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From the Pastor's Desk: April 17, 2022
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“This is the day the Lord has made; Let us rejoice and be glad in it!”
The Lord is truly Risen! Alleluia!
Today we celebrate Easter! The glorious Feast of the Resurrection of Jesus reflects the highest truth of our faith - the Immortal One had taken on mortality when He became man; He reclaimed His immortality and ours when He crashed the gates of sin and death and rose gloriously from the tomb that first Easter Sunday.
The Easter Message of the Resurrection is an invitation to each one of us to encounter the empty tomb. As it was true about the first witnesses of the Resurrection, like the two Marys, John and Peter and others, so it is true about us. We are called to believe in the meaning of the Risen Lord and to be messengers of the Good News, to proclaim by the way we live that the Lord is Risen and we are the witnesses of this. Our lives today are not much different than those of the early disciples. As it was true back then, there were many who opposed the truth of the Resurrection and the message of Jesus all together, so is our experience today. Many attempt to prevent what is in their limited power from proclaiming the powerful story of the Resurrection.
What are the competing messages we are asked to share in our lives? What messages do we choose to share, through both our conversations and in how we live out our lives day to day? Whom do we share these messages with? Both Christ and society offer something to each one of us. Where society offers us money, pleasure, self-gratification, an illusion of freedom to do what we want, Christ offers His very self. In His Death and Resurrection, He shares Himself with us, which gives us fullness of love, a true and authentic sense of freedom, an opportunity to do what we ought, and as a result- a new and fulfilling life.
So, today with hearts filled and renewed with faith, hope, and peace, we make the message of the Risen One our own! May the encounter with the Risen Lord invite us to a deeper trust in God and to submit our lives to His Holy Will always - to be changed into the instruments of God so that He may transform the world through us.
I would like to extend words of sincere welcome to our brothers and sisters who through the process of RCIA and RCIA-C entered into full communion with the Catholic Church. I pray that your faith will grow ever stronger in the Easter Mystery; so, together with all the faithful proclaim the truth that “He is Risen” by the way you live your lives.
It is with great joy that we are able to offer each family and visitors in our parish an Easter gift– a book “The Wisdom of Fulton Sheen”. This book is a powerful collection of writings encouraging you to think differently about who you are, how your life is unfolding, what God is calling you to next, and what priorities lead you to the peace and purpose you desire.
On behalf of Fr. Xaviour, Deacon Steve, the Missionary Sisters of the Holy Family and staff, to all our parishioners, friends and guests who pray with us this Easter Sunday, I would like to take the opportunity to wish all of you a blessed and holy Easter! May the gift of Easter renew your faith in the Risen Lord. May Our Resurrected Lord Jesus Christ fill your hearts with His peace on “this (very special) day the Lord has made”, a day when we “rejoice and be glad!”
A Blessed Easter everybody!!!
With prayers,
Fr. Andy
