REMEMBRANCE AND RENEWAL - A: 3rd Sun in Easter

First Reading: Acts 2:14, 22-33 (23 April 2023)

“He foresaw and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that neither was he abandoned to the netherworld nor did his flesh see corruption” (Act 2:22).

The first reading is part of the great sermon of Peter, which effectively convinced those present in the Pentecost to believe and be baptized in the Jesus-movement. In his sermon, Peter built up the case that Jesus was the fulfillment of the Scriptures. According to him, Jesus’ lordship had long been foretold by King David himself.

In this prophecy, this descendant of David would set “upon his throne” (2:22) and be “[e]xalted at the right hand of God” as the recipient of “the promise of the Holy Spirit…” (2:33).

The surprising thing in the narrative is why Peter still cited the name David, who was not even an established prophet in the Old Testament. Ideally, he could have quoted Isaiah as what all evangelists did (e.g., Mk 1:2-3; Mt 1:23; Lk 4:17-19; Jn 4:10) or could have referred to the words/deeds of either Moses or Elijah, the two giant figures in the Scriptures that represent the Law and the Prophets, respectively (cf. Transfiguration scene in Mk 9:5; Mt 17:4; Lk 9:30).

One possible reason for Peter’s choice is that David is the most celebrated king in Jerusalem, having established his throne and administration there, an occurrence that brought about the golden days of the Jewish history (cf. 2 Sam 5:1-5). In his entry into Jerusalem, Jesus was warmly received by the crowd with the words: “Hosanna to the Son of David!” (Mt 21:9). It is most probable that the crowd here at the Passover was also Peter’s audience at the Pentecost. As an aside, the Passover or Pesach is technically a harvest festival, when the first harvested omer (i.e., barley) is offered to the temple. Harvesting is completed 7 weeks after (i.e., 7 weeks times 7 days equals 49 days, or can be rounded to 50) with the feast of the Shavuot or Pentecost (cf. Lev 23:15-16; Acts 2:1).

Therefore, the Passover is completed in the Pentecost in the same way as the people’s pilgrimage to Jerusalem at the former is completed in the latter.

In his mention of David, Peter might probably be reminding the people in Jerusalem that Jesus was the same person whom they had warmly welcomed and exalted on the basis of Jesus’ identity as a direct descendant of David at the start of the Passover. During this time, they hoped that Jesus would be the prophesized king who would bring back Israel’s days of glory. Ironically, these people who had confessed Jesus’ lordship at his entry to Jerusalem were the same people who later shouted “Crucify him” before Pilate (Mt 27:22-23). As a matter of fact, they were easily swayed by the Jewish religious leaders to select Barabbas instead of Jesus as the prisoner to be released by Pilate (v. 20). Fifty days after such a tragic event, these people apparently have forgotten already about Jesus, including their participation in his crucifixion.

Let us bear in mind that the Easter we celebrate now is the product of Jesus’ willful submission of himself to die on the cross.

Similarly, connecting always ourselves to this beautiful memory of Jesus’ sacrificial Passover challenges us to grow by analogy from our personal failures and mistakes of the past toward our own Spirit-filled Pentecost and total renewal.

- Rex, CM