John 20:19–23
When it was evening on that day, the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” After he said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”
Commentary
In today’s Mass we hear two accounts of the sending of the Holy Spirit, one from the reading of the Acts of Apostles (2:1-11), and the other from today’s Gospel (John 20:19–23). However, our focus is on the Gospel reading. This will bring us to the point that God’s sending of his Holy Spirit into us can happen in extraordinary ways as well as, in most cases, in ordinary ways. It is always not a dramatic event as one may imagine.
The opening scene of today’s Gospel is the evening of the first day of the week. According to the Jewish tradition, it is the evening of Saturday, the end of Sabbath. But the disciples, we are told, were afraid. They were afraid of the Jews. Their fear was so great that they locked the doors of the house where they met. Their behavior is typical human. Psychologically, they felt safe behind the locked doors. They forgot Jesus’ promise of resurrection after his Passion and death. It was a means cutting off themselves from the outside. The locked doors might stop the Jews to come into the house, but they could not stop Jesus to come to them. It was like Jesus walking on the water to reach his disciples on board boat being toasted up and down by sea storms.
Have we shut ourselves out from others, including Jesus, in times of our troubles? Today’s Gospel reminds us that even we shut ourselves out from others and Jesus, he will come to us and be with us. Look back to our experiences, can we find a pattern how Jesus enters into our life?
Once entered into the house, Jesus offered peace to his disciples and showed his hands and side to the disciples. Note that it was only after offering the peace that the disciples rejoiced. In other words, without the peace, the disciples could not rejoice at seeing Jesus’ hands and side. Can I also rejoice to see Jesus’ hands and side when he shows them to me? Now, I listen to Jesus speak to me: “Peace be with you.” I bring before him those aspects of my life most in need of peace and hear him say again, “Peace be with you.” Jesus speaks of peace but shows his hands and his feet. Jesus reminds me that there is a cost to being a presence of peace in the world.
After showing his hands and side, Jesus said again: “Peace be with you,” and added: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” Here, Jesus reminded the disciples the double meanings of his sending. Before his Passion, Jesus kept telling his disciples that he was sent by the Father and that those who received him also received the One who sent him. Now, risen Jesus told them again that as the Father sent him, Jesus sent them. Can I know how am sent by Jesus from my own experience?
When he had said this, he breathed on them and said to disciples, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” In the Book of Genesis, God breathes on human beings to bring them life. Now Jesus breathes his Spirit into his disciples to give them new life. They will have power over sin, which otherwise deadens the human heart. Can I welcome the Holy Spirit into my small heart so that today will be ‘the first day of the week’ for me, which means the first day of my renewed creation?
The last verse of today’s Gospel: “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained” reminds us the Sacrament of Reconciliation. For our part, we should forgive others, including our own selves, as God forgives us. Without such forgiveness, we can enjoy no real peace. Amen.