20200416
SEIZING
THE OPPORTUNITY DURING CRISIS
16 April, 2020, Easter
Thursday
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
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First reading
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Acts 3:11-26 ©
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You killed the prince of life: God, however, raised him from the
dead
Everyone came
running towards Peter and John in great excitement, to the Portico of Solomon,
as it is called, where the man was still clinging to Peter and John. When Peter
saw the people he addressed them, ‘Why are you so surprised at this? Why are
you staring at us as though we had made this man walk by our own power or
holiness? You are Israelites, and it is the
God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our ancestors, who has glorified
his servant Jesus, the same
Jesus you handed over and then disowned in the presence of Pilate after Pilate
had decided to release him. It was you who accused the Holy One, the Just One,
you who demanded the reprieve of a murderer while you killed the prince of
life. God, however, raised him from the dead, and to that fact we are the
witnesses; and it is the name of Jesus which, through our faith in it, has
brought back the strength of this man whom you see here and who is well known
to you. It is faith in that name that has restored this man to health, as you
can all see.
‘Now
I know, brothers, that neither you nor your leaders had any idea what you were
really doing; this was the way God carried out what he had foretold, when he
said through all his prophets that his Christ would suffer. Now you must repent
and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, and so that the Lord may
send the time of comfort. Then he will send you the Christ he has predestined,
that is Jesus, whom heaven must keep till the universal restoration comes which
God proclaimed, speaking through his holy prophets. Moses, for example, said: The Lord God will raise up a
prophet like myself for you, from among your own brothers; you must listen to
whatever he tells you. The
man who does not listen to that prophet is to be cut off from the people. In
fact, all the prophets that have ever spoken, from Samuel onwards, have
predicted these days.
‘You
are the heirs of the prophets, the heirs of the covenant God made with our
ancestors when he told Abraham: in your offspring all the families of the earth
will be blessed. It was for you in the first place that God raised up his
servant and sent him to bless you by turning every one of you from your wicked
ways.’
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm 8:2,5-9 ©
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How
great is your name, O Lord our God, through all the earth!
or
Alleluia,
alleluia, alleluia!
How
great is your name, O Lord our God,
through
all the earth!
What
is man that you should keep him in mind,
mortal
man that you care for him?
How
great is your name, O Lord our God, through all the earth!
or
Alleluia,
alleluia, alleluia!
Yet
you have made him little less than a god;
with
glory and honour you crowned him,
gave
him power over the works of your hand,
put
all things under his feet.
How
great is your name, O Lord our God, through all the earth!
or
Alleluia,
alleluia, alleluia!
All
of them, sheep and cattle,
yes,
even the savage beasts,
birds
of the air, and fish
that
make their way through the waters.
How
great is your name, O Lord our God, through all the earth!
or
Alleluia,
alleluia, alleluia!
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Sequence
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Victimae Paschali Laudes
Christians,
to the Paschal Victim
offer
sacrifice and praise.
The
sheep are ransomed by the Lamb;
and
Christ, the undefiled,
hath
sinners to his Father reconciled.
Death
with life contended:
combat
strangely ended!
Life’s
own Champion, slain,
yet
lives to reign.
Tell
us, Mary:
say
what thou didst see
upon
the way.
The
tomb the Living did enclose;
I saw
Christ’s glory as he rose!
The
angels there attesting;
shroud
with grave-clothes resting.
Christ,
my hope, has risen:
he
goes before you into Galilee.
That
Christ is truly risen
from
the dead we know.
Victorious
king, thy mercy show!
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Ps117:24
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
This
day was made by the Lord:
we
rejoice and are glad.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 24:35-48 ©
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It is written that the Christ would suffer and on the third day
rise from the dead
The disciples
told their story of what had happened on the road and how they had recognised
Jesus at the breaking of bread.
They
were still talking about all this when Jesus himself stood among them and said
to them, ‘Peace be with you!’ In a state of alarm and fright, they thought they
were seeing a ghost. But he said, ‘Why are you so agitated, and why are these
doubts rising in your hearts? Look at my hands and feet; yes, it is I indeed.
Touch me and see for yourselves; a ghost has no flesh and bones as you can see
I have.’ And as he said this he showed them his hands and feet. Their joy was
so great that they still could not believe it, and they stood there
dumbfounded; so he said to them, ‘Have you anything here to eat?’ And they
offered him a piece of grilled fish, which he took and ate before their eyes.
Then
he told them, ‘This is what I meant when I said, while I was still with you,
that everything written about me in the Law of Moses, in the Prophets and in
the Psalms has to be fulfilled.’ He then opened their minds to understand the
scriptures, and he said to them, ‘So you see how it is written that the Christ
would suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that, in his name,
repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be preached to all the nations,
beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses to this.’
SEIZING THE
OPPORTUNITY DURING CRISIS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ACTS
3:11-26; PS 8:2, 5-9; LK
24:35-48 ]
We all face tragedies
and negative events in life. No one is immune to crises. It can happen
because of an expected illness, loss of a loved one, a failed relationship,
work retrenchment, financial collapse or business failure. In our current
situation today, we are dealing with the Covid-19 pandemic. Some of us
just lament and grumble that things cannot continue the same way. We are
not happy because we are boxed in. But this is because we choose to be
boxed in, forgetting that the Spirit is free like the Risen Lord who cannot be
locked in the tomb. Rather than feeling defeated, we must see what
opportunities this crisis is offering us.
This was what Peter and
John did. They seized every single opportunity to proclaim Christ. They had only one mission in mind,
which was to proclaim Jesus as the Christ of God. They were not deterred
because of challenges, the authorities, or rejection. Instead, they
looked for every opportunity to announce the name of the Lord. They
saw a crippled man and healed him in the name of Jesus. Consequently,
there was excitement among the crowd because they were amazed at how this
crippled man could walk again. The healing of the crippled man was a
means to draw the people to the Lord.
Having got their
attention, Peter took the occasion to explain the full significance of this
healing. Going beyond the
spectacular scene of the man who was healed, Peter seized the opportunity to
speak about Jesus. Peter, right from the outset, made it clear
that the healing of the crippled man was not because of their power. Peter
never used the opportunity to gain popularity for himself. On the
contrary, he addressed them, “Why are you so surprised at this? Why are you
staring at us as though we had made this man walk by our own power or
holiness?” Jesus healed the man, not Peter and John. “It is the
name of Jesus which, through our faith in it, has brought back the strength of
this man whom you see here and who is well known to you. It is faith in that
name that has restored this man to health, as you can all see.”
Peter then clarified who
Jesus was. He made it clear
that it was the same Jesus who was “handed over and then disowned in the
presence of Pilate, after Pilate had decided to release him.” The
people who heard this, all knew about this incident because it happened not
long ago. Jesus was the Suffering Servant of Isaiah and the promised
Messiah. He was the one mentioned and foretold in the scriptures.
In the gospel, Jesus explained to the disciples how everything written about
Him “in the Law of Moses, in the Prophets and in the Psalms” came to be
fulfilled in Him. In the book of Isaiah chapters 52 and 53, the Prophet
spoke of the way God would renew His people through the innocent suffering of
His chosen servant. Psalm 22 describes how Jesus suffered when He was on
the cross. Malachi 3 prophesied the coming of the Christ and the
day of the Lord. Psalm 16 spoke of how the Son of David would not
suffer corruption at death. Psalm 110 speaks
of Christ’s victory over all His enemies and that His priesthood will last
forever.
Thus, the identity of
Jesus is established in the resurrection. St Peter said, “You are Israelites, and it is
the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our ancestors, who has
glorified his servant Jesus.” God, by raising Jesus, His servant from the
dead, therefore endorsed all that Jesus said and did on His behalf. God
“raised him from the dead, and to that fact we are the witnesses; and it is the
name of Jesus which, through our faith in it, has brought back the strength of
this man whom you see here and who is well known to you.” The healing of
the crippled man confirms that what Peter and John said was true because they
healed not in their name but by the name of Jesus, the Risen Lord.
So if Jesus is the
prophesied one in the scriptures, what is required of us? Peter cited
what Moses had instructed the people:
“The Lord God will raise up a prophet like myself for you, from among your own
brothers; you must listen to whatever he tells you. The man who does not listen
to that prophet is to be cut off from the people. In fact, all the prophets
that have ever spoken, from Samuel onwards, have predicted these days.”
(cf Dt
18:15, 18) It meant therefore they were to accept Jesus as
the Holy One of God and listen to Him because He is the Messiah, the Christ
appointed for us. Not to do so would tantamount to their contradicting their
faith in the teaching of Moses and going against the Law of Moses.
Having made clear who
Jesus was, the Chosen One of God, the one promised by the prophets and foretold
in the scriptures, St Peter put the guilt on them. “It was you who accused the
Holy One, the Just One, you who demanded the reprieve of a murderer while you
killed the prince of life.” That was what they actually did. They
asked for Barabbas to be freed instead of Jesus, the innocent man. Not
only did they kill an innocent man but they killed the “Holy One, the Just One”
and the “Prince of Life.” For such a sin, surely they deserved death and
eternal punishment. It would not be just a crime against an
innocent man who was put to death but an offence against God’s only Son.
However, Peter, whilst
striking their conscience, did not leave them feeling guilty and helpless,
leading to self-condemnation. When
people are down, we do not crush them further. Harsh words are only meant
for those who are proud and arrogant. It was the case of our Lord too in
His ministry. His harsh words were only reserved for the religious
leaders; never for the ordinary people. So when Peter felt that their
conscience was pricked, he, like a good parent, consoled them. This
is what we mean by seizing the opportunity. He said to them, “Now I know,
brothers, that neither you nor your leaders had any idea what you were really
doing.” He assured them that God forgave them for their ignorance.
They were guilty of putting Jesus to death but as the Lord on the cross also
said, they were ignorant. They did not know that Jesus was the Son of God
because they were misinformed, misled or because they were blinded by their
insecurities or aspirations.
St Peter told them that
God writes straight in crooked lines. “This was the way God carried out what he
had foretold, when he said through all his prophets that Christ would
suffer.” Jesus said the same thing to His disciples, “So you see how it
is written that the Christ would suffer and on the third day rise from the
dead, and that, in his name, repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be
preached to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.” So the death of
our Lord was within the plan of salvation. It was not a mistake on the
part of God that Jesus would suffer death. This was all foreseen by God
taking into account man’s freedom. His suffering and death would be the
way God would show His power over sin and death by raising Jesus from the dead.
However, St Peter went
further to give them greater hope than they could imagine. “You are the heirs of the prophets,
the heirs of the covenant God made with our ancestors when he told Abraham: in
your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed.” Peter
reminded them that as children of Abraham they were given the hope of God’s
blessings if only they would turn from their wicked ways.
Repentance is the condition to receive God’s blessings. “Now you must repent
and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out.” Indeed, Peter
was asking them to seize the opportunity to seek forgiveness through repentance.
What about us? The
Lord reminds us, “You are witnesses to this.” How are we going to witness to Jesus? Are we
seeking and seizing the opportunity to encounter the Lord in new ways during
this Covid-19 pandemic and to witness to Jesus in new ways? Instead of
complaining and engaging in self-pity because of the restrictions, we must be
courageous and find creative ways to encounter the Risen Lord and to witness to
His resurrection and love in our lives. We must trust that God does not
allow things to happen without a reason, just as with the death of our
Lord. We must read the signs of the time and respond creatively and
proactively to how God wants us to act in these times.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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