Only Want to Know

Why'd you choose such a backward time

And such a strange land?

If you'd come today

You could have reached the whole nation

But Israel in 4 BC had no mass communication.

—Tim Rice’s 1970 lyrics for Jesus Christ Superstar.

And communication technology has come even further since 1970.

If Jesus had waited until today to come, we’d all be able to see him and listen to him.

Follow him on eye-witness news, read his blog.

Attend one of his world-tour appearances.

Get his constant Facebook and Twitter messages on our smart phones.

Considering the claims he made, the authorities would be sure to get scientific proof of his death.

His tomb would be monitored with surveillance devices.

Probably round-the-clock live TV coverage.

His Resurrection would be almost indisputable.

So why did he come to backwater Judea 2,000 years ago?

I don't know—evidently God saw that as the opportune time in His plan.

People were just as intelligent and questioning and skeptical and clever as we are today.

Communications and travel were certainly much more limited than today.

But they were sufficient to record the Gospels and spread them throughout the world.

In the long history of mankind, Jesus was to be present in the flesh for only one brief period.

And as it turned out, it was not during our time.

To our great fortune, he came before our time rather than after.

So we have the benefit of knowing all about him and his teachings and his Good News.

If Jesus' Resurrection happened today, would the whole world be forever convinced?

Even with the TV coverage and the DVDs and YouTubes,

There would still be doubters and conspiracy theorists.

And not just a few cynical super-skeptics.

Like those who still disbelieve the moon landing videos and Obama's birth records.

But many, who've learned that we can no longer believe everything we see.

Thanks to Hollywood and Photoshop and all kinds of electronic wizardry.

We've learned to temper our trust and faith in visual evidence with a reasonable skepticism.

As it is, we don't have to deal with that high-tech evidence—we don't have any.

What we do have today is the testimony of those who were eye-witnesses.

Those who knew Jesus when he was here in the flesh.

Like Mary Magdalene and Peter and John and the other disciples who went to the tomb.

They were expecting to finish his burial, not to learn of his Resurrection.

But they, and many others, were transformed by seeing and speaking with the risen Christ.

They were convinced; they radically changed; they acted differently.

Peter went from fearfully denying that he even knew Jesus,

To boldly admonishing the crowds for crucifying their Lord and Christ.

We have the words of Sacred Scripture, recorded and passed down to us by those first disciples.

We have the attraction to the truth and wisdom and comfort of the message Jesus brought.

And most of all, we have the power to accept and nurture the gift of faith that is offered to us.

Tuesday, Octave of Easter

Jn 20:11-18                                 Read this Scripture @usccb.org