Christ is Risen! Alleluia!
Today we celebrate the Resurrection of Jesus from the dead. But what does it mean to say, “Jesus conquered the grave”?
In the Gospels, Jesus is depicted, not so much as ethical teacher, but as cosmic warrior, come to do battle with the powers of sickness, disease, hatred, and sin. He shows his Lordship over fallen nature itself as he calms the storm and heals broken bodies.
Jesus calls out the powers and battles with them—not with the crude weapons of the world—but with God’s weapons of non-violence, compassion, and forgiveness.
The cosmos, which had been moving in one direction, now seems through him to be moving in another. The powers of dissolution, division, and separation are now being conquered. Jesus is knitting up the torn cosmos.
But what is the ultimate power of the world, the ultimate source of violence, sin, scattering, and dissolution? It is the power of death.
Because we are afraid to die, we cling to ourselves defensively; we try to assuage our fear through material things and sex and power; we lash out at others violently. Death tears at the fabric of the cosmos. One could say that the fear of death is at the root of all of the sin and violence in the human community.
Therefore, just as Jesus—God’s warrior—came to do battle with all of the powers opposed to God’s intention, just as he came to bring God’s “yes” to the “no” of the world, so he had to confront the final and greatest power.
Jesus stood, his whole life long, in the muddy waters of our human dysfunction, for he had to engage it at close quarters, drawing, as St. Anselm said, the diamond from the muck.
Jesus goes into the kingdom of death and brings to that dark place the light of God—and more to the point, he brings the power of God, and with this power he breaks the hold that death has over us.
Thus the Resurrection of Jesus is the declaration of victory over this terrible power.
The dark cloud that has brooded over our lives, turning us in on ourselves and outward in violence, has been removed. The power that has held us ransom has been overthrown. What a Glorious Day!
What a glorious day! Tons of snow and ice have melted away. The grass is
turning green and trees are beginning to bud. A bare Sanctuary is filled
with the fragrance and beauty of flowers. The Church smells clean and fresh.
The sound of water fills the Church. The smell of Sacred Chrism is in the
air! The "A" word is sung again. The year has come full circle. We celebrate
the most important thing we believe as Christian people. Jesus Chris is
risen today!
It took the people of Jesus day some time to realize what "to rise from the
dead" meant. On the first Easter they didn't receive baskets of eggs and
jelly beans, eat chocolate rabbits or feast on Spring goodies. It was a day
when at first their hopes were dashed. We can only imagine their confusion
when Jesus body was missing. They may have imagined that it had been stolen.
That would have been even another insult and indignity. Just when their
hearts had sunk to the lowest point, they were faced with another
possibility. Could he have risen?
The joy of this day is a sure sign that this is exactly what happened. The
faith that was enkindled in the hearts of so many has survived, been passed
on and has grown over almost 2,000 years. This weekend thousands of people
will be Baptized, Confirmed and welcomed into Full Communion with the Church
all over the world.
Our Community welcomes them and the new energy and vitality they bring.
It's the same Community that drew them in, that provided an opportunity to
experience the Catholic Faith that nurtured their developing faith. So it's
a celebration for all of us! It was impossible to crush the message Jesus
came to live. It was impossible for sin and darkness to win out over
goodness and light. It was impossible for death to conquer life. The message
of Easter is a message of God's triumph over all those things.
So we light a new fire, we bless water and sprinkle ourselves with it, we
renew our Baptismal Promises. We welcome new members and are strengthened by
their faith. And we glory in all that has happened. It takes a lifetime for
us to realize what happened that day more than 2,000 years ago. The
resurrection of Jesus colors every facet of our lives. We need to live it.
We need to pass it on to more people every day of our lives.
And we might receive Easter baskets, decorated eggs, jelly beans and
chocolate bunnies, all signs of New Life. And we feast on Spring goodies,
breaking our Lenten Fast and celebrating the most important thing we believe
as Christian People. The long reign of sin is ended. Light has overcome
darkness and life has won out over death. Jesus is risen from the dead!
So we take the message to the streets. We live as people filled with hope.
We share that hope with those around us. We work tirelessly against
selfishness, evil, sin, darkness and death knowing that the power of the
resurrection is infinitely stronger. That power grows stronger still as we
share it and strengthen the faith of others. It was impossible to extinguish
the message. Jesus lives. Jesus lives in us. Christ has died. Christ is
risen! Christ will come again! ALLELUIA!"
Easter Quotes Easter tells us that life is to be interpretednot simply in terms of things but in terms of ideals.
~Charles M. Crowe Earth's saddest day and gladdest
day were just three days apart!
~Susan Coolidge Easter is the demonstration of God that
life is essentially spiritual and timeless
~Charles M. Crowe Let the resurrection joy lift us from
loneliness and weakness and despair to
strength and beauty and happiness
Floyd W. Tomkins The joyful news that He is risen does not change
the contemporary world. Still before us lie work,
discipline, sacrifice. But the fact of Easter gives
us the spiritual power to do the work, accept the
discipline, and make the sacrifice.
Henry Knox Sherrill And he departed from our sight that we might
return to our heart, and there find Him. For
He departed, and behold, He is here.
St. Augustine He takes men out of time and makes them feel eternity.
Ralph Waldo Emerson Opening Prayer for Easter SundayGod our Father, creator of all, today is the day of Easter joy. This is the morning on which the Lord appeared to men who had begun to lose their hope and opened their eyes to what the scriptures foretold: that first he must die, and then he would rise and ascend into his Father's glorious presence. May the risen Lord breathe on our minds and open our eyes that we may know him in the breaking of bread, and follow him in his risen life. Grant this through Christ our Lord. Amen. |
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