get real
“The soldiers pocketed the money and did as they had been instructed.” —Matthew 28:15
The soldiers assigned to guard Jesus’ tomb had just endured a powerful earthquake (Mt 28:2). Simultaneously, they saw an angel, who looked like a dazzlingly dressed bolt of lightning, roll the stone back from Jesus’ tomb and sit on the stone (Mt 28:2-3). Have you ever seen lightning up close? Have you ever seen it sit? Have you ever seen it dressed? Under the circumstances, “the guards grew paralyzed with fear of [the angel] and fell down like dead men” (Mt 28:4). When the soldiers came to, some of them “went into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened” (Mt 28:11). Then they took a large bribe and promised to lie about Jesus’ Resurrection (Mt 28:12ff).
How can a person go through the most astounding supernatural experiences and not turn to God? The Lord warned us that if we “do not listen to Moses and the prophets, [we] will not be convinced even if one should rise from the dead” (Lk 16:31). The human person is so narcissistic and absorbed with self that we tend to deny reality. We can think everything is made for us alone and the world is merely a self-projection of our desires. Even the reality of the risen Christ does not free us from our egotistic flight from reality.
However, when the risen Christ interprets for us the Scriptures (Lk 24:27) and opens our minds to understand His Word (Lk 24:45), our hearts begin to burn (Lk 24:32). With the breaking of the bread, our eyes are opened (Lk 24:31). With the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, we are miraculously freed from the spell of self and enter into reality — life in the risen Christ.
Prayer: Father, raise me from the death of self and sin.
Promise: “God freed Him from death’s bitter pangs, however, and raised Him up again, for it was impossible that death should keep its hold on Him.” —Acts 2:24
Praise: Alleluia! He is risen! Praise Jesus, “the Resurrection and the Life”! (Jn 11:25) Alleluia!
Reference:
Rescript: "In accord with the Code of Canon Law, I hereby grant the Nihil Obstat for the publication One Bread, One Body covering the time period from April 1, 2026, through May 31, 2026. Reverend Steve J. Angi, Chancellor, Vicar General, Archdiocese of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, Ohio October 22, 2025"
The Nihil Obstat ("Permission to Publish") is a declaration that a book or pamphlet is considered to be free of doctrinal or moral error. It is not implied that those who have granted the Nihil Obstat agree with the contents, opinions, or statements expressed.