Today we are celebrating Easter Sunday. What we are celebrating today is not a ghost, not a zombie that rose from the cemetery, not a man like Lazarus whom Jesus rose from the dead and died again.
What we are celebrating today is a mystery of our faith that Christ had been raised from the dead. He is a glorified Christ in body and spirit.
If Christ did not resurrect, St. Paul says: “Then empty too is our preaching; empty too, your faith,” (1 Cor 15:14). If Christ did not resurrect then our suffering would be without meaning; our belief in God would be for nothing; our love would be fruitless; our prayers and our striving to do good and to be good would all be useless; and our death would be in vain.
But by His resurrection, Jesus is showing us that life is not meaningless, our suffering is meaningful and our love would be fruitful.
How to live the spirit of the Resurrection of Jesus?
First of all, we Christians should not hide death. By his life, death, and resurrection, Jesus shows us that heaven awaits us. We go to a better place.
Second, Easter is not just to remember the death and resurrection of Jesus that happened 2000 years ago, but it is something present. It is because the death of Christ should teach us to die to our old self.
Third, Resurrection is a new beginning because this means forgiveness in the very essence that Christ forgave His enemies on the cross.
Fourth, Christians must keep God’s commandments of love. Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” (John 14:15).
Christ commands us to love our neighbor as ourselves. But as our Pope Francis puts it so well, “We are called to be people of joyful hope, not doomsday prophets!”
Because of the resurrection of Jesus, we can all have hopeful joy, and go out to share it with the world.
Fr. Saji Thengumkudiyil, a native of Kerala, India, joined Sacred Heart University last August. He belongs to the congregation of passion (Passionist) and has been a priest and chaplain for 20 years. Fr. Saji will be leading the Easter Mass at the Chapel of the Holy Spirit at 7 p.m.
