Third Sunday of Easter, 2009
Note: At two of the three Sunday liturgies we will be welcoming young people to the Lord's table for the first time.
Congratulations to our young people who are making their first holy communion today, at this mass. We're very proud of you and we know that you're excited, but you should also know that we adults are excited too…we can't wait to welcome you to our Church-family dining room table! And that's what this altar is. It's our dining room table where Jesus comes to touch us, and to feed us.
Did you hear in the Gospel story...
Jesus told his friends to touch him.
He told them not to be afraid to touch him,
since he was not a ghost.
He was the same Jesus they had kissed many times
On both sides of the face,
The way they had always greeted one another
And still greet one another
in that part of the world today!.
It was the same Jesus they had rubbed elbows with
at many suppers,
And at the Last Supper.
He was the same Jesus who often touched them,
Even their smelly feet, which he washed the night before
His own feet were nailed to the cross.
Sometimes, especially when words fail us,
Touch means everything.
"Touch me, and see, for a ghost does not have flesh and bones
as you see that I have." (Luke 24:39)
Why in the world did the Risen Lord Jesus do that?
Jesus died a messy, ugly death in a messy, ugly place.
There was no glamour on Golgotha, the "skull place."
There must have been a stench about the place -
The stench of violent death,
The stench of injustice and oppression,
The stench of despair.
Why did Jesus have to die that way?
Peter blamed ignorance.
In the first reading, he says:
"I know that you acted in ignorance
as did also your leaders." (Acts 3:17)
Jesus eventually arose in triumph, victorious.
His post-resurrection body still carried the scars.
The gospel proclaims,
"Look at my hands and my feet;
see that it is I myself." (Luke 24:39)
The Risen Lord was not a phantom or a ghost.
This was the Jesus who rose in truth,
The Jesus who had died on the cross.
Our Christian faith is founded on this physical fact,
Not on dreams and visions.
The cross was a necessary part of the plan
Not an emergency-measure when all else failed.
In a messy, ugly place, God's love shines through.
In fact, it was the scars on the body of Jesus
That helped the disciples to recognize him.
These Golgothas leave scars
But those very scars can become badges of victory,
Signs of encouragement and hope, signs of resurrection.
The disciples left the upper room
Enthused, confident, full of hope to share and shout about.
May your trials keep you strong,
Your worries keep you human,
Your failures keep you humble.
May your hope keep you happy,
Your enthusiasm keep you looking forward.
May your faith banish depression
Your wealth meet your needs
And your friends give you comfort.
May you have, in the Risen Lord
Determination to make each day better than yesterday.
And we pray that we might be ever more joyful, loving,
And passionate witnesses of Jesus' resurrection story.
Come to the Table, and let Jesus touch you, feed you, and satisfy you...
Today, and every time you come to this Table.