April 19

[media presentation below]

GospelThink

Saturday, April 19, Easter Vigil

LUKE 24:1-12

Resurrection

Prayerthoughts

a. There are various traditions or the Resurrection story of Jesus as outlined by the different authors of the Gospels. Here the women are bringing the spices for the anointing of the dead. Do I try to treat the dead that I remember with prayer?

b. Here in Luke’s Gospel, two men in dazzling clothes appear, obviously with something to say to the women. What do I need most to hear to be a better spiritual person right now?

c. The words of the angel say that Jesus is very much alive. Did I show Jesus to be alive as I think of all the actions of my day yesterday?

d. The angel uses the word “Remember.” Do I spend sufficient time every day remembering what Jesus has said to me in the Gospels?

e. The angel gives the fact of the death of Jesus which he had predicted. Do I sufficiently repent for the times that I have offended Jesus in the way that I have lived?

f. The women announced these things to the Eleven and others. What about my speech? Is it clear that I believe in Jesus in the words that I speak?

g. They did not believe the women. How strong is my faith in the words of Jesus?

h. Peter goes to find out for himself. When I have questions concerning Scripture, do I look for the answer in a proper commentary?

i. My prayerthoughts…

Today, I will spend ten minutes in a Church (or by myself) thanking the Lord for giving me my life and energy.

Some Thoughts on the Liturgy

GOD WAS WITH HIM/HER

+ I’ve always been interested in tombstone epitaphs

- epitaphs can be looked at as statements of the way a person looks at his/her life

- Edgar Allen Poe’s tombstone reads, as you would expect: “Quoth the raven, ‘Nevermore’”

- Dean Martin: “Everybody loves someone sometime”-

- Frank Sinatra: (not “I did it my way”) “The best is yet to come.”

- there is one in an old graveyard in West Virginia: “Here lies (and it gives his name). He was almost as good as the one they talked about at his funeral.”

- Benjamin Franklin’s is most interesting: “The body of B. Franklin, printer (like the cover of an old book, its contents torn out and stript of its lettering and gilding) lies here, food for worms. But the work shall not be lost, for it will (as he believed) appear once more in a new and more elegant edition revised and corrected by the Author.”

- there is sort of an epitaph for Jesus in the first reading from Acts written by one of his principal followers, Peter, speaking of Jesus: “God was with him.”

+ It is an interesting exercise on a retreat to ask everyone to write his/her own epitaphs

- that is, the one sentence phrase that people remember you by

- what would it be for you right now?

- what would you want it to be?

- and are they the same?

+ There are a number of possible epitaphs that a Christian could use:

1 – “He/she loved.”

- love is the sign by which a Christian was to know who was Christian and who was not - and it goes much further than a cursory understanding of love: it includes love of enemies, and everything that phrase means

2 – “He/she served others.”

- service is one of the focal points for the Christian

- Jesus talked about it at the Last Supper in John’s Gospel, by calling himself a model for us, as he served others by washing their feet

- even Judas’ feet

3 – “He/she remembered”

+ And maybe there is a third one, one that sums up all of them in one way or another

- it comes from Luke’s account of the Resurrection of Jesus in the Gospel today

- it uses a word that was primary for Jesus at the Last Supper, and a word that we have made a part of every Mass that is celebrated

- as the women were terrified and had their faces bowed to the ground, the men in dazzling garments said to them-- remember

“Remember what he said to you.”

- and so the Christian’s tombstone epitaph might read: “He/she remembered what Jesus said.”

- the Christian will remember the teachings of Jesus Christ

- and more importantly, allow those teachings to be the pattern and measure of their behavior

- ultimately, the result of the fact that we are Christian must be:

- Jesus is our pattern—making his virtues our own

- Jesus is the measure—using his life to measure how well we are doing

+ There is an epitaph of sorts on an old church in England on its cornerstone that reads:

“In the year 1653 when all things sacred in the kingdom were either profaned or demolished, this Church was built by (name) whose singular praise it was to do the best of things in the worst of times.”

- many people would say that we are in one of the those “worst of times” right now

- maybe our singular praise is to do the best that we can in these times, and always remember the teachings of the person whose Resurrection we celebrate today.

MEDIA PRESENTATION

Song: "Carry On" -- Fun.

SUN WILL COME

The Gospel

JOHN 9:1-7

JOHN 9:1-7

As [Jesus] passed by he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" Jesus answered, "Neither he nor his parents sinned; it is so that the works of God might be made visible through him. We have to do the works of the one who sent me while it is day. Night is coming when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world." When he had said this, he spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva, and smeared the clay on his eyes, and said to him, "Go wash in the Pool of Siloam" (which means 'Sent'). So he went and washed, and came back able to see.

Gospelthink: The Lord has blessed me with the sight of eternal life. I should be showing it by my actions.

"Well, I woke up to the sound of silence and cries were cutting like knives in a fist fight, and I found you with a bottle of wine. You swore and said, ‘We are not, we are not shining stars.’ If you’re lost and alone or you’re sinking like a stone, carry on. May your past be the sound of your feet upon the ground. Carry on. My head is on fire, but my legs are fine. After all they are mine. Show me how no one's ever gonna stop us tonight 'cause here we are. We are shining stars, we are invincible, we are who we are on our darkest day when we’re miles away. Sun will come. We will find our way home."

Fun.'s song "Carry On" tells the story of a relationship that the man in that relationship possessed at one time. It had fallen apart, and he began to reflect about himself. As a result, he began to see things differently, and the couple's relationship healed, concluding that "If you’re lost and alone or you’re sinking like a stone, carry on." That is, make the past the sound of your feet walking away, and start working on the present and future. The sun will come, we will find our way.

We cannot forget about the past completely, of course, nor should we, but we can make ourselves see things differently, and approach life with a new attitude that will carry us out of our darkness into the light. Jesus spoke of such an attitude often in his life. For him, it was an attitude often defined to be light overcoming darkness. Or in Fun.'s words, the belief that the sun will come. In John the Evangelist's story of the blind man in his Gospel, the darkness of the man's blindness could not overcome the light of Jesus in the world. The man born in darkness met the light of Jesus, and was able to see.

Fun's song "Carry On" and Jesus' attitude of light overcoming darkness is important for Christian leadership and for life in general. There are times when we will feel lost and alone, like we're sinking into the drowning waters of things that simply will not go right. We feel it in school when things continue to pile up; we feel it in life when relationships are not falling into place; we feel it in our work when our efforts seem to get us no where. It is then that we have to step back a little, think some serious thoughts about our past, and then force ourselves to see what is real in the present and future--we really do have light, the sun will come, we can "carry on" even if we are hurting for some reason.

One of the phrases that describes a Christian in the Bible is the phrase "children of the light" (1 Thessalonians 5:4). The phrase carries with it the implicit understanding that darkness will never be able to overcome the Christian's ability to carry on well in life. We always have light, we always have sun, we will always be able to see the way--the way "home." We will always be able to "carry on."

It is the only way to truly live.

PRAYER

Good and gracious God, your Son is the light of the world that you created. May we always turn to his light, and thus find our way in this world, and eventually come to live with you forever. Be with us, we pray.

+++++

GUIDE FOR CLASSROOM PRESENTATION AND PERSONAL ENRICHMENT

Theme: "If you're lost and alone or you're sinking like a stone, carry on."

THE GOSPEL
1. Jesus always denies that there is a one-to-one connection between sin and suffering. In general, why do people make the connection?
2. In your opinion, what are the works of God that Jesus must do?
3. Jesus is the light of the world; what should this mean for the world?

THE SONG
1. It is clear that in the beginning, the people in the song were not enjoying life. What causes people to be most upset in life?
2. Text analysis: "shining stars." What is the meaning of the phrase?
3. Text analysis: "May your past be the sound of your feet upon the ground." What is the meaning of the sentence?
4. Text analysis: "We are who we are on our darkest day when we are miles away." What is the meaning of the sentence?
5. Text analysis: "Sun will come." What is the meaning of the sentence?
6. Text analysis: "home." What does the word "home" mean in the context of the song?

THE MEDITATION
1. What is the principal reason why relationships fall apart?
2. In general, do most young people take the time to reflect on themselves and their lives? Yes or no and why?
3. Define a "Christian attitude."
4. In your opinion, in today's world, who are the "people of darkness"?
5. The meditation lists some examples of "things that do not go right." What are some of your own examples?
6. What is the best way to "carry on" well in life?
7. What does the song "Carry On" teach young people?