Divine Mercy
Crowd/Gossip/Struggles to Community/sharing/Joy
The disciples continue to find it difficult to believe in the resurrection and Jesus continues to be patient, makes all attempts to help them, continues to accompany them, console them. Jesus says to them, “peace be with you” three times in a simple apparition in John’s gospel (Jn 20,19–31). Peace is a fruit of the Holy Spirit; it’s one of the gifts of the risen Lord. A great philosopher says, peace can’t be created; it’s a gift that has to be received. We can facilitate the conditions for peace, but cant create peace. Jesus is offering peace to his disciples. This is in the midst of all their doubts; this is also in the midst of the hostile environment where they are in, the authorities are not happy with the news of the resurrection. Jesus is not changing all their situations; but he is offering them peace in the midst of their circumstances. Living examples of this can be seen in the life of so many of our near and dear ones or friends, who radiate joy and peace in spite of all pain and sufferings.
God’s mercy is encountering the vulnerabilities and fears of the disciples in each apparitions. To the ten disciples, Jesus is showing them his hand and feet and the wounds; is helping them to understand that the risen Lord is not spirit alone. Thomas was not in the group; he finds it so difficult to believe that Jesus is risen. We can argue in two ways — one is to call Thomas as doubting Thomas; another option is to say that Thomas was so eager to see Jesus. Whatever is the case, Jesus comes to meet him; shows him his wounds. Then, Thomas makes one of the beautiful faith proclamations in the Bible- my Lord and my God. This faith proclamation is not produced at the supreme moment of faith or worship, but as a result of encounter between God’s mercy and Thomas’ vulnerabilities. This encounter, over the centuries, produces something so beautiful and unimaginable. Most of the times, such fruits are much more powerful that the fruits produced through our strengths or talents.
The encounter of the mercy of the risen Lord with his fear and anxiety transformed Peter from being the one who denies Jesus to the one who proclaims Jesus courageously. I would say it helped me to move from judging mentality to a greater acceptance, which helps me immensely in my ministry of the sacrament of reconciliation. Even in the life of Jesus, we see many such examples. It happened for the prodigal son; it happened for the woman who caught in the act of adultery; it happened for Zacchaeus and the good thief on the cross. Yes, encounter with divine mercy can transform the weakest in our lives into something that can be a mighty instrument for God’s glory and for the growth of God’s kingdom.
Be merciful as your heavenly father is merciful. This encounter between God’s mercy and our vulnerabilities can happen even in our human relationships and encounters. We all have our strengths and talents, and they are wonderful. But in our relationships, we can allow the other person(a trusted other — be it spouse, friend, mentor or anyone else) along with Jesus to touch our vulnerability; the other should touch the vulnerability with utmost respect; its an extremely privileged moment. In this encounter, healing and love will flourish.
Some of us will have an experience where I just had a terrible experience or a moment of despair, and someone reached out to me in love and kindness, without judgement, but with acceptance, it has brought healing.
Instead of gossips and toxicity, it leads to healing and love. When we have such relationships, we imitate divine-human interactions even in our human-human relationships. This can be the greatest witness for an Easter Christian.
