Apparitions in the Bible are a means of communication. In the Old Testament, God appears through manifestations or is attended by an angel. The New Testament mentions the appearances of the Lord’s angel or angels on the occasion of the birthday and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Perhaps it is important to point out, before entering into the topic of Christ’s appearances, that the New Testament emphasizes that God appeared in Christ: “Whoever has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). Here we will limit ourselves to talking about the appearances of the Lord mentioned in the New Testament, especially those that followed his resurrection from the dead and his appearance to the Apostle Paul.

The Apostle Paul confirms that Christ appeared after his resurrection to Cephas, to the eleven, to more than five hundred brothers, to James, and to all the apostles, “and to me also” (1 Corinthians 15: 5-8). However, the Gospels, which mention from the list of the Apostle Paul the appearance of Christ to Peter and the eleven, It adds other appearances to Mary Magdalene (John 20:11-17), to women (Matthew 28:9-10), to the disciples at Emmaus (Luke 24:13-35), and to the seven on the shore of the Sea of Galilee (John 21:1-23). These appearances fall within the framework of emphasizing the truth of the Lord’s resurrection. The disciples saw the Lord alive after his death on the cross, touched him, spoke with him, and shared food with them. Therefore, the testimonies of his notables were real and true.

Of course, the biblical narratives about Christ's appearances, before his ascension, cannot be placed within the framework of apocalyptic literature, as they are realistic experiences that were actually lived by the disciples and those to whom Christ appeared. The disciples discovered that this person before them was none other than Christ, who had risen from the dead. In all the apparitions, the narrators show that the One who rose from the dead is not subject to the conditions of earthly life. He is like God in his appearances in the Old Testament, appearing and then disappearing as he pleases. On the other hand, it is not a ghost, so the focus was on sensory contacts. Here, it should be said that the body of the Risen One is a real body, not a likeness of a body.

Christ's appearances after the Resurrection are not limited to confirming the reality of the Resurrection, but rather they have another function, which is sending disciples to the world to preach the good news. Christ says to them: “Go now and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19; see Mark 16:15-18 and Luke 24:48-49). He also says: “As the Father has sent me, so I send you.” (John 20:21). It is worth noting that Christ promised them after that that He would be with them “always to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). This promise means, for us, that Christ’s presence with us has become different, as it is not a presence through physical, sensual residence among us, but rather a presence in the Holy Spirit through the sacrament of thanksgiving (the Divine Mass), good news, and brotherly love...

As for the appearance of Christ to Paul - after his ascension - it falls within the framework of apocalyptic appearances in terms of the talk about light, sound, and glory mentioned in the account of Paul’s conversion (Acts 3:9-19), giving it a different character from Christ’s appearances to the disciples in the Gospels, although Paul himself mentions This incident was part of Christ's appearances during the forty days that followed his resurrection (1 Corinthians 15:8), and Christ entrusted Paul in his appearance with a direct message (Acts 26:16-18), which was to set out to evangelize the nations. However, there is a difference between the appearance to the disciples and the appearance to Paul, which is that the appearance to Paul occurred after the establishment of the church that he was persecuting, and this confirms the presence of Christ in the church after his ascension to heaven.

Thomas’s “beautiful disbelief” (referring to the occurrence of the Monday service that followed Thomas Sunday) in the resurrection of Christ - until after he had verified the actual resurrection - benefited the believers “as he opened their hearts to knowledge,” especially since Christ said to him: “Blessed are those who have not They saw and believed” (John 20:29). This is the case of believers who did not see Christ with the naked eye, but they know that the apostles - who are people known for their truthfulness - saw him standing. The believer does not know the meaning of apparitions except through the message carried out by the Church, the Body of Christ. The Lord is present and makes people know Him when the bread is broken: “So they began to tell what had happened and how they recognized Him when the bread was broken” (Luke 24:35).

 We await the second coming of Christ, as the righteous judge, on the last day. Then His appearance will be as fleeting as lightning, “to save those who wait for Him” (Hebrews 9:28).

From my parish bulletin 1999