Easter Monday, March 23

Scripture: Acts 2:14,22-33. Psalm 16L1-2a, 5,7-11. Matthew 28:8-15.
Lectionary # 261:

Our Resurrection narratives from the Gospels and the recollections of Paul
are filled with joy and hope. These are helpful Easter virtues for us to
keep in mind during our prayer time and our reflective moments. In the
Acts of the Apostles, it is Peter who starts a series of sermons or
homilies that bring to mind the Paschal Mystery both to Jews and Gentiles.
Peter and Paul will dominate these presentations for us. We hear Peter
telling us, "This is the Jesus God raised up, and we are his witnesses.
Peter first addresses his listeners, his fellow Jewish brothers and
sisters; he then summarizes Jesus' active ministry (a quick mini-Gospel);
then he leads us into the Paschal Mystery and uses Psalm 116 to show the
fulfillment of God's promises about the Davidic Messiah, Jesus. He finally
addresses his own people as brothers and sisters and concludes with his
witness to Jesus' resurrection. St. Luke will use this outline for most of
the twenty or more speeches that we have in the Acts of the Apostles. The
Gospels will continue to give us the Resurrection stories that come from
the oral tradition and then were written in the four Gospels. The
Resurrection was one great Event similar to the Exodus, but there are many
ways of telling the story;our accounts from the Gospels show this. Such
variety helps rather than hinders us in our faith journey. Psalm 16 is then
chosen for our responsorial psalm and this is one of the sources for
Peter's speech. Luke has reminded us in one of his beautiful resurrection
stories that the Christ had to fulfill what was written in the Torah, the
Prophets, and the Psalms. We have a direct use of Psalm 16 to confirm this
theology of fulfillment that Luke has in his narratives. The Psalm is
Davidic and is filled with hope the virtue suggested for our Easter
prayers. There is a also the beautiful sung refrain, "You will show me the
path of life...and fulness of joy forever!" Keep me safe, O my God, you
are my hope." Both hope and joy are expressed within this hymn. We
continue to read the resurrection narrative that started on the Easter
Vigil. It began Matthew's account and today we have the second part of
that Resurrection narrative. We see Mary Magdalene and the other Mary
running from the tomb fearful yet overjoyed. They bring the Good News to
the disciples of Jesus and again we see the women being apostles to the
apostles. We can look upone these many resurrection presentations as
really reflecting the one mystery of Christ risen from the dead. St.
Athanasius tells us to consider Easter Sunday as one great Sunday that
lasts for fifty days. We enter into that event of the Christ life within
us and find fulness of joy and hope that Jesus is alive and is our Risen
Lord and Savior. Amen.