At the beginning of every Mass, after the priest invokes the Blessed Trinity “In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit,” the first words from the priest are “The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all” or “The Lord be with you.” And of course, we reply … “And with your spirit.” But if a bishop is celebrating Mass, he greets the people with the words “Peace be with you.”
That greeting comes right from this Gospel passage we just heard where the first words from Jesus to his Apostles were “Peace be with you.” In fact, he says it twice in this appearance and again one week later when Thomas was with them: “Peace be with you.” This fulfills what he told them earlier in John’s Gospel at the Last Supper when he said to them, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid” (Jn 14:27). After repeating his words of Peace, he brings the Apostles into his own mission: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” So the bishops, who are the successors of the Apostles, are fulfilling this command of Jesus by offering us the same peace that Jesus offered to his Apostles on the evening of his Resurrection.
These are the same men, the followers of Jesus, who had denied, betrayed, and abandoned their master. So when they saw him on that evening of his resurrection, their fear must have been pretty intense—they were already hiding in the upper room behind locked doors for fear of the Jews. And now Jesus, God incarnate, had risen from the dead and was facing them. What would you think? “I’m in trouble now!” But instead, Jesus puts their fear to rest. “Peace be with you.” “Shalom.” “Shalom” is more than a simple greeting. It’s a wish of complete and total well-being, spiritual as well as physical. It is a peace so profound that nothing or no one can steal it away; it’s a peace that goes beyond any absence of violence or turmoil.
Then Jesus does something that is truly remarkable. He breathed on them and said “Receive the Holy Spirit.” This brings up something that I love to talk about and I’m sure I’ve mentioned it before, so I’m sorry if you’ve already heard it, but I just can’t help myself. And I think it’s something that we need keep reminding ourselves. At the Chrism Mass during Holy Week, the Bishop blesses and consecrates the oils that are used for celebrating the Sacraments. There’s the Oil of Infirm, used in the Anointing of the Sick; the Oil of Catechumens, in preparation for Baptism; and the Sacred Chrism, used in Baptism, Confirmation, Priestly Ordination, and the consecration of churches and altars. When he consecrates the Sacred Chrism, he breathes on the oil before the prayer of consecration. The first time I saw that happen, it took me right to this Gospel passage that we just heard.
When Jesus breathed on the Apostles, he gave them his own Spirit. This is the very same Spirit that gave life to humanity at the beginning of creation. When God created man, he breathed into the nostrils from the dirt he had formed, that lump of clay, and made him a human being. A part of God, his own breath, his Spirit, was inside of us. It’s the same Spirit that came down upon Jesus after he was baptized in the Jordan River by John the Baptist. It’s the very same Spirit Jesus breathed on the Apostles after his Resurrection. And since our bishops are the successors of the Apostles, it’s the same Spirit extended to all of the bishops and priests through their anointing and laying on of hands at their ordination. It’s the same Holy Spirit that consecrated the Sacred Chrism that is present in each Church, and it’s the very same Holy Spirit that anoints us in the Sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation.
But we must beware of thinking that this holy oil is simply ordinary oil and nothing else. After the invocation of the Holy Spirit, it is no longer ordinary oil but the gift of Christ, and by the presence of his divinity it becomes the instrument through which we receive the Holy Spirit. While our bodies are anointed with this oil that we can see, feel, and smell, our souls are sanctified by the Holy and life-giving Spirit of Christ Himself.
When a priest is ordained by the bishop, he is consecrated to Christ by the laying on of hands by the bishop and when his hands are anointed with Sacred Chrism, which was breathed upon by that same Holy Spirit. We are the recipients of that consecration when we come to Mass, and receive the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ, consecrated from the bread and wine by the hands of the priest. We are also the recipients of the priest’s consecration when we approach Jesus in the Sacrament of Reconciliation and we hear the words “I absolve you of your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.”
When Jesus cured the paralytic in the Gospel of Mark, he said to him, “Child, your sins are forgiven.” The scribes then asked, “Who but God alone can forgive sins?” (Mk 2:5-7). Indeed! As God incarnate, Jesus has the authority to forgive sins. “All authority in heaven and earth has been given to me” Jesus says (Mt 28:18). And now in the upper room Jesus said to the Apostles, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” After he said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.”
Jesus gives his authority to the Apostles. First, to consecrate the bread and wine into the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ: “Do this in memory of me.” But he also gives them the authority to forgive sins in his name. At the Last Supper Jesus said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? … I have given you an example, that you also should do as I have done to you” (Jn 13:12-15). And he wasn’t just talking about washing feet. And now he tells them, “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.”
The bishops, the successors of the Apostles, have been given that authority, and they, in turn, share that authority with their priests, who have been consecrated when their hands were anointed with the Sacred Chrism that was infused with the Holy Sprit who has existed for all eternity. My friends, the Church has been given a great gift, and we need to take advantage of it. Sometimes I think that we take that gift for granted when we feel that we don’t really need it, or if we feel we’re not worthy of it. There is no greater manifestation of divine mercy than the forgiveness of sins.
Think about this: a priest will offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass daily; sometimes twice in one day, and on rare occasions three times in one day. But there is no limit as to the number of times he can offer God’s forgiveness in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Remember when Peter approached Jesus and asked him, “Lord, if my brother sins against me, how often must I forgive him? As many as seven times?” Jesus answered, “I say to you, not seven times but seventy-seven times” (Mt 18:21-22). There is no limit to the mercy of God when it comes to forgiveness of sins when we approach him with humility and sincere sorrow for our sins. A priest told me once that apart from celebrating Mass, the most important thing he does as a priest is to offer forgiveness in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. It’s where the true Peace of Christ is available. And it’s free.
“Peace be with you” Jesus says. It wasn’t just a greeting. It was a gift of freedom. It was a gift of Divine Mercy. It was a gift of himself for the world.
“Shalom.”