First
Reading: Gen. 1:1-2:2; Second Reading: Gen. 22:1-18; Third Reading: Ex.
14:15-31, 15:20-21; Fourth Reading: Is. 54:5-14; Fifth Reading: Is. 55:1-11;
Sixth Reading: Bar. 3:9-15, 3:32-4:4; Seventh Reading: Ez. 36:16-17, 18-28;
Eighth Reading: Rom. 6:3-11; Gospel: Lk. 24:1-12.
One Easter a priest and a taxi driver both died
and went to heaven. St. Peter was at the Pearly gates waiting for them.
'Come with me,' said St. Peter to the taxi
driver.
The taxi driver did as he was told and followed
St Peter to a mansion. It had everything you could imagine from a bowling alley
to an Olympic size pool.
'Oh my word, thank you,' said the taxi driver.
Next, St. Peter led the priest to a rough old
shack with a bunk bed and a little old television set.
'Wait, I think you are a little mixed up,' said
the priest. 'Shouldn't I be the one who gets the mansion? After all I was a
priest, went to church every day, and preached God's word.'
'Yes, that's true.' St Peter rejoined, 'But
during your Easter sermons people slept. When the taxi driver drove,
everyone prayed.'
Last two days we spent in prayer and fasting recollecting the most
painful moments in the life of Jesus – the suffering he had undergone, the
humiliations he bore, painful scorching inflicted on him, the heavy cross he
had to carry, the cruelties of Roman soldiers, ingratitude from the people who
received his blessings and finally the painful death on the cross. Now we are
in the most blessed and most joyful
night of the year as we celebrate Jesus’ resurrection.
"On the first day of the week, at early dawn, the
women who had accompanied Jesus from Galilee came to the tomb, taking the
spices that they had prepared. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb. But he Gospel of Mark says that the three
women came to the tomb wondering who would roll away the stone for them. Gravestones are
also known as grave markers, headstones, and tombstones.
In earlier times when there were no cemeteries, people used to have burial
plots near their family homes. These graves were usually marked with rough
stones, rocks, or wood, apparently, as a way to keep the dead from rising.
Their great concern was that this stone placed at the entrance
of the tomb of Jesus might become a hindrance for them to enter the tomb and anoint
the body of Jesus. They hoped that someone would help them to roll away the
stone for them for them to allow them anoint
Jesus’ body.
During this Easter Vigil I invite
you to reflect on two things. First: Have we allowed a stone to prevent us from
meeting Jesus? Our positions, our family, our pride, our selfishness or our
desire to amass wealth can serve as huge tomb stones that will keep us
away from meeting Jesus. Like the women who have wondered who will roll
away the stone for us we have to seek for the grace of God to roll away all
such impediments that keep us away from meeting Jesus. It happened to the
two disciples going to Damascus “And behold, two of them were going that very
day to a village named Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem. And
they were conversing with each other about all these things which had taken
place. And it came about that while they were conversing and discussing, Jesus
himself approached, and began traveling with them. But their eyes were
prevented from recognizing him (Luke 24:13-16).” It happened to the eleven
disciples. “But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain
which Jesus had designated. And when they saw him, they worshiped him; but some
were doubtful (Matthew 28:16-17).”
We see the disciples
testifying, time and time again, to the fact they were eyewitnesses of His
resurrection. This firsthand evidence of the disciples is a powerful argument
for the resurrection of Christ. The disciples knew that He had risen because
they saw Him with their own eyes. They have experienced him. Today Jesus stands
before us and invite us to experience Him as he invited Tomas. And after eight
days his disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the
doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, 'Peace to you!' Then he
said to Thomas, 'Reach your finger here, and look at my hands; and reach your
hand here, and put it into my side. Do not be unbelieving but believing.'(John
20:26-28). Jesus calls us to roll away the stones that come before us
preventing us from meeting Jesus.
Second: We have to be
instrumental to roll away the stones that prevent people from meeting Jesus.
The women pondered who will roll away the stones for us. Today there are so
many who ask the same question. Like Isaiah we should be able to
say "Here am I. Send me!" The
appearances convinced His disciples, beyond any doubt, that He had risen from
the dead. So they travelled to the ends of the world declaring this Good News
and sharing the Peace and Joy offered by Jesus. Today the church entrusts
each one of us with the same mission.
May the risen Lord bless us
all with His Peace and Joy.
Satish