Saturday of the Second Week of Easter
Today’s extract from the gospel of St. John brings us great consolation and hope: “The sea was stirred up because a strong wind was blowing…they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they began to be afraid. But he said to them, “It is I. Do not be afraid” (Jn 6:19-20). We have all experienced storms in our lives—days of darkness, confusion and fear—times when we have longed to hear those calming words. Sometimes we wonder if God cares, if God is really there.
St. Cyril of Alexandria said, “For observe that Christ does not appear to those in the boat immediately on their setting sail, nor at the commencement of their dangers, but when they are many furlongs off from the land. For not when the condition which harasses us first begins, does the grace of Him who saves visit us, but when the fear is at its height, and the danger now shows itself mighty, and we are found, so to say, in the midst of the waves of afflictions: then unlooked for does Christ appear, and puts away our fear, and will free us from all danger, by His Ineffable Power changing the dread things into joy, as it were a calm” (Commentary on the Gospel of John).
St. Cyril’s point is that God does not take away storms and times of distress from our lives but that He is with as we endure them. Spiritually, we grow times of stress because it is in such situations that we become totally dependent upon God. We move more deeply into prayer and abandoning ourselves to the Father’s will. Christ appears in the midst of the waves, giving us strength and courage and in the end, He transforms our fears rather than taking them away. Our confusion, doubt and inner darkness become opportunities for affirmations of faith and growth in trust in our loving Savior who is always with us and never abandons us. “It is I. Do not be afraid.”
Reflection by Br. Michael Marcotte, OSB
Posted in Article for Easter, Daily Reflections