May 2014 Philadelphia Chapter of Pax Christi U.S.A.
The Body of Christ
Cecile Reiley, SSJ, has shouted for years to the hard of hearing; pray together. It can be transforming if you persevere. Cecile along with one of her mentors, Robert Kennedy, the Jesuit Christian/Zen Buddhist teacher, celebrates our connectedness, St. Paul calls it the Body of Christ. We all benefit when our brothers and sisters come together to pray; we are all one in Christ.
Recovering from a serious illness this past month, I experienced our oneness with each other and Christ. Many friends and family, fellow parishioners from St. Malachy, and my Bainbridge House prayer group finally brought me to a clear realization; we are in this affair of faith and hope and love together. I haven’t felt alone and have felt liberated from the old obsession, me.
Pope Francis speaks to our need to touch: “Sometimes we are tempted to be that kind of Christian who keeps the Lord’s wounds at arm’s length. Yet Jesus wants us to touch human misery, to touch the suffering flesh of others. He hopes that we will stop looking for those personal or communal niches which shelter us from the maelstrom of human misfortune and instead enter into the reality of other people’s lives and know the power of tenderness. Whenever we do so, our lives become wonderfully complicated and we experience intensely what it is to be a people, to be part of a people.” Francis recommends we rub shoulders with the poor; he is the most tactile Pope in my life time. There are blessings with imposition of hands, kisses, embraces, washing of feet for all regardless of gender, color, religion, or age. It is a powerful expression of compassion and love.
Entering Holy Week, it is difficult to ponder witnessing a crucifixion, especially of a person who captured your heart, who had become the center of your life. Perhaps we would have fled like the apostles, except for John. The humanity of the post crucifixion gatherings is captured by the absent Thomas, who having been informed of Jesus’ Resurrection speaks boldly, “Unless I can see the holes that the nails made in his hands and put my finger into the holes they made, and unless I can put my hand into his side, I refuse to believe,” As we know Jesus at his next appearance to the disciples accommodated Thomas and he became a believer.
The post Resurrection appearance of Jesus is wonderfully captured in John’s Gospel by the Sea of Tiberius where Peter tells his friends, “I’m going fishing,” and his friends joined him and pushed out to sea. Jesus appears on shore and calls out to them, with their empty nets, “Throw the net out to starboard” … And they “could not haul in because of the quantity of fish.” John recognizes that it is Jesus on the shore. “Peter tied his outer garment round him “for he had nothing on” and jumped into the water. The others came ashore … Jesus had a charcoal fire and said, “come and have breakfast.” Who would have anticipated a Messiah taking on such humble tasks? Over bread and fish Jesus launched them on their new mission to tell the story of his death and resurrection, to proclaim the good news to all the people, “God is love.” The volumes written on the Messiah over the centuries couldn’t imagine it beginning with a few fishermen, recognizing their Lord on the shore grilling fish, baking bread. Go forth!
Joe is a member of CPF
Joe Bradley
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