5/9/2023 0 Comments Octave of easterThomas, wounded by his inability to believe even the testimony of the other apostles, making him the Church’s first heretic. Jesus died from wounds inflicted by the world’s unbelief. What is our reaction when powerful institutions suddenly crush someone to whom we have given our complete loyalty? Our immediate reaction to crisis is usually to run and hide.īoth Jesus and Thomas are wounded – Thomas more so. The Greek word skepsis simply means “doubt”, “misgiving”, “hesitation”. If Mary wept for her loss of Christ for an hour, Thomas weeps for a week. Now, she is to know him through faith-presence. She knew him once in the flesh – that is not how she is to know him now. Jesus says: “ Do not hold on to me.” – meaning that her relationship with him is now to be more intimate than the physical. He calls each of us by name, for his call is always personal. Mary does not recognise the Risen Lord until he calls her by name. We call her the Apostle to the Apostles, as the apostles first hear of this marvelous event from her. Yet it is Mary, that is chosen as the Resurrection’s first witness. ![]() ![]() Women could not legally witness anything. It would have surprised the first Christian converts, living as they did in a male-dominated society. It is to a woman that Christ first appears. To Mary Magdalen, on Easter Sunday, Jesus says: “ Do not touch me” (Jn 20:17).Ī week later, he says to Thomas, “ Touch me” (Jn 20:27) If you observe carefully, Easter week is set within the frame of two appearances in which Jesus seems to say conflicting statements. ![]() Over eight days, we are presented with the different appearances of the Risen Lord. It is as if the Church is saying that 24 hours is not enough to absorb the full meaning. The Church sees the eight days of the Octave of Easter as one day. Those first Easter witnesses all tell us something about our own witness. So, what we have in the Gospel accounts are not the event itself, but the reactions to the event. It was an intimate moment between Jesus and his Father. A Personal Reflection – (by Msgr Graham Schmitzer)
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