|
“Do not be amazed! You seek Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified. He has been raised; he is not here.” These words from the Gospel according to St. Mark fill us with great hope. These words are spoken to us today in our world which continues to experience the profound effects of sin. Bishops and priests have failed, leaders of governments have failed, parents have failed, teachers have failed, children have failed. The list can go on and we can spend our time placing blame and pointing out the faults of others. But these words are spoken to us precisely because of this. We must not spend our time blaming others. We must admit our own sinfulness and receive the forgiveness of Christ, the forgiveness he won for us on calvary. Christ conquered sin for our sake. This Holy Week we once again celebrated the mysteries of our redemption. On Holy Thursday we called to mind that Christ came to serve, not to be served. He also gave us the Eucharist so that he could remain with his Church in a very real way. Good Friday recalled for us his suffering and death on the cross. And now, with great joy we again hear the words that brought a new hope to the world; words that continue to bring us great hope. Death has no power over us. The Church encouraged each of us through the days of Lent to work to rise above our sinfulness and now during Easter we celebrate the fact that we have been offered salvation. Our lives must reflect this in our dealings with one another. The Risen Lord gave his followers a mandate to preach the Gospel to all nations. In the coming weeks as we continue our celebration of Easter we will hear that mission spoken to us. Our world needs to hear the healing words of Christ; his saving message of hope. As you come together with your families and friends and parish communities to celebrate these mysteries of our faith, be assured of my prayers for you. Be encouraged and have hope that the Risen Lord is with you in a very real way. We need not be amazed that he encourages us to victory. This Easter, as we continue in hope to pray for peace in our world, may we come to know more deeply the Lord present to us. The Eucharist is a celebration of that presence, Christ really and truly in his Church. Our Holy Father has just given the Church a brilliant new encyclical on the Eucharist, Ecclesia De Eucharistia, issued on Holy Thursday. At the end of that Encyclical the Holy Father says the following: “In the humble signs of bread and wine, changed into his body and blood, Christ walks beside us as our strength and our food for the journey, and he enables us to become, for everyone, witnesses of hope.” Christ is with us, he has not left us alone; he has triumphed over sin and death for our sake. Be encouraged and have hope! We must have great hope because we are embassadors of Christ carrying his message to the world. A blessed and happy Easter to each of you.
|
