We think of Easter as a time of rejoicing, and it surely is. The 40 days of Lent have passed, and we have once again celebrated the Paschal Triduum which recalls the Lord’s intense suffering and cruel death.
As Pope Francis reminded us in last year’s Easter message—Urbi et Orbi (to the city and to the world)—our joy is based on the conviction that our Lord is truly risen. We sing Alleluias during the Easter season because this truly is a time of great joy.
We call Easter, the Pasch, a word that means “passage.” In Jesus, Pope Francis tells us, the decisive passage of humanity has been made: the passage from death to life, from sin to grace, from fear to confidence, from desolation to communion.” We Christians believe that our life’s journey is now “marked by hope.” While there are many reasons to be anxious, fearful, or lonely, none of these are decisive for us. “Our hope is not an illusion, but the truth!” the Holy Father insists.
Why, then, is there still so much suffering? So much poverty, disease, warfare, and inhumanity? Sin and evil remain powerful forces, but we are confident that the Lord’s resurrection has had the last word over sin and death.
The effects of sin and death remain in our world, and each of us must face them in our daily lives. But we are not alone. And we are not stymied by the “wall of death.” Pope Francis tells us that Jesus “has built us a bridge to life.” What’s more, our Lord journeys with us—as do our Blessed Mother and all the saints—as we pass over the chasm of death and destruction into the better world that Christ’s resurrection has won for us.
At Easter, the Holy Father says, “the journey quickens and becomes a race, since humanity now sees the goal of its journey, the meaning of its destiny, Jesus Christ, and is called to make haste to meet him, who is the hope of the world.” Like the women who discovered the empty tomb on Easter morning, our hearts are racing as we rush to announce the Good News of our salvation.
Along this journey we encounter many stumbling blocks, the pope teaches, which make it more difficult and demanding to hasten towards the Risen Lord. As a result, the Holy Father urges to make this simple prayer: “Lord, help us to run to meet you! Help us to open our hearts!”
Christ is truly risen. Let us run to him—crossing over the bridge that is Christ himself and opening our minds and hearts to him. The fact that we must encounter the effects of sin and death in our world, and in ourselves, should not discourage us. Christ is with us. He has overcome “the wall of death” and shown us the passageway from death to life. Alleluia!
Daniel Conway
