NOTES for Mat 17:14-27
The Resurrection is the very heart of the Good News, yet it is also the message most difficult for us to comprehend. When the disciples heard Jesus foretell His death and Resurrection, they “were greatly distressed.” They heard only the words about death and did not understand the words about the Resurrection. This is not surprising: death and decay form the foundation of our experience of life; ruin, sickness, and grief reign everywhere around us. We therefore do not doubt that death touched Christ as well. That is easy to believe: it touches everyone. The Resurrection is more difficult, for we are not always able to know this reality through experience. It seems too good to be true. It entered the Apostles' lives only when they saw the risen Christ with their own eyes. It can enter our lives just as it entered theirs: through an Easter encounter, through faith and love.