EASTER SUNDAY: THE RESURRECTION OF THE LORD
JESUS – CYCLE A – 2020
ALLELUIA! CHRIST OUR
LOVE AND OUR HOPE IS RISEN!
FIRST
READING – Acts 10:34. 37-43
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Peter is now at the
house of the gentile Cornelius.
-
In his dream,
Peter heard a voice telling him to kill and eat from some of those animals who
were considered impure by the tradition of Israel. Peter does not understand
why he has to eat impure meat. He does not want to eat, he refuses for three
times. Then somebody knocks at the door,
they are the people Cornelius has sent to ask Peter to come to his home.
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Peter enters
Cornelius home and answers to his questions about Jesus. Peter had spoken about Jesus before to a Jewish audience, but now it is to a gentile audience.
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He explains all
that had happened all over Judea about Jesus of Nazareth, beginning in
Galilee. Galilee is home for Jesus and
for his disciples. It is the place where they first encounter the Lord and
where the preaching about the Kingdom began. After his resurrection, he will
summon them to Galilee.
-
We too need to
return to the place of our first encounter with the Lord, it is not a physical
returning to a given place, but a spiritual returning where we feel at home
with the Lord.
-
He goes on
telling them how Jesus went about doing good, how he had been anointed by the
Spirit.
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He explains how Jesus
was condemned to die on the cross, but God raised him on the third day.
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Peter tells Cornelius
and his household that whoever believes in Jesus will be granted the forgiveness
of sins.
-
This is the
reason for the Incarnation; to reconcile us with the Father forgiving our sins,
which he takes on him. Jesus has come to give life to us revealing the Father,
but sometimes we, human beings, do not
like that kind of God who is always loving, forgiving, welcoming; because he
calls us to do the same.
-
In this account
about Cornelius we see the first fruits of the redemption among the
gentiles.
Responsorial
Psalm Ps 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23
R. (24) This is the day the Lord has made; let us
rejoice and be glad.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
Let the house of Israel say,
"His mercy endures forever."
R. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad.
"The right hand of the LORD has struck with power;
the right hand of the LORD is exalted.
I shall not die, but live,
and declare the works of the LORD."
R. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad.
The stone which the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
By the LORD has this been done;
it is wonderful in our eyes.
R. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad.
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,
for his mercy endures forever.
Let the house of Israel say,
"His mercy endures forever."
R. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad.
"The right hand of the LORD has struck with power;
the right hand of the LORD is exalted.
I shall not die, but live,
and declare the works of the LORD."
R. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad.
The stone which the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
By the LORD has this been done;
it is wonderful in our eyes.
R. This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad.
« This psalm sings the
triumph of Jesus our God over death and sin.
« We thank him because he
is good
« Because his right hand is
powerful
« He is the cornerstone
rejected by the builders
SEQUENCE
Christians,
to the Paschal Victim
Offer
your thankful praises!
A lamb the sheep redeems: Christ who only is
sinless
Reconcile sinners to the Father.
Death and life have contended in that
combat stupendous
The Prince of life who died reigns immortal.
Speak Mary declaring what you saw wayfaring
“The tomb of Christ, who is living.
The glory of Jesus’ resurrection,
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Bright angels attesting, the shroud
and napkin resting
Yes, Christ my hope is arisen!
To Galilee he goes before you.”
Christ indeed from death is risen, our
new life obtaining
Have mercy, victor King ever reigning!
Amen,
alleluia.
|
v In the great solemnities, the Church has a sequence,
which is recited or sung before de reading of the Gospel.
v They are masterpieces of poetry and music.
v This was composed on the XI century and three
different authors are mentioned.
v As we read this sequence of Easter, we realize that it
tells us the mystery of our redemption.
v Mary Magdalene is asked about what has she seen on the
way
v She confesses her faith in the resurrection “I have
seen the Risen Lord” who invites his own to meet him in Galilee
v Galilee
o
Concrete
geographical place, but also a place in the geography of the spirit.
o
Place of the
first encounter.
o
They have to go
back there to encounter a new the enthusiasm, the joy, the energy and the
strength to proclaim what eye has not seen and ear has not heard.
o
Encounter that
will make them able to proclaim that our
God has saved us, that he is in our midst, that he walks with each one of us
and will be with us until the end of history.
o
Galilee, place
where Peter will be able to confess his love to his friend and Lord, after
having experienced the depth of human misery denying to know the one he loved
so much.
v Yes, let us go back to our Galilee, each one knows what
it is, and there we will meet the Risen Lord, our love and our hope.
GOSPEL – John 20,1-9
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Mary Magdalene is
the first witness of the resurrection.
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She finds out
that the stone has been removed. John does not say that Mary enters into the
tomb, but that, she ran to inform Peter and the other disciple
… about the tomb.
-
Her word is accepted
and Peter with the other disciple start out their way to the tomb.
-
The other
disciple, which the evangelist
identifies as “the beloved disciple, or the disciple who was a dear friend of
Jesus.”
o
This disciple arrives to the tomb before Peter
o
But he does not
enter, he waits for Peter who on arriving enters first.
o
When the beloved
disciple can enter, the author of the Gospel says, that he “saw and
believed.”
o
What did he
see? The empty tomb.
o
What did he
believe? The resurrection
§ Luis Alonso Schöekel, a Bible scholar, says that more
than believe, what the Greek verb says
is that he began to believe.
§ This belief is still very weak, it is the faith of a
beginner, because it rests on the experience of empty tomb, not yet in the word
of Jesus. Our faith has also grown from
a very small concrete fact, later little by little this faith has become
adult and strong, there is no more need for concrete material or spiritual
experiences, but it is based on faith alone.
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