WE ARE EASTER WITNESSES
Introduction
Peter had refused to say that he knew Jesus. Now, he cannot stop proclaiming that Jesus is risen. Mary Magdalene and Mary, the mother of James, rush to tell the apostles that Jesus is risen. The readings of today are all about witnessing to the resurrection. Peter proclaims it as the key to his faith: Jesus who had been killed is truly risen and we, his disciples, are witnesses to this fact and this person. Mary Magdalene and her companion are told by the angels at the tomb that Jesus is risen. Then, they themselves encountered him. The Risen Jesus instructed them to convey this news to his other disciples. For now, they too, are witnesses that Christ is alive. We are these witnesses today.
Opening Prayer
Our living God,
our heart is glad and rejoices
and we feel secure in our faith,
that we have a living person to believe in,
Jesus Christ, who is risen from the dead.
Let him show us the path of life,
let us live in the joy of his presence
and give us the grace to make us witnesses,
so that we can proclaim with our whole life,
that Jesus is our risen, living Lord,
now and for ever.
Reading 1:Acts 2:14, 22-33
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 16:1-2a and 5,7-8, 9-10,11
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
This is the day the LORD has made;
let us be glad and rejoice in it.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel: Mt 28:8-15
Intercessions
– For all the newly-baptized, that they may keep growing nearer to the risen Lord, we pray:
– For the missionaries, that they may proclaim to all those who are willing to listen that Jesus is the Risen Lord, who raises us above our selfishness and limitations, we pray:
– For all of us, that we may be joyful people, firm in our faith, because we have a Lord who has overcome evil and death, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
God,
it is a real joy for us
that your Son, Jesus, has invited us
to sit at table with him.
Let him again break for us
the bread of himself
and let him make us a people of joy and hope,
who live close to Jesus
and close to our brothers and sisters,
as we are bound together
by the life and love of Jesus Christ,
our risen Lord, now and for ever.
Prayer after Communion
Lord God,
your Son Jesus, has spoken to us
his Word of greeting that takes away our fears
and that fills us with joy.
He has nourished us at his table
with the warmth of his loving presence.
Give us now the inspiration
to let our whole life bear witness to him,
to say that we believe in his message of hope
and that he is the center and meaning of our life.
For he is Jesus, our living Lord,
now and for ever.
Blessing
Do not be afraid. Tell your brothers and sisters that the Lord is risen and alive. Let him also be alive in our communities, in our joy, in our faith, in our readiness to serve and love. May Almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Reflection:
Octave of Easter, Monday
1 April 2024
Mt. 28:8-15
REJOICE!
We are in the time of the Easter Octave, and throughout this week, the liturgy of the Word is focused on the diverse forms of Jesus' appearances to his disciples.
When the guards reported the empty tomb to the chief priests, the Jewish authorities became anxious. In fact, they painfully realised that all their planning to silence a preacher who nagged them had come to nothing. Therefore, they cooked up an alternate strategy wherein they attempted to bribe the members of the guard force to falsely claim that Christ's disciples had stolen his body during their sleep.
The Jewish authorities made every effort to eliminate Jesus. They used treachery to capture him, illegality to put him on trial, and slander to accuse him before Pilate. In the end, they resorted to bribery to suppress the truth about him, but they failed miserably. This event highlights the universal truth that goodness and truth always prevail over wickedness and deceit. The gospel of goodness is more powerful than any evil plot.
The request made by the chief priests to the guards was not sensible. If the guards were sleeping when Jesus' body went missing, how could they identify the disciples of the deceased man as the ones who took the body? If they were asleep, then they would be unaware of how the sealed tomb was breached and how the body disappeared. And if they were awake, the forces responsible for breaching the tomb were beyond the guards' control to prevent.
The Risen Jesus's first words to the frightened women were, "Rejoice." The resurrection is the greatest of all joys. This is also the Lord’s message for us today—REJOICE!