The 2nd Sunday of Easter is Divine Mercy Sunday. John 20:19-31
Today, on the second Sunday of Easter, the church celebrates the Feast of Saint Faustina of Poland, the well-known apostle of Divine Mercy. On this Divine Mercy Sunday, St. Faustina invites us to keep our faith, hope, and love fixed on God. Our late Pope Francis asks each of us to be a sign of forgiveness and healing instruments of the Father’s Mercy and channels of Christ’s Peace!
In today’s gospel, we heard that after the death of Jesus, the disciples were living through a crisis. They were confused, disappointed, lost their hopes and expectations, and they were living with fear in the locked room. Jesus understood their humanness and weakness, and Jesus came and stood in their midst and offered them, “Peace be with you.” Jesus knew that in the absence of Jesus, they were living in the real world, which is not a peaceful world; that is why Jesus offered them “PEACE!”
Let me share with you a meaningful story: One day, the Buddha was walking from one town to another town with his few disciples. While they were traveling, they happened to pass a lake. They stopped there, and Buddha told one of his disciples, “I am thirsty, please get me some water from that lake.” One of the disciples walked up to the lake, and he noticed that some people were washing clothes in the water, some children were playing in the water, and as a result, the water became very muddy and dark. The disciple thought, “How can I give this muddy water to Buddha to drink? Therefore, he came back and told the Buddha, “The water in the lake is very muddy. I don’t think it is good to drink.”
So, the Buddha said, “Let us take a little rest here; then, after about half an hour, again the Buddha asked the same disciple to go back to the lake and get some water to drink. The disciple went back to the lake. This time, he found that the mud had settled, and the water was clean and clear. So, he collected some water in a pot and brought it back to the Buddha. The Buddha looked at the water, then at the disciples, and told them, “See, now the water is clean and clear; the mud has settled on its own without anyone’s effort.”
The moral message of the story is that our minds are also like that lake water. When we get disturbed and stressed, we should try to let it go. Give it a little time and stay calm and peaceful; it will settle down naturally. We do not have to put in any effort to calm it down, just as muddy water cleanses itself without anyone’s intervention. We can make the best decisions in our lives when we stay calm and peaceful. Our lives can sometimes be muddy, dirty, messy, and distracted by noises, and we have to accept that these are all realities of our lives. Peace does not mean we’re a place where there is no noise, trouble, or hard work. Peace means to be in the midst of all those things, and still, we can experience peacefulness in our hearts. This is the real meaning of peace.”
In the second part of the Gospel, we see that Jesus told the doubting Thomas, put your finger into my wounds and do not be unbelieving, but believe. When Jesus was on the cross, Jesus’ wounds were signs of failure, but now, after the resurrection, Jesus’ wounds are signs of victory and signs of hope. By showing His wounds, Jesus wants to teach the disciples that they will face suffering and crosses, which will ultimately lead them to victory. Also, Jesus’ wounds remind us that when we face suffering, confusion, fear, doubts, and disappointments, we don’t want to run away from them, but rather, we can find victory and new life. Rather than fleeing from the cross, we can embrace the “cross”. Between the cross and the resurrection, there was silence—but not absence!
The doubting Thomas in each of us must be touched. We are asked to respond to this wound in others and ourselves. Even in our own weaknesses, we are called to touch the wounds of others, so that their wounds and ours may be healed, and we may overcome our fears.
As a community of believers, we are here in this church with our own perfections and imperfections, beliefs and unbelief, wholeness, and brokenness. Thomas — When he put his finger into Christ’s wounds, he personally experienced the Lord’s peace and presence. May this Divine Mercy Sunday help us to know God’s mercy in our lives, and let us share this mercy with our brothers and sisters!
Around the world, we are deeply saddened and pained by the news of the passing of our beloved Pope Francis. His legacy as Holy Father is broad and deep. Throughout his ministry and in his writings, he has consistently called us to deeper faith and a more generous participation in God’s boundless compassion. He has challenged us to turn away from selfish desires and towards communion with our brothers and sisters and respect for God’s creation. His example remains a guiding light to the Universal Church!
We remember Pope Francis as a Pope of peace, known for his closeness to the suffering and the poor. Last Sunday, during the Easter Urbi et Orbi blessing, the day before Pope Francis’ death, millions of people around the world witnessed Pope Francis repeated what had become a slogan in his papacy: a call for peace! Through his words, actions, and deeds, he demonstrated his unwavering commitment to the power of reconciliation, the importance of dialogue, and the urgency of ending violence and war to bring peace to the world!
Pope Francis left a lasting legacy for each of us: the unwavering voice of a peacemaker, his closeness to those who suffer, and his tireless advocacy for an end to global violence were always a priority. Even in his moments of personal difficulty and suffering, Pope Francis remained steadfast in his commitment to peace!
Let us follow his final message, at his last public appearance to bless thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square and share with the crowd through his papal speech, “Peace does not demand winners or losers, but brothers and sisters who, despite misunderstandings and past wounds, choose the path of dialogue.” May his soul, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in Peace!