I don’t know about you, but I have found the daily Mass readings for the second week of the Easter season to be overflowing with food for meditative prayer and daily Christian living. I thought I would share ten verses that have been especially meaningful to me this week, realizing of course that I’m only scratching the surface.
And by the way, we all know that April showers bring May flowers. But what do May flowers bring? The answer is found at the end of this list of verses.
(1) “Thus they even carried the sick out into the streets and laid them on cots and mats so that when Peter came by, at least his shadow might fall on one or another of them” (Acts 5:15, Sunday).
Just imagine what this must have been like! In addition, this passage is just one of several verses that give biblical support to the veneration of relics. Here, Peter's shadow healed the sick, which suggests that relics of the saints have supernatural healing power. This belief has been a part of Catholic tradition since, well, the Acts of the Apostles.
(2) “Then he said to Thomas, ‘Put your finger here and see my hands, and bring your hand and put it into my side, and do not be unbelieving, but believe’” (John 20:27, Sunday).
This episode in which Our Lord confronts “doubting” Thomas is perhaps the most compelling post-Resurrection appearance of Christ, which provides solid encouragement for those of us who have not seen, yet have believed.
(3) “As they prayed, the place where they were gathered shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness” (Acts 4:31, Monday).
Sometimes you hear that prayer meetings or conferences really “rocked” the joint. Maybe so, but wouldn’t it have been great to have been a fly on the wall so as to witness the place shake as the Holy Spirit came in power to all those gathered in prayer in this passage?
(4) “You shall rule them with an iron rod; you shall shatter them like an earthen dish” (Psalm 2:9).
Sometimes we miss prophecies such as this one when the Responsorial Psalm is sung, but this verse is most worthy of the our attention. The Messiah, the Son of David will rule with an “iron rod.” The son of the “woman” in the Book of Revelation is destined to rule all nations with an “iron rod” (Revelation 12:5), and He is the King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:15-16).
(5) Jesus said to Nicodemus: “‘You must be born from above’” (John 3:7, Tuesday).
This famous episode points to the regenerative waters of Baptism, which truly enable us to become partakers of the divine nature (2 Peter 1:4) and heirs of heaven as God’s beloved children.
(6) “God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life. . . . whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God” (John 3:16, 21, Wednesday).
Okay, this is a bit of a “two-fer.” Despite its familiarity, John 3:16 should never lose its freshness in our hearts. And God’s love calls forth not only a notional assent, but even more it demands a committed love, such that we not only profess the truth, but live it--even when nobody is watching.
(7) “But Peter and the Apostles said in reply, ‘We must obey God rather than men’” (Acts 5:29, Thursday).
Even though this passage gets misused at times, the premise here is a crucial one. Often we can live the ambiguity, in a sense obeying both God and man. But when push comes to shove, when our faith calls us to a higher standard, do we have the integrity of St. Thomas More to obey God, not men?
(8) “He does not ration his gift of the Spirit” (John 3:34, Thursday).
God is more generous, more powerful, and even more present than we often give Him credit for, at least in practice. The Christian life, when all is said and done, is life in the Spirit. If our faith isn’t all-encompassing, it’s because we’re rationing God, and not that God is rationing His Spirit.
(9) “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 5:38-39, Friday).
These remarkably wise words of Gamaliel have proven to be prophetic, haven’t they? In addition, wisdom has a timeless quality, and so Gamaliel’s words provide sound guidance whenever we encounter purported private revelations, new spiritual movements, or other religious enterprises of questionable origin.
(10) “Jesus said, ‘Let the people recline’” (John 6:10, Friday).
Okay, this one is a little tongue-in-cheek. My daughter Brenda likes to cite this verse whenever I ask her to get off the sofa and do something. But even this lighthearted anecdote shows how Scripture verses can be manipulated and taken out of context, especially when removed from their natural habitat (i.e., the liturgy) and interpreted apart from the authority of the Church.
And by the way, the answer to my question at the beginning of this post is . . . pilgrims!