Fr Kevin Kilgore

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Gospel: John 21: 1-14

Jesus revealed himself again to his disciples at the Sea of Tiberias.
He revealed himself in this way.
Together were Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus,
Nathanael from Cana in Galilee,
Zebedee’s sons, and two others of his disciples.
Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.”
They said to him, “We also will come with you.”
So they went out and got into the boat,
but that night they caught nothing.
When it was already dawn, Jesus was standing on the shore;
but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus.
Jesus said to them, “Children, have you caught anything to eat?”
They answered him, “No.”
So he said to them, “Cast the net over the right side of the boat
and you will find something.”
So they cast it, and were not able to pull it in
because of the number of fish.
So the disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, “It is the Lord.”
When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord,
he tucked in his garment, for he was lightly clad,
and jumped into the sea.
The other disciples came in the boat,
for they were not far from shore, only about a hundred yards,
dragging the net with the fish.
When they climbed out on shore,
they saw a charcoal fire with fish on it and bread.
Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish you just caught.”
So Simon Peter went over and dragged the net ashore
full of one hundred fifty-three large fish.
Even though there were so many, the net was not torn.
Jesus said to them, “Come, have breakfast.”
And none of the disciples dared to ask him, “Who are you?”
because they realized it was the Lord.
Jesus came over and took the bread and gave it to them,
and in like manner the fish.
This was now the third time Jesus was revealed to his disciples
after being raised from the dead.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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A few weeks ago, I received a letter in the mail from my seven-year-old niece, Amelia. The cover was filled with colorful pictures – her, me, their dog, Max, a tree from their front yard. Inside the letter, there was a very important message.

Dear Uncle Kevin, 

I miss you.

Love, Amelia

P.S. I really, really miss you.

Shortly thereafter, I booked a roundtrip flight to Atlanta. Had I ignored that letter, something tells me I’d no longer be on her “good list.”

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A similar dynamic is unfolding in today’s Gospel.

Technically, John concluded his Gospel in the previous chapter. Jesus had been raised from the dead; he appeared to his disciples in Jerusalem; he walked through walls; he broke bread with them; and, finally, he imparted his peace and sent them out.

Period. End of story.

But much like my niece who needed “P.S.” to end her letter, John adds a second ending to his Gospel in order to reiterate a few important themes. 

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First, the role of Peter. 

Although the “beloved” disciple recognizes Jesus is the one standing along the shoreline, it’s Peter who lunges into the sea and swims to greet Jesus first. It’s Peter who hauls the catch of fish ashore. And it’s Peter whom Jesus speaks with directly, asking him, “Do you love me?” 

Then the Lord issues his great command to Peter, “Feed my sheep.”

Second, John uses the image of the net stuffed with fish to symbolize the mission of the Church. We are to fill her to the brim with souls thirsting for Christ without tearing; unity is key.

Notice, the net is filled with “one hundred fifty-three” fish, representing our need to embrace all of humanity; no one is to be excluded.

Finally, John demonstrates the Risen Lord’s knowledge and mobility. Jesus not only remembers his disciples; he can also appear to them anywhere he chooses – in Jerusalem, in Galilee, and in the quiet stillness of our own hearts.  

Come, Lord Jesus!

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Image credits: (1) Caitlin Trussell (2) thelifeididn’tchoose (3) Redbubble

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Gospel: Luke 24:35-48

The disciples of Jesus recounted what had taken place along the way,
and how they had come to recognize him in the breaking of bread.

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.”
And as he said this,
he showed them his hands and his feet.
While they were still incredulous for joy and were amazed,
he asked them, “Have you anything here to eat?”
They gave him a piece of baked fish;
he took it and ate it in front of them.

He said to them,
“These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you,
that everything written about me in the law of Moses
and in the prophets and psalms must be fulfilled.”
Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.
And he said to them,
“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.”

The Gospel of the Lord.

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There are seven recorded resurrection appearances in the Gospels, one being the Road to Emmaus, which we heard in yesterday’s Gospel. 

Today the two disciples whom Christ appeared to on that road have rejoined the rest of the community, who are hiding somewhere in Jerusalem.

As they share their mysterious encounter with the Risen Lord, how they could see him, but not really see him, Jesus appears in their midst, saying, “Peace be with you.”

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Everyone is baffled. Could this be a ghost? A dream? A hallucination?

The Jesus of the resurrection is not the same Jesus of Good Friday. 

On Good Friday, he was beaten badly, scourged, spit upon, mocked, then nailed to a tree with a nameplate tacked above his head. There could be no case of mistaken identity here.

Jesus of Nazareth died.

His resurrection, however, was largely based upon rumored sitings. Think about all of the others – those whom Jesus healed, touched, and forgave – who were not in this room where the Lord suddenly appeared. Are they to resurrect their crucified hope and believe?

Even those standing right in front of Jesus are stunned.

Yet the Lord speaks to them. He breathes upon them. He offers them his peace. But then he does the one marquee thing assuring them, in the words of John, “It is the Lord.”

He shares a meal.

He did it after blessing five loaves and two fish, feeding thousands. He did it on the night of his betrayal, hours before his death. He did it on the road to Emmaus. He did it on the shores of Galilee over a charcoal fire, reconciling Peter with himself.

And he does it again in today’s Gospel, assuring his disciples unequivocally that he is alive again. 

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This is the same way the Risen Lord appears to us today, “in the breaking of the bread.”

May the Lord give us all the eyes of Easter, allowing us to see him in the Eucharist, bread broken for the life of the world.

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Image credits: (1) The Incredulity of Saint Thomas, Caravaggio (2) Adobe Stock (3) Canon Law 101

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Gospel: Luke 24: 13-35

That very day, the first day of the week,
two of Jesus’ disciples were going
to a village seven miles from Jerusalem called Emmaus,
and they were conversing about all the things that had occurred.
And it happened that while they were conversing and debating,
Jesus himself drew near and walked with them,
but their eyes were prevented from recognizing him.
He asked them,
“What are you discussing as you walk along?”
They stopped, looking downcast.
One of them, named Cleopas, said to him in reply,
“Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem
who does not know of the things
that have taken place there in these days?”
And he replied to them, “What sort of things?”
They said to him,
“The things that happened to Jesus the Nazarene,
who was a prophet mighty in deed and word
before God and all the people,
how our chief priests and rulers both handed him over
to a sentence of death and crucified him.
But we were hoping that he would be the one to redeem Israel;
and besides all this,
it is now the third day since this took place.
Some women from our group, however, have astounded us:
they were at the tomb early in the morning
and did not find his Body;
they came back and reported
that they had indeed seen a vision of angels
who announced that he was alive.
Then some of those with us went to the tomb
and found things just as the women had described,
but him they did not see.”
And he said to them, “Oh, how foolish you are!
How slow of heart to believe all that the prophets spoke!
Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things
and enter into his glory?”
Then beginning with Moses and all the prophets,
he interpreted to them what referred to him
in all the Scriptures.
As they approached the village to which they were going,
he gave the impression that he was going on farther.
But they urged him, “Stay with us,
for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.”
So he went in to stay with them.
And it happened that, while he was with them at table,
he took bread, said the blessing,
broke it, and gave it to them.
With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him,
but he vanished from their sight.
Then they said to each other,
“Were not our hearts burning within us
while he spoke to us on the way and opened the Scriptures to us?”
So they set out at once and returned to Jerusalem
where they found gathered together
the Eleven and those with them who were saying,
“The Lord has truly been raised and has appeared to Simon!”
Then the two recounted what had taken place on the way
and how he was made known to them in the breaking of the bread.

The Gospel of the Lord.

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I’m sure we’re all familiar with the poem, Footprints in the Sand. It’s an allegorical poem about the journey of life. A person falls asleep and finds themselves walking along a beach, looking back over their life. 

Along the way, there are two sets of footprints – one belonging to the dreamer and the other to God. But whenever the difficult or traumatic life moments came, the set of footprints dwindled from two down to one.

“I don’t understand why God, when I needed you the most, you would leave me,” the poet lamented. “My precious child,” God replied, “I love you and will never leave you. When you saw only one set of footprints, it was then that I carried you.”

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In today’s Gospel, two of Jesus’ disciples are walking along the road to Emmaus. Physically, their backs are turned away from Jerusalem as they journey into the sunset, into the night. Spiritually, they are trying to rid themselves of their grief.

Jesus, their teacher and master, had been brutally murdered. Now they felt lost; directionless; abandoned. So, they tried leaving it all behind.

Suddenly the Lord appeared to them as a stranger, sparking a conversation. Symbolically, this was when he began to carry them as the sets of footprints dwindled down to one.

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The Lord attended to his friends in three different ways.

First, he inquired about the reason for their sadness. Although his disciples could not fathom how anyone in Jerusalem didn’t know about the death of their Lord, they began to open their hearts. Sometimes the simple act of sharing begins the process of healing.

Then the Lord opens the scriptures for them. While the bible does not answer every question we have about life and death, or good and evil, the Word of God does add a great amount of clarity. The Truth becomes a healing balm.

Finally, the Lord sits down and breaks bread with them. This removes the “cataracts” from their eyes, allowing them to see that Jesus was with them.

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When looking back over our own lives, hopefully we can say the same. When our hearts were burdened by pain and grief, our faith kicked in as we allowed the Lord to carry us.

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Image credits: (1) Medium (2) The Missional Network, Emmaus Road (3) Words of Hope, WordPress