Scond Sunday of Easter 2007

It was a hot Saturday morning. Because there was no air conditioning, the doors and windows were all open in the church to bring in a bit of air. Some worshipers out of courtesy gathered for the funeral service of an old man who had no family. They could also hear the auctioneer’s voice from the next building almost as clearly as they could hear their own minister. The service came to an end. “Lord, may thy servant depart in peace,” said the minister. Through the window came the words, “going once, going twice, gone!” This is the experience the disciples are having. As far as they are concerned, Jesus is gone. The disciples are hiding out in the upper room. They’re hiding from the Jewish authorities. But even more so, with transparent predictability they’re hiding from their own fear. What will become of us now? they muttered to one another. We should never have followed him, one of the disciples says with more anguish than anger. Their emotions are running the gamut: from uneasiness to worry to dread to fear and then to turmoil. The mood is like a tornado swirling before it hits its peak of destruction. Finally one of the disciples ties this mix of emotions together like stitching the final thread into a multicolored quilt. I miss him, she says with fierce modesty, I feel so lonely. He filled my every day with his presence and now there is nothing but a void. When he was with us, everything seemed possible. Now nothing seems attainable. As if directed by a cantor, they all break out in a chorus of response that, yes, it is loneliness that is cutting through their hearts like the nails that pierced Jesus’ hands and feet. But then there is the good news that is refreshingly devoid of wishful thinking. Unlike human relationships that break up, Jesus maintains his relationship by coming and standing in the midst of his disciples. And with the keen insight of divine wisdom, Jesus knows the turmoil of his disciples’ emotions. So he says to them, “Peace be with you.” It’s not the kind of peace described in Steve Shagan’s novel, The Circle, as the peace that comes from selling and buying of arms to maintain the appearance of harmony. It’s not the world’s peace which is the absence of conflict rather it is the peace of Jesus which is the presence of collaboration. Jesus’ peace scatters the gloom of loneliness like sunlight dispels darkness. John Powell says in his book , Happiness Is An Inside Job, For those who accept themselves, being alone is peaceful solitude; for those who don’t accept themselves, solitude is painful loneliness. How essential accepting yourself is if you are suffering from loneliness even within marriage. If you believe that Jesus is not only risen out of death but is alive within you, living in you, first, you will never be lonely, no matter what disasters strike down your relationships with others. And secondly, you will always be at peace, no matter how many people try to disrupt your life, your plans, your dreams, your joys. But you must believe that Jesus the resurrected Christ is living in you. You must believe this with your whole heart and mind and soul and with all the strength of your faith. If you do believe that Jesus the resurrected Lord is living within you, then you, like the first disciples, will go out to others. You will bring to them the loving good news that says to everyone around you, I can raise you up to a new life. A new life of faith, hope, optimism, joy, courage, love, resiliency but most of all peace. Never again will you doubt your faith in cringing loneliness, as Thomas did, because you will believe with unctuous passion that Jesus, who is your Peace, is alive within you. Humor: Sometime after Sidney died, his widow, Tillie, was finally able to speak about what a thoughtful and wonderful man her late husband had been. “Sidney thought of everything,” she told them. “Just before he died, Sidney called me to his bedside. He handed me three envelopes. ‘Tillie,’ he told me, ‘I have put all my last wishes in these three envelopes. After I am dead, please open them and do exactly as I have instructed. Then I can rest in peace’.” “What was in the envelopes?” her friends asked. “The first envelope contained $5,000 with a note, ‘Please use this money to buy a nice casket.’ So I bought a beautiful mahogany casket with such a comfortable lining that I know Sidney is resting very comfortably. “The second envelope contained $10,000 with a note, ‘Please use this for a nice funeral.’ I arranged Sidney a very dignified funeral and bought all his favorite foods for everyone attending.” “And the third envelope?” asked her friends. “The third envelope contained $25,000 with a note, ‘Please use this to buy a nice stone.’ Holding her hand in the air and showing off her ten carat diamond ring., Tillie said, “So, do you like my stone?” Thought: Strive for peace that gives life to love.