Homily at Our Lady of the Valleys for the Easter Sunday, Year B.
I’ve heard a rumour that Christ is Risen!
I’ve heard a rumour that Heaven is Real!
I’ve heard a rumour that the best is still to come!
We live in an age of deepfakes, robocalls and false news. The consumer journalists warn us that if an offer seems too good to be true, it probably is. Stories that would be amazing if true might turn out to be fabrications, or at least embellished. And that’s all before April Fools’ Day tomorrow!
But today, I’ve heard a rumour that Christ is Risen!
It’s Easter Sunday, yet in our portion from St Mark’s Gospel, we do not meet the Risen Jesus. We only hear the message that it’s true, and his friends will see Him soon.
The Colossians, too, are looking forward to what they cannot yet see. They are advised that their life “is hidden with Christ in God” and a future glory is yet to be revealed.
What good to us is the promise of pie in the sky when we die?
It’s worth waiting for, say those who’ve tasted the pie. Simon Peter tasted it. He was one of those witness who could declare “We have eaten and drunk with Jesus after his resurrection from the dead.” But that was a long time ago. Are there any credible witnesses now?
I’ve heard a rumour that Heaven is Real!
An engineer called John Burke was fascinated with the stories of people who’ve been revived after being clinically dead for a few minutes, people who return with the story of some kind of ‘near death experience’. He studied reports from both Western and Asian cultures, to see whether they matched what the Bible would suggest. And what he found was remarkable. Even those who followed another religion, or did not believe in God, tended to report what could best be described as an encounter with Jesus and a vision of heaven.
Burke has interviewed many of these witnesses, and you can find their testimonies online. Take Heidi Barr. She was raised in a family that was culturally Jewish and functionally atheist. The last person she would have expected to meet was Jesus Christ. But when she was 16, she was crushed by her horse in a riding accident. She found herself guided by a being of perfect love that she knew, beyond doubt, was Jesus. She was shown a glimpse of heaven, where – in senses beyond earthly sense – everything was tangibly alive and each blade of grass seemed to be singing God’s praises!
Or take Randy Kay, a medical executive with nothing to gain by insisting on outlandish stories. Yet when he stopped breathing due to septic shock, he too encountered a very similar vibrant vision of heaven. It took 14 years before he felt ready to share his story in public. As a businessman he was used to working with long-term strategies. But when he realised Jesus was going to send him back to this life, because he hadn’t yet ‘fulfilled his purpose’ he understood that he was not going to be given a road map – he would have to learn to follow God’s promptings in each moment.
There are many more stories like this. Can you trust these witnesses and what they say? Next month, there’s a chance to look at some of these stories in depth, but I’ll tell you about that at the end of Mass.
I’ve heard a rumour that the best is still to come!
I have no idea whether the next story really happened… but I read it on the Internet.
It’s about a woman who knew her life was nearing its end, so she met with her parish priest to plan her funeral arrangements. After all the usual discussions about Bible readings and hymns, she had one more request. “Pastor, please would you make sure that before they close the coffin, they put a fork in my hand.”
The priest was puzzled and asked why.
In a very quiet response, the ailing widow replied, “Well you see Pastor, whenever we had a meal in the Church Hall, the ladies from the kitchen would gather up the plates after the main course, but they’d say, ‘Hold onto your fork, the best is still to come!’ Well, you know how much I love lemon meringue pie, and knowing I need a fork for dessert would always put a smile on my face. But I also know this life on earth is just the appetiser, and I’m confident that when I get to Heaven and see my Saviour Jesus Christ, it will be the best dessert ever. So bury me with a fork in my hand, and when people ask why, tell them, the best is still to come.”
I’ve heard a rumour that Christ is Risen!
But like the women at the tomb, we may have to hear without seeing.
We too are god-like beings. If we could see each other as we would be in heaven, we’d be astonished at the divine light carried by each one of us. That’s why Scripture tells us that we too will be revealed in glory. It’s why we should always treat one another with respect, as each one of us is an image of Christ.
I’ve heard a rumour that Heaven is Real!
But God’s plan for most of us is not that we should see heaven right now. Rather, what we’re called to is FAITH. F. A. I. T. H. That’s Future Assured In The Heavenlies. That’s why, even in Easter Sunday’s Gospel, we’re not given sight of the Risen Lord, but only news of the Risen Lord. We’re given a reason to believe there will be pie in the sky when we die. And when we celebrate Mass, we only taste an appetiser of the Heavenly Banquest. Even so, we come, like the women bringing spices to the tomb, to honour Jesus.
I’ve heard a rumour that the best is still to come! For Christ is Risen, Alleluia!
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