“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.” Luke 24:38–39
Imagine if Jesus appeared to you. What if He showed you the wounds
in His hands and feet and invited you to touch Him so as to
believe. Would you believe? Most likely you would, to a certain
extent. It would be the beginning of an experience that could be
life-changing, just as it was for these disciples. Our Lord’s
appearance to the disciples led to their transformation from men
who were confused and doubtful to men who were filled with joy and
zeal. Eventually, they would go forth preaching about Jesus as
witnesses to His death and Resurrection with courage and with a
desire that all who heard them would turn to Jesus as their
Savior.
In the first reading of today’s Mass, Saint Peter is recorded as
doing this very thing. After healing a crippled man at the gate of
the Temple, a crowd gathered in amazement and Peter preached to
them about Jesus. He concluded His sermon by saying, “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.”
Today, we are entrusted with the same mission given to our Lord’s
disciples, and we must preach with the same zeal, courage and
conviction with which they preached. First, we must become as
certain as they were about Jesus’ triumph over sin and death. We
must turn from all sin and believe that the fullness of life is
found only in Christ Jesus. But then we must commit ourselves to
the proclamation of this faith with every fiber of our being.
Begin by considering how deeply you believe in Jesus as the Savior
of the World. Though it might be tempting to think that having
Jesus appear to you in person would help deepen your faith in Him,
the truth is that the first disciples were not primarily convinced
because of the physical appearances of Jesus. Rather, this gift
came primarily through the spiritual touching of their minds. After
appearing to the disciples physically, we read that Jesus “opened
their minds to understand the Scriptures.” This was what convinced
them more than anything—the spiritual gift of understanding. And
that gift is offered to you today, just as it was to the first
followers of Jesus.
Saint Thomas Aquinas explains that the spiritual gift of
understanding is a gift that reveals to us the very essence of God.
He explains that it is a much deeper form of knowledge than that
which is obtained through our five senses. Thus, simply seeing
something with our eyes, touching it or hearing it is not nearly as
convincing as the knowledge obtained through the spiritual gift of
understanding. The gift of understanding enables us to “read
inwardly” and to penetrate the very essence of something. For that
reason, the physical appearance of Jesus might have been the first
step toward believing, but it wasn’t until these same disciples
encountered our Lord within their souls, perceiving the very
essence of His Resurrection inwardly, that they were forever
changed. Only this form of knowledge could then convince them to go
forth and proclaim the message of salvation.
Reflect, today, upon your own knowledge of Jesus and the
transforming power of His Resurrection in your life. Has God spoken
to you within the depths of your soul? Have you perceived this
inward knowledge and had your mind opened? Listen attentively to
our Lord—not just with your ears but primarily with your spirit. It
is there, within you, that you, like the first disciples, will come
to know and believe in the life, death and resurrection of Christ
so that you can then go forth empowered to proclaim these truths to
others.
My revealing Lord, You showed Yourself to Your disciples not
only physically but spiritually, revealing Your very essence to
them interiorly. Please bestow this gift upon me, dear Lord. May I
come to know You and believe in You with all my heart. As I do,
please use me as an instrument of Your mercy to others. Jesus, I
trust in You.
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Featured images above: Appearance of Jesus to the disciples,
fresco in the basilica of Saint Andrew in Mantua, Italy, via
Adobe
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