Third
Sunday of Easter
Lectionary: 47
Reading 1 Acts 3:13-15, 17-19
Peter said to the people:
"The God of Abraham,
the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob,
the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus,
whom you handed over and denied in Pilate's presence
when he had decided to release him.
You denied the Holy and Righteous One
and asked that a murderer be released to you.
The author of life you put to death,
but God raised him from the dead; of this we are witnesses.
Now I know, brothers,
that you acted out of ignorance, just as your leaders did;
but God has thus brought to fulfillment
what he had announced beforehand
through the mouth of all the prophets,
that his Christ would suffer.
Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away."
"The God of Abraham,
the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob,
the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus,
whom you handed over and denied in Pilate's presence
when he had decided to release him.
You denied the Holy and Righteous One
and asked that a murderer be released to you.
The author of life you put to death,
but God raised him from the dead; of this we are witnesses.
Now I know, brothers,
that you acted out of ignorance, just as your leaders did;
but God has thus brought to fulfillment
what he had announced beforehand
through the mouth of all the prophets,
that his Christ would suffer.
Repent, therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away."
Responsorial Psalm Ps 4:2, 4, 7-8, 9
R. (7a) Lord, let
your face shine on us.
or:
R. Alleluia.
When I call, answer me, O my just God,
you who relieve me when I am in distress;
have pity on me, and hear my prayer!
R. Lord, let your face shine on us.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Know that the LORD does wonders for his faithful one;
the LORD will hear me when I call upon him.
R. Lord, let your face shine on us.
or:
R. Alleluia.
O LORD, let the light of your countenance shine upon us!
You put gladness into my heart.
R. Lord, let your face shine on us.
or:
R. Alleluia.
As soon as I lie down, I fall peacefully asleep,
for you alone, O LORD,
bring security to my dwelling.
R. Lord, let your face shine on us.
or:
R. Alleluia.
or:
R. Alleluia.
When I call, answer me, O my just God,
you who relieve me when I am in distress;
have pity on me, and hear my prayer!
R. Lord, let your face shine on us.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Know that the LORD does wonders for his faithful one;
the LORD will hear me when I call upon him.
R. Lord, let your face shine on us.
or:
R. Alleluia.
O LORD, let the light of your countenance shine upon us!
You put gladness into my heart.
R. Lord, let your face shine on us.
or:
R. Alleluia.
As soon as I lie down, I fall peacefully asleep,
for you alone, O LORD,
bring security to my dwelling.
R. Lord, let your face shine on us.
or:
R. Alleluia.
Reading 2 1 Jn 2:1-5a
My children, I am writing
this to you
so that you may not commit sin.
But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ the righteous one.
He is expiation for our sins,
and not for our sins only but for those of the whole world.
The way we may be sure that we know him is to keep
his commandments.
Those who say, "I know him," but do not keep his commandments
are liars, and the truth is not in them.
But whoever keeps his word,
the love of God is truly perfected in him.
so that you may not commit sin.
But if anyone does sin, we have an Advocate with the Father,
Jesus Christ the righteous one.
He is expiation for our sins,
and not for our sins only but for those of the whole world.
The way we may be sure that we know him is to keep
his commandments.
Those who say, "I know him," but do not keep his commandments
are liars, and the truth is not in them.
But whoever keeps his word,
the love of God is truly perfected in him.
Alleluia Cf. Lk 24:32
R. Alleluia,
alleluia.
Lord Jesus, open the Scriptures to us;
make our hearts burn while you speak to us.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Lord Jesus, open the Scriptures to us;
make our hearts burn while you speak to us.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Lk 24:35-48
The two disciples recounted
what had taken place on the way,
and how Jesus was made known to them
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."
and how Jesus was made known to them
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."
My Brothers
and Sisters,
Jesus Christ is indeed made known to us
through the Breaking of the Bread. Through the celebration of the mass, we
gather together in community to share our love for God worshipping and praising Him. We come forward
as we are: broken and sinful. It is through this gathering that we ask for
forgiveness and His love. Reading from Sacred Scripture, we are nourished
mentally and spiritually by the Words of God. Our hearts and minds are focused
intently on the one who created us and whom we call Father. We then do what
Jesus Christ instructs us to do: We celebrate the Breaking of the Bread and
receive Him physically, mentally, and spiritually through this action. We are
joined together with our savior and our God.
What a
beautiful gift Jesus Christ has given us. We are loved so much that our joy is
His joy and our pain is His pain. As it was with Jesus and His disciples,
everything is shared. We feed off of Jesus and also each other. There are no
judgments here; only empathy and love. The love that is present through our
relationship with Jesus Christ is constantly at work within us and is
constantly at work to bring us to perfection. This perfection is the promise of
salvation and is revealed through Sacred Scripture, prayer, the worship of God.
It is a journey that will last a lifetime. There will be many challenges but
these will make us stronger and heal us in the face of any opposition.
Through the
readings today we are given instructions regarding how to approach our
relationship with Jesus Christ. The process is not completed once but is
repeated throughout our lives. It is centered in constant renewal and healing
through Jesus Christ. We are sinners. This will never change until we are with
God. Because of this, we are invited to come forward, confess our sins, repent,
and be forgiven. As Peter said, “Repent,
therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be wiped away." Wiped away means that they are gone and forgotten by
God. We then become new creations through Jesus Christ as long as we are honest
and true to ourselves and Jesus Christ. In other words, we are truly sorry for
what we have done and make an effort to change our ways. It is a surrendering
of our will in favor of giving our lives over to Him who loves us and created
us.
The Apostle John is a little harsher
in His words but it is because of the importance of what he is saying. The
Commandments are a tool to bring us closer to God. They are a Code of Conduct
and a starting point in our relationship with Jesus. We cannot profess our
faith and love in Jesus Christ without letting Him transform us. John is
preaching a perfection that cannot be reached but that is not the point. It is
something we should constantly keep in mind and strive for. Correcting our own
conduct, with the help of Jesus Christ and all those in our community, will
lead to a change in ourselves for the better. The day that we cease to change
is the day when we start to fall away from Jesus Christ.
Each day is a new beginning
and a great opportunity to bring ourselves closer to Jesus. The closer we get
to Him the more our lives will take on a new meaning. This meaning is one that
is centered in truth and love.
Deacon Tom
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