The last portion of the dialogue between Jesus and Nicodemus is presented (Jn 3:16-21).  It starts out with what is likely the most well-known Bible reference today, John 3:16 (above).  Jesus goes on to say that the Son of God will not condemn those who believe in Him, but those who do not believe, preferring darkness, have condemned themselves.  The Son is the light of the world.  Those who do evil do not approach the light, keeping their evil ways in darkness; whereas those living in truth have no compunction about coming into the light.  The “Jn 3:16” placard is prevalent at sporting events and large gatherings.  When it prompts someone to actually look up the passage, a great service is being done to the seeker.  Hopefully such an entry into the Bible leads that person to read more and more and to be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.  The message of v. 16 is powerful, but one needs to read only to v. 20 to come to understand what “belief” really is.  True belief in Jesus means adhering to His message by giving up one’s sinful and evil ways.  What sort of belief is it that pays lip service to Jesus while ignoring his commands (cf. Is 29:13 and Mt 15:8)?  After all, even v. 16 says that belief in Jesus entails confessing Him as Son of God, that is, one equal to God (cf. Jn 10:33).  A person who has not been exposed to Divine Revelation or has not been brought up solidly in Christian faith has an excuse, at least initially, for failing to adhere to Jesus’ teaching: ignorance.  What is our excuse?  Why do we continue sinful habits and evil deeds when we have the benefits of knowing Christ well in Word and Sacrament.  Going back often to these verses — at least every time we are reminded by some spectator of the opening line — seems to be a good opportunity to re-evaluate our relationship with Christ.

Today’s gospel passage (Jn 3:7b-15) picks up from what we would have heard yesterday had not the Feast of the Annunciation been celebrated.  This episode, in which the religious leader Nicodemus seeks out Jesus to talk with Him, concludes tomorrow.  The Pharisee professes that Jesus comes from God because of His works.  Jesus tells him that one must be “born from above” to recognize the kingdom of God.  Nicodemus misunderstands thinking Jesus said that one needs to be reborn naturally.  Then Jesus talks about the movement of the Holy Spirit and the lack of understanding/belief of the religious leaders (see above).  Finally, Jesus speaks of His descent from heaven and foretells figuratively of His death (being “lifted up” for the same purpose as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert) so that those who believe will be saved.  If we ever grow frustrated about others not accepting our witness to our faith in Jesus, or get discouraged by the growing rejection of Christianity in our culture, imagine how Jesus must have felt.  Here Jesus is speaking with a man who is given great deference by his people as a teacher of religion.  This man likely spent most of his life reading, studying, pondering, debating, and teaching the holy texts.  Yet Jesus calls him out for his lack of understanding of Jesus’ (the Messiah’s) mission.  Is it any wonder that we are challenged in a similar way today?  Nevertheless, we must continue to “speak of what we know and…testify to what we have seen” with perseverance and fervor, trusting that God will use us to move hearts and praying to Him that He will provide abundant water to those seeds He plants through us.

The Feast of the Annunciation is celebrated today becuase March 25th fell during Holy Week this year.  The gospel reading is, naturally,  from Luke describing Mary’s encounter with the archangel Gabriel (Lk 1:26-38).  The angel is sent to Mary’s home in Nazareth.  He greets her, she is troubled, and then he tells her about whom she will conceive and what is to be the child’s role.  Mary, as virgin, wants to know how this pregnancy will happen.  Gabriel explains that it is through the Holy Spirit that she will be of child; he also makes her aware of the miracle that took place with her cousin who, though past child bearing years, is advanced in her pregnancy.  After all this, Mary consents to her call to be the mother of the Son of God.  The angel’s first words of greeting to Mary are in the headline.  And what a salutation it is!  An angel, a higher order creature, hailing a human being, calling her “full of grace.”  This girl, set aside from all eternity to be offered the opportunity to bring the incarnate God into the world, is greeted in such an amazing way that she doesn’t know what to think about this message.  Yet, because she is full of grace (i.e., no sin — original or personal — has ever disturbed her perfect communion with the will of God) she has complete openness to the message of the angel.  This results in her allowing this wondrous thing to happen to her.  A great model for us.  We will likely not have an angelic messenger ever greet us in this spectacular fashion.  But, like Mary, we should always strive to be aligned with the Lord’s will for us.  None of us can claim to be sinless from the moment of conception as Mary was, but by eliminating sin and vice from our lives, we capacitate ourselves more and more to be open to the promptings of the Holy Spirit.  Even so, setting our wills aside in favor of God’s will can be a scary proposition.  We, along with Mary, cannot know the full implications of abandoning ourselves to God.  But “Fear is useless; what is needed is trust.” (Luke 8:50, Mark 5:36).  When Mary was approached by Gabriel, it is as if the whole world held its breath waiting for her response.  No other call will ever be as dramatically history altering as this one.  But each person created by the Father has a unique role that only he can fulfill.  Let us be attuned to it always and follow it unhesitatingly.  Whether we are asked to change one life or the world, we must do our part for the body of Christ, the Church.

The Second Sunday of Easter gives us the first ending of John’s Gospel (Jn 20:19-31).  It records the first appearance of Jesus to the disciples on the evening of His resurrection.  He appears to them in their locked room and shows them His wounds.  They rejoice at the sight of Him.  Then Jesus breathes the Holy Spirit on them and gives them the power to forgive sins.  The apostle Thomas was not there at the time and does not believe their story when He returns.  The following Sunday Jesus appears again, this time with Thomas present.  Jesus invites Thomas to handle Him so that he might come to believe, at which Thomas proclaims Jesus as Lord and God.  John concludes by saying that many of Jesus’ works were not included in His rendition of Jesus’ ministry but what He has written was for the reader come to belief and ultimately to eternal life.  When John talks about the initial encounter of the disciples with Jesus on Easter Sunday he does not mention any fear they might have had at His initial startling appearance.  Rather he focuses on the joy they felt (remember that he was one of that group) at seeing and hearing their Master, whom they thought was gone for good, once again.  We can imagine that they might think, after such a miracle, that Jesus now would be with them always.  In fact, shortly afterwards, just prior to His Ascension, Jesus does give just such an assurance (recorded in Matthew 28:20).  How grateful we should be of Jesus’ promise of a never ending closeness to His people.  Rejoicing should be our attitude when we encounter Christ at Mass, in His Word, and most especially in the Host.  Christ is risen, He lives, and He gives us life through grace.  We should also feel and express joy in our encounter with other Christs — that is, all with whom we interact.  Not only are we to see Jesus in everyone, we are to be Jesus to everyone, especially those we find most difficult with whom to deal.  Our place in heaven will be great (cf. Mt 5:12 and Lk 6:23)  and we will have been instrumental in filling up many other mansions (cf. Jn 14:2).

The conclusion of Mark’s Gospel gives a very brief account of the time after the Resurrection (Mk 16:9-15).  Mark tells of Jesus’ appearance to Mary Magdalene and her telling the mourning apostles of this encounter (their response is above).  The Emmaus Road meeting and those two disciples’ return to the Eleven is mentioned (the apostles still don’t believe).  Finally Jesus appears to the Eleven themselves; He berates them for their unbelief then tells them to proclaim the Gospel to every creature everywhere.  After all the time Jesus’ closest disciples spent with Jesus and the times they heard Him predict His death and resurrection, the Eleven still could not grasp that Jesus had risen.  Undoubtedly their anguish over the loss of their master, teacher, friend, and constant companion was devastating.  Fear regarding their own fate (remember they locked themselves away) also must have clouded their minds.  A cautionary tale for us today: Let not sadness, fear, or any other negative feeling or emotion ever separate us from God or, worse, make us question His motives or even His very existence.  We have had two thousand years to learn about Christ.  We have come to understand the redemptive power of suffering — we mustn’t let it go to waste.  Rather, let us cooperate in the redemptive power of suffering by embracing the cross, by practicing the virtues, and by eschewing sin and its temptations.

A third encounter between Jesus and some disciples is the scene of today’s gospel passage (Jn 21:1-14).  Simon Peter says he is going fishing and six other disciples decide to join him.  After a futile night of fishing (see above), Jesus (at this point unrecognized by them) asks them from the shore if they caught anything.  They respond in the negative, thus prompting Jesus to tell them to cast their nets once more.  The nets are filled to breaking when they do so.  Peter then recognizes Jesus and swims to Him.  By the time the rest come with the catch, Peter and Jesus are already cooking by a fire and Jesus serves them all breakfast.  It is striking that these professional fishermen caught not a single fish after a night of work.  Yet the moment Christ arrives on the scene they can barely handle the number of creatures that filled their net.  Recall that at the beginning of His ministry, when calling the very first of His followers, Jesus told them that they would move from catching fish to catching men (Mt 4:18-22 and Mk 1:16-20).  Peter, James, and John must certainly have recalled this when Jesus, now at the end of His time on earth, again performs a miracle for them.  Jesus reinforces that without Him they can do nothing, they can have no success.  But with Him they can change the world in an instant.  How this must have sustained them through the trials, frustrations, and persecutions they were destined to encounter.  How they must have constantly returned to prayer to sustain them and beg the Lord to fill their nets with converts.  A lesson in humility that perdures.  With God all things are possible (Mt 19:26 and Mk 10:27).  Without Him nothing good can come from our own efforts.  We can be the Lord’s instrument to bring many persons to Him.  Let us imitate the disciples who unhesitatingly heed the Lord’s command thus producing a bountiful yield for Him.

Yesterday’s story continues as Jesus miraculously appears out of thin air to the disciples as the Emmaus Road pair are relaying their experience with the Lord (Lk 24:35-48).  They are “startled and terrified” but Jesus tries to reassure them that He is real by word and action (He encourages them to touch Him and He eats in front of them).  Finally, He reminds them of what He said and opens their minds to Scripture passages that prophesy His coming into the world, His suffering, death, and resurrection, and the subsequent evangelization that would be required.  Once the disciples got over their fear, they became “incredulous for joy.”  This is a good example for us.  What are the things that temper our joy in the Lord or prevent that bliss altogether?  Life brings troubles to everyone.  Maintaining happiness in the face of trials, tribulations, sorrows, and loss is not easy.  Yet we note the peace of great saints and holy people we may know who never let earthly concerns disturb them.  The key is an intimate relationship with the Lord.  A strong faith and trust in God, an unwavering hope in eternal beatitude, and love of Him and others as He commands are the virtues we must develop through prayer, the sacraments, and interactions.  Let us build up our relationship with God and neighbor so we too can maintain the joy of knowing that our Savior lives while letting others know about this Good News as well.

The first description of an appearance of Jesus after His resurrection as recorded by Luke takes place on the road to Emmaus (Lk 24:13-35).  Two of Jesus’ disciples are leaving Jerusalem to go to Emmaus when Jesus (unbeknownst to them) comes and walks with them.  They lament Jesus’ death because they thought He would redeem them.  But they mention they received news about the empty tomb.  Jesus admonishes them and reveals to them the scriptures that prophesied the coming of the Christ.  When they arrive at home the disciples urge their new traveling companion to join them.  There Jesus blesses, breaks, and distributes the bread.  Then the disciples recognize Him just before He disappears.  They hasten back to tell the apostles of this encounter but the Eleven are not surprised as Peter himself has already had an encounter with Jesus.  The words at top are the two disciples’ response to Jesus’ query about what they were discussing when He joined up with them.  We can imagine the disciples’ surprise at their new acquaintance’s apparent lack of knowledge of what must have been the biggest event in Jerusalem in years.  Sadly, nearly two thousand years later, we are likely not incredulous in the widespread lack of knowledge of the life and mission of Jesus or of the content of the Bible in general.  Thus the importance of catechesis and evangelization, first and foremost starting with ourselves (one can’t give what one doesn’t have), and then with other Catholics and all Christians.  How can others embrace what they do not know?  Every baptized Christian has received the calling to spread the word about the Word.  Catholics are strengthened in this task in a special way through Confirmation and of course the regular reception of Communion and Confession.  Jesus made Himself known in today’s reading through the breaking of bread.  This is how we get to know Him more intimately as well — in Word and Sacrament at Holy Mass.  Let us be true to our calling to bring the Good News to everyone and to invite them to Mass so that they too will experience their “hearts burning” through a life changing encounter with Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Today we move back to John (20:11-18), picking up where we left off on Easter, to continue to read John’s rendition of events following the Resurrection.  This scene finds Mary Magdalene back at the tomb weeping.  She then encounters two angels inside the tomb and, turning around, sees Jesus but does not recognize Him until He calls her name.  He then orders her to go to the disciples with a message, which she does.  Mary’s first word to Jesus, after she recognizes Him, is at top.  “Rabbouni” means “Teacher.”  If this is the name that comes to mind when she sees her beloved unexpectedly (to her) risen from the dead, then it was clearly her common name for Jesus.  This was not unusual in that friend and foe alike call Jesus Rabbi/Teacher throughout the gospels.  But with Mary one can’t help but think of how much she must have learned from Jesus.  Aside from scenes at the cross and after the resurrection, Mary is mentioned only once, and there as a follower of Jesus along with the twelve apostles (Lk 8:2).   How much she must have absorbed and how devastated she must have been when she thought Jesus’ lips were sealed forever.  And how much she must have longed for an explanation of this astounding encounter she just had.  We know Jesus is not silent and never will be.  The Word has been uttered and continues to speak to our hearts authentically through Scripture, Tradition, and Magisterium.  Like Mary Magdalene. may we never lose our love for learning and pondering the sublime truths of revelation, continually diving back into the ocean of love that is Jesus Himself, the Word that always existed and which became flesh for our salvation (cf. Jn 1:1-14).  Let us listen well to our Rabbouni!

This day after Easter, the gospel reading continues the Resurrection story (Mt 28:8-15).  Mary Magdalene and another Mary, finding the tomb empty, run to tell the disciples of this (see above).  Along the way they encounter Jesus and fall down to worship Him.  He tells them to tell His disciples (His “brothers”) that He will meet them in Galilee.  Meanwhile the soldiers who were to guard the tomb told the chief priests of the unusual events at the tomb and that Jesus was gone.  Assembling the entire council, the religious leaders gave the soldiers a large sum to lie and say that Jesus’ disciples stole Jesus’ body.  We are told that this tale was continued to be spread even at the time of the writing of this gospel.  When we have good news we hasten to tell others of it.  We can barely contain ourselves in our wish to share it.  The cause of our joy might be a negative test result, an “impossible” prayer answered, some unexpected bounty, or a long wait that has finally and favorably ended.  But any word that we get in this life, no matter how wonderful, cannot exceed the Good News of Jesus — He who has the words of everlasting life (Jn 6:68).  Our days here must necessarily end, but we must desire in an overwhelming way the complete union with God in the eternal now.  And we want every other person to join us there in that place where God “will wipe every tear from their eyes, and there shall be no more death or mourning, wailing or pain” (Rev 21:4).  Should we not too run to excitedly tell others that He is risen, truly risen (see 1 Cor 15;12-19)?  This is the best news ever.