Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
“Now is the Son of man glorified, and in him God is glorified” (Jn 13:31).
Within the readings for Holy Saturday in the Liturgy of the Hours, there is a passage from an ancient homily. “God has died in the flesh and all Hell trembles with fear,” the homilist says.
“He has gone to free from sorrow the captives Adam and Eve.” We read this in the Creed, “He descended into Hell.”
“The Lord approached them bearing the Cross, the weapon that had won him the victory. At the sight of him Adam, the first man he had created, struck his breast in terror … he took him by the hand and raised him up, saying: ‘Awake, O sleeper, and rise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.’ ”
In the letter of the apostle Paul to the Romans, we read, “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life” (Rom 6:3-4). This celebration of the Easter mysteries calls each one of us to a new life in Christ.
Today we celebrate the Good News of our redemption in Christ. Through his cross and resurrection, we partake of the mystery of our redemption in the Holy Eucharist. We may fall, but we have the assurance of forgiveness. We have the joy and excitement of life in Christ that bids us sing out his praise.
Today there is lethargy within the church, the Bride of Christ. We, like our first parents, are asleep. We are anointed, we are the anointed ones, but we are asleep. We are silent. We have forgotten how to proclaim Christ by our words and the actions of our lives.
Let us pray during this holy time that we overcome our drowsiness. Let us overcome our lethargy and become awake to the Good News of our redemption. Let us joyfully proclaim our precious Catholic faith to the world in our words and in our lives.
Our Lord said, “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hid. Nor do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” (Mt 5:14-16).
May our Lord bless us all with his love and let his light shine in us during this joyful Easter season!
And may our Lord bless us with a bishop soon!
Rev. Msgr. Martin T. Laughlin, administrator of the Diocese of Charleston