On the day of Pentecost, Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice, and proclaimed: “You who are Jews, indeed all of you staying in Jerusalem. Let this be known to you, and listen to my words.
“You who are children of Israel, hear these words. Jesus the Nazorean was a man commended to you by God with mighty deeds, wonders, and signs, which God worked through him in your midst, as you yourselves know. This man, delivered up by the set plan and foreknowledge of God, you killed, using lawless men to crucify him. But God raised him up, releasing him from the throes of death, because it was impossible for him to be held by it. For David says of him:
I saw the Lord ever before me, with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed. Therefore my heart has been glad and my tongue has exulted; my flesh, too, will dwell in hope, because you will not abandon my soul to the nether world, nor will you suffer your holy one to see corruption. You have made known to me the paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.
My brothers, one can confidently say to you about the patriarch David that he died and was buried, and his tomb is in our midst to this day. But since he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants upon his throne, he foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that neither was he abandoned to the netherworld nor did his flesh see corruption. God raised this Jesus; of this we are all witnesses. Exalted at the right hand of God, he poured forth the promise of the Holy Spirit that he received from the Father, as you both see and hear.”
The Word of the Lord.
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One of the earliest proofs of the resurrection is the complete transformation in Peter’s behavior.
Remember what happens on Holy Thursday and Good Friday: Jesus is betrayed, arrested, abandoned, and crucified. Meanwhile, Peter vehemently denies ever knowing Jesus.
Only the Apostle John and a few women stay with the LORD until his death.
Yet, in our first reading today, the same Peter who denied ever knowing Jesus, risks his life by preaching to the very same crowds who put Jesus to death.
“This man you killed, using lawless men to crucify him,” he says. “But God raised this Jesus; of this we are all witnesses.”
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“Of this we are all witnesses.”
There’s no other logical reason for the change in Peter’s behavior – from cowardice to courage, fear to freedom – unless he’s actually seen Jesus raised from dead.
Peter’s repeated encounters with the Risen Lord compel him to spend the next three decades of his life proclaiming the Good News.
Then, he dies like his Master, nailed to a cross, confident that he, too, would be raised up to new life.
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How strong is my own belief in the resurrection? Do I have the confidence of Peter, that fire of faith in my bones?
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The Church offers us these readings during the Easter season to bolster our faith, inspiring us to believe what Peter did – there is life after death.
Thanks be to God!
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Image credits: (1) The Resurrection, Pietro Perugino (2) Peter Preaching, Masolino da Panicale (3) Good News Christian News
On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, “They have taken the Lord from the tomb, and we don’t know where they put him.” So Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. When Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and he saw and believed. For they did not yet understand the Scripture that he had to rise from the dead.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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There’s an old saying, “Religion begins in a cemetery.”
Standing at the grave of a loved one, we feel a range of emotions from despair and sadness, to anger and regret, even hope.
Standing at the graveside, Christians hope.
Christ’s victory over death is our promise that we, too, shall overcome the grave. It’s what we celebrate today.
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“Religion begins in a cemetery.”
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If you visit Jerusalem, then you can touch the empty tomb where the body of Jesus once laid. It’s literally a stone’s throw from Calvary, the hill where Jesus was crucified.
But the inner journey from Good Friday to Easter Sunday – from human despair to Christian hope – isn’t that easy; believing in the resurrection takes a giant leap of faith.
Consider the faith journeys of the disciples gathered at the empty tomb that first Easter morning.
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John “saw and believed.” Bingo.
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But Peter was much slower. It seems he remained stuck on Holy Saturday, fluctuating between doubt and faith, despair and hope.
Peter saw the same things John did – the stone rolled away, the burial cloths folded, the tomb emptied of its precious contents.
But he didn’t make the immediate leap from Good Friday to Easter Sunday like John did. Days from now, Peter will say to the others, “I’m going fishing.”
Not, “I’m going to tell the world what God has done for us!” Not, “Jesus has been raised from the dead!”
But, “I’m going fishing.”
Meaning, “I’m returning to my former way of life.” He didn’t want to be Peter the Apostle anymore. Just Peter the fisherman.
How many of us have felt a bit like Saint Peter?
We want to believe. We’ve seen some evidence of the resurrection. Still, we stand somewhere between Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
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Then there’s Thomas, often known as “Doubting Thomas.” Unlike Peter and John, Thomas remained stuck on Good Friday.
He wasn’t with the other disciples when the Risen Lord first appeared. Even after the disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord!”
Thomas responded skeptically, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands and put my finger into the nailmarks and put my hand into his side, I will not believe.”
Thomas was stuck in his grief.
Maybe that’s some of us. We lost someone we loved deeply – and, inwardly, we remain stuck on Good Friday.
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Then there’s Mary Magdalene. She was the first to approach the empty tomb and the first to see the Risen Christ.
Consider why she was there.
The Gospels portray her as a “sinner,” a woman who had many demons cast out of her. Some say she was mentally ill, even a prostitute.
But Jesus treated her differently. He loved her. He healed her. He gave her new life.
So, she never left his side, which is why she was there on Easter morning. She had nowhere else to go.
Maybe some of us are like Mary: we came to Christ broken, and he healed us. We’ve loved him ever since.
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That’s the first Easter community.
There’s John the Beloved who “sees and believes.” There’s swaying Simon Peter, Doubting Thomas, and the once tormented Magdala.
All of them made the life-changing leap of faith from Good Friday to Easter Sunday. For John it was instant. For the others, it took time.
For Thomas, a long time. But eventually, his heart was healed.
Maybe that’s where we fit in. We could be any one of them. Which one do I identify with most? Where am I on my Easter journey – Good Friday, Holy Saturday, or Easter Sunday?
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“Religion begins in a cemetery.”
While many of us have known the bitterness of Good Friday, Christians are called to the hope of Easter Sunday.
Because He is Risen, Alleluia!
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Image credits: (1) Catholic Online (2) Peter and John Running to the Tomb, Eugene Bernand (3) JW.org
(For today’s sermon, scroll down past the Gospel.)
Gospel: John 18: 1 – 19: 42
Jesus went out with his disciples across the Kidron valley to where there was a garden, into which he and his disciples entered. Judas his betrayer also knew the place, because Jesus had often met there with his disciples. So Judas got a band of soldiers and guards from the chief priests and the Pharisees and went there with lanterns, torches, and weapons. Jesus, knowing everything that was going to happen to him, went out and said to them, “Whom are you looking for?” They answered him, “Jesus the Nazorean.” He said to them, “I AM.” Judas his betrayer was also with them. When he said to them, “I AM, “ they turned away and fell to the ground. So he again asked them, “Whom are you looking for?” They said, “Jesus the Nazorean.” Jesus answered, “I told you that I AM. So if you are looking for me, let these men go.” This was to fulfill what he had said, “I have not lost any of those you gave me.” Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it, struck the high priest’s slave, and cut off his right ear. The slave’s name was Malchus. Jesus said to Peter, “Put your sword into its scabbard. Shall I not drink the cup that the Father gave me?”
So the band of soldiers, the tribune, and the Jewish guards seized Jesus, bound him, and brought him to Annas first. He was the father-in-law of Caiaphas, who was high priest that year. It was Caiaphas who had counseled the Jews that it was better that one man should die rather than the people.
Simon Peter and another disciple followed Jesus. Now the other disciple was known to the high priest, and he entered the courtyard of the high priest with Jesus. But Peter stood at the gate outside. So the other disciple, the acquaintance of the high priest, went out and spoke to the gatekeeper and brought Peter in. Then the maid who was the gatekeeper said to Peter, “You are not one of this man’s disciples, are you?” He said, “I am not.” Now the slaves and the guards were standing around a charcoal fire that they had made, because it was cold, and were warming themselves. Peter was also standing there keeping warm.
The high priest questioned Jesus about his disciples and about his doctrine. Jesus answered him, “I have spoken publicly to the world. I have always taught in a synagogue or in the temple area where all the Jews gather, and in secret I have said nothing. Why ask me? Ask those who heard me what I said to them. They know what I said.” When he had said this, one of the temple guards standing there struck Jesus and said, “Is this the way you answer the high priest?” Jesus answered him, “If I have spoken wrongly, testify to the wrong; but if I have spoken rightly, why do you strike me?” Then Annas sent him bound to Caiaphas the high priest.
Now Simon Peter was standing there keeping warm. And they said to him, “You are not one of his disciples, are you?” He denied it and said, “I am not.” One of the slaves of the high priest, a relative of the one whose ear Peter had cut off, said, “Didn’t I see you in the garden with him?” Again Peter denied it. And immediately the cock crowed.
Then they brought Jesus from Caiaphas to the praetorium. It was morning. And they themselves did not enter the praetorium, in order not to be defiled so that they could eat the Passover. So Pilate came out to them and said, “What charge do you bring against this man?” They answered and said to him, “If he were not a criminal, we would not have handed him over to you.” At this, Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves, and judge him according to your law.” The Jews answered him, “We do not have the right to execute anyone,“ in order that the word of Jesus might be fulfilled that he said indicating the kind of death he would die. So Pilate went back into the praetorium and summoned Jesus and said to him, “Are you the King of the Jews?” Jesus answered, “Do you say this on your own or have others told you about me?” Pilate answered, “I am not a Jew, am I? Your own nation and the chief priests handed you over to me. What have you done?” Jesus answered, “My kingdom does not belong to this world. If my kingdom did belong to this world, my attendants would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not here.” So Pilate said to him, “Then you are a king?” Jesus answered, “You say I am a king. For this I was born and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone who belongs to the truth listens to my voice.” Pilate said to him, “What is truth?”
When he had said this, he again went out to the Jews and said to them, “I find no guilt in him. But you have a custom that I release one prisoner to you at Passover. Do you want me to release to you the King of the Jews?” They cried out again, “Not this one but Barabbas!” Now Barabbas was a revolutionary.
Then Pilate took Jesus and had him scourged. And the soldiers wove a crown out of thorns and placed it on his head, and clothed him in a purple cloak, and they came to him and said, “Hail, King of the Jews!” And they struck him repeatedly. Once more Pilate went out and said to them, “Look, I am bringing him out to you, so that you may know that I find no guilt in him.” So Jesus came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple cloak. And he said to them, “Behold, the man!” When the chief priests and the guards saw him they cried out, “Crucify him, crucify him!”
Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him. I find no guilt in him.” The Jews answered, “We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God.” Now when Pilate heard this statement, he became even more afraid, and went back into the praetorium and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” Jesus did not answer him. So Pilate said to him, “Do you not speak to me? Do you not know that I have power to release you and I have power to crucify you?” Jesus answered him, “You would have no power over me if it had not been given to you from above. For this reason the one who handed me over to you has the greater sin.” Consequently, Pilate tried to release him; but the Jews cried out, “If you release him, you are not a Friend of Caesar. Everyone who makes himself a king opposes Caesar.”
When Pilate heard these words he brought Jesus out and seated him on the judge’s bench in the place called Stone Pavement, in Hebrew, Gabbatha. It was preparation day for Passover, and it was about noon. And he said to the Jews, “Behold, your king!” They cried out, “Take him away, take him away! Crucify him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your king?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar.” Then he handed him over to them to be crucified.
So they took Jesus, and, carrying the cross himself, he went out to what is called the Place of the Skull, in Hebrew, Golgotha. There they crucified him, and with him two others, one on either side, with Jesus in the middle. Pilate also had an inscription written and put on the cross. It read, “Jesus the Nazorean, the King of the Jews.” Now many of the Jews read this inscription, because the place where Jesus was crucified was near the city; and it was written in Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. So the chief priests of the Jews said to Pilate, “Do not write ‘The King of the Jews,’ but that he said, ‘I am the King of the Jews’.” Pilate answered, “What I have written, I have written.”
When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four shares, a share for each soldier. They also took his tunic, but the tunic was seamless, woven in one piece from the top down. So they said to one another, “Let’s not tear it, but cast lots for it to see whose it will be, “ in order that the passage of Scripture might be fulfilled that says: They divided my garments among them, and for my vesture they cast lots. This is what the soldiers did. Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son.” Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother.” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.
After this, aware that everything was now finished, in order that the Scripture might be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I thirst.” There was a vessel filled with common wine. So they put a sponge soaked in wine on a sprig of hyssop and put it up to his mouth. When Jesus had taken the wine, he said, “It is finished.” And bowing his head, he handed over the spirit.
Here all kneel and pause for a short time.
Now since it was preparation day, in order that the bodies might not remain on the cross on the sabbath, for the sabbath day of that week was a solemn one, the Jews asked Pilate that their legs be broken and that they be taken down. So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first and then of the other one who was crucified with Jesus. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs, but one soldier thrust his lance into his side, and immediately blood and water flowed out. An eyewitness has testified, and his testimony is true; he knows that he is speaking the truth, so that you also may come to believe. For this happened so that the Scripture passage might be fulfilled: Not a bone of it will be broken. And again another passage says: They will look upon him whom they have pierced.
After this, Joseph of Arimathea, secretly a disciple of Jesus for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate if he could remove the body of Jesus. And Pilate permitted it. So he came and took his body. Nicodemus, the one who had first come to him at night, also came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes weighing about one hundred pounds. They took the body of Jesus and bound it with burial cloths along with the spices, according to the Jewish burial custom. Now in the place where he had been crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had yet been buried. So they laid Jesus there because of the Jewish preparation day; for the tomb was close by.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Two years ago, we took a parish pilgrimage to the Holy Land.
Together, we rode a boat across the Sea of Galilee – the same waters that Peter once fished from. We plunged our bodies into the Jordan River, the very place where Jesus was baptized by John.
We celebrated Mass at the site of the Annunciation, on the Mount of Beatitudes, and even at the empty tomb, where our Lord was raised from the dead!
These experiences change the way one reads scripture. It colors your faith, providing new insights into the life, death, and resurrection of our Lord.
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There was one moment, in particular, that twisted my heart with sorrow in one direction, and, in another direction, with profound admiration for Jesus.
We were standing at the Church of Saint Peter in Gallacantu, which is the site where Pontius Pilate’s courtyard once stood. It was here that Peter denied knowing Jesus three times while the Lord was being led off to be scourged, beaten, mocked, and crucified.
Stepping outside of the church, you begin to descend almost immediately into the Kidron Valley. On the other side of the valley is the hill that encompasses the Garden of Gethsemane.
This is where Jesus fell to his knees, sweat blood, and prayed that the “cup” of his suffering and death would pass from him.
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My entire perspective of today’s Gospel changed while standing there – outside the Church of Saint Peter.
Our guide explained that, from the other side of the valley, Jesus would’ve seen the torches lit in Pilate’s court.
He also would’ve seen tiny flames flickering in the night, creeping towards him as Pilate’s soldiers followed Judas’ lead.
Locals say it would’ve taken about forty-five minutes for those soldiers to reach Jesus. Meanwhile, our Lord could’ve disappeared over the hills in less than fifteen.
Time was of the essence. His opportunity to run faded by the minute, like sand slipping through an hour glass.
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I stood there imaging how Jesus must’ve felt.
It was pitch black. Judas had already betrayed him. His friends were fast asleep nearby. Was this all for nothing?
If Peter and the others couldn’t stay awake in the garden to pray with him for one hour, then how could they carry Jesus’ ministry forward?
In his greatest hour of need, his friends reveal themselves to be tired. Imperfect. Weak.
In spite of what looks like an abysmal failure, Jesus kneels down and prays, “Father, not my will, but Thine be done.”
Although he could’ve left it all behind – he could’ve avoided unimaginable torture – Jesus didn’t budge an inch. “Not my will, but Thine be done.”
Suddenly, the darkness is broken by the soldiers’ torches, who awaken the disciples, arrest Jesus, and lead him off on a forty-five minute journey across the Kidron Valley, up to Pontius Pilate.
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I had never seen the Lord in that light before. I had never imagined the pressure, the temptation, and the opportunity he had to flee.
Then the Lord spoke to me softly saying: sometimes we’re in need of one thing only – help from the Divine.
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While we aren’t standing in the Garden of Gethsemane physically, we all endure periods in life that test every fiber of our faith.
The doctor reads a malignant diagnosis. Our child struggles with mental illness or is bullied. A missile strikes. A gun is fired. Mother Nature wipes away our home.
We stand and weep, tasting the bitterness of Good Friday.
In these moments, remember Jesus. Instead of giving up, or taking matters into his own hands, he knelt down and prayed, commending his life, his body, his Spirit into his Father’s hands.
Three days later, his tomb was empty.
The same God who provided divine strength to his Son will sustain us in our “Gethsemane.” As the Psalmist says, “Trust in the Lord…that you may live secure. Commit your life to the Lord… and he will act” (Psalm 37: 3-5).
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Image credits: (1) Radical Discipleship, WordPress (2) Cornerstone Counseling (3) Saint Mark’s National Theological Center
