Daily Gospel Reflection April 11th 2020 – Holy Saturday
Gospel MT 28:1-10
After the sabbath, as the
first day of the week was dawning,
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb.
And behold, there was a great earthquake;
for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven,
approached, rolled back the stone, and sat upon it.
His appearance was like lightning
and his clothing was white as snow.
The guards were shaken with fear of him
and became like dead men.
Then the angel said to the women in reply,
“Do not be afraid!
I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified.
He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said.
Come and see the place where he lay.
Then go quickly and tell his disciples,
‘He has been raised from the dead,
and he is going before you to Galilee;
there you will see him.’
Behold, I have told you.”
Then they went away quickly from the tomb,
fearful yet overjoyed,
and ran to announce this to his disciples.
And behold, Jesus met them on their way and greeted them.
They approached, embraced his feet, and did him homage.
Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid.
Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee,
and there they will see me.”
Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb.
And behold, there was a great earthquake;
for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven,
approached, rolled back the stone, and sat upon it.
His appearance was like lightning
and his clothing was white as snow.
The guards were shaken with fear of him
and became like dead men.
Then the angel said to the women in reply,
“Do not be afraid!
I know that you are seeking Jesus the crucified.
He is not here, for he has been raised just as he said.
Come and see the place where he lay.
Then go quickly and tell his disciples,
‘He has been raised from the dead,
and he is going before you to Galilee;
there you will see him.’
Behold, I have told you.”
Then they went away quickly from the tomb,
fearful yet overjoyed,
and ran to announce this to his disciples.
And behold, Jesus met them on their way and greeted them.
They approached, embraced his feet, and did him homage.
Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid.
Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee,
and there they will see me.”
Dear Friends and Family,
“Tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.” Today’s many readings take us from the beginning of creation to the ultimate moment of liberation: the empty tomb. Jesus tells those closest to him to go home to Galilee. One can imagine the quiet and remote Galilee, where Jesus would help them to understand what has happened. We find ourselves at home today, quietly waiting and wondering the meaning of it all. We have one more day of sitting in anticipation. This can be difficult for some because we are often people of action. We confront problems, we take on responsibilities to our family, our friends and our communities and we work on those issues till we find a solution. But now in this time and in this place we are called to be at home and wait. I’m sure many conversations happened on the road to Galilee, but as they returned to their homeland, I’m sure they realized all their ideas and plans would fall short of the larger vision God had in store for them.
So as we wait we can, like the disciples, discuss our ideas for the future. But maybe we are called to discern, to let God take the lead and show us his plans for our lives. Modern life runs at a break neck speed, giving us very little time for reflection, to sit in the silence, or to hear that quiet small voice of God in our lives. Let’s use this Holy Saturday to rest and wait, to live in the moment that God will use to reveal his plan. We may all be longing to get back to the normal lives we enjoyed before this pandemic. But maybe, God will use this time to return us to our homes, to remember and restore that which was lost. Like the disciples that returned to Galilee unsure of what the future would bring, we know that God will be glorified if we have the courage to wait for him and to allow Him to show us the way.
No comments:
Post a Comment