“The beauty of obedience is that what God expects you to do, He also enables you to do.”

Don't give in to discouragement....... If you are discouraged it is a sign of pride because it shows you trust in your own powers. Never bother about people's opinions. Be obedient to truth. For with humble obedience, you will never be disturbed. -- Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta

Gospel text (Jn 21,1-14): Jesus revealed himself to the disciples by the Lake of Tiberias. He appeared to them in this way. Simon Peter, Thomas who was called the Twin, Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee and two other disciples were together; and Simon Peter said to them, «I'm going fishing». They replied, «We will come with you», and they went out and got into the boat. But they caught nothing that night.

When day had already broken, Jesus was standing on the shore, but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus called them, «Children, have you anything to eat?». They answered, «Nothing». Then He said to them, «Throw the net on the right side of the boat and you will find some». When they had lowered the net, they were not able to pull it in because of the great number of fish. Then the disciple Jesus loved said to Peter, «It's the Lord!». At these words, «It's the Lord», Simon Peter put on his clothes, for he was stripped for work, and jumped into the water. The other disciples came in the boat dragging the net full of fish; they were not far from land, about a hundred meters.

When they landed, they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it, and some bread. Jesus said to them, «Bring some of the fish you've just caught». So Simon Peter climbed into the boat and pulled the net to shore. It was full of big fish —one hundred and fifty-three— but, in spite of this, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, «Come and have breakfast», and not one of the disciples dared ask him, «Who are you?», for they knew it was the Lord. Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them, and He did the same with the fish. This was the third time that Jesus revealed himself to his disciples after rising from the dead.

That night they caught nothing!

When the disciples tell Jesus they caught nothing, He just points out where they are to throw their net. And, even though fishermen seem to know all the answers and they had spent the night to no avail, they obey him. «O the power of the obedience. The lake of Tiberias was refusing its fish to Peter's nets. An entire night in vain. —But now, obedient, he returns the net to the water and they caught (...) a full load of fish. —Believe me: the miracle repeats itself daily» (Saint Josemaria).

St. John points out «It was full of big fish —one hundred and fifty-three» (Jn 21:11) but, in spite of being so many, the net was not torn. These are details to bear in mind, Redemption, amid normal work, takes place with responsible obedience.

They all «knew it was the Lord. Jesus then came and took the bread and gave it to them» (Jn 21:12-13). He did the same with the fish. If we obey him we shall not lack either the spiritual or the material food. He taught this to his closest followers and Pope John Paul II said it too: «When starting the new millennium, our heart reverberates with those words with which Jesus (...) invited the Apostle to put out into the deep, and let down the nets for a catch: ‘Duc in altum’ (Lk 5:4). Peter and the first disciples trusted Christ's word (…) and when they had done this, ‘they enclosed a great multitude of fishes’ (Lk 5:6). This word resounds for us to day too».

“Christianity is not a new philosophy or new morality. We are Christians only if we encounter Christ...”

"Many people perceive Christianity as something institutional -- rather than as an encounter with Christ -- which explains why they don't see it as a source of joy." - Pope Benedict XVI, May 2004

Gospel Text: (LK 24:35-48)
The disciples of Jesus recounted what had taken place along the way,
and how they had come to recognize him in the breaking of bread.

While they were still speaking about this,
he stood in their midst and said to them,
“Peace be with you.”
But they were startled and terrified
and thought that they were seeing a ghost.
Then he said to them, “Why are you troubled?
And why do questions arise in your hearts?
Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself.
Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones
as you can see I have.”
And as he said this,
he showed them his hands and his feet.
While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed,
he asked them, “Have you anything here to eat?”
They gave him a piece of baked fish;
he took it and ate it in front of them.

He said to them,
“These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you,
that everything written about me in the law of Moses
and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.”
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
And he said to them,
“Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer
and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,
would be preached in his name
to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.”

How does Jesus encounter us?

Jesus encounters us and we him in the ordinary events of our lives. As Jesus approaches us as we are with our ups and downs our grace and sin, we are changed by the encounter. To encounter someone implies a relationship with that person that is special in its depth. How well the disciples knew Jesus, but now he is coming to them at an even deeper level of intimacy.

To encounter someone is a more profound experience than simply being physically next to her/him. I may be at an airport physically present to hundreds of people, but that is not an encounter. I recall an airport scene that took place close enough for me to observe. There was a group that I sized up as a family gathered around a uniformed soldier. The interactions among them spoke of love and concern. I reckoned that the family was sending their son, brother, grandson on a possibly dangerous mission for the young man as a soldier.

Our encounter with Jesus is like that story: filled with deep emotions and love given and received. We are in a love relationship with Jesus. Thus encounters with him are suffused with care, concern, forgiveness and love beyond measure.

We encounter him in others, those who love us and we them. We encounter him in the community of faith that gathers to celebrate the Eucharist and the other sacraments like baptism and the anointing of the sick.

To celebrate Easter is to be attentive to the many ways that Jesus encounters us, in the poor, the sick, the needy, those who treat us with care and invite us to deeper love in all the events of our human life.

“Go often to Holy Communion. Go very often! This is your one remedy.”

One day St. Teresa of Avila heard someone say: "If only I had lived at the time of Jesus... If only I had seen Jesus... If only I had talked with Jesus..." To this she responded: "But do we not have in the Eucharist the living, true and real Jesus present before us? Why look for more?"

Gospel text (LK 24,13-35):
Two disciples of Jesus were going to Emmaus, a village seven miles from Jerusalem, and they talked about what had happened. While they were talking and wondering, Jesus came up and walked with them, but their eyes were held and they did not recognize him.

He asked, «What is this you are talking about?». The two stood still, looking sad. Then one named Cleophas answered, «Why, it seems you are the only traveler in Jerusalem who doesn't know what has happened there these past few days». And he asked, «What is it? ». They replied, «It is about Jesus of Nazareth. He was a prophet, you know, mighty in word and deed before God and the people. But the chief priests and our rulers sentenced him to death. They handed him over to be crucified. We had hoped that he would redeem Israel. It is now the third day since all this took place. It is true that some women of our group have disturbed us. When they went to the tomb at dawn, they did not find his body; they came to tell us that they had seen a vision of angels who told them that Jesus was alive. Some friends of our group went to the tomb and found everything just as the women had said, but they did not see him». He said to them, «How dull you are, how slow of understanding! You fail to believe the message of the prophets. Is it not written that the Christ should suffer all this and then enter his glory? ». Then starting with Moses and going through the prophets, He explained to them everything in the Scriptures concerning himself.

As they drew near the village they were heading for, Jesus made as if to go farther. But they prevailed upon him, «Stay with us, for night comes quickly. The day is now almost over». So he went in to stay with them. When they were at table, he took the bread, said a blessing, broke it and gave each a piece. Then their eyes were opened, and they recognized him; but He vanished out of their sight. And they said to each other, «Were not our hearts filled with ardent yearning when He was talking to us on the road and explaining the Scriptures? ».

They immediately set out and returned to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and their companions gathered together. They were greeted by these words: «Yes, it is true, the Lord is risen! He has appeared to Simon! ». Then the two told what had happened on the road and how Jesus made himself known when he broke bread with them.

The Gospel leaves me reflecting on how much we miss when we see without really seeing.

Isn’t this the story of our lives as well? So often, we think about our circumstances, our families, or the world around us—as any normal human being would. Sometimes that leaves us discouraged or believing that Jesus isn’t close to us. But nothing could be further from the truth! Jesus is never absent; he’s walking with you! He longs to stir your heart through his word and through his presence. He longs to tell you that he has a plan for your life and that you can rely on him.

The disciples in today’s Gospel reading had to slow down to listen to Jesus; they had to stop their discussions to hear him. What a great model for us! Slow down and listen today. Stop and let Jesus touch your heart with divine insight. Sit down, pull out your Bible, and ask him to open the Scriptures to you. Gaze on him at Mass. You will see that he was there all along: he’s there in God’s word; he’s there in the bread and wine; he’s in your heart!

The Church must go out into the streets…. Jesus does not tire of saying to us: “Give them something to eat”

"A Christian life lived with charity and faith is the most effective form of evangelization. Evangelization testifies to the transformative power of the Gospel and the mission of the church to sanctify society…" - U.S. Catholic bishops, Disciples Called to Witness: The New Evangelization

Gospel text: (ACTS 2:36-41)
On the day of Pentecost, Peter said to the Jewish people,
“Let the whole house of Israel know for certain
that God has made him both Lord and Christ,
this Jesus whom you crucified.”
Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart,
and they asked Peter and the other Apostles,
“What are we to do, my brothers?”
Peter said to them,
“Repent and be baptized, every one of you,
in the name of Jesus Christ, for the forgiveness of your sins;
and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
For the promise is made to you and to your children
and to all those far off,
whomever the Lord our God will call.”
He testified with many other arguments, and was exhorting them,
“Save yourselves from this corrupt generation.”
Those who accepted his message were baptized,
and about three thousand persons were added that day.

Both the first reading and the gospel (JN 20:11-18) today have strong sentiments of evangelization. Peter, in the first reading, just by proclaiming the Paschal Mystery of Christ, convicts and baptizes three thousand people. In the gospel, Jesus appears, resurrected, to Mary Magdalene, who he then sends to the apostles to proclaim his resurrection. What is it about both Mary Magdalene and Peter’s words that cut straight to the hearts of listeners?

These words are the words of witnesses. Both Peter and Mary witnessed the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus and experienced a profound intimate relationship with him. Their words were words of complete conviction to the Truth. They were not seeking to prove Jesus’ existence historically or philosophically or teach others of the facts of Christianity. Neither were they seeking to correct some sort of moral injustice in society. Peter and Mary Magdalene were simply bearing witness to Christ with their lives.

We are called to bear witness to Christ’s life, death and resurrection in our own lives as well. But we cannot bear witness to someone we do not know. Thus we must open ourselves up to knowing Christ through prayer, the Sacraments, and Scripture. Some of the greatest evangelizers in the world, people like St. Mary Magdalene, St. Peter and the apostles, St. Paul, St. Patrick, St. Francis Xavier, St. Isaac Jogues, all had this one thing in common: they all knew Christ and were willing to bear witness to him with their lives.

Evangelization is not something done in a far off land with strange people. It is done in our homes and in our own communities. Evangelization is not spread simply by words; it is spread most effectively by the way we live, by how we bear witness. Our call today and in this Easter season is to begin living like Christ is truly resurrected. We know this, because we know him.

“Taking a new step, uttering a new word, is what people fear most.”

“All men make mistakes, but a good man yields when he knows his course is wrong, and repairs the evil. The only crime is pride.” ― Sophocles, (Antigone written 441 BC)

Scripture text: (ACTS 2:14, 22-33)
On the day of Pentecost, Peter stood up with the Eleven,
raised his voice, and proclaimed:
“You who are Jews, indeed all of you staying in Jerusalem.
Let this be known to you, and listen to my words.

“You who are children of Israel, hear these words.
Jesus the Nazorean was a man commended to you by God
with mighty deeds, wonders, and signs,
which God worked through him in your midst, as you yourselves know.
This man, delivered up by the set plan and foreknowledge of God,
you killed, using lawless men to crucify him.
But God raised him up, releasing him from the throes of death,
because it was impossible for him to be held by it.
For David says of him:

I saw the Lord ever before me,
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
Therefore my heart has been glad and my tongue has exulted;
my flesh, too, will dwell in hope,
because you will not abandon my soul to the nether world,
nor will you suffer your holy one to see corruption.
You have made known to me the paths of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence.

My brothers, one can confidently say to you
about the patriarch David that he died and was buried,
and his tomb is in our midst to this day.
But since he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn an oath to him
that he would set one of his descendants upon his throne,
he foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ,
that neither was he abandoned to the netherworld
nor did his flesh see corruption.
God raised this Jesus;
of this we are all witnesses.
Exalted at the right hand of God,
he poured forth the promise of the Holy Spirit
that he received from the Father, as you both see and hear.

Can we be the same people we were before the passion, death and resurrection of Jesus?

In today's first reading from Mass, we see Peter as anything but the fearful disciple we have seen in the past. In a loud, clear voice he stands in the midst of a crowd and proclaims that Jesus is the Messiah. This “new” Peter speaks in a different and more confident voice than the one who had huddled in terror in the locked upper room after the crucifixion. Now he says he can “speak confidently” and, quoting David, says his heart is glad and his tongue has rejoiced. He has been changed.

Have we been moved that dramatically by the events of the past week? Are we as courageous as Peter? Perhaps we are more like the women hurrying away from the tomb, half-overjoyed and half-fearful. Yes, there is good news, wonderful news … but can we allow ourselves to believe it? Can it really be true?

Jesus gives us the answer as he meets the women rushing from the tomb. His first words to them – and us – are “Peace!” and then “Do not be afraid!” Jesus wants us first to be at peace, to feel the love and redemption he offers us. Yes, it is true and now, as believers, witnesses to this miracle of love, we are asked by Jesus to “go and carry the news…”

Today we are still carried along on the joy of Holy Week and Easter Sunday liturgies. We may feel the call of Jesus in our lives asking us to spread the good news to our brothers and sisters. Today we have the courage, the energy and the joy inside. But can this last? We remember Peter’s fear and know of our own, so deeply entrenched. It doesn’t matter. We will, at times, forget, fall asleep, deny Jesus and run away fearfully, forgetting the joy. But always, always he will be there to meet us with his arms gently open, his eyes filled with love.

“Peace!” he says, greeting us with the understanding of someone who truly knows us and our faults – and loves us anyway. “Don’t be afraid.”

This, then is the most precious gift of the resurrection.

"The stone was rolled away from the door, not to permit Christ to come out, but to enable the disciples to go in."

“And he departed from our sight that we might return to our heart, and there find Him. For He departed, and behold, He is here.” -- St. Augustine

Scripture Text: (COL 3:1-4)

Brothers and sisters:

If then you were raised with Christ, seek what is above,

where Christ is seated at the right hand of God.

Think of what is above, not of what is on earth.

For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.

When Christ your life appears,

then you too will appear with him in glory.

At this time of the year the barren soil now receives seeds which, though now hidden, will become robust crops in a few short months.

St. Paul reminds us on this Easter Sunday that “our life is hidden with Christ in God.”  Because of the gift of baptism, there is new life germinating within us, pointing us toward the future when we too “will appear with him in glory.”  So sure is this future harvest that St. Paul urges us to “think and to “seek” what is above, to orient our sight there.

The farmer tending the seed with great care does so because he knows the outcome, the harvest.  Even so, St. Paul, knowing that we live amid the incompleteness of our life’s journey, encourages us to contemplate what is to come. All this is not to distract us from life in the present, but to make sure that life has its proper focus and goal.

I once saw an inscription over the doorway of a Catholic Elementary School which read:  The hope of the harvest is in the seed.  On this day of Resurrection, do I believe that the seed of future glory lies within me?  How will I tend and care for the seed of faith which I have been given?  How will I cherish the presence of Christ Jesus alive within me today?   

You can nail Truth to a cross, wrap it in winding sheets and shut it up in a tomb, but it will rise!

Lord, show us that love is stronger than hatred, that love is stronger than death. Descend into the darkness and the abyss of our modern age, and take by the hand those who await you. Bring them to the light! - Benedict XVI, Easter Vigil 2007

Scripture Text: (Zephaniah 3:14-20)

Shout for joy, daughter Zion!

sing joyfully, Israel!

Be glad and exult with all your heart,

daughter Jerusalem!

The LORD has removed the judgment against you,

he has turned away your enemies;

The King of Israel, the LORD, is in your midst,

you have no further misfortune to fear.

On that day, it shall be said to Jerusalem:

Do not fear, Zion,

do not be discouraged!

The LORD, your God, is in your midst,

a mighty savior,

Who will rejoice over you with gladness,

and renew you in his love,

Who will sing joyfully because of you,

as on festival days.

I will remove disaster from among you,

so that no one may recount your disgrace.

At that time I will deal

with all who oppress you;

I will save the lame,

and assemble the outcasts;

I will give them praise and renown

in every land where they were shamed.

At that time I will bring you home,

and at that time I will gather you;

For I will give you renown and praise,

among all the peoples of the earth,

When I bring about your restoration

before your very eyes, says the LORD.

I picked up a newspaper and skimmed the headlines today: a killer convicted and sentenced to death row in the United States, strikes and blockades in the Ukraine, unrest in the Middle East, the list can go on.  Deep suffering and death beg for an explanation.  Resurrection does not come easily to these situations.  The darkness of the tomb and emptiness can even hold sway within our own hearts.  

Yet things are not always as they appear.  This Vigil of Easter comes to awaken us to the reality that what we see in the headlines is not all there is.  And there is more than what we experience in the emptiness of our own hearts!  Our world and our lives are about to be turned upside down.  In the darkness there is light.  Truly, death and suffering will not have the final word!   

On this Vigil of Easter we gather as the people of God, and we recall our ancestral stories  in which the shedding of blood is a source of liberation, and life arises in the midst of death.  Our Scripture passages read like a well-known epoch that is born of experience of and trust in our God.  As we stand before the tomb, we can be confident that the real story underneath the headlines continues.  Today be still.  Wait on the threshold where death will give rise to new life.