In today’s Gospel we read of the first appearance of the Risen Christ to a gathering of the first disciples in Jerusalem as recorded in the Gospel of Luke. Jesus had appeared earlier to the two disciples who were taking the Road to Emmaus but now he appears to this larger group.
Jesus begins as he customarily does when he appears after his resurrection with the greeting, ‘Peace be with you.’ He uses these particular words only partly to stop the disciples from being afraid but he does so mainly because the greatest gift of the Risen Lord is peace.
In this encounter Jesus goes to great lengths to persuade the disciples that it is indeed he who has risen. He deliberately shows them the wounds of the crucifixion on his body and even goes so far as to eat a piece of fish to prove to them that he is not a ghost.
This is perfectly understandable since some of the disciples would surely have personally witnessed his gruesome death on the Cross of Calvary. They would have needed quite a lot of convincing that this was the same Jesus who had died right before their very eyes.
Indeed any of us, if it were possible for us to have been there with them, would also have taken quite a lot of convincing. Luke tells us that they were completely dumbfounded.
Also critics, both at the time and down through the centuries, could easily have said that the disciples were deluded or that they did actually see a ghost or some sort of spirit. This makes the evidence of Jesus eating a piece of fish quite important; this story of Jesus eating is a categorical denial that he is either an apparition or a figment of their imagination.
So this first part of the text could be summarised as Jesus establishing his credentials, proving to them who he really was.
In the second half of the Gospel reading for today Jesus explains to the disciples that his death and his resurrection were already foretold in the scriptures. The text says that he opened their minds to what was written about him.
This is a lovely phrase and we can believe it to be true because this is surely something we have experienced ourselves. We study the scriptures, or we hear a sermon about them, or we discuss them with others and suddenly one or other aspect of the Gospel becomes crystal clear to us. Then we too feel like our minds have been opened.
What we have in the text then is two things; firstly the proof that he is not a ghost and then the instruction of the disciples by Jesus about what is in the scriptures relating to himself.
When Jesus visits the disciples on that evening he does so with two definite purposes in mind. He wants them to understand that it really is him who has risen and he wants them to understand that what had happened to him was all foretold in the Bible.
What he is doing is preparing them for their new role which is that of missionary. As he says in the last phrase: ‘You are witnesses to this.’
Up to now the disciples had been his companions, his followers; but now they become his witnesses. Their new task is to give testimony. In short they have become missionaries; and this is exactly the same thing that occurs to every Christian once they have accepted the Gospel – they also become missionaries.
The fact that Jesus explains the scriptures to the disciples in his own day ought to alert us present-day disciples that the scriptures are very important. It tells us that they need to be studied and meditated upon and indeed that we should be experts in them.
This is not something that we should leave for the priest to do for us on a Sunday morning. Whenever we go to mass we should pay particular attention to the readings, we should reflect on them and think about what they mean. It is something too that we ought to be doing at home.
Perhaps it would be worth saying that there ought to be a Bible in every home, or at the very least a Sunday Missal that we can consult the readings ourselves. A Bible is better because we can read longer sections of text and see the events of Christ’s life in context rather than just read the very short extracts we get at mass.
Of course what Christ was referring to when he addressed the disciples was the Old Testament and he wanted the disciples to understand the references to himself so that they could appreciate them for themselves but also so that they could convince the Jews living around them of who he was and what he had achieved and how this was foretold.
Today we have also the Gospels and the other writings of the New Testament and these are even more valuable in strengthening our faith. We are able to read about the actual things that Jesus did and learn precisely what he taught as recorded by the four evangelists. The New Testament is therefore infinitely more valuable to us modern day disciples.
In particular when we study the Gospel texts we are able to see how the words addressed to the Apostles are also addressed to us. We find that the text has a real power and speaks directly to us even though we might be separated by a couple of thousand years and even though it is mediated to us in a quite different language from the one it was written in.
As we think about the words of the Gospel and turn them over in our minds we deepen our understanding of the faith and we find wonderful material for prayer and meditation. The little phrase you see at the top of the parish newsletter is always taken from the Sunday Gospel; it is a phrase that you can turn over in your mind during the coming week and use as material for meditation. Try doing this sometime; it will do you no end of good.
In the first reading from the Acts of the Apostles we get a glimpse of how St Peter set about this own task of witnessing to Christ. We see how he fearlessly stood up in front of the people and explained to them precisely who Jesus Christ was and invited them to repent of their sins.
We might not think that we could be as eloquent or courageous as St Peter, but we should not jump to this conclusion too hastily. Instead of shutting our mouths when some topic of faith is discussed we should not hesitate to speak out because it is only when we speak that we will find the words.
Let us not forget that we are Christ’s missionaries in the world of today and unless we speak out the Good News will not be heard and mankind will be the less for it. Jesus says in the last line of the Gospel that the forgiveness of sins will preached to all the nations. Who will do this preaching if it is not us?