When Jesus was raised from the dead, the scriptures tell us that He was in the flesh, yet in a glorified form. In many of His first appearances to the disciples, they did not recognize Him at first. He possessed a heavenly body.
But, we must recognize, Jesus still had His crucifixion wounds.
Why?
If Christ is able to be raised from the dead and return in a new, healed form, why would He keep His scars?
Jesus shows His wounds to the disciples. He carried them, even with His glorified body, as a reminder of His identity. As a reminder of His sacrifice. Of His divine love for us.
Our parish is truly blessed with three amazing priests in our attendance: Father Bala, our main shepherd, Father Tran, our associate pastor, and Father Fred, a retired priest from the Diocese of Detroit.
During one of his sermons a few months ago, Fr. Fred said, "Christ's greatest prayer is the cross. Our greatest prayer is our suffering, for we can be united in Christ's suffering on the cross."
This thought has stuck with me. As humans, we will always experience some kind of suffering, whether it's as simple as morning traffic or as severe as a serious medical diagnosis.
Our tendency is to focus on and feel trapped by the enormity of our suffering rather than the power of our Lord. Let's instead see our wounds as a way to unite with Christ.
Father Bala posed some provoking questions on this Divine Mercy Sunday:
What are the wounds of your Christian identity?
How do you exemplify Christ's wounds to others?
Jesus's wounds heal ours. How do you heal those who are suffering?