EASTER SUNDAY OF THE RESURRECTION OF THE LORD

20^th April 2025

Lectionary Readings: Acts. 10:34.37-43; Ps. 118, 1-2.,16-17. 22-23; Col 3:1-4 or 1 Cor 5:6b-8; Jn 20:1-9 or Luke24:1-12

Theme: Let us come together and truly rejoice, Easter People, embracing the hope and joy of this season!

Today’s Gospel readings, John 20:1-9 and Acts 10:34, 37-43, inspire us to engage deeply with the Good News and the fulfillment of Scripture. In Acts 10:34-43, Peter courageously shares the message of God’s actions through Jesus Christ with Cornelius and other Gentiles. He highlights essential elements of the gospel: Jesus’ liberating ministry, his death, resurrection, and his exaltation as Lord of all. This passage encourages us to embrace the universal scope of God’s message and the vital importance of sharing it with everyone.

     In John 20:1-9, we encounter a profound moment as Mary Magdalene meets the risen Jesus at the tomb. His appearance to her and the call to share the news with the disciples emphasize the pivotal role of women in the early church and the vital task of spreading the message of hope and resurrection. Together, these readings inspire us to reflect on our responsibility in sharing the Good News and in recognizjng the transformative power of Jesus’ resurrection in our lives and communities.

     Rejoice, heavenly powers! Sing, choirs of angels! Jesus Christ, our King, is risen! Rejoice, O earth, in shining splendor, for Christ has triumphed! Glory fills you! Darkness vanishes forever! (Roman Missal of 1970). The Exultet is a beautiful hymn sung during the Easter Vigil, following the procession with the Paschal Candle and before the Liturgy of the Word.  AS used in the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church, the Anglican Churches, and various other Christian denominations, it evokes a deeply moving experience. I felt this profoundly when I first sang it inside the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem, the very place of Jesus’ resurrection.  Yet, the darkness persists. The exoneration of Pilate and the Romans for Jesus’ crucifixion, along with the blame placed on the Jews, sowed a seed of darkness that has grown into the shadow of the Shoah. We must listen to the commanding voice that rises from these ashes as a call to reflection and responsibility.

 On this great festival day of the Church, our joy must be complete only when we remember the sins committed in Jesus’ name. Amid our celebration, let us shed tears like the red drops of wine spilled from the Seder cup in memory of all the Egyptians lying dead on the seashore. Acknowledging past wrongdoings can be a difficult process, particularly for church leaders. A significant aspect of “We Remember: A Reflection on the Shoah” (1998) is the distinction drawn between the “Church as such” and “Christians,” highlighting that it is the “children” of the Church who have sinned. There is an opportunity for deeper confession of the historical link between Catholic anti-Judaism and the Nazi persecution of Jews.

     Cardinal Cassidy, who headed the Vatican Commission for Religious Relations with Jews and was a principal author of “We Remember,” made an important statement in May 1998 to a group of Jewish leaders. He remarked that the ghetto, established by a papal bull in 1555, tragically transformed Nazi Germany into a precursor to extermination. For over three hundred years, this ghetto, located at the foot of the Vatican, confined the Jewish community under dire conditions.

 The liberation of many Italian ghettos by French troops in 1796 marked a hopeful moment in history. However, after Napoleon’s defeat, Pope Pius VII (1800-1823) ordered the reconstruction of the ghetto walls. Nearby, across from the ghetto gate, lies the Church of San Gregorio alla Divina Pietà. A Hebrew inscription beneath the crucifix quotes the Jewish prophet Isaiah: “All day long, I have stretched out my hands to a disobedient and faithless nation that has lost its way” (Isaiah 65:2). It’s crucial to reclaim this message to ensure it is used to promote understanding and reconciliation rather than to perpetuate anti-Semitic sentiments. Through reflection and acknowledgment of the past, there is potential for healing and building more constructive relationships moving forward. The Second Vatican Council, especially through its proclamation of Nostra Aetate (Latin for “In our time”), marks a significant and important transformation in the Church’s relationship with Jews. It reassures us that God’s covenant with the Jewish people has never been revoked and lovingly recognizes that Jesus was, and will always be, a Jew. These profound truths stand in stark contrast to the actions of Pope Paul IV and the pro-Nazi faction within the German Protestant Church, who sought to distort Christianity into a Germanic faith, misrepresenting Jesus as an adversary of Judaism.

 This year, as we celebrate the 60th anniversary of the official declaration of Vatican II, an ecumenical council of the Catholic Church that was promulgated on October 28, 1965, by Pope Paul VI, we are reminded of our ongoing journey together. We acknowledge that recent events demonstrate that much work remains to foster true change of heart within our communities and to heal the wounds of the past.

     As Easter People, let us actively seek to draw closer to God and one another. Together, we can nurture a spirit of openness and compassion, rejecting all forms of bias and racism. We can show the world that Jesus is indeed the source of eternal life and love. Heaven will be complete only when all members of Christ’s body are united. In their togetherness as the One in Christ and the One Christ (Head and body), they reflect the beauty of Heaven. This is the arrival of the “totally Other,” the pleroma (πλήρωμα, meaning fullness) of the “whole Christ” (cf. Eph 1:23; Col 3:11). It is the realization of “God all in all” (1 Cor 15:28). In this communion, we will find the fullness of joy in God. “In your presence is fullness of joy” (Ps 16:11). Jesus offered hope to the apostles and all his followers when he said: “I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy away from you” (cf Jn 16:22). “God himself will be the goal of our desires; we shall contemplate him without end, love him without surfeit, and praise him without weariness. This gift, this state, this act—like eternal life itself—will truly be a shared blessing for all.” (CCC 2550).

For Reflection and Discussion: 1. Are you a member of the Easter People? Today’s celebration invites you to move beyond the empty tomb. 2. Am I still grappling with the belief that the Jewish people bear the blame for the death of Jesus?

Bibliography: http://gcatholic.org/Catholic Study Bible (Senior D.); New American Standard Bible, Third Edition, 2010; ETZ HAYIM, Torah and Commentary:  The Rabbinical Assembly, The United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism, 1999; Soulen Richard, Biblical Criticism, 3^rd Edition, 2001;J. Carroll, Constantine’s Sword: the Church and the Jews (New York, 2001); S. Heschel, The Aryan Jesus: Christian Theologians and the bible in Nazi Germany (Princeton, 2008); A. J. Levine, The Misunderstood Jew: The Church and the Scandal of the Jewish Jesus (New York, 2006); Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 2550 p 671)

;Nostra Aetate:  http://www.nostreradici.it/enaetate.htm; Notes on the Correct Way to Present the Jews and Judaism: http://www.ewtn.org/library/curia/rrjjews.htm 

This week’s Sunday Liturgy Commentary was prepared by
Dunhill Malunar Timkang, Jerusalem – Israel, Bat Kol Alumnus: 2023

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