This Sunday’s gospel is another great Easter story. Jesus appears, not at the tomb where he rose from the dead, or in Jerusalem or Galilee where he meets Peter and others, but on the road where he walks with two confused, discouraged disciples leaving the city. He speaks to them on the road. Were not our hearts burning as he talked to us on the road? They say.

Pope Leo is on the road these days. I go back to a time when popes never left Rome; people came to them. Beginning with Pope Paul VI in the 1960s the popes began to travel to all parts of the world. They went “on the road.”

The reason the popes began to travel extensively was because the Second Vatican Council in 1963 said that the church should be more actively involved in the problems of the world. They should try to bring together all the resources for good that they can. Remember in 1962 we had the Cuban Missile Crisis. The world was threatened with nuclear war.

Pope Leo is in Africa these days visiting a number of countries. He began his visit in Algeria, a largely Moslem state. Then, he visited Cameroon, in Central Africa, over 30 million people, one third Catholic, the rest Moslem or followers of a traditional religion.

Cameroon is suffering from civil war for the last ten years. The two sides agreed to a cease fire during the pope’s visit.

The pope began his visit in the cathedral in Cameroon where he listened to representatives from the country who came for “ A Meeting of Peace.” He heard from leaders of the traditional religion, two Moslem religious leaders, a leader of the Presbyterian church, and a number of Catholic sisters who are taking care of orphans and others injured by the war. They all spoke oof the sufferings war had caused and their hopes and efforts together to bring peace to their country.

The pope encouraged them all to keep working together for peace.

At the same time he spoke against the “masters of war” who don’t acknowledge that in war “it only takes a moment to destroy, yet often a lifetime is not enough to rebuild.”

The Pope lamented how those in power turn a blind eye to the billions of dollars spent on killing and devastation, “yet the resources needed for healing, education and restoration are nowhere to be found.”

He condemned outsiders for exploiting war to take away the rich resources of Africa. Africa has long been exploited for its people and its minerals. They’re “perpetuating an endless cycle of destabilization and death… We’re living in an upside-down world,” the pope said.

The president in Cameroon is 93 year and has been an authoritarian ruler over the country for almost 40 years. The pope didn’t hesitate to remind him that “Public authorities are called to serve as bridges, never as sources of division” and that “authentic peace arises when everyone feels protected, heard and respected, when the law serves as a secure safeguard against the whims of the rich and powerful.”

The pope is visiting Angola now, another country like Cameroon, torn apart by wars and corruption. I expect his message will be the same there too. Too political?

Sounds like the same things Jesus would say in a world as upside-down as our world is today.

It’s interesting that the pope told reporters on the plane yesterday to recognize he’s not involved these days  in a dispute with the American president but he talking to some hard hit countries of Africa. Don’t take him out of context. 

I’m happy that the pope is on the road, where so many are confused and discouraged. We need to pray for him. But I also think he should not be on the road alone. We need to support him. We need to work for peace in our world.

Since the atom bombings of Japan in 1945, the Catholic Church has urged all nations to abandon nuclear weapons and weapons  of mass destrucion.

In the encyclical “Pacem in Terris”, immediately after the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962,  Pope St. John XXIII wrote: “People are living in the grip of constant fear. They are afraid that at any moment the impending storm may break upon them with horrific violence. And they have good reasons for their fear, for there is certainly no lack of such weapons. While it is difficult to believe that anyone would dare to assume responsibility for initiating the appalling slaughter and destruction that war would bring in its wake, there is no denying that the conflagration could be started by some chance and unforeseen circumstance.”

In 1968, Pope Paul VI urged in the name of all humanity, the “total ban on nuclear weapons” and “general and complete disarmament.” 

In  2010, Pope Benedict XVI stated: “I encourage the initiatives that seek progressive disarmament and the creation of zones free of nuclear weapons, with a view to their complete elimination from the planet.”

In 2019, Pope Francis wrote  “the use of atomic energy for purposes of war is today, more than ever, a crime not only against the dignity of human beings but against any possible future for our common home…The use of atomic energy for purposes of war is immoral, just as the possessing of nuclear weapons is immoral… We will be judged on this.  Future generations will rise to condemn our failure if we spoke of peace but did not act to bring it about among the peoples of the earth.  How can we speak of peace even as we build terrifying new weapons of war?”

Pope Leo continues this message. In 2025 he said “The situation in Iran and Israel has deteriorated gravely, and in such a delicate moment, I would like to renew strongly an appeal to responsibility and reason. The commitment to creating a safer world, free from the nuclear threat, should be pursued through respectful encounter and sincere dialogue, to build a lasting peace, based on justice, fraternity and the common good. No-one should ever threaten the existence of another.”

He continually urges nuclear disarmament. In 2026 in his Message for World Day of Peace he lamented the confrontational logic now dominating global politics:

“In the relations between citizens and rulers, it could even be considered a fault not to be sufficiently prepared for war, not to react to attacks, and not to return violence for violence. Far beyond the principle of legitimate defense, such confrontational logic now dominates global politics, deepening instability and unpredictability day by day. It is no coincidence that repeated calls to increase military spending, and the choices that follow, are presented by many government leaders as a justified response to external threats.  The idea of the deterrent power of military might, especially nuclear deterrence, is based on the irrationality of relations between nations, built not on law, justice and trust, but on fear and domination by force.”

In a recent talk Pope Leo said: “ The current situation requires that everything possible be done to avert a new arms race that would further threaten peace among nations. It is more urgent than ever to substitute the logic of fear and distrust with a shared ethos capable of guiding choices towards the common good and to make peace a treasure to be cherished by all.”

WASHINGTON – In light of recent public comments regarding the Catholic Church’s teaching on war and peace, Bishop James Massa, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Doctrine, issued the following statement:

“For over a thousand years, the Catholic Church has taught just war theory and it is that long tradition the Holy Father carefully references in his comments on war. A constant tenet of that thousand-year tradition is a nation can only legitimately take up the sword ‘in self-defense, once all peace efforts have failed’ (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 2308). That is, to be a just war it must be a defense against another who actively wages war, which is what the Holy Father actually said: ‘He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war.’

“When Pope Leo XIV speaks as supreme pastor of the universal Church, he is not merely offering opinions on theology, he is preaching the Gospel and exercising his ministry as the Vicar of Christ. The consistent teaching of the Church is insistent that all people of good will must pray and work toward lasting peace while avoiding the evils and injustices that accompany all wars.”

Pope Leo is making his way these days on a winding path. Like popes before him, Francis, Benedict, John Paul, Paul VI and John XXIII, he’s making his way through a dark world of tricky turns and dangerous heights, but a Light leads him on.

Recent popes seem well aware they have to walk humbly, yet speak out strongly all the same. Our Easter readings in the liturgy remind us that has been the way from the beginning. It’s the path Jesus Christ walked centuries ago, a way recently envisioned by the Second Vatican Council which met in the 1960’s. It’s a path to be followed.

What’s the path the Second Vatican Council set for the church? Its “ Constitution on the Church in the Modern World” states:  “The joys and the hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the people of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, these are the joys and hopes, the griefs and anxieties of the followers of Christ. Indeed, nothing genuinely human fails to raise an echo in their hearts. For theirs is a community composed of people.” ( LG 1)

The church is on a path of engagement and accompaniment with the people of its time, especially with “ the poor or those in any way afflicted.” Like the popes before him, Pope Leo recognizes his duty is to promote a church of engagement and accompaniment, not just among the people of the church, but with the people of the world, with their joys and hopes, their griefs and anxieties. 

It’s a path of engagement and accompaniment with the nations of the world—the United States of American among them — now facing the scourge of war and the consequences of climate change.

The Second Vatican Council envisioned the church as the People of God. It saw the church on the path of synodality. All who belong to the church by reason of their baptism are called to participate in her ministry and governance.  The entire people of God, not just the clergy, are called to pray, to read the signs of the times, to discern and dialogue about what we must do together to bring the gospel to all people. We shouldn’t let Pope Leo walk this path alone.

Pope Leo has an important role in leading us on the path, and let’s not forget it’s a path. All our recent popes have used that word to speak of the direction the church takes . A path is not a super-highway, a straight easily managed way. A path often takes twists and turns, sometimes even diverting from its goal, but God’s path gets us there.

But the path is the way of the Holy Spirit. So . “Come, Holy Spirit, and renew the face of the earth!”  Lead us on our way..

Like the first followers of Jesus, we’re slow learners. Our Easter liturgy is a patient teacher. The days of the Easter Season reveal the mystery the Resurrection of Jesus to us.

Our morning and evening prayers offer key passages from the Acts of the Apostles, the Letter to the Hebrews and the 1st Letter of Peter.

Jesus, risen from the dead, takes his place at the right hand of the Father as our high priest who saves those who approach God through him, interceding for them. (Hebrews 7:24-27) We are saved by confessing him on our lips and believing in our hearts he is our Lord. (Romans 10:8-10) 

In passages from the Acts of the Apostles we hear how this message came to be announced by those who first saw the Risen Christ. Two early sermons are especially important. The first is Peter’s message to the Roman centurion Cornelius and his household :

“ God raised (Jesus) on the third day and granted that he be visible, not to all the people, but to us, the witnesses chosen by God in advance, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commissioned us to preach to the people and testify that he is the one appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead. (Acts 10:40-43)

Paul’s message to Jews and gentiles in a synagogue in Pisidian Antioch is similar:  For many days after his resurrection,

Jesus “appeared to those who had come up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. God raised him from the dead.These are [now] his witnesses before the people. We ourselves are proclaiming this good news to you that what God promised our ancestors he has brought to fulfillment for us, their children, by raising up Jesus, as it is written in the second psalm, ‘You are my son; this day I have begotten you.’” (Acts 13: 30-33)

Paul describes elsewhere how the Risen Jesus, after appearing to the Galilean disciples, also appeared to him. “Last of all, as to one born abnormally, he appeared to me.” ( 1 Corinthians 15: 8)

The Resurrection of Jesus fulfills a promise God made long ago to save his people. It is a promise shared with the whole world. Besides human witnesses, the Holy Spirit testifies to the Resurrection of Jesus by signs and wonders.

Peter tells the crowds gathered in Jerusalem after Pentecost “God exalted him at his right hand as leader and savior to grant Israel repentance and forgiveness of sins.We are witnesses of these things, as is the holy Spirit that God has given to those who obey him.” (Acts 5:30-32)

In his Resurrection Jesus becomes a living stone. ” Come to him, a living stone, rejected by human beings but chosen and precious in the sight of God, and, like living stones, let yourselves be built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2: 1-5 )

The summaries of faith in the church’s morning and evening prayers bring. us the witness of those who came from Galilee and saw the Lord. Risen from the dead, Jesus does not leave us orphans or forget us. “Son though he was, Christ learned obedience from what he suffered:” he knows our human ways and he carries our wounds in his risen body. We are branches on a vine that reaches from earth to heaven. The Holy Spirit gives witness to him.

The church grows gradually after the resurrection. The followers of Jesus meet him, but they are slow to believe.The ApostleThomas exemplifies their skepticism. John’s gospel this week adds another group slow to believe – people like Nicodemus, who comes to Jesus by night. Supposedly a well-informed religious person, Nicodemus only understands Jesus Christ slowly. 

Our week’s readings from the Acts of the Apostles describe the apostles witnessing bravely in the temple after the Holy Spirit comes upon them at Pentecost. “Uneducated, ordinary men,”  the temple leaders call them, but they proclaim boldly God’s mighty works in Jesus Christ. Told to end their witness, they cannot. “It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.” They’re persecuted, imprisoned, yet the number of believers grows.

The account of the  healing of the crippled man read  last Wednesday is only the beginning of the healing miracles that accompany the preaching of the resurrection of Jesus. Signs must accompany preaching. Signs not only support the witnesses, they are evidence that God is creatively restoring humanity and the earth itself.

The Acts of the Apostles for Saturday points to a new development of the Christian community. ( Acts 6:1-7) Seven men are chosen to provide for the needs of Greek-speaking followers of Jesus, Stephen and Philip among them. Their call prepares for a Christian break from Jerusalem, its temple and its laws, for a new center in Antioch in Syria.  

With the 6th chapter of John’s gospel, we begin reading about the miracle of the loaves, an important reading for the Easter season. Bread is a sign that the Risen Jesus remains with us. Bread, “which earth has given and human hands have made,” is also a sign that creation itself shares in the mystery of the Lord’s resurrection.  John’s gospel is read into next week: the mystery of the Eucharist has a major place in the Easter season. 

On Friday the Passionists celebrate the beautiful feast of The Glorious Wounds of Christ.