Two-Minute Homily by Fr Joseph Vu SVD for the Second Sunday of Easter 2023.
“May the hearts of each of us, right now, be open to love God and to love others. Let us run to take refuge in God’s mercy.”
- Two-Minute Homily Transcript
Two-Minute Homily Transcript
Author: Archdiocese of BrisbaneDear brothers and sisters, as we celebrate the second Sunday of Easter, the joy of the Easter season and grace of the Risen Lord is present in our hearts and in each one of us. This Sunday is also Divine Mercy Sunday and the gospel reading can be reflected on through the prism of mercy.
In today’s Gospel the Apostle Thomas is not present with the other Apostles when the Lord appears. When told about the resurrection of the Lord, Thomas has doubts, and he needs proof. He will not believe that Jesus has been resurrected from the dead until he can touch the wounds of the Risen Christ with his own hands. This gives us two points to think about and to ponder in our heart.
First, by referring to the Lord’s wounds, we are reminded of the immense physical suffering Jesus endured on the cross. The anguish, physical and mental suffering of Christ’s death are all fresh in our minds from the commemoration of Good Friday. In seeing Jesus’ wounds, Thomas recognised that this was indeed the risen Christ.
In our lives, we too will face hardship and suffering. Acceptance of these difficult times will be an opportunity for us to prove our faith our lives will be our witness that we are a person who belongs to Christ. Second, by referring to the wounds of Christ Thomas is looking back to the past. It is the sad part of human nature that we often take delight and pleasure in failure and suffering of others, especially those we envy or do not like. By living in the past we forget to look forward to the future. We pray that we do not follow the same path of error in our life of faith.
On this feast day of Divine Mercy it is also good to meditate on the image of Jesus Saint Faustina Kowalska revealed to us. In this popular image, Jesus is shown as having two rays of light released from his heart. The two sources of light are the source of God’s mercy for mankind. Where Jesus’ side was pierced, God’s mercy opened a spring. So whoever turns to this source of mercy with hope and trust in his heart, will receive mercy from the one who sacrificed his life for mankind.
Dear brothers and sisters, meditating on God’s mercy, what should we do? Christ endured the suffering of being misunderstood, opposed, ridiculed and crucified. Let us ask the Lord to give us enough strength to accept the suffering we endure and the crosses we carry. May the hearts of each of us, right now, be open to love God and to love others. And let us run to take refuge in God’s mercy. Amen.