The Unbelief of the Eleven

 Reflection on Today’s Readings, Saturday of Easter Octave, April 23rd, 2022
Texts: Acts 4:13-21; Psalm 118:1a.14-21; Mark 16:9- 15
Today’s gospel reading tells us about the refusal of the apostles to believe the message of resurrection. Jesus Christ upbraided them for their refusal to believe the message of resurrection.  Their refusal to believe the message is a sign that they did not understand the word of their master. It could also be because they had forgotten His words He told them about His passion, death and resurrection. The problem might not even be lack of understanding or forgetfulness; it could just be that they did not believe Him while He was telling them. Is my story different from their story? Is your own story different from their story? How much effort do I give to understand God’s word? Do I ever seek to understand God’s word? Do I keep God’s word in my heart, that I may not forget it? Do I ever give attention to God’s word to retain it in my memory? Ignorance is an excuse where we can acquire knowledge. There is no excuse for doing the wrong thing where there is opportunity to acquire knowledge. Jesus Christ will upbraid us for doing wrong things because of ignorance just as He upbraided the eleven in the gospel reading of today. We are to believe Him because He is God, the way, the truth and the life; His word is always true. Jesus Christ wants us to believe the message about Him, He wants us to believe the message of resurrection, He wants us to relate with Him by faith, He wants us to live and walk with Him by faith, not by sight. Let us seek to understand His word. Let us pay attention to His word and keep it in our hearts. Let us believe Him and hold firmly His word.
Jesus Christ appeared to the eleven to dispel their unbelief and then send them out to proclaim the message of resurrection. Hence, it is said, “Afterwards he appeared to the eleven themselves as they sat at table; and he upbraided them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. And he said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the gospel to the whole creation.’” After securing their faith in His resurrection, He sent them to preach the gospel to the whole world. The joy of Easter should move us on to preach the gospel to everyone we meet. We may not go from street to street, we are to preach it in our workplaces, in schools, in classrooms, in markets, in our offices. Wherever we find ourselves is the place we are sent to preach the gospel. While we walk, we are to preach it. Whether we talk or sing, we are to preach it. In whatever we do, we are to preach it. The gospel should be our lives.  
We see in today’ first reading that preaching the gospel is challenging because it generates opposition. It is said, “they conferred with one another, saying, ‘What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is manifest to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to any one in this name.’ So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.” Where we face opposition, St. Peter teaches us to say, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge; for we cannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” This tells us to always listen to God.  

O God, thank You for the gift of your word, grant that we may seek to understand it, pay attention to it and keep it our hearts. Amen. 

 Fr. Andrew Olowomuke