Convincing proofs of the resurrection

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2^nd Sunday of Easter (B)

Feast of Christ, King of Divine Mercy, April 15, 2012

By Fr. Sal Putzu, SDB

WHO could blame Thomas for his refusal to believe what his co-disciples were saying about the apparition of the risen Jesus? He was a concrete, “positive” man. To believe what his friends were saying about Jesus was like believing that the sun had risen at midnight! . . .

If he could just see and touch his body, then Thomas also would say “Amen!” But, what had he done to deserve such a privilege? Yet, Thomas got it all, thanks to Jesus’ loving condescension. The skeptic disciple saw Jesus and was able to put his fingers on the holes bored by the nails and the spear. And he exploded in that confession of faith for which he will be remembered till the end of time. (See Jn 20:28.)

But the “unbelieving Thomas” has a numerous descent. He is a contemporary of every generation. Especially in our days, the only valid proof of the resurrection people are prepared to consider is our life – our Christian witness. It is through our lives, more than our words, that we can show that Jesus is really risen from death and is now alive. It is through our life that we can show that we really believe in Christ and his Resurrection, and deserve the praise of Jesus: “Blessed are they who believe without having seen me.”

An existence characterized by charity and service to the needy is undoubtedly a strong proof of the Resurrection, for no human being could constantly overcome the temptation and natural inclination to be self-centered if Christ did not rise from death. A life totally spent for others is a “sign” of the Life that has conquered death.

Another decisive proof of our belief in the reality of the Resurrection is our forgiving those who have wronged us. Every offense that we suffer opens painful wounds in our sensitivity. They are the marks of our moral agony, and even  of our death on the cross of human cruelty, unfairness, dishonesty, treachery. . . .

But if and when we are able to be good to the persons who have inflicted those wounds on us, to do good to them, to speak well of them, to smile at them—in other words, to forgive them from the heart—then even the hardest unbeliever is faced with a very strong proof (the strongest one, perhaps) of the Resurrection. Perfect forgiveness which overcomes all inclination to hate back is a “first-class miracle” indeed. And the Holy Spirit, whom the Risen Christ gave to his disciples on Easter Sunday, has a lot to do with it. He has also a lot to do with leading the many skeptics of today to believe in Jesus, even if they have never seen him.

And yet, when all is said and done, even the most perfectly heroic life will not touch the heart of the unbelievers unless the interior enlightenment that we call “grace” empowers them to “see” and say yes. Then faith is born and lives take on a new dimension: the dimension of the Resurrection.

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