Readings: Acts.3:11-23; Ps.8; Luke24:35-48
Fr.
Emmanuel Emenike Onyia.
AN
ENCOUNTER THAT LEADS TO AUTHENTIC WITNESSING
A witness must be someone who has seen and
experienced something and could testify to the facts of what he or she has
seen. Today in a special way Jesus appeared to his disciples wishing them peace
and commissioning them to bear witness to his resurrection. He commissioned his
disciples with these words “You are witnesses to this”.
The
disciples had witnessed Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection and here
comes the mission to witness this to the whole world and to proclaim
reconciliation with God through Jesus. We too receive this commission of being
his witnesses, through our baptism we are incorporated into the Church to
authentically bear witness to the faith we profess.
Dear
friends, it is our task to carry on this mission of Christ throughout the whole
world. If we do not, then, the world will not hear Christ’s message of
reconciliation, forgiveness and victory over sin and death, thereby, making the
world remain ignorant of what God has done for us and the consequences of this
ignorance is the root of the problems in our world today.
However,
we can not bear effective witness unless we have a personal experience of the
risen Lord. It is this personal experience that enables Peter to bear effective
witness of Christ before the people as we read in our first reading today (Acts
3:11-26), we too can do the same when we experience the risen Lord personally
in our lives.
LET US
PRAY: Lord Jesus, let us once again experience you personally in our lives and
give us the grace to bear authentic witness of your presence in the world,
especially at this moment when the world is in a state of confusion not knowing
what to do. Manifest your victorious power afresh in our lives, families,
societies and the world at large. You who lives and reigns forever and ever.
Amen.
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