One Wave at a Time – Love Flows
I stood on a cliff beside Monterey Bay one afternoon and watched the waves coming ashore. It was a relatively calm day, the big storms were a day and a half away yet and the ocean was peaceful. Wave after wave came ashore, washing up over the rocks at the base of the cliff and the seawall built a few years earlier when waves from a very strong storm had washed away much of the cliff and threatened to take the road along its edge too. Now it was all peaceful.
The waves came in, broke gently on the rocks, and retreated back into the Bay. Another set came in gently, broke on the rocks, and retreated once again. The process continued long after I walked on along the path. The waves came in, broke on the rocks, and returned to the deeper water.
Was it the same drop or molecule of water each time? Not any easy way to know the answer to that one. Any particular molecule of water might come in and out innumerable times and I would never be able to see any difference in the picture of the waves coming and going. Yet there is no reason to assume that every drop of water might not eventually have a chance to come in and kiss the rocks at the shore. The ocean has been here for a very long time! And so has the shore, though it changes more frequently.
And there’s the lesson for us who have such short lifespans in comparison to the water and shore. Each time the water comes to the shore, its kiss softens the rock against which it meets with a bump. Some bumps are soft and gentle. Others are fierce and strong, tearing at the very foundation of the cliff. Either kind of wave contributes to the change in shape of the shoreline. Even the very gently touching waves change the shape of the shore by softening and washing away a tiny bit of the rock each time they touch. Just so, each time we act with kindness and gentleness, the rock of pain and suffering born by another person is touched and softened. It’s rarely a dramatic event, but over time, change happens.
On the Second Sunday of Easter, we celebrate Divine Mercy. The merciful love of God might be compared to the ocean. It is, of course, even bigger than the ocean or anything else we can imagine, but stick with me and the image anyway for a moment.
God chose to become one of us in Jesus of Nazareth, to share everything we humans experience, including betrayal at the hand of his friends and a painful death. The wave of divine love washed up on the shore with a kiss of gentle love and healing for those whom Jesus met in his life. Then it washed back out to the great sea, finding strength and perseverance through times spent in prayer. Even in the garden the night before he died, Jesus stepped back to find the strength to continue to move forward, sharing and witnessing to the love of the Father. He died trusting in the Father’s love as his mission was finished.
But God wasn’t finished yet. Just as the ocean keeps sending waves to wash up on the shore, God didn’t stop. Death could not destroy the one who is Love any more than the shore can stop or hold the waves. Jesus rose from death and returned to continue his mission through his friends.
On the evening of that first Easter, Jesus’ friends were locked away, hiding from the authorities, afraid they might be the next ones to face death for having been his friends. They were also embarrassed about having denied or deserted him when he was arrested.
Without warning, he was there among them. The first words he said were, “Peace be with you.” He didn’t scold them or make them feel bad about having failed. He spoke words of healing and love – “Peace be with you.” And then, St. John tells us, he passed his commission from the Father on to his friends. “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” And to give them the strength and ability to carry the mission forward, he breathed on them, sharing the Holy Spirit with them and giving them the authority to forgive sin. (Jn 20:19-31)
The unlimited ocean of Divine Love would now continue to touch the shores of human worries, fears, pain, and failure with the joy and peace of forgiveness and healing. More little waves would begin to wash up against the rocks of anger, fear, pain, and loss in their communities, softening the hardness to allow them to float in a love that wants to surround and carry them forward.
The community of believers grew as the word was shared and their lives attracted others who would share in the work of caring for each other and those in need. (Acts 2:42-47) The example of their lives and service would speak louder than words through the centuries. Sometimes people forgot the importance of living in humble service and tried to impose their ways on others. In the long term, that never works well. The example of those who instead trusted the presence of that great ocean of Love as they washed up against the hardened rocks and hearts are long remembered as we see the fruits of their labor within our communities and world.
As we move through these weeks of Easter, may we remain open to being a small part of that ocean of love that fills and sustains our lives and our world. May we be willing to be gentle rather than violent, hopeful rather than despairing, sharing rather than scrabbling greedily for the riches of the world, healing rather than wounding.
Each of us has multiple opportunities to be the face, voice, and hands of the Lord each day. I pray that we hang onto this calling as it seems the world around us grows colder and crazier each day. The ocean sometimes rages, but the raging of the ocean of Divine Love, the Lord, is an even stronger experience of love and healing than what we know in ordinary life. It is not destructive. It builds up stores of hope and joy that are stronger than anger or fear. These moments of encounter with the power of Love, sharing in the experience of Jesus’ friends on the first Easter, give us the strength and courage to become part of the little waves that will change our lives and our world.
Let’s keep our eyes, ears, and heart open to become a part of this marvelous adventure.
Easter peace and joy be yours.
Readings for the Second Sunday of Easter – Divine Mercy Sunday – Cycle A
