Happy Easter

CHRIST IS RISEN INDEED…ALLELUIAH.

Good Evening/morning every one. On behalf of our parish, I wish you all a very happy Easter. I’d also welcome you all to celebrate our Easter Mass.

Dear friends, we who believe in Christ, celebrate Easter every day. Yes, Every time, we celebrate life, we celebrate Easter. Every time we celebrate Christ, we celebrate Easter and every time we extend ourselves to help others, we celebrate Easter.

 

1. After His Transfiguration, while our Lord Christ was coming down from the mountain said to His disciples that He was going to reveal the Messianic secret with them. When they heard that Christ was going to reveal the Messianic secret, they all began to talk to each other saying, “ I will sit at His right. I will be the King’s minister. I will sit at His left,” They were all thinking about their position in the Kingdom. They were arguing with each other and then Christ our Lord looked at them and said, ‘your teacher, Master and Messiah will undergo great suffering and be tortured and be killed and on the third day rise again”. When Christ our Lord revealed the Messianic mission, they were all confused and Simon Peter who represented all the apostles came forward and said to Jesus, “This will never happen to you. I will stop all the things and will protect you”. Christ then looked at him and said, ‘Get behind me, Satan. You set your mind on human things but I am here to fulfill the divine plan”.

2. Then at the last supper Christ though He chose the disciples in a special way told them that they would desert them. They would deny Him, would run away from Him and even one of them would betray Him. As He said, everything happened and the Lord Jesus Christ the King of all, for humanity died on the Cross. But Christ came to destroy death. He came to restore life and joy so as He promised on the third day, Christ our Lord was risen. Yes, He was risen indeed.

3.  One day a group of theologians were asked to describe ‘Easter’. They all came up with different theological explanation and were going on and on. And there happened to come a little boy and he said that I can describe ‘Easter’. They laughed at him and then one of the theologian said, ‘OK describe it. He looked at them all and said, “Surprise”.

4. Yes, Easter can be better described with a word ‘surprise’.

5. It was a big surprise for many people who never thought that Jesus would come back to life. The Pharisees and the Scribes criticized His teachings and preaching. They put Him down for His miracles and wonders. They finally crucified Him on the Cross saying, “He is a blasphemer”. Saying He compares Himself with God and He says that He is the Son of God. And when Christ our Lord came back to life, they began to believe in His words and they became Him followers and believers.

6. Easter was a big surprise for death. Who could destroy death? Death was understood and accepted by humanity as natural phenomena. But Christ our Lord by dying on the Cross-completely destroyed death and restored life to all who believe in Him. Yes, we who believe in God will never die but instead will have life everlasting.

7. Easter was a big surprise for Sin. Because of the original sin that was committed by Adam and Eve, we all became sinners and slave to human nature and are prone to suffering and pain and our Lord Jesus Christ by His resurrection, made us into new spiritual beings.

8. Easter was a big surprise for Satan who celebrated Christ death thinking that the Messiah failed to restore human life. He failed to reconcile humanity with God but Jesus as He promised came back to life and made us all children of God. No more sin, no more death and no more Satan and evil and all we have is life and happiness, joy and eternal bliss.

 

Conclusion: Dear friends, the tomb was empty and there was nothing in it. The nothingness has deep and rich meaning. Yes, when we empty ourselves, we will understand the nothingness of the tomb and how God the Father raised His only Son to life. Christ is risen… yes He is risen indeed Alleluiah.