You are witnesses (THIRD SUNDAY OF EASTER)
Scripture:
Luke 24: 35-48.
Reflection
My dear sisters and brothers,
Now, let us listen to the Gospel reading according to Saint Luke (Luke 24:35-48) for our reflection:
The two disciples recounted what had taken place on the way,
and how Jesus was made known to them
in the breaking of bread.
While they were still speaking about this,
he stood in their midst and said to them,
“Peace be with you.”
But they were startled and terrified
and thought that they were seeing a ghost.
Then he said to them, “Why are you troubled?
And why do questions arise in your hearts?
Look at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself.
Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones
as you can see I have.”
And as he said this,
he showed them his hands and his feet.
While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed,
he asked them, “Have you anything here to eat?”
They gave him a piece of baked fish;
he took it and ate it in front of them.
He said to them,
“These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you,
that everything written about me in the law of Moses
and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.”
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
And he said to them,
“Thus it is written that the Christ would suffer
and rise from the dead on the third day
and that repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,
would be preached in his name
to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things.
You are my witnesses...these are the last words of the above reading.
The question arises: how can I be a witness?
We have the answer in the above gospel text itself.
We will reflect one by one...
1. The Word of God:
By reading and reflecting the scripture, I can be a witness to Christ Jesus in my personal life.
The Word is powerful, and it transforms our lives as we listen to God’s message.
2. Be a reconciler:
By being a carrier of reconciler, we not only preach the forgiveness of God, but we also preach the peace of Christ Jesus. As a peacemaker, we bring the reconciliation of Christ Jesus among the weakened persons and among the broken families and among the divided communities and among war torn nations.
3. Breaking of the Bread:
Each day, 25,000 people, including more than 10,000 children, die from hunger and related causes.
The hungry person does not listen to anything until his/her stomach is fed with food.
Feed the hungry is not a slogan but the powerful way to preach the Word of God in and through concrete actions.
We become a witness to the Risen Christ Jesus in our lives when we reflect the Word of God, when we become a peacemaker and reconciler and when we feed the hungry with bread.
May the Heart Jesus live in the hearts of all. Amen...
