Christ is Risen!

My dear friends in Christ,

Christ is risen! We have made it through these past 40 days of lent, and now we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I am so grateful that I am able to look out and see so many people in the pews this morning. This time last year, for the first time ever in the 73 year history of this parish, the Church was empty on Easter Sunday. Fr Ken, Fr Dan, and myself celebrated Mass with just the 3 of us. Even though we were celebrating Christ’s rising, it felt like we were still in the tomb. Thankfully we can all be here together today. For those who this is their first time back since the shutdown last March, welcome home, we hope to keep seeing you in the weeks and months to come. 

When we think about what it is we are celebrating today, it is in many ways incomprehensible. A man who was killed and then buried, miraculously rises from the dead. This sort of thing isn’t possible. When you die, you die. There is no coming back, your soul then goes on for judgement, which hopefully will result in heaven. But Christ, who really did die our human death, rose again on this the third day. We hear in the Sequence for today “Death and life have contended in that combat stupendous: The Prince of life, who died, reigns immortal.” By his rising from the dead, Christ makes salvation possible, not only for all who came before him, whom he rescued from damnation, but for all of us who have come after him. By achieving what is impossible for man, Christ conquered sin and death. The great Archbishop Fulton Sheen said:

 “The Cross had asked the questions; the Resurrection had answered them…The Cross had asked: “Why does God permit evil and sin to nail Justice to a tree?” The Resurrection answered: “That sin, having done its worst, might exhaust itself and this be overcome by Love that is stronger than either sin or death.”

In the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, which is a massive medieval church built over the site of Calvary and the tomb where Jesus was buried, is what is called the Aedicule, this is kind of a little church within the big church. It is built around the tomb where Christ’s body was laid. I was blessed to have been able to attend Mass inside and to also visit and pray there. One thing that stands out upon entering, is that the tomb is empty. Sometimes these places we read of in scripture can seem abstract, as if they are just part of a story. But being able to walk from the literal spot where Christ died for our sins, and down and into the tomb where his body was placed and where he rose from the dead, is a powerful experience. We have made this journey with Christ over the past number of days, journeying with him from his death on Good Friday, to his joyous Resurrection on this Easter Sunday. 

Today is the most joyous day of the year for us as Catholics, for Christ is truly risen. But how do we keep this Paschal joy going? As we have seen over the past year, there can be many challenges to it, how do we remain joyful when there can be so many things that want to keep us down whether they be political, economic, or psychological? How do we remain a joyful Easter People? I think St. Josemaria Escriva has an answer for us:

“The Lord’s triumph, on the day of the Resurrection, is final. Where are the soldiers the rulers posted there? Where are the seals that were fixed to the stone of the tomb? Where are those who condemned the Master? Where are those who crucified Jesus? He is victorious, and faced with his victory those poor wretches have all taken flight. Be filled with hope: Jesus Christ is always victorious.”

We must really take this to heart. That no matter what might go wrong in the world, no matter what crazy things the rest of 2021 has in store for us, that Christ has already won the victory for us. As long as we stay united with him, and take part in the sacramental life of the Church, namely confession and the Holy Eucharist, we can rest assured that everything will be ok. We will know that the Risen Lord is with us, and will never abandon us.