We have seen the Lord!

By Father Manuel Solorzano
Hispanic Apostolate

Dear brothers and sisters,

We have begun the path of Easter and, like on the day of Resurrection with his disciples, Christ stands in our midst today. He speaks to us, gives us his peace and sends us as his witnesses.

He had told us already: “For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.” Therefore, God is here, present in our Sunday Eucharist.

The evangelist also reminds us, “On the evening of that day, the first day of the week … after eight days,”every Sunday, we evoke the rise of Christ. That is the inheritance that we have received – every Sunday, Mass is our first date.

The Word of God, in turn, continues to look at the risen Christ. He always takes the initiative and goes out to meet his own. Such a change, so quick and so deep, is established within the disciples. They were scared to death; they had even closed the doors tight. Jesus enters, and the scene lightens up. He speaks to them with affection, and he shows them his glorious wounds. Suddenly, they are transfigured into resurrected men.

St. John describes it so well, “Peace be with you,” that is, resurrected in peace. “They were filled with joy,” and resurrected by joy. “As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you,”  resurrected to be witnesses.

“Receive the Holy Spirit”:  resurrected by God’s spirit. “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven” or resurrected by forgiveness. “In believing, they may have life,” that is, risen and full of life, and everything that he had promised them, days before, at the Last Supper.

On the other hand, Thomas was not there that day. This causes his faith to waver and end magnificently. When he returns, he adopts a tone of arrogance. “Unless I see on his hands the mark of the nails and place my finger into the mark of the nails and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.” Soon, the kindness of the brothers and the pedagogy of Jesus turn to him, without any reproach or complaint. His companions, instead of reprimanding him, give him the good news: “We have seen the Lord!”; they are all merciful. Jesus, rather than seeing his disbelief as ugly, invites Thomas to see and touch his wounds, just like he wanted. In the end, the wayward disciple surrenders to the master: “My Lord and my God!” It’s easy to doubt and easy to believe.

Who among us does not need this presence of the Risen One in his life? Only he can change us, make us better and make us trust in him. If he is with us, we will also be touched by his peace, his joy, his Spirit, his forgiveness. If he is with us, we, too, will be risen men.

People will notice how we follow the Risen One. They will not see us as aggressive, sad or pessimistic. Let us learn from Jesus and his disciples. The air of charity and clemency of all toward Thomas, the unbeliever, can work miracles, even today. How many men and women “want to touch” and are seeking the truth in their lives? Their sincere hearts surrender to the mystery of God in the end. This is why our responsibility as believers is  great. Arrogance, hardness of the heart and judgment will never lead men to God.

It’s clear that our criterion and standard of life can only be Jesus – crucified and resurrected. At this hour, the Church needs the Easter “breath” of Jesus: more encouragement, more hope, more audacity.

In the face of such an unfathomable mystery, we need to approach him as many times as possible to be able to exclaim like the apostle: “My Lord and my God!”