Once again, the beautiful season of Easter is upon us. In our faith that Jesus Christ rose from the dead, we have many things to hope for. What I hope for our parish community is undisrupted peace, spiritual growth and unity. But there is something more that I hope for – that each and every family in our parish may walk in the light of faith, in the assurance of hope and in the right path of love – so that one day, we may all share in the glory of Christ’s Resurrection.
Easter is about personal renewal – a time to renew one’s life and one’s spirit. Those of us who have taken Lent seriously in improving our relationships, habits, behavior and prayer life have begun to reap the fruits of the Holy Spirit. The grace of God has enabled us to achieve these little successes, we must only want to keep moving forward.
The Resurrection of Christ not only affirms His victory over death, it also reminds us to constantly return to the words and deeds of Jesus in the Gospel. We are called to live and proclaim Christ’s victory through our actions: by finding joy and beatitude in resisting the temptation to sin and to fight against the culture of hedonism, materialism, violence and death. The words from the Easter sequence capture this sentiment beautifully: life and death are locked in wondrous struggle; the struggle endures, but ultimate victory is assured by Jesus Christ; life’s leader, once dead, reigns as the living one.