Easter Sunday - Nonsense_042119

Deacon Tom Writes,

“Nonsense”

Easter Sunday, The Resurrection of the Lord , The Mass of Easter Day, Year C

For many people the story of that first Easter morning is sheer nonsense. Even the Apostles didn’t believe it at first when the women told them they had seen Jesus.  And the passage of time hasn’t made believing any easier. As a matter of fact, the dawning of the age of cynicism and the challenges of living in a materialistic society are formidable obstacles to having any faith in anything today, let alone belief in the resurrection of the dead.

Let’s face it we all have doubts!  We all have a little bit of “Thomas” in us, the Thomas who would not believe until he put his hands into the wounds where the nails had been. Thomas was lucky; he was able to see with his own eyes. But we fall into that “blessed” category, as in, “Blessed are they who have not seen and have believed”.   

Many people of our day have abandoned their faith completely. Others are “casual worshipers” whose faith is a matter of convenience. We seem to have lost that excitement, the awesome bewilderment of what lies in store for those who believe in Jesus, who, by His Resurrection, tells us that one-day we too will rise from the dead.  It really does seem too good to be true.

Our journey of faith is a gradual one. We grow a little at a time; we mature in our faith slowly. A prayerful spirit, a generous heart, charitable words and deeds deepen our faith and peal away our skepticism and disbelief and Jesus becomes real to us. When Jesus is a part of our lives, when we know that He lives, we experience today’s remarkable story with excitement and joy knowing with absolute certainty that Jesus is not to be found among the dead. And, although it sounds like nonsense, for those who believe, death will not get the last word. For we were all created to live in the kingdom where Jesus, the firstborn from the dead, will reign forever.  

Happy Easter!

Deacon Tom