The postmodern society is horribly bombarded by thousands of opinions on millions of issues- legal, political and religious, tearing the entire world. In the Church surely we are well aware
The Living Faith
The postmodern society is horribly bombarded by thousands of opinions on millions of issues- legal, political and religious, tearing the entire world. In the Church surely we are well aware how we are divided by opinions. In all matters of faith every Christian has got our personal opinions and die with them. From the Gospels we gather the same kind of rifts and dissensions occurred among the primary team of Jesus, especially after his resurrection.
It’s true that the first appearance of the risen Lord, as narrated by Gospel writers, was to Mary Magdalene, who later went and announced this good news to other apostles and disciples. It’s true also that Apostles could not digest the opinion of a woman. They thought she was hallucinating. But this woman’s opinion became popular and accepted finally by the entire global Church.
In the realm of God human opinion matters very little. Whatever be the talent of a person who generated that opinion unless it is connected to the risen Lord and his Spirit it will never become popular and eternal. It was not the talented proclamation of Mary Magdalene that gave continuity to her opinion about the risen Lord. Rather it was the Spirit of the risen Lord that influenced and possessed her that made all possible. This was the truth, which Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, contended before the Sanhedrin about the unrivaled post-effect of Jesus’ resurrection-factor: For if this endeavor or this activity is of human origin, it will destroy itself. But if it comes from God, you will not be able to destroy them; you may even find yourselves fighting against God. (Acts 5: 34-39)
And so is with the 2000-years-old proclamation of the Church about Jesus’ resurrection. The risen Lord has truly risen and with his Spirit he is at this moment pervading the hearts and minds of millions of people of this world. They have experienced him and his intervention in their lives. They encountered him in prayer, Scriptures and Tradition. Due to the effective influence of the risen Lord, sinners like Mary Magdalene and many other disciples, once died truly in their sinful past but then rose to new virtuous life. They are convinced now that, ‘the old life is comfortable; the new life is demanding. Yet the new life is rich and the old life is barren.’
These disciples, enlightened and enlivened by the risen Lord, emptied their entire body, their mind and heart, became liberated from all kinds of evil thoughts, words and deeds and began walking seemingly as ‘empty tombs’ but truly carrying the risen Lord. Whoever saw their lives and not just heard their opinions became energized by the same risen Lord.
Being the disciples of Jesus today, our opinion about the risen Lord should also become our life. Consequently our present life becomes a celebration of the reality that Jesus lives! As Paul exhorts us on this day of ‘SONrise’ we need to demonstrate our faith through our daily living. If then you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Think of what is above, not of what is on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God… (Col 3: 1-4)
We too should try our best in ripping of our old sinful lifestyle and upholding a new order of life. Do you not know that a little yeast leavens all the dough? Clear out the old yeast, so that you may become a fresh batch of dough, inasmuch as you are unleavened…Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (1 Cor 5: 6b-8) This is our genuine Easter proclamation. On this Easter Day, the Spirit brings us before the empty tomb of Jesus and asks us to meditate intensely on our opinion on the incredible fact of his resurrection.