Third Sunday of Easter (Year C)

Acts 5.27-32, 40-41; Ps 29; Apoc 5.11-14; Jn 21.1-19

Today’s three readings are in the same mould as last week: firstly an account from Acts of what the apostles and the other disciples did in the time after Our Lord’s Resurrection. Today’s passage again shows them preaching about Christ with great courage, despite threats from the authorities. The second reading is again from the book of Revelation, in which St John describes his vision of heaven, a vast throng of saints, too numerous to count, gathered round the throne of the Lamb, worshipping the Almighty. Then the gospel reading is once again from St John’s Gospel – one of Our Lord’s most numinous appearances to the disciples in Galilee. He gave them breakfast. Together, these three readings encapsulate the Easter message: that Christ is risen, that He reveals Himself to us, that He feeds us, that He empowers us. These revelations  of the risen Lord do two things: the good news of His Resurrection is so vital that we are obliged to tell others about Him. Secondly, His appearances strengthen our  faith and our courage.

Today’s three readings also point out several ingredients which are part and parcel of being such  witnesses. The first of these is seen in the location of the revelation in today’s gospel: the Sea of Galilee. The disciples have returned home, gone back to where Christ had first called them, back to their normal ordinary work. It is there that they start to preach and teach, not only with words, but by the way they live. So with us. It is in our homes, our places of work, our everyday lives, that we must witness to the risen Christ. While they are fishing, they see an unknown person standing on the shore of the lake. Note that it is the disciple whom Jesus loved who recognises Him, and says to the others: “It is the Lord.”  Then Peter, ever impulsive,  jumps up, puts his clothes on and leaps into the water, to hurry ashore and meet Him.

To be a witness of the truth and power of Resurrection, a disciple must first have met Jesus, must first know Him. How does this come about? Love knows Him, the gospel tells us. He stands on the shore. At first we may not always recognise Him, but through the voice of one who already loves Him, through the words of the Church we hear: “It is the Lord.”  It is up to us to bestir ourselves, like Peter,  to look out for Him,  to hurry to approach Him. We can approach Him in the Scriptures, in the Sacraments, in the Church’s public worship, and in our private prayer. All these can be true disclosures of the living, risen Master.  Before becoming an apostle we must first be a disciple. We must be a friend and follower of Christ before we can tell others about Him, before we can pass on to others the personal knowledge that we possess. We are called to be His witnesses in a world which so desperately hungers and thirsts for the power of God’s love.

Perhaps we feel ourselves to be inadequate witnesses. That is true. Never adequate enough. We may sometimes feel timid  when faced with scepticism and hostility.  Or our zeal can be undermined by the sheer indifference of the pagan world. So what? There will always be opposition to the truth. No amount of  scepticism or indifference can  overturn   the strength which comes from God, that virtue of fortitude which infused the first apostles. In our baptism and our confirmation, we have been sealed with the Holy Spirit, to strengthen us in our responsibility as witnesses. We have the duty to tell others about the truths of our faith. At times this may seem like a burden, but God never gives us burdens which he himself does not help us to carry. We have the powerful gifts of the Holy Spirit to help us.

The Holy Spirit will change us from timid disciples to fearless apostles.  Then, with the sharp-eyed perception of  love, we shall discern the presence of Christ, and He will infuse us with the courage to run to His side, there to refresh our needy souls, in the thirst-quenching torrents of His grace. The Easter message of the Gospel keeps insisting: life is stronger than death; love is more tenacious than hatred.  We are invited to let our nets down once more for a catch; to feed the lamb and look over the sheep.

Joe