First Reading
Acts 3:13-15, 17-19
1. In the history of the Church can there have been decisions that were made out of ignorance? The present day, the Church has apologized for some decisions, as for instance, for slavery. What can we learn from this?
2. Is the point of this reading to lay blame for the suffering servant’s death, or to tell us that sin can be erased and the offenders can be raised to new life by the same power that raised Jesus to life?
Second Reading
1 John 2:1-5a
1. John says in his epistle, “is expiation for our sins, and not for our sins only but for those of the whole world.” And Luke’s gospel says “that “repentance, forgiveness of sins, would be preached in Christ’s) name to all the nations.” (Gospel). From these statements would you guess that Christ came to save forty-four thousand people? Most people? All people?
2. Does “All people” include all the people in the world who love God and their neighbor, but have not heard about, or don’t know Jesus? Are they God’s children too?
Gospel
Luke 24:35-48
1. Jesus tells his disciples to look at him and touch him. Then he asks them for something to eat. What does Pope Francis say we can learn from these three actions of Jesus?
The second verb is to touch. By inviting the disciples to touch him, to verify that he is not a ghost—touch me!— Jesus indicates to them and to us that the relationship with him and with our brothers and sisters cannot remain “at a distance.”.Christianity does not exist at a distance; Christianity does not exist only at the level of looking. Love requires looking and it also requires closeness; it requires contact, the sharing of life. The Good Samaritan did not limit himself to looking at that man whom he found half dead along the road: he stopped, he bent down, he treated his wounds, he touched him, he loaded him onto his mount and took him to the inn. And it is the same with Jesus himself: loving him means entering into a communion of life, a communion with him.
Being Christian is not first of all a doctrine or a moral ideal; it is a living relationship with him, with the Risen Lord: we look at him, we touch him, we are nourished by him and, transformed by his Love; we look at, touch and nourish others as brothers and sisters.
2. What was the disciples’ task, having recognized the risen Lord, and having seen that he “opened their minds to understand the scripture,”? Is our task now to preach the good news of God’s forgiveness to all nations? How can we do that globally? What about locally or in our neighborhoods?
