New Sunday Sunday of Thomas (John 20, 26-31)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
“Lord Jesus, make us worthy to celebrate with spiritual hymns your appearance to Thomas and your apostles. You desired to strengthen the faith of your holy Church by inviting Thomas to put his hand in your pure side.” - Opening Prayer
It has been eight days since the celebration of Easter Sunday. In this momentous Jubilee Year of Redemption, we have joyfully shared with our Orthodox brothers and sisters in the common a date of Easter, the feast of Feasts. But this year’s celebrations have experienced the shadow of sorrow at the death of our beloved Holy Father, Pope Francis. While his death was not a surprise, his departure from us to the House of the Father was indeed an occasion to feel the sorrow of losing a father. Pope Francis was indeed a father to us here in Cyprus, visiting us and calling the world’s attention to our sorrowful situation. Added to that, Pope Francis stood out among all the world leaders in his untiring support for the poor Palestinians in their unimaginable horrors.
There have been so many beautiful and moving testimonies written about Pope Francis this past week, many by people who do not share our faith, but experienced in the Pope’s merciful tenderness a true father. On this ‘Thomas Sunday’ in which we Maronites share the same gospel as our Latin brothers and sisters, we give thanks to God for the mercy of Jesus Christ that radiated so beautifully from Pope Francis.
Pope Francis was like the good Samaritan, who saw the wounds of modern men and women and looked to remedy it the best way he could. Just as Christ invited Thomas to touch his wounds, Francis invited us to touch the wounds of the poor and the outcast.
Often, his gestures and his efforts were misunderstood and misrepresented: like Job, he was upbraided by Zophar, scolded by Eliphaz, and criticized by Bildad (Job 3-27). But like a river that has burst its banks, the endless flow of people who came to pay their respects before the mortal remains of Francis proved that the sheep know the voice of the shepherd (John 10:5)
Let us on this Mercy Sunday endeavour to do as Francis did and help heal the wounds of our brothers and sisters. Let us also be very united to all the cardinals as they prepare to enter the solemn conclave to give the Church another Peter.
† Selim Sfeir
Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus