The overriding focus of this 2nd Sunday of Easter is peace. The depth and completeness of the peace that are described in the scriptures for this weekend is far more than the laudable but superficial notion of peace we often hear in song and read in literature, e.g. John Lennon’s “All I am saying is give peace a chance,” or “Merry XMas (The War is Over).”
In the acts of the Apostles, many people experiencing conflict within their lives seek out the Apostles not only to be cured of what is afflicting them, but, moreover, to experience “complete” wholeness and peace that only Jesus can bestow.
The author of Revelations is exiled to the Isle of Patmos amidst the violence and persecution of the Christian community. Not only have Jewish Christians been expelled from the synagogues, but the Roman Empire is seeking out the Christians and murdering them in vast numbers. With violence and conflict all about him, the author seeks and finds peace.
In John’s gospel, the disciples of Jesus are horrified about what has happened to Jesus and fear that they will be next to die. They lock themselves behind locked doors and refuse to venture beyond those doors. What are the very first words with which Jesus greets them? It is “Peace be with you.” His very words erases the fear that paralyzes them and replaces it with a deepfelt peace.
Thomas, perhaps the only one of them who has any courage left, is not with the disciples when Jesus appears to them. Not knowing the peace the others have felt, he is left conflicted. One week later, Jesus reappears in their midst and once more greets them with “Peace Be With You.” Thomas then experience the peace of the glorified Jesus and believes. Jesus gently admonishes him and then tells him that more blessed than Thomas are those who have not seen yet still believe.
This is more than just a reference to physically seeing the risen Jesus. It is more a reference in believing the peace that the risen Jesus can give to us. It is the peace, that the people of Jerusalem find in believing in the message the apostles are teaching in the streets of Jerusalem. It is the peace that the author of Revelations finds amidst the violence and persecution of the Christian community by the Romans and others. It is the peace given to the disciples who cower in fear in the upper room.
We all know people who have found the peace that Jesus bestows. I have encountered quite a few in my 42 years of ministry. They have this air of peace and calm, even when all hell is breaking lose around them. They can be given news that would cause others to despair, yet, even the worse news does not shake the peace and calm that inhabits them. It is not that they are oblivious or ignore what has been told them, but, somehow, it is absorbed into the peace that fills their lives.
After 42 years of ministry and theology, it is easy for others to assume that I possess this unfailing belief in Jesus’ peace. Alas, I am still working on it. As I much as I would like to say I have got it, I, like Thomas still need the reassurance of placing my fingers into the holes in Jesus’ hands, and my hand into Jesus’ side. Perhaps, one day, I, too, will no longer need to see and finally believe.
