The texts from the Roman Catholic Lectionary today invite us to contemplate how the Grace to act in Jesus name may be available to us through prayer.
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| Word and Sacrament |
In the reading from the Book of Acts, Peter heals a crippled beggar.
* [3:6–10] The miracle has a dramatic cast; it symbolizes the saving power of Christ and leads the beggar to enter the temple, where he hears Peter’s proclamation of salvation through Jesus.1
Psalm 105 declares God’s faithfulness to Israel.
* [Psalm 105] A hymn to God who promised the land of Canaan to the holy people, cf. Ps 78; 106; 136. Israel is invited to praise and seek the presence of God (Ps 105:1–6), who is faithful to the promise of land to the ancestors (Ps 105:7–11).2
In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus joins disciples on the walk to Emmaus.
* [24:16] A consistent feature of the resurrection stories is that the risen Jesus was different and initially unrecognizable (Lk 24:37; Mk 16:12; Jn 20:14; 21:4)3.
Jay Carney shares the line that resonates most with him is Luke 24:17: “They stopped, looking downcast.” In the face of the coronavirus pandemic, our global society has ground to a halt.
Jesus’ resurrection does not eliminate pandemics, nor suffering, nor the needy lying at the “Beautiful Gates” of our own homes and churches. What the resurrection should do, however, is give us the grace to discern and the courage to respond. Following Peter and John, how are we called to assist those who are crippled today, those locked down in their homes? Like the Emmaus disciples, how are we called to extend hospitality to our families, our neighbors, and even the strangers in our midst? In the time of COVID-19, answers to these questions will require careful discernment; we may find our hearts “burning within us” in a desire to do more. But we trust that small acts of outreach and healing open space for God’s transforming spirit to rush in. Whether in our homes, our neighborhoods, or our virtual villages, may Christ be revealed to us this Easter season in the breaking of the bread.4
Don Schwager quotes “The Easter Alleluia,” by Augustine of Hippo, 354-430 A.D.
"Now therefore, brethren, we urge you to praise God. That is what we are all telling each other when we say Alleluia. You say to your neighbor, "Praise the Lord!" and he says the same to you. We are all urging one another to praise the Lord, and all thereby doing what each of us urges the other to do. But see that your praise comes from your whole being; in other words, see that you praise God not with your lips and voices alone, but with your minds, your lives and all your actions." (excerpt from commentary on Psalm 148)5
The Word Among Us Meditation on Acts 3:1-10 comments that all these events convinced Peter and John that their spiritual bank account had seen a sudden infusion of wealth. That’s why Peter was so confident as he grasped this man’s hand and raised him to his feet.
You have a spiritual bank account too. It contains the grace God put there when you were baptized. It also contains all the grace he has been giving you every day since then. This grace is a free gift, as surprising as an unexpected inheritance. Divine mercy, access to your heavenly Father, the power of the Holy Spirit—it’s all there for you.6
Friar Jude Winkler shares the Christian connection to the Temple that lasted until it was destroyed in 70 CE. In three Scripture accounts, the disciples do not recognize the Resurrected Christ, who is changed but has continuity with Jesus before death. Friar Jude reminds us that Christ is revealed in Word and Sacrament in the Emmaus account.
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, notes that both St. Francis of Assisi (1182–1226) and St. Clare (1194–1253) let go of their fear of suffering; any need for power, prestige, and possessions; and any need for their small self to be important. By doing so they came to know who they really were in God—and thus who they objectively were.
Such a profound ability to change is often the fruit of suffering and various forms of poverty. The small self does not surrender without a fight to its death. If we understand suffering to be whenever we are not in control, then we see why some form of suffering is absolutely necessary to teach us how to live beyond the illusion of control and to give that control back to God and the flow of reality.
I find myself in prayer much of the time right now, not simply because of the limitations of our current circumstances, but because I want to be a witness to such divine freedom. I believe it is this kind of prayer that may keep us from simply hoping things quickly return to “normal” (though that is a comforting thought to many) and instead praying for the courage to “change and grow in love.” Such courage is surely what we and the world truly need.7
Our transformation to deeper union with Christ continues through our experience recognizing Him in daily events through prayerful meditation.
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