2 April 2018
Monday in the Octave of Easter
In today’s Gospel, the Risen Lord appears to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary telling them, “Go tell my brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see me.” Jesus wishes to encounter his apostles in Galilee, where He first called them. Pope Francis suggests that the reason for this is so that the apostles might “re-read” everything they have lived with Jesus in light of the Resurrection.
The Resurrection radically changes everything. Any fear, doubt, or hesitation that the apostles may have had is vanquished. Everything Jesus said, everything He did from the moment they first met made perfect sense now. This is why Peter, in the first reading, speaks so powerfully and eloquently about Christ.
We, too, can look back at our own lives in light of the Resurrection, looking at those moments in which we were haunted by fear, doubt, or hesitation. We may come to the realization that Jesus was always there with us and thus grow to trust more deeply the Risen one’s plan for our life.