From Father George's Desk 4/5/26

Resurrexit sicut dixit, alleluia!  How audacious is God’s love!  So much has been written and spoken about the Easter story over the two millennia of Christendom.  What more can       possibly be said?  Each of the four evangelists records for us the events early in the morning on that first day of the week and, while the details may differ slightly among them, the focus is on the empty tomb and the reactions of those who encounter it.  In John’s Gospel, other than the Beloved Disciple, everyone else goes away from the scene with bewilderment and astonishment; in Matthew’s account the guards were shaken with fear of him and became like dead men while Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went away quickly from the tomb, fearful yet overjoyed.  Easter faith is not found at the empty tomb but only through encountering the Risen Christ.  For the women it happens on their way to tell the disciples what happened.  For Peter and the other disciples it comes as they sit behind locked doors in the upper room.  For the disciples on the way to Emmaus it happens in the breaking of bread.  Once they encounter the Risen Christ, everything—all of Jesus’ words and deeds, even the cross—makes sense. 

Easter faith first comes to us as we encounter the Risen Christ at our baptism.  But our faith is not yet perfect.  Each year we come again to the empty tomb on Easter Sunday to contemplate, to reflect upon the central mystery of our faith so that we may grow in union with Christ.  But, just as Mary, Peter, and the others do not remain at the tomb, neither can we.  The great 50 days of the Easter Season lie before us.  As our world and our churches resonate with Easter alleluias, the Risen Christ beckons us to fuller and livelier faith.  Easter is a season of celebration—a time for the Risen Christ to illumine our minds and enflame our hearts.

Easter, more than any other feast of the Christian year, speaks to the believer in the depths of the heart. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.  In the perfect sacrifice of the cross he redeemed our frail humanity and our sinful nature and in his resurrection he gives us the hope of salvation.  All of this is accomplished not because we are deserving or worthy of anything, but solely through the incomprehensive, gratuitous love of God.  Robert Farrar Capon in his book, The Supper of the Lamb, writes: “Playing it safe is not divine.  I tell you simply what I     believe.  Love is the wildest, choicest door into the Passion.  God saved the world not by sitting up in heaven and issuing antiseptic directives but by becoming human, and vulnerable, in Jesus.  He died, not because he despised the earth but because he loved it as a man loves it—out of all proportion and sense.  And when he rose again, he stood up like a man indeed: with glorious scars—and with flesh, bones, and all things appertaining to the perfection of human nature.”  How audacious, indeed, is God’s love!   May the glory of this Easter Day fill your hearts with joy today and always!

Welcome to all of our guests today, especially those who have “returned home” to celebrate Easter with family and friends.  Welcome back to our parishioners we don’t see too often; you are part of our parish family and your presence makes us more complete.  We would love to see you more often!

The days of this week constitute the Easter Octave or, as many Eastern Rite Catholics and Orthodox Christians know it, Bright Week.  Having completed the solemn journey of Lent, the Church is filled with joy as we celebrate our Lord’s triumph over the grave.  So full is our joy that it cannot be contained in just one day; therefore, we celebrate this entire week as though it were one great day of rejoicing.  While they are not obligatory, consider making an extra effort to attend daily Mass this week to continue our glorious Easter celebration.

And finally—an Easter Sunday tradition in this column over the years and through my various assignments—from Father George’s vast warehouse of useless knowledge...a little Easter date trivia: As intrepid readers of this column undoubtedly know, in Western Christianity, Easter is calculated as the first Sunday after the first full moon after the vernal equinox (it’s actually a little more complicated than that but this is a good rule of thumb).  And because a solar month consists of 30 or 31 days but the lunar month is about 29 and half days long, Easter Sunday can fall anywhere from March 22 through April 25.  So having Easter Sunday fall in early April is right about the middle of that window.  Actually, April 5 is one of the more common dates for Easter Sunday to fall, occurring three or four times each century.  In the 21st century our greatest feasts falls on this date four times in a span of 33 years, at eleven year intervals.  Easter fell on this date in 2015 and it will fall on April 5 again in 2037 and 2048.  For the record, get ready for an early Easter next year; Easter Sunday will fall on March 28.