First reading from the Acts of the Apostles ACTS 2:42-47
They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of bread and to the prayers. Awe came upon everyone, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their property and possessions and divide them among all according to each one’s need. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking bread in their homes. They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of heart, praising God and enjoying favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
Second reading from the first letter of Peter 1 PT 1:3-9
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you who by the power of God are safeguarded through faith, to a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the final time. In this you rejoice, although now for a little while you may have to suffer through various trials, so that the genuineness of your faith, more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire, may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Although you have not seen him you love him; even though you do not see him now yet believe in him, you rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy, as you attain the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
GOSPEL OF THE DAY From the Gospel according to John JN 20:19-31
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the doors were locked, where the disciples were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
Now a week later his disciples were again inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe.” Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”
Now, Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples that are not written in this book. But these are written that you may come to believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that through this belief you may have life in his name.
WORDS OF THE HOLY FATHER The Lord is not looking for perfect Christians; the Lord is not looking for Christians who never doubt and always flaunt a steadfast faith. When a Christian is like that, something isn’t right. No, the adventure of faith, as for Thomas, consists of lights and shadows. Otherwise, what kind of faith would that be? It knows times of comfort, zeal and enthusiasm, but also of weariness, confusion, doubt and darkness. The Gospel shows us Thomas’ “crisis” to tell us that we should not fear the crises of life and faith. Crises are not sins, they are part of the journey, we should not fear them. Many times, they make us humble because they strip us of the idea that we are fine, that we are better than others. Crises help us to recognize that we are needy: they rekindle the need for God and thus enable us to return to the Lord, to touch his wounds, to experience his love anew as if it were the first time. Dear brothers and sisters, is better to have an imperfect but humble faith that always returns to Jesus, than a strong but presumptuous faith that makes us proud and arrogant. Woe to those, woe to them! (Regina Caeli, II Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy, 24 April 2022)
FAUSTI - While the others were in the Upper Room, piled up in common fear, Thomas, the twin, dared to go out, despising the danger. With his actions he contradicts his name; he is not in solidarity with them. He doesn't share their fragility and fear. For this reason he excludes himself from others, interrupting the relationship with them. He is the twin of that deepest part of ourselves that does not accept the limit, but, with the force of despair, represses the fear itself, closing in a loneliness as heroic as destructive. He does not believe in life. He lives death as the only possible horizon. The evangelist reserves the expression "having seen the Lord" to the direct testimony of the first disciples. In the story he prefers to emphasize the fact that Jesus comes among them, to be recognised through the Word and the Signs of the Passion imprinted in His Body. In this way He highlights that aspect of faith which is common to them and to us: Visio Dei, vita hominis" : to see God is the life of man. Fire burns, light illuminates: the encounter with the Risen One raises us up. The community lives because it has met the Living One. Transformed into Him by the encounter with Him, it is able to witness Him. It is in fact one with Him and the Father, in the one Love: it has welcomed the Spirit and lives of His Glory, which it testifies to the world. Thomas does not believe those who have seen. He doesn't accept the witness of the Word and of the Spirit: he doesn't recognize the new life of the community and he doesn't insert himself in it. The credibility of the Son and of the Father is entrusted to the brothers who live the communion of mutual love. There we meet the Word becomed Flesh. Thomas wants to "see" and "touch" in order to be part of the twelve, witnesses of the Risen One. To him, as to Paul, this experience will be granted. But what is important, Jesus will say to Thomas, is not having seen Him for that brief period in which He showed Himself. It is not possible for everyone to be in the place where the spring gushes out; but anyone who is thirsty can drink that living water which now flows over the whole earth. Those who were present where it has sprung up, they canalize it up to us with their testimony, so that everyone can quench his thirst. It is together the first and eighth day, that one day without sunset, source of life without end. Everything is illuminated by the light of the Risen One. It is not by chance that the following chapter, which recounts the third manifestation, no longer is indicated any time. By now we always live in that time. In the liturgy, in fact, we begin reading the Gospel with the expression "in that time", because the story re-presents the event to us, making us contemporaries to it. The Eucharist is the place par excellence where one encounters the Risen One. We must "make the Eucharist in all things" (1 Th 5:18), so that our concrete existence may become the true spiritual cult pleasing to God (Rom 12:1). "The disciples were again inside" "Inside" is no longer the place of darkness and of fear, but of communion in peace and in joy, where the fruit of the Spirit blossoms and matures in mission, forgiveness and witness. It is that inside of those who, being sons, are sent to the outside of the world to continue the work of Jesus. In this place, the brothers live the memorial of the Son, who makes them "one" and projects them out, witnesses of the common Father to the whole world. "Peace be with you" The arrival and the greeting of the Lord are referred to as in the previous narration. He addresses to the whole community first of all - He says: 'Peace to you', and now Thomas is also in it.
Every encounter with the Living One makes us live "that day". enjoying the same gifts. After making himself known to the community, Jesus turns personally to Thomas. He does not want to lose any of those whom the Father has given him (17:12). Addressing to him, Jesus shows that not only does know the thoughts of his heart, but that He was present when he expressed his disbelief and the desire, considered impossible, to see and touch Him. Jesus is humble: He places Himself at the disposal of Thomas, of His deaf closure to others and to life. This condescension will make him available to believe in Him, until he reaches the highest point of expression of faith. Jesus exhorted Thomas to realize his desire to touch and to see the sign of the nails that sustained Him on the cross, the wound of the spear that opened His side. The presence of the Risen One is always connected with His wounds, memory of His Passion, an everlasting memory of His Love for us. The exhortation is also addressed to the reader, twin of Thomas. Like him, we too are called to touch and see the Body of the Son, to enter into Communion with Him. To see the wounds of the Crucified One, to immerse ourselves and baptize ourselves in them, means for us to breathe Love stronger than death itself, to find the source of life. In this way we too can contemplate the glory of the Word made Flesh, the Only Begotten of the Father, the glory of that Love for us which is before the foundation of the world. Thomas, like Mary and the others, saw the Lord. But it is not enough to see Him. But he wasn't there when the others saw Him: that's why he is also similar to us, called to believe through the testimony of others. Thomas is the link between the first ones and us, who experience the Risen One through their proclamation. "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe" "The verbs in Greek are aorist because, when the evangelist writes, his readers were among those who believed without having seen. This does not mean that the faith is blind. On the contrary: believers, because they do not seeing, have an unconditional faith and blind people, because they believe, have a more penetrating view than others. In fact, they have opened the eye of the heart, which only sees the reality. This bliss is for us, the readers of the Gospel, who rejoice in unspeakable and glorious joy, because even though we have not seen the Lord, we love Him (1 Pet 1:8). It is the bliss of faith, which is completed by the other bliss: "Knowing these things, you will be blessed if you will put them into practice". Our bliss is not to have an extraordinary encounter with Him, but, by listening to His Word, to lead a new life in love, walking as He has walked (1 Jn 2:6).
First reading from the Acts of the Apostles
RispondiEliminaACTS 2:42-47
They devoted themselves
to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life,
to the breaking of bread and to the prayers.
Awe came upon everyone,
and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.
All who believed were together and had all things in common;
they would sell their property and possessions
and divide them among all according to each one’s need.
Every day they devoted themselves
to meeting together in the temple area
and to breaking bread in their homes.
They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of heart,
praising God and enjoying favor with all the people.
And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
Second reading from the first letter of Peter
1 PT 1:3-9
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who in his great mercy gave us a new birth to a living hope
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading,
kept in heaven for you
who by the power of God are safeguarded through faith,
to a salvation that is ready to be revealed in the final time.
In this you rejoice, although now for a little while
you may have to suffer through various trials,
so that the genuineness of your faith,
more precious than gold that is perishable even though tested by fire,
may prove to be for praise, glory, and honor
at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Although you have not seen him you love him;
even though you do not see him now yet believe in him,
you rejoice with an indescribable and glorious joy,
as you attain the goal of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
GOSPEL OF THE DAY
From the Gospel according to John
JN 20:19-31
On the evening of that first day of the week,
when the doors were locked, where the disciples were,
for fear of the Jews,
Jesus came and stood in their midst
and said to them, “Peace be with you.”
When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side.
The disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.
Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you.
As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”
And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them,
“Receive the Holy Spirit.
Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them,
and whose sins you retain are retained.”
Thomas, called Didymus, one of the Twelve,
was not with them when Jesus came.
So the other disciples said to him, “We have seen the Lord.”
But he said to them,
“Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands
and put my finger into the nailmarks
and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
Now a week later his disciples were again inside
and Thomas was with them.
Jesus came, although the doors were locked,
and stood in their midst and said, “Peace be with you.”
Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands,
and bring your hand and put it into my side,
and do not be unbelieving, but believe.”
Thomas answered and said to him, “My Lord and my God!”
Jesus said to him, “Have you come to believe because you have seen me?
Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”
Now, Jesus did many other signs in the presence of his disciples
that are not written in this book.
But these are written that you may come to believe
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,
and that through this belief you may have life in his name.
WORDS OF THE HOLY FATHER
RispondiEliminaThe Lord is not looking for perfect Christians; the Lord is not looking for Christians who never doubt and always flaunt a steadfast faith. When a Christian is like that, something isn’t right. No, the adventure of faith, as for Thomas, consists of lights and shadows. Otherwise, what kind of faith would that be? It knows times of comfort, zeal and enthusiasm, but also of weariness, confusion, doubt and darkness. The Gospel shows us Thomas’ “crisis” to tell us that we should not fear the crises of life and faith. Crises are not sins, they are part of the journey, we should not fear them. Many times, they make us humble because they strip us of the idea that we are fine, that we are better than others. Crises help us to recognize that we are needy: they rekindle the need for God and thus enable us to return to the Lord, to touch his wounds, to experience his love anew as if it were the first time. Dear brothers and sisters, is better to have an imperfect but humble faith that always returns to Jesus, than a strong but presumptuous faith that makes us proud and arrogant. Woe to those, woe to them! (Regina Caeli, II Sunday of Easter, Divine Mercy, 24 April 2022)
FAUSTI - While the others were in the Upper Room, piled up in common fear, Thomas, the twin, dared to go out, despising the danger. With his actions he contradicts his name; he is not in solidarity with them. He doesn't share their fragility and fear. For this reason he excludes himself from others, interrupting the relationship with them. He is the twin of that deepest part of ourselves that does not accept the limit, but, with the force of despair, represses the fear itself, closing in a loneliness as heroic as destructive. He does not believe in life. He lives death as the only possible horizon.
RispondiEliminaThe evangelist reserves the expression "having seen the Lord" to the direct testimony of the first disciples. In the story he prefers to emphasize the fact that Jesus comes among them, to be recognised through the Word and the Signs of the Passion imprinted in His Body.
In this way He highlights that aspect of faith which is common to them and to us: Visio Dei, vita hominis" : to see God is the life of man.
Fire burns, light illuminates: the encounter with the Risen One raises us up.
The community lives because it has met the Living One.
Transformed into Him by the encounter with Him, it is able to witness Him.
It is in fact one with Him and the Father, in the one Love: it has welcomed the Spirit and lives of His Glory, which it testifies to the world.
Thomas does not believe those who have seen. He doesn't accept the witness of the Word and of the Spirit: he doesn't recognize the new life of the community and he doesn't insert himself in it.
The credibility of the Son and of the Father is entrusted to the brothers who live the communion of mutual love. There we meet the Word becomed Flesh. Thomas wants to "see" and "touch" in order to be part of the twelve, witnesses of the Risen One. To him, as to Paul, this experience will be granted.
But what is important, Jesus will say to Thomas, is not having seen Him for that brief period in which He showed Himself. It is not possible for everyone to be in the place where the spring gushes out; but anyone who is thirsty can drink that living water which now flows over the whole earth. Those who were present where it has sprung up, they canalize it up to us with their testimony, so that everyone can quench his thirst. It is together the first and eighth day, that one day without sunset, source of life without end.
Everything is illuminated by the light of the Risen One.
It is not by chance that the following chapter, which recounts the third manifestation, no longer is indicated any time. By now we always live in that time. In the liturgy, in fact, we begin reading the Gospel with the expression "in that time", because the story re-presents the event to us, making us contemporaries to it.
The Eucharist is the place par excellence where one encounters the Risen One.
We must "make the Eucharist in all things" (1 Th 5:18), so that our concrete existence may become the true spiritual cult pleasing to God (Rom 12:1).
"The disciples were again inside" "Inside" is no longer the place of darkness and of fear, but of communion in peace and in joy, where the fruit of the Spirit blossoms and matures in mission, forgiveness and witness.
It is that inside of those who, being sons, are sent to the outside of the world to continue the work of Jesus.
In this place, the brothers live the memorial of the Son, who makes them "one" and projects them out, witnesses of the common Father to the whole world. "Peace be with you" The arrival and the greeting of the Lord are referred to as in the previous narration. He addresses to the whole community first of all - He says: 'Peace to you', and now Thomas is also in it.
Every encounter with the Living One makes us live "that day". enjoying the same gifts. After making himself known to the community, Jesus turns personally to Thomas. He does not want to lose any of those whom the Father has given him (17:12). Addressing to him, Jesus shows that not only does know the thoughts of his heart, but that He was present when he expressed his disbelief and the desire, considered impossible, to see and touch Him. Jesus is humble: He places Himself at the disposal of Thomas, of His deaf closure to others and to life.
RispondiEliminaThis condescension will make him available to believe in Him, until he reaches the highest point of expression of faith. Jesus exhorted Thomas to realize his desire to touch and to see the sign of the nails that sustained Him on the cross, the wound of the spear that opened His side. The presence of the Risen One is always connected with His wounds, memory of His Passion, an everlasting memory of His Love for us. The exhortation is also addressed to the reader, twin of Thomas.
Like him, we too are called to touch and see the Body of the Son, to enter into Communion with Him.
To see the wounds of the Crucified One, to immerse ourselves and baptize ourselves in them, means for us to breathe Love stronger than death itself, to find the source of life.
In this way we too can contemplate the glory of the Word made Flesh, the Only Begotten of the Father, the glory of that Love for us which is before the foundation of the world.
Thomas, like Mary and the others, saw the Lord. But it is not enough to see Him.
But he wasn't there when the others saw Him: that's why he is also similar to us, called to believe through the testimony of others.
Thomas is the link between the first ones and us, who experience the Risen One through their proclamation. "Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe"
"The verbs in Greek are aorist because, when the evangelist writes, his readers were among those who believed without having seen. This does not mean that the faith is blind. On the contrary: believers, because they do not seeing, have an unconditional faith and blind people, because they believe, have a more penetrating view than others. In fact, they have opened the eye of the heart, which only sees the reality.
This bliss is for us, the readers of the Gospel, who rejoice in unspeakable and glorious joy, because even though we have not seen the Lord, we love Him (1 Pet 1:8). It is the bliss of faith, which is completed by the other bliss: "Knowing these things, you will be blessed if you will put them into practice".
Our bliss is not to have an extraordinary encounter with Him, but, by listening to His Word, to lead a new life in love, walking as He has walked (1 Jn 2:6).