EASTER SUNDAY OF THE LORD’S RESURRECTION (C) : 17th April 2022

The readings of Easter Sunday present important lessons as to what Christians must believe in and how they are to live. In the first reading, Peter tells Christians that God gave the Good News through Jesus Christ and that Jesus is the Lord of all. Jesus died, rose from the dead and communicated with the Apostles in His risen form. Those who believe in Him and His   message will receive forgiveness in His name. The   second reading reveals the type of life that believers of Christ must live. They must not be concerned about worldly matters because, through their Baptism, they have died to worldly desires. Now, they must be more concerned about their spiritual life with Christ.

The Gospel passage gives two key ideas for believers: Jesus, the Risen Lord, “comes” to His disciples and the disciples are to “respond” to Him in faith. They are to “believe”, that is, to commit and attach themselves to their risen Lord in faith. In doing so, they “see” Him and become aware of His presence and grasp the mystery that He is indeed the Risen Lord.

However, such a type of faith does not happen suddenly. It grows through the three movements of disciples. Firstly, they sense the “absence” of the Lord; secondly, they “see” when Jesus comes to them; thirdly, they “believe” when Jesus goes to Thomas, and Thomas      exclaims in belief: “My Lord and my God”.

Jesus, You are my Risen Lord.