As the coronavirus pandemic has kept churches closed and Masses canceled, it has been amazing to see the creative ways that dioceses, parishes, and individual Catholics have found to continue worshiping and praying together. In our diocese of Owensboro, in addition to the many Masses and prayer services being live-streamed, the diocesan office for liturgy has been preparing and sending out a weekly Liturgy of the Word for families to celebrate in their own homes. Each liturgy includes a reflection on the readings, written by a priest or religious of the diocese. We were honored that the Passionist Nuns were asked to contribute a reflection for Divine Mercy Sunday’s Liturgy of the Word:

Do not be unbelieving, but believe!

Reflection by Sr. Frances Marie, CP

“Jesus came, although the doors were locked…” Today, like the disciples in the Gospel for this Divine Mercy Sunday, we are huddled behind locked doors. We are isolated in our homes, kept away from our neighbors, our churches, friends, and extended family, by the fear that has gripped the world in the face of the uncontrollable contagion of the coronavirus. In God’s Word for today, the risen Jesus comes to us, even through our locked doors, bringing an Easter message of hope and glorious joy (Now, don’t go chasing Him away, wearing a face mask and wielding a bottle of hand sanitizer!).

In this time of trial, Jesus offers us His gift of peace. Three times, He tells us, “Peace be with you.”

He invites us, as He invited Thomas, to touch His glorious wounds. “Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side…” We behold Jesus risen, and yet we touch the marks left in His body from the bitter suffering of Good Friday, just a few days ago.  As our hands touch the marks of the nails, we recall the fear, anguish, pain, confusion, darkness of the day of Christ’s death. And we feel sharply the fear, anguish, pain, confusion, darkness of the Good Friday we are living right now.

And as we, in this moment, touch Christ’s wounds, we hear Him saying to us, “Do not be unbelieving, but believe.” It is a living, glorious Jesus Who bears these wounds and Who speaks to us. These wounds of His Passion are now fountains of mercy, grace, and healing for the world. With Thomas, we profess our faith in the Risen Lord, Who has triumphed over the darkness of Good Friday, and we say, “My Lord and my God.”

In our moments of fear, anguish, and doubt, as we wonder about the future of our world, our country, work, finances, family, in the wake of the pandemic, we fix our gaze on the risen Jesus, and touching His wounds, we repeat our profession of faith, “My Lord and My God”, entrusting ourselves and our families entirely to the Divine Mercy and infinite power of our Risen Lord.

This is what it means to be a person of faith. This is where the “rubber hits the road”. Is our faith such that, as St. Peter says in our second reading today, we can rejoice even as we suffer through various trials, knowing that Our Lord and God will work out all things for our good? St. Peter says that in times like these, our faith is like gold tested in fire, and “will prove to be for praise, glory and honor when Jesus Christ appears.” Through our faith in Him, Christ offers us “indescribable and glorious joy” even in the midst of the trials of this life, and hope of unending joy in heaven. May Christ’s joy and peace be ours as we continue to celebrate this unusual Easter season.