Touch me and see Lk 24, 35-48
In the liturgy of the Church, we continue to experience the joy of Jesus' resurrection. St. Luke, in today's Paschal narrative, recalls how the Church of the first centuries brought into consciousness the reality of the Resurrection. It points out four paths that are also our paths today.
The first way is the testimony of the disciples. The apostles were the first skeptics. They did not believe the women who spoke of the resurrection. Thomas did not believe his friends. In the Cenacle they still doubted. They thought Jesus was a ghost. They gave in only before the facts. Jesus showed them his hands, feet and a pierced side.
Being a witness obliges. When we receiveChrist is not to keep Him only for oneself, as Mary Magdalene wanted to do. Christ is experienced to be shared with others. Witnessing should be authentic and gentle. It cannot resemble information from the Internet or a newspaper title. Witnessing should be "the force that develops the buds of life and leads others to wake up from sleep."
The second way is through the witness of the Holy Spirit. Jesus will not leave us alone when we talk about Him. He will be present through his Spirit and in difficult situations he will giveus words and solutions. The Holy Spirit recalls the words of Jesus: The Advocate, the holy Spirit that the Father will send in my name—he will teach you everything and remind you of all that I told you. (Jn 14:26). During meditation and prayer, the Holy Spirit "works" inside us, shapes and carves the image of Jesus in us, and reminds His words. When we live in the Spirit, He Himself "brings out" words from within us that bear witness.
The third way is through the word of God. The Risen Jesus gives a "biblical lecture" first to the two disciples on the way to Emmaus, then to the Apostles in the Upper Room. Part of the disciples' disbelief is due to their memory gap. Usually, a person hears what he wants to hear and easily forgets what he does not care about. The knowledge that Jesus will died on the cross was unacceptable to the disciples. And that is why they did not understand Jesus' announcement about death and they wanted to forget it quickly. When the prophecy comes true, they are completely taken aback. They never really believed in the Passion and Death of the Messiah. And they forgot that Jesus also predicted his resurrection. The shock of the Master's death shattered their faith and caused memory loss.
Stopping on the cross, on the death is accepting only half of the Good News. The cross, the suffering, the death can hide the truth about the resurrection. A cross that is not accepted or overstressed can collapse like a log of wood at the feet and fill life with sadness, bitterness, pain; obscuring joy and hope with its shadow.
The fourth way of life with the perspective of the resurrection is the Eucharist. The disciples on the way to Emmaus recognized Christ in the breaking of the bread. In the Upper Room, also, Jesus comes into close contact with his disciples through the common meal, which is a symbol of the Eucharist, the community gathering to break bread. For the early Christians, each Eucharist was a joy of Easter, a memory of Jesus' resurrection. From it we draw strength to live in Jesus and bear witness to Him with hope. In the Eucharist, the Risen Christ comes to us and says: Why do doubts arise in your heart? Look at my hands and feet. Look at my heart pierced with love. Touch me. See for yourself! Believe it! It is me.
Who is the true witness of Jesus to me? What kind of witness am I? What place does the Holy Spirit occupy in my spiritual life? Do I overstress the cross and suffering and forget about the resurrection?
One more thought
Very often, looking at various difficult life situations in retrospect, we say: "This is how it was supposed to be - meant to be ". This does not mean that there is some fatality over us that we cannot escape. Or that everything is God's will (e.g., sin is not God's will). However, it is impossible not to get the impression that there is a Mind that interferes with our lives and does something that is not always our way, but ultimately turns out to be an exceptionally good move. That reason is God who loves us.
If we have experienced something difficult and incomprehensible at first, and which later turned out to be a good event, let us bear witness to it. You have to talk about such things, because it helps a lot - man to live and God to act in our lives.
Until Tomorrow
fr. george