Galilee

"He has been raised from the dead, and he is going before you to Galilee; there you will see him." -- Matthew 28:10

Thanks to a friend's generosity, we were able to attend the Easter recollection given by Cardinal Tagle at the Araneta Coliseum last April 21. 

According to Tagle, going home to Galilee can mean three things:

1. Completion of abandonment
   When Jesus is being questioned by the authorities, and someone asks Simon Peter if he is a disciple, Peter denies it. One by one, the disciples abandon Jesus. And when utter defeat has apparently come with Jesus' death, where does one go? One goes home. And completes the abandonment.
   
2. A place to hide
   One goes home to Galilee... far away from Jerusalem where all the scandal and pain of the past few days have occurred... Jerusalem where the authorities are based, the ones who put to death the person one had believed in for the past three years. One goes home to Galilee to hide.
   
3. Old way of life
   One returns to Galilee, to the old way of life, because what else is there to do but try to move on?

Galilee can be an event, a person, a place. In my Galilees, one factor remains the same... Jesus is waiting for me.

1. I might be abandoning Christ when things have been going badly... when I have my little "tampo" and ask God where he is in my situation. But even when I abandon Christ, the Risen Lord is in that Galilee of abandonment waiting to meet me. For he cannot help but be faithful even when I am not.
   
2. I might be inhabiting a Galilee out of fear... Maybe I'm trapped by my fear of being disliked or not accepted and I lie or put on a mask and further strengthen my prison. Again, the Risen Lord can embrace me in my Galilee of fear and set me free.
   
3. How often have I gone back to my old sinful habits? Sometimes it seems to me like I can tape record my confession and play it back the next time I'm there... I struggle with the same things, in varying degrees, with varying success. But Jesus will be there in my Galilee of my old life to catch me even before I immerse myself there. Jesus offers me a fresh start.

The Risen Lord directs me to go to Galilee where he is waiting. I return to Galilee to accept failure. Jesus is there to say, "Don't lose hope, we can start again." Galilee is seemingly a place of failure but Jesus is there to open our eyes of faith and to bring new life.

But it does not end in the return to Galilee... the return to Galilee is preparation to be sent to many other places. The Risen Lord sends out witnesses to the ends of the earth to testify to the truth. However, the first qualification is knowing Christ. How can we share what we do not have? I can be sent only if I am a good friend of Jesus.

Overall, it was a beautiful recollection. 

Thank you, Cardinal Tagle for feeding God's sheep. 

Thank you, Lord, for the good shepherds you send to us.