Second Sunday in Easter

SECOND SUNDAY IN EASTER.

Good morning/evening every one, I am so happy to welcome you all for today’s Holy Mass. My special welcome to all our parishioners, visitors and every one who is here today, dear friends, every time we come to church we receive the peace of Christ, every time we come to church, we hear Christ saying to us, “Do not doubt but believe”, and every time we come to Church, we join our faith family and profess our faith saying, ‘My God and my Lord”.

Once a beggar had been sitting by the side of the road for thirty years and one day a stranger walked by. “Please spare me some change,” said the beggar. The stranger looked at him and said, “I don’t have any change” then he asked, “what is that you are sitting on?” The beggar said, “Just an old box and I have been sitting on it for as long as I can remember”. “Have you ever looked inside?” And the beggar said, “What is the point. It is an old box and nothing is in it”. “Have a look”, insisted the stranger and the beggar finally with much effort opened the box and saw the box filled with God.

There is a constant search in every one of us for peace and harmony; for divine love and kindness. There are people going to place to place to find peace. And they do find peace but not a permanent one because it is not God-given divine peace. As baptized people, we should know that we are all given permanent divine peace and when we look into ourselves, we will find that peace.

In today’s gospel, When our Lord Jesus appeared to His disciples He says, ‘Peace be with you”. I give you peace. Let my peace be with you all’ because they were for the fear of authority and others went away from Christ and His peace. They lost their hope and forgot to look into themselves the living Christ. For example the two disciples on the way to Emmaus were looking sad and were distracted with so many things. When our Risen Lord joined them and explained everything quoting the Scripture from the beginning saying why the Messiah must undergo great suffering, crucified and be killed but on the third day rise again. When they recognized the Lord at the breaking of the bread, they said to each other, ‘were not our hearts burning within us when He talked about Himself. Were not divine love overflowing within us when He was breaking the bread” and thus they began to experience unending joy and happiness. They began to find divine peace within themselves.

When their eyes opened, they did not look outside but inside. Yes, dear friends, when we look into ourselves, we find divine peace that will bring unending joy and happiness. When the disciples began to experience divine peace, they were given two blessings such as love and forgiveness. The result of peace is love and forgiveness.

While every one the disciples began to experience peace, Thomas struggled without peace and love. He said that He wanted to touch Christ to receive peace. When Jesus appeared again said, ‘Thomas, do not doubt but believe” When Thomas saw Risen Christ, all he said was My Lord and My God. The ultimate profession of faith came out from Thomas.

Conclusion: we are all given peace divine peace through the sacrament of baptism and it is natural to go away from the Lord and struggle to experience divine inner peace but once we look come to know the Lord is alive and present among us, we will not look for anything but all we say is, “My Lord and My God”. God created us not to beg for peace and prosperity; not to beg for love and kindness and all we have to do is just open ourselves to the Lord and look into ourselves. Amen.