Happy
Easter!
Some years ago, I had the
privilege of going on retreat for a week at a Greek Orthodox monastery. It was
during the Easter season. Every day, in the very early morning, while it was
still dark, a monk would awaken all of us who were staying in the guest lodge
by knocking on our doors and saying loudly in Greek, “Christ is Risen!” He
startled me the first morning, but then I made sure to be up before he came the
other days!
Looking back, I remember a
conversation with the abbot there which led me to see my life at the time with
renewed hope. Still today, I believe that thanks to the resurrection, we can
live in hope. Our hope is rooted in the Easter proclamation that Christ is
victorious over sin and death. And so today, we proclaim with joy that Christ
has risen.
And more than proclaiming
the resurrection, we are called to participate in the mystery of how Christ
passed from death to life. Sacramentally, this occurred with our elect (our
parishioners who received the Sacraments of initiation) last night at the
vigil. The rest of us are called to renewal in living in Christ. Living fully
as God intends us to live glorifies God, St. Irenaeus wrote. Yet as St
Augustine wrote, this is a process, since we are “on the way to God.”
Thank you for your
generosity today and for your contribution for the Easter flowers. The flowers
decorating now the church that had no flowers during Lent is symbolic of how
God can make our lives flourish. We, who are the living temple of God, can be
an offering pleasing to God each day. Just like we might have been intentional
about giving something up during Lent, perhaps we can find a specific way to
give praise and thanks to God this Easter.
God Bless, Fr. Carlos, OSA
Sunday, April 21, 2019 — Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of
the Lord
No comments:
Post a Comment