As usual, my very gifted pastor hit a grand slam in his homily at this year's Easter Vigil. The Holy Spirit was certainly rushing through the parish and most especially in an inspired sermon about Christ’s love—His Way, Truth, and Life—that removes the stones that block all of us at one time or another.
His homily aligned beautifully with points made by the Holy Father earlier in his own:
Jesus no longer belongs to the past, but lives in the present and is projected towards the future; he is the everlasting “today” of God. This is how the newness of God appears to the women, the disciples and all of us: as victory over sin, evil and death, over everything that crushes life and makes it seem less human. And this is a message meant for me and for you, dear sister, dear brother. How often does Love have to tell us: Why do you look for the living among the dead? Our daily problems and worries can wrap us up in ourselves, in sadness and bitterness… and that is where death is. That is not the place to look for the One who is alive!
And so, I offer this Easter posting that is directed at all who seek to protect the natural world from man’s overreaching, gluttonous grasp. The victories we seek (and that we must ensure) will come only through Christ, with Christ, and in Christ—the Resurrected One who lives anew always because He is the source of Life.
As we embark in the Easter Season during the Year of Faith—a time when the harm done to our natural environment is accelerating—let us put our faith in Christ, His Church, His grace, and, then, each other.
As Pope Francis preached :
Dear brothers and sisters, let us not be closed to the newness that God wants to bring into our lives! Are we often weary, disheartened and sad? Do we feel weighed down by our sins? Do we think that we won’t be able to cope? Let us not close our hearts, let us not lose confidence, let us never give up: there are no situations which God cannot change, there is no sin which he cannot forgive if only we open ourselves to him.
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