Thursday within the octave of Easter year A

Theme:  Glory to whom it is due

The attitude of Peter and John in todays 1st reading is saying a lot to all of us as children of God. The people are in awe, because of the healing of the lame man at the beautiful gate. As a result of this, the people are now seeing them as extraordinary people who have performed a wonderful action. Peter immediately pointed out the fact that it was not done by them, but rather by Jesus Christ whom they treated unjustly, killed and has resurrected. They simply refused to accept the glory that belongs to God, that the people were already giving to them.

Dearly beloved in Christ, Peter used the opportunity to educate the people and invited them to embrace repentance and ask for Gods forgiveness, because of what they did against Jesus because of ignorance. It is worthy of note also to point out the fact that the Apostles believed that the people and their leaders acted out of ignorance and were ready to reconcile them with God. The openness and desire of the Apostles to welcome the people into the Christian fold, is worthy of emulation.

My brothers and sisters in Christ, the difficulties and pains Jesus and his followers went through in the hands of the people and their leaders, did not make them angry and bitter towards the people. They did what Jesus would have done in such a situation, made excuses for the people and their leaders, forgave them, and gave them the opportunity for repentance. This is an attitude that we all must try to imbibe in our lives, especially towards those who have offended us in one way or the other. We are the people of the resurrection, so we must raise the bar and continue to witness to the resurrected Christ anywhere we find ourselves in life.

In the gospel reading of today, Jesus appeared to his followers and continued to remove their doubts and strengthen their faith in the resurrection of Christ. Jesus takes them down memory lane and lead them to the point of the resurrection where they are at the moment. It is my prayer today that God will continue to strengthen our faith in God, irrespective of what we encounter in our daily life. May almighty God bless you in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit. Amen. Peace be with you.

 

Thursday within the octave of Easter year A, by Fr. Jude Ifeanyi Ifezime, C.S.Sp