Items for the week of Sunday, April 12th

This past Sunday, April 12^th, Second Sunday of Easter we heard the following scripture readings, introduction, and prayer of the day during the worship service:

Introduction

In today’s gospel the risen Christ appears to the disciples and offers them the gift of peace. Even amid doubts and questions, we experience the resurrection in our Sunday gathering around word and meal, and in our everyday lives. Throughout the coming Sundays of Easter the first two readings will be from the Acts of the Apostles and the first letter of Peter. Even as the early Christians proclaimed the resurrection, we rejoice in the new birth and living hope we receive in baptism.

Prayer of the Day

Almighty and eternal God, the strength of those who believe and the hope of those who doubt, may we, who have not seen, have faith in you and receive the fullness of Christ’s blessing, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Scripture
Acts 2:14a, 22-32 Christ’s resurrection: the fulfillment of God’s promise to David

Psalm 16 In your presence there is fullness of joy. (Ps. 16:11)

1 Peter 1:3-9 New birth to a living hope through the resurrection

John 20:19-31 Beholding the wounds of the risen Christ

Devotion for the week

Be Curious

The hit Apple TV series Ted Lasso became a cultural phenomenon as the first season was released in August 2020, in the thick of the global pandemic. This sports-comedy-drama told the story of the title character, an American college football coach turned professional English soccer coach with zero experience in that sport. Ted’s genuine positivity was hilariously infectious amid the real challenges he faced in his work and relationships. He encouraged people not to make assumptions of one another and to “be curious” in life.

In many ways, the disciple Thomas could have been an acolyte of Ted Lasso. Though he is often dubbed “the doubter,” Thomas’s disposition was really one of curiosity. After all, how could he not be curious? He was the one disciple who missed out on Jesus’ first resurrection appearance in that locked house. Who wouldn’t feel the sting of missing such a sight, and hope to share in a similar experience? Thomas, in his faithfully curious way, desired to put his hands in Jesus’ pierced hands and side. His belief in the resurrection was contingent upon the quenching of his curiosity. That is, without his inquisitiveness, the story lacks its climactic revelation: Thomas’s proclamation, “My Lord and my God!” (John 20:28).

We could go on labeling Thomas a doubter, but such a title is unfortunately riddled with disparaging connotations. Perhaps we would do well to claim him as “Thomas the curious,” recognizing that doubt and belief intersect along curiosity’s pathway. Thomas may just be our example of how to perceive the resurrection in our midst, thereby leading us into a deeper understanding of life with the risen Christ. After all, it is his proclamation we share in the Easter season as we declare Jesus crucified and risen. May we, too, be curious as we look for signs of Easter among us.