Word to the Wise
Monday, March 24, 2008 - Monday in the Octave of Easter
[Acts 2:14, 22-33 and Matthew 28:8-15]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.
The celebrations of the birth and the resurrection of Jesus are the two most solemn events in the liturgical calendar. They are the only feast days that are followed by a prolonged celebration called an "octave." As the word suggests, it is a period of eight days. Each day is meant as a way of reinforcing the importance of the feast but they are also like echoes of the message. One of the ways in which this "echo" is expressed in the octave of Easter is in the choice of passages from the Acts of the Apostles that reflect early preaching about the resurrection and in repetition of the accounts of the resurrection in each of the four gospels. In the scripture from the Acts of the Apostles for today, Peter is portrayed as speaking in the name of the apostles and to a Jewish audience because he emphasizes the Davidic aspect of Jesus' lineage. In the gospel scripture (the same one read at the Easter Vigil) from Matthew, we witness the reaction of Mary Magdalen and "the other Mary" to the empty tomb and the message of the angel that Jesus is risen. This true message contrasts sharply with the cover-up story created by the religious authorities - that Jesus' followers stole the body. Both Peter and Mary Magdalen become preachers of the fundamental truth about Jesus' resurrection. This fundamental message would later be called the "kerygma" from a Greek word meaning "proclamation." But the scriptures and the figures will remain like historical portraits or paintings in a museum during the octave if that is the way we Christians view them. If Christ is risen for them and they feel driven to proclaim it, why are we not equally driven? It is true that we are distant from the historical event, but the Spirit that impelled Peter and Mary Magdalen is the same Spirit we receive in Baptism/Confirmation. Why would we be so timid by contrast? Evangelization means the proclamation of the good news about Jesus. Each of us by virtue of our baptism is identified with the Risen Christ and we are called to evangelize in our given life situations. The angel and the Lord tell Mary Magdalen and the other Mary, "do not be afraid, go......" We do not have to be trained theologians, just faithful believers and willing to share that faith. We do not have to be pulpit stars, just plain-spoken witnesses. Listen to the echoes of the resurrection this week. Then create your own echoes of the good news! AMEN
config
view
logs
3840.0 KB
60 ms
4
