Divine Mercy Sunday

Lectionary: 44

For the love of God is this,
that we keep his commandments.
And his commandments are not burdensome,
for whoever is begotten by God conquers the world.
And the victory that conquers the world is our faith.
Who indeed is the victor over the world
but the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?

 

The Gospel and First Letter of Saint John read like the process of kneading dough or preparing clay for molding. Although no sentence is repeated word for word, many words, images, and themes reappear frequently with the effect of increasing importance. Patient readers may feel deeply inspired by the process or might be sometimes disappointed that they don’t seem to be getting it.

To say that John requires more than one reading is an understatement. He wants us to return to these passages again and again over the course of many years, and during periods of consolation, desolation, and reflection. We’ll sometimes be surprised by the thought, “I never understood this passage and now I do!” And, later, “I understood it once, but now it eludes me.” Our devotion to the Gospel is kneaded by reading and rereading.

Every year, on the Second Sunday of Easter, we hear John’s story of those two consecutive Sunday evenings when the Lord appeared to his disciples. “Doubting Thomas” was not with them during his first appearance but was with them on the second.

I am told that the Gospel of Saint John uses the conventions of Greek theater. In this final scene of the original text, the Lord gazes directly at the audience as he says to his disciples, “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”

Throughout the gospel we have been reminded of faith. Although the contemporaries of Jesus had the experience of his physical presence, that experience is less important than our faith in Jesus. Americans should be reminded, as they go about filling and emptying their bucket lists, that we’re saved by faith and not by experience.

For the love of God is this,
that we keep his commandments.
And his commandments are not burdensome,

Mercy Sunday, with its invitation to reparation, reminds us that the virtue and practice of penance is not just for Lent and Advent. We keep his commandments daily by our prayers, study, and just practices.