by Reverend Deacon Lawrence A. St. Onge

      The Easter season is truly wonderful. Even though Easter was extremely early this year, nature is still giving us more sunlight and slightly warmer days. There’s the hope that the long winter is coming to an end.

      The church herself builds on that hopeful optimism. Last Sunday we celebrated the greatest feast of the church year. The feast is so great that the celebration continues for 50 days; ending on the Feast of Pentecost. Within the church we continue to hear the gloriously sung alleluias. Truly, Christ has died! Christ is risen! Christ will come again!

      This is what we believe; is it not? Or perhaps there are many like the Apostle Thomas who have heard that Christ is risen from the dead, but haven’t been touched by this truth in the deepest depths of their being. Or, perhaps there isn’t anything visible to hang on to, and they are afraid, because it means they have to let go and to trust.

      Repeatedly, in scripture, we hear the words of Jesus come to us: “Do not be afraid.” Jesus is indeed, in our midst. The Holy Spirit has been sent to us. We are God’s beloved sons and daughters. True, we haven’t seen the Lord with our own eyes, but we cling to those words he said to Thomas in today’s gospel: “Blessed are those who have not seen and have believed.”

      The Easter experience of the apostles and disciples of the Lord was that Jesus lives; fear not! Our Easter experience should also be that Jesus lives; we need not fear! For Jesus has conquered death and its accompanying fear.

      Our church has continued to grow and evolve through the centuries and to carry on Christ’s work and speak Christ’s words through all of us -- the Body of Christ. She continues to worship God and to reach out to the poor, the marginalized of society and to those who are lost. Through her God offers love, forgiveness and peace. Even as resurrection grace poured down upon the apostles and the early church, that same flood of resurrection grace continues to fall upon us today, through the celebration of the Eucharist and the sacraments. This is our belief.

       Each of us is invited, as Thomas was, to be a member of the community of belief. We too, are invited to touch the Lord’s wounds and to put our hand into his side. We accomplish this by serving the wounded of our world. As Paul says in today’s second reading, “Although you have not seen him, you love him.” And, we love him by touching His wounds in others. And, as we love him in this way, then our faith grows. And when we step across the threshold of doubt, fear and disbelief, into the reality of faith, then, although we haven’t seen our Lord in the flesh, then still…even still, we do believe. And, as we believe, we receive the promised blessing from Jesus himself in today’s gospel: “Blessed are they who have not seen, yet believe.”

      Most people are awed by rainbows that pop up against the dark clouds of a storm. The sun peeks through the storm, and every color of light is seen in graceful arcs in the sky. The Bible tells us that the “rainbow” is God’s reminder to us that no darkness or evil can resist the mercy of God. It is a sign of God’s promise to set aside anger for the sake of compassion, and it is a sign of God’s divine mercy.

      And so, the image of this “Divine Mercy Sunday” is Jesus with a rainbow sprouting from his breast. That rainbow is for you and me; given to us as a reminder, that in Christ Jesus, our lives are eternal and our sins are forgiven. Here in our church this mercy of God is celebrated; for here we eat and drink the reality of that mercy, Jesus Christ, who comes to us in the Eucharist in the form of bread and wine, to save us and restore us to unity with God.

      In her mystical vision of “divine mercy,” Saint Faustina said: “Here the misery of the soul meets the God of mercy.” She is a saint because she saw the mercy of God, the rainbow of God revealed in the heart of Jesus. But how much more are we blessed, we who have not seen, yet still believe in God’s forgiveness of our sins celebrated this day?

      All of us at one time or another have had trouble in believing in something or someone that we cannot see and cannot touch. The fact of the matter is that every time we receive Holy Communion, Jesus is breathing the Holy Spirit upon us. In receiving the Body and Blood of the resurrected Jesus something powerful happens to us. The Eucharist has the power to transform us just as it transformed the apostles – if we allow it to do so. We need to open our hands, our mind and our heart and let the Holy Spirit abide in us. Let us pray that God will give us the grace to do so.