  Jesus patiently accompanied His disciples in their journey of dicovering the mystery of His risen life!   Wouldn’t you be “startled and terrified” if you had been there in the room with the disciples? What is so unusual about the resurrected Jesus that prevented them from identifying Him as soon as He appears? First, we know that the consciousness is retained… He remains the same Jesus, thinking the same way and recalling His life as He lived it. He is not a mindless zombie. He recognizes His friends and is able to reassure them and comfort them by wishing them peace. Secondly, the resurrected body is not a spirit that has no physical presence or manifestation. Jesus invites them to touch Him as ghosts do not have flesh and bones. It is very much one that functions as a human body. Jesus asks them to give Him something to eat to prove to them that He is really alive. There is something new about the resurrected body — He is alive but in a new mode of life, such that His presence is no longer limited by time and space. He appears in the midst of His disciples in a room with locked doors. The glorified body of the Risen Jesus can permeate every reality, and is not limited by the laws of nature. He is able to achieve the unexpected and conquer the  challenging. The fact that He is not immediately recognized does not negate the fact that He is there with them. 

Pope Francis once told a group of children during their Confirmation that “it is important to encounter Jesus, who loves us, who has saved us, who gave His life for us.” So, where and how then do we encounter Jesus in our lives?  The Holy Father goes on to say that there are three places to meet the living Jesus as Catholic Christians. “First, Jesus is alive in His word, the inspired Gospel stories and the living tradition of our church.” In the gospel passage we are told that “Jesus opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.” (Luke 24:45) Second, we meet Jesus in the sacraments, especially  during our regular participation in both the Eucharist and the Sacrament of Reconciliation. “The two disciples recounted what had taken place on the way, and how Jesus was made known to them in the breaking of bread.” (Luke 24:45) And third, Pope Francis says that “we meet Jesus in our loving service to those in need, those who live on the periphery of society.” “Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.” (Matthew 25:40)

Easter faith involves having a readiness to encounter Jesus as a living personal presence. It challenges us to be attentive to the many ways that Jesus encounters us, often in the unexpected places and situations… among the poor, the sick, the needy, among those who treat us with care and among those who invite us to deeper love in all the events of our human life. 

I recently read about a netizen who witnessed a stranger helping an elderly woman while he was buying medicines at a pharmacy in Malolos, Bulacan. Uploader Mandy Viray was in line when she overheard the conversation between an elderly woman and a pharmacist. The pharmacist was explaining to the “lola” (grandmother) said that the medicine in the prescription amounted to P1,100. The elderly woman  brought out a small plastic bag filled with coins and counted out only P200. Distraught, she asked if the pharmacist would prepare one piece of each medicine she needed as that was all she could afford. Then a man beside the old woman unexpectedly approached the counter and offered to pay for the medicine.  He said ‘Miss, sagot ko na ‘yung kulang, bigay mo ‘yung lahat ng nasa reseta ni Nanay,”  for which the old woman was extremely thankful. The uploader also described the man’s act of kindness as “God’s work.”  “Tuwang-tuwa si Nanay grabe ‘yung pagpapasalamat niya kay kuya,” she said. The Good Samaritan replied, “Nay, di sa’kin galing ‘yan, sa Diyos ‘yan galing. Sa Diyos po tayo magpasalamat.” Viray said that what she witnessed reminded her that God always provides in ways we do not expect or cannot imagine. She says we can all be God’s instrument and proof that especially during the hardships of this pandemic, God does not abandon His people but rather provides for them. She adds “Hindi kailangan maging mayaman para gumawa ng mabuti — kahit simpleng pagtulong sa kapwa gaya ng pagbibigay ng pagkain sa nagugutom, pagdamay sa mga napipighati, pagtulong sa nangangailangan at iba pa.” Posting about the incident is her testimony to the work of the Risen Christ. The post has  already garnered more than 218,000 reactions and 109,000 shares. 

When we are blessed with the experience of Jesus’ resurrection, the joy and wonder simply cannot be contained. We who have encountered Jesus are called to be witnesses.  Peter fearlessly testifies to the Jews in the First Reading (Acts 3:13-15, 17-19), that Jesus whom they put to death is alive and has been glorified by the Father. We, too are to be witnesses of Jesus’ resurrection and His living presence among us by the way we live our lives as individuals and as a community. Going a step further, I challenge you to post on all your social media platforms your experiences of the work of the Risen Lord throughout this pandemic. All of us need to be inspired and reminded that the Risen Jesus is here among us. His presence is always at work in the world.