God labours for us!

 The amazing story of who turned up to breakfast with the disciples is at the heart of our Easter experience. It is now three weeks since Easter Sunday and there can be a tendency to return to life as normal. Much as the disciples experienced the early resurrection experiences it appears that they returned to what was everyday and familiar. We know this can be the experience of many people especially after they have experienced trauma in their life. They seek to discover patterns that make sense of what has happened by sharing time with friends in a common activity that makes sense of the disorder they have encountered.

Yet I believe there are three things we need to be aware of in the story. In the midst of the fishing expedition, the disciples are working hard but catching nothing. They seem to have become frustrated that their attempts to engage in this familiar activity leave them feeling exhausted and bereft. They had hoped for a pleasant day out but discovered that their nets were empty and their hearts were longing for more.

In the midst of this story, a seeming stranger stands on the shore and shouts out instructions to pay out their nets on the other side. We can sense the fatalism which must beset the disciples when they seek to defend their actions which have proved fruitless and yet somehow trust that it is worth one last go. They catch more than they ever imagined and then the beloved disciples recognize the connection that it is Jesus who stands on the shore. Peter jumps into the water towing the net to land.

As they arrive breakfast is already being prepared. Almost like a cooking show, they are welcomed to something which has already been made. They sit down to eat and recognize that they are in the midst of Jesus who eats with them. 

This has ready application to our own lives is that Jesus meets us in what is familiar and transforms it not only to feed us but to also feed others. Jesus already knows our hearts but requires our active involvement to allow the work to become manifest with fundamental goodness. Lastly, it does slow us down to give thanks that in the midst of all creation is a person who knows us better than we know ourselves. A person who feeds us with what will sustain us with hope as we engage with the heart of life.

Allowing others to touch our wounds

 The Easter season allows us to be open to surprises of being touched by Jesus. There is awareness during Lent that we become attached to certain behaviors, thoughts, or ways of living which do not fill our deepest need to encounter meaning at the heart of our lives. This is evident in how we seem to notice our own shortcuts and diversions which promise much but deliver little. The encounter with our own vulnerability and addiction to certain patterns of behavior can frustrate our hopes. We want to overcome our sin but our own efforts only seem to entrench those patterns within our life. click

In the Upper Room, we see this drama played out in the encounter between Jesus and Thomas. He emphasizes two things the first is the need to be at peace the second is to encounter a God of mercy who forgives. The need for peace is not just discovering a place of silence alone but rather allowing ourselves to listen more deeply to the desires which mill around our heads and hearts. This is probably our most private place but it is the place where we find out what is most important to us. For Thomas, it is the desire to believe to encounter the Risen Jesus. Yet something holds him back from the actual physical encounter. It seems to be okay in his own mind but is limited by how he puts this into practical action. His greatest fear is that if he encounters the wounds of Jesus his own wounds will be exposed. The doubt, the uncertainty, the longing for Jesus to be alive. There is a difference between what he thinks should happen and what actually does happen. 

This is the journey of Easter where Jesus meets us in our own uncertainty and tentativeness. He takes even the initial questions of faith and makes them real. This encounter surprises us with its vulnerability and honesty. This is ultimately how Jesus meets us. Not when we have it all together but more probably when we seem to be falling apart. When we are raw and candid about what we need. Jesus meets us in our own Upper Room. In the place where we have locked ourselves up for fear of the outside world with all its unanswered questions. He meets us to live the question which is most important to us today. In this he allows us to touch his wounds that he may touch our own.

What do we hope for this Easter?

 As we finish celebrating the Easter Vigil we are often left with the question that Peter encounters in the empty tomb. The testimony of the women is not enough to convince him and yet he is left wondering what the future will hold out for him. In the midst of the beauty and the solemnity of the Easter ceremonies, we can often wonder ourselves what the future will hold. As we start to live with COVID, an unfortunate term as I have been forced into isolation as a result of a positive result, we can wonder what salvation looks like for us. Many hold out false hopes that they will have the answer to all our problems. This tendency is not just present in politicians but also in those who advertise a life that is powerful, spectacular, and relevant.

Against this backdrop, we see the unfolding of the latest tragedy for humanity unfolding in Ukraine. One pleading father on television spoke volumes when he said what have we done to them that they wish to bring this suffering on us. This is the cry which looks for a reason but also for justice. The paschal triduum is played out all too vividly as people are crucified for the sins of another. This does not seem to make sense in fact it is non-sense. Yet in the midst of this conflict and in fact, in the midst of every conflict Jesus draws us into a deeper vulnerability and woundedness that allows us to encounter his healing. This paradox is not because he wants us to suffer but so that we may find hope even when we suffer.

I feel that this is the important lesson of Easter that we discover life in unexpected places and people. This is the Easter message that Christ sends us out to be people of both reconciliation and thanksgiving. In a world that so often preaches that might makes right, we discover that we need to breathe in peace and exhale love. We are called to be witnesses to life that emerges out of what appears to be a disaster. To bring light when the world seems to be plunged into darkness. To proclaim eternal life when others preach annihilation. During this Easter let Jesus surprise you with joy.

Whom do we welcome

 On the eve of another election, we are conscious of the many slogans which can be used to encourage us in casting our ballots. The fact that this will occur during Holy Week and the initial days of Easter asks a basic question about who we are and whose we are? Most election campaigns seek to win hearts and minds about a better vision for the future. The question of course is not just about how we cast our ballot but rather who we believe we can become as a nation. Often the slogans express an internal hope which seeks to be expressed in external action. This is certainly the reality that Jesus confronts when entering Jerusalem the crowds gather in great numbers believing that he is the Messiah who will liberate them from oppression. However, this quickly turns to disappointment and outrage when he does not provide what they want. The mob turns on him stirred up by those who see him as a threat to themselves and suddenly hosanna turns to crucify him.

So how should we prepare during this time? I believe the first lesson of Lent is that we are drawn into a deeper communion of prayer with God and each other. This calls us to notice our own inner contradictions and the dualism which can exist within our own hearts. Where we seek salvation but on our own terms. Prayer allows us to notice our own inner demons and the things that prevent us from seeking solidarity with God and the Christian community. We come to prayer out of our great need and our own vulnerability to be moved by bad spirits which besiege us. We need this deeper communion so that we can build up the defenses which seduce, isolate and assault us at our weakest point. We are called to be a people who are formed into a union with God through our common struggles.

The next is to notice how we can become attached to certain ways of behaving which can divide us one against the other. This is particularly noticeable during an election when one side will seek to demonize the other while seeking to become paragons of virtue. This is where a Lectio on the words that are used in a campaign can be helpful to see whether they bring unity between what touches our hearts and what informs our minds to act for the good of all and not just ourselves. Elections are about forming a polity in which all voices can be heard and in which unity is formed for the good of all.

Lastly, we need to build a culture that reflects and inculturates Christian values within the society. This seeks to build a culture of life that respects the dignity of human life and the whole of creation. An election campaign touches on a sense of fairness and justice that allows people to flourish. This of its nature seeks to ensure a distribution of resources that is equitable and does not condemn people to a life of poverty. That people have the ability to seek the basic goods of life in housing, healthcare, education, and productive work. In a society where the nature of utility is often determined by wealth, success, and relevance we are challenged to recognize that our fundamental worth is built on what makes us fully human. In an election, it is not the promises made that make the difference but rather the qualities of the person who we seek to build a nation that is not selfish and grasping but is rather generous and benevolent. This seeks the common good not just for ourselves but for the good of all especially our poorer neighbors. In all things, we seek God to guide our hearts to make wise and prudent choices for the good of all.