Imagine being one of the Apostles right after the events of Good Friday. Everything had gone so horribly wrong. There had to have been something about this Jesus that attracted these followers, all so incredibly different from each other, to him. These men recognized in Jesus a new start, a new hope. They saw in the Person of the Christ the long-awaited promise of Israel. They were certain that this man, in his words and in his actions, was bringing forth the Kingdom of God. The Apostles had hoped that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah. And then it all went so very, very wrong.

They saw how people had begun to reject his teachings. They saw how the Pharisees and the Sanhedrin led the crowds against Jesus. The Apostles saw Jesus beaten, bloodied, bruised and broken. They saw the life drain out of His body on that horrible piece of wood. They saw one of their own, Judas, the holder of the purse, betray Him. Moreover, each of the Apostles knew that each of them, in their own way, had run away from the man they called Lord and in their absence had betrayed Him.

And now, they hear the news, the shocking news that Jesus had risen from the dead. Their hope had not been defeated, but surely mixed with their joy was fear, honest fear. Each of them had turned away from the Lord in his hour of need; now he’s back – what would he say?

The resurrection of Christ is depicted in a 14th-century painting of tempera on wood.

If anyone had the right to be angry, if anyone had ever had the right to be upset, if anyone ever had the right to want to seek revenge, it was Jesus. What would he do when he saw the Apostles? What would he say? What would the Apostles say?
With no animosity, with no rancor, Jesus appears and greets His beloved friends with four choice words – “Peace be with you.” He then initiated them further into the mysteries of the Kingdom of God by sharing with them the gift of peace – the gift of the Holy Spirit.

In our lives, all of us have had to deal with misunderstandings with our friends, families and colleagues. Often, the little things that we’d allow to roll off our backs become enlarged to an extreme degree with the people whom we deal with the most, the people whom we care about the most. How do we deal with these situations?

Do we look to the example of Christ, or do we let our anger grow into resentment, our resentment fester into hatred and then allow our hatred to consume us? It’s a simple act – human nature, although still fundamentally good, is fallen. People can and will, at times, be annoying. People can and will, at times, be offensive. They can hurt us. They can betray our trust and even lie about us.

As Christians, our reaction needs to be different from the reactions of the world. Before we say or do something that will further hurt or even sever the already strained relationship, take a step back. Deal with the situation, openly, honestly and, if possible, objectively. Say what needs to be said. Speak the truth in love. Do it all with the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of peace shared with the Apostles, who so enfolded them and sent them forth to bring the Good News.

Our emotions are neither right, nor wrong. It’s what we do with our emotions that make them right or wrong. May our emotions help us navigate always the line between sin, the destroyer of unity and grace, God’s life in us.

Readings for Easter Sunday:

Acts 5:12-16
Ps 118:2-4, 13-15, 22-24
Rv 1:9-11, 12-13, 17-19
Jn 20:19-31

Father Cush is on the faculty of Cathedral Preparatory Seminary, Elmhurst.