GOING TO GALILEE TO ENCOUNTER THE RISEN LORD


Reflection from Friar Nicholas Okeke, OP

Theme: Going to Galilee to see the Risen Lord

Faith in the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ was the focus of the preaching of the early Christian community. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is an article of faith and not something given to the senses. As contained in our reflection for Easter Sunday, the Risen Jesus Christ is not the same as the crucified Christ. The risen and glorified Lord is a mystical Personage. He rose with his divine consciousness as the habitual consciousness, different from his human consciousness, which was habitual during his earthly ministry. This post-resurrection divine consciousness makes his body a glorified body. So, as a glorified body, it cannot be seen by mere sensible eyes; one must have a spiritual sight afforded by faith in his divinity. According to the account given in the gospel, the women who came to the tomb to anoint his body could recognise him because they believed the angel who appeared to them with the news of his resurrection. “Filled with awe and great joy the women came quickly away from the tomb and ran to tell the disciples.” The Risen Lord met them on the way, reassured and strengthened their faith, and gave them a message for the disciples to meet him at Galilee.

The rendezvous at Galilee was a great gathering of the faithful because many people from Galilee believed in him during his earthly ministry. Peter and many of his apostles were either Galileans or were living in Galilee. The choice of Galilee is also because he started his earthly ministry there and worked many miracles there because of their faith in him. We get this from the speech of Peter to Cornelius and his household in yesterday’s first reading: “You must have heard about the recent happenings in Judea; about Jesus of Nazareth and how he began in Galilee, after John had been preaching baptism.” During his earthly ministry, faith was necessary to receive his healing graces. Risen from the dead, faith is required to encounter him. Galilee is, therefore, a privileged place of faith for the manifestation of the Risen Lord. Invariably, the preaching of the apostles and disciples of our Lord focussed on faith in the Risen Lord, as evident in the preaching of Peter in the first reading. One must believe that he died and rose from the dead to receive the Sacrament of baptism. Even now, faith is necessary to encounter the Risen Lord and enter his eschatological community. All the redeemed in him constitute this City of God. This New Jerusalem is always present but only visible to the eyes of faith. Hence, Galilee is where the faithful gather to encounter the Risen Lord. You should be a Galilean by your faith in the Risen Lord.

Let us pray: grant us, Lord, the blessing of the resurrection of your only Begotten Son in his human Nature, that we may experience the renewal of our faith in him. 

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