Third Sunday of Easter / Msgr. Owen F. Campion
The Sunday Readings
Again this weekend, the Church presents a passage from the Acts of the Apostle as the first reading for Mass in this Easter season.
The mere construction of Acts
is a lesson. It is
a continuation of
St. Luke’s Gospel. Its underlying lesson is that access to the salvation achieved by the Lord Jesus and his presence in the world did not end with his ascension. The risen Lord, ascended into heaven before the eyes of the remaining Apostles. He lives and acts through the Church, a community with a visible structure and critical functions.
This reading reports a conflict between the Sanhedrin, led by the high priest, and the Apostles. The Sanhedrin was the ruling council of Judaism at the time of Jesus. Its agenda was primarily religious, but its authority touched virtually every aspect of life. Important to note, St. Peter is the spokesman for all the Apostles. He was their leader.
Ordered to cease preaching about Jesus, the Apostles boldly reaffirmed their intention to continue to do so. No earthly power could deflect them in fulfilling their commission from the Lord. Speaking for the group, Peter offered a capsulized story of the life and mission of Christ.
The Book of Revelation is the source of the second reading. Probably no other book of the New Testament, and few in the Old Testament, perennially leave readers in wonder as Revelation does.
(Revelation is not the more ancient, nor literarily precise, title for the book. The older, and better, term is Apocalypse. However, most English-speaking biblical scholars have adopted the better-known name of Revelation.)
Revelation is clear. Again, and again, it refers to Jesus as the sinless lamb of God, the title used by St. John the Baptist for the Lord. It insists that Christians stand with one foot on Earth, and the other in heaven, for they stand in and with Christ, the Son of God and also son of Mary, a woman.
St. John’s Gospel supplies the last reading. It is a resurrection narrative, wondrous and consoling. Jesus, risen from death, appears to the Apostles as, without luck, they are fishing on the Sea of Galilee. At dawn, recalling the time of the resurrection, Jesus speaks to them from the lake shore. He tells them exactly where to cast their nets. They obey, and a huge catch comes. The beloved disciple recognizes Jesus, but Peter is central to the story. He rushes to Jesus.
Then, at a meal, Jesus asks Peter if Peter really loves Jesus. It is a question put to Peter three times, with three affirmative responses. In ancient Jewish symbolism, three represented what was complete, final and absolute. To each answer, Jesus commissions Peter to love the Good Shepherd’s flock. His commission is exact, final and unqualified. It sent Peter to continue the Lord’s work.
Reflection
It would be difficult indeed to find three readings from the New Testament that individually are so beautiful and expressive in teaching such the marvelous lesson of the unfolding of salvation.
Setting the stage is the reading from Revelation. Disciples live with one foot on Earth and the other in heaven. Nowhere else is this reality better seen than in the Eucharist.
The combination of Acts with Luke’s Gospel reminds us that the salvation accomplished by Christ continues today. So, it was with the early Christians around the Apostles. It is with us still with the Apostle’s successors in the Church. The trial before the Sanhedrin recalls Peter’s fervor beside the sea, when Peter saw Jesus risen from the dead, and professed his love for him.
After the betrayal, healed by Christ’s divine forgiveness, Peter was worthy of his calling. We can follow him. We, too, can be healed. No matter what our past, we can be saved. †