“Desire and Witness” by Beth DeCristofaro
Repent, therefore, and be converted, that
your sins may be wiped away, and that the Lord may grant you times of refreshment and send you the Christ already appointed for you, Jesus (Acts 3:19-20)
You have made him little less than the
angels and crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him rule over the works of your hands, putting all things under his feet. (Psalm 8:6-7)
While they were still speaking about this, he
stood in their midst and said to them, “Peace be with you.” But they were
startled and terrified and thought that they were seeing a ghost. Then he said
to them, “Why are you troubled? And why do questions arise in your hearts? Look
at my hands and my feet, that it is I myself. Touch me and see, because a ghost
does not have flesh and bones as you can see, I have.” … “Thus it is written
that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and that
repentance, for the forgiveness of sins, would be preached in his name to all
the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.” (Luke
24:37-39, 46-48)
Piety
Study
Jesus appears to his friends after a horrific
death. Wouldn’t it be wonderful to see
our loved ones after they died, hug them, look into their eyes? Through Jesus’ death and resurrection, he
will make that happen. We enter into his
suffering in our mourning and loss.
Our thoughts might turn to the deaths we
mourn as we read these accounts in the Gospel.
My father died more than 30 years ago.
I wonder who remembers him now?
No siblings remain, his brother in law has severe dementia — certainly a
few grandchildren who were born before his early death and my remaining
brothers and sisters. Do any of the
hundreds of children, now adults, whom he taught in elementary and then high
school think of him? It is another loss
to believe that no one thinks of a faithful, profoundly kind and oh-so-smart
man within a generation of his death.
Then, it follows, there is a pang of sorrow in realizing that my name
will be lost – excepting within documents to be searched by future genealogists
as well.
Jesus’ resurrection tells us another
truth. He came – and he did – fulfill
God’s law. That law included God’s
relationship to us, his beloved creations.
As Isaiah proclaimed: Look, I
have engraved you on the palms of my hands
(49:16) My pang of loss is based on minimal perception. God will never forget me, or my father, nor
you. All of creation knows of our small
but essential lives, beloved of God.
Action
In what way can I see, rejoice and concretely celebrate
Jesus’ presence with me and those I love?
Give thanks that your loved ones, alive or dead, are with you, standing
with Jesus.
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