Easter Sunday 2025

Dear brothers and sisters, Jesus Christ our Savior has Risen from the dead! He is alive and the whole world is filled with great joy at this Good News. St. Peter in his testimony concerning the Resurrection said, “They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, this man GOD raised on the third day.” Based on this extraordinary event, the Psalmist invites us to rejoice: “This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad.”
In the gospel, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb but could not see Jesus because he had Risen. The went and told the Apostles. Peter and John came to see things for themselves. They could only see the burial clothes and not Jesus because he had Risen from the dead. They believed that Jesus Christ had truly Risen. Jesus, by his Resurrection, has given us new life and hope. He has destroyed sin and death. He has renewed and transformed us into a new people of GOD filling us with the glory of God and eternal life. The Resurrection gives us hope of salvation and it is the foundation of the Church. St. Paul testified to this truth when he said, “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain” (I Cor 15:14).  According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “The Resurrection of Jesus is the crowning truth of our faith in Christ. A faith believed and lived as the central truth by the first Christian community. Handed on as fundamental by tradition: established by the documents of the New Testament: and preached as an essential part of the Paschal Mystery alongside the CROSS” (CCC n. 638). The triumphant and glorious Resurrection of Jesus is the fruit of his divine love for us. He sacrificed himself on the Cross for us out of love for us.
Jesus rose from death through the power of the Holy Spirit. As we rejoice in these events, let our hearts and lives be transformed by the Grace of his Resurrection. As Resurrected people, we must now truly be people who love God and all people. The Resurrection of Jesus is for the whole world. We too must see ourselves as people able to practice universal love and share our hope in Christ by becoming beacons of hope to the world. By his death and Resurrection, he has destroyed evil, sin and hatred. Let the love, mercy and grace of our Risen Lord cast away every form of hatred and fill us with the true and lasting love of Christ. As we rejoice at the Resurrection of Jesus our Savior and prince of peace, we remember that many people around the world are denied the opportunity to also celebrate because their countries are in conflict and war. We remember the children of God, our true brothers and sisters in Ukraine, Russia, Israel, Palestine, Sudan, Haiti, Syria and other parts of the world who suffer from the devastating effects of war (hunger, disease, lack of shelter and migration). In solidarity with them we pray that political leaders may have the wisdom and courage to pursue dialogue, reconciliation and enduring peace.  HAPPY EASTER.