Fifty Days of growth

The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary for Monday in the Octave of Easter begin our journey through the Great Fifty Days from Easter to Pentecost. We will journey with the first followers of Jesus as they grow in understanding of the events of Easter and the Holy Spirit brings the support to them that transforms the timid and tentative to brave and confident witnesses of the power of the Love of God. Peter is inspirited by the Spirit in the passage from the Acts of the Apostles today to tell the story of Jesus ministry, death and Resurrection and to indentify Jesus as the Messiah foreseen by David as the agent of God to re-establish the rule of the line of David. The Gospel from Matthew tells of Jesus appearance to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary and His instruction to them that He would rejoin His disciples in Galilee. We, like the Disciples, need to attend to the messages of Jesus to prepare ourselves to journey toward Him as the Spirit continues to reveal the depth and intimacy of the relationship to which we are invited.