The Word today, Easter2C
- Admin
- Apr 26
- 3 min read
Updated: Apr 27
April 28 - May 03, 2025
St Peter Chanel, priest and martyr St Louis Marie Grignion de Montfort, priest
Acts 2:14, 22-33 The cross was a shock to the first Christians and so was the resurrection. In this speech of Peter, we “overhear” the first disciples using the Old Testament—especially the psalms—to understand what had taken place. The primary proclamation is focused on Jesus of Nazareth.
Matthew 28:8-15 The central proclamation—Jesus’ appearance to the women at the tomb—is unique to Matthew. In effect, it places the previous proclamation of the angel on the very lips of Jesus himself. In this way, Matthew—ever the teacher—make the implicit explicit.
St Catherine of Siena, virgin and doctor
1 John 1:5-2:2 The reading, with its emphasis on writing, is suitable for feast of St Catherine. It is also suitable for Eastertide, taking us to the message of love and forgiveness at the heart of it all.
Matthew 11:25-30 This wonderful reading is also suitable for the feast, given the simplicity and humility of St Catherine. These verses, also present in Luke, give us a window on the prayer of Jesus himself.
St Pius V, bishop of Rome
Acts 5:17-26 This miraculous anecdote (not lacking in humour) illustrates how irrepressible the preaching of The Way was and how its bearers were and are still today under God’s protection.
John 3:16-21 The opening words in this Gospel are justly famous—surely one of the greatest affirmations in Scripture. They echo the story of the sacrifice of Isaac. The rest of the Gospel is difficult for us, until we remember that we are overhearing the robust dialogue between the Church and Synagogue from about AD 90. It may be best to understand the harsh line on judgment to refer to full believers who have walked away.
St Joseph the Worker
Acts 5:27-33 In this passage, Peter responds to those who would silence him. The clarity of his defence might help us today: obedience to God comes before obedience to humans.
John 3:31-36 Our reading of John 3 moves forward to the teaching on the lips of John the Baptist. The writer is looking back with the 2020 vision of (theological) hindsight. While it is very unlikely that the historical John the Baptist expressed himself in the vocabulary of the Johannine community (!), nevertheless our reading gives us a rich reflection on Jesus and what he means to us today.
St Athanasius of Alexandria, bishop and doctor
Acts 4:1-12 The religious authorities of the time were against the teaching of resurrection at all and very much against saying Jesus was risen. These are the very same people who brought about the crucifixion of Jesus. Here Peter, using the Old Testament, make the case for the resurrection of Jesus.
John 21:1-14 Chapter 21—an early addition to John —reminds us of the three-fold denial of Peter by means of his three-fold restoration. The fishing scene takes us back to the original call of Peter and his brothers. That earlier call is still “valid” and at the same time strengthened in the light of the resurrection.
Sts Philip and James, apostles
1 Corinthians 15:1-8 The witnesses to the Risen Lord are foundational for Paul and among them we find James, one of today’s saints. We are to be witnesses in our day.
John 14:6-14 The Gospel mentions Philip, who is given a relatively high profile in John. He certainly cannot be accused of setting his sights too low — and still, his interjection leads to a rich and invigorating teaching from the Johannine Jesus.
References
-United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. (2025ai, April 27). Second Sunday of Easter. USCCB. https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/042725.cfm
-Sunday readings. (n.d.-s). Hearers of the Word. https://www.tarsus.ie/SundayReadings
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