Christ is risen! He is truly risen! Alleluia!
Today’s Gospel, on this very special day, takes us to the morning of the first day of the renewed creation. It is not merely the dawn of another ordinary day, but the beginning of a wholly new era, of a reality transformed by the victory of life over death, said the Society of the Divine Word's Superior-General, Fr Anselmo Ribeiro SVD in his Easter Sunday homily.
Happy Easter! As you receive this edition of In the Word, we are midway through the Easter season, with our Sunday gospel readings highlighting the post-resurrection appearances of Jesus and the joy this brings to his followers.
The empty tomb reminds us that God’s power brings new life and endless hope and, here in the SVD Australia Province, we are experiencing this with a range of new missionary assignments and new initiatives to support confreres in their missionary life.
The story of the Lord's appearance to the two disciples on the road to Emmaus is probably one of the best developed and deeply insightful of the appearance stories in the Gospels.
The First Sunday after Easter is known as Divine Mercy Sunday where our mother Church is inviting us to embrace and experience the infinite mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ who loved us and gave himself for us in order to make his own.
As Jesus walks the Way of the Cross, we place ourselves behind him, following in his footsteps. As we walk with him, we contemplate his passion for the sake of humanity, his broken heart, and his life as a gift of love, said Pope Leo XIV in his homily for Palm Sunday.
We turn our gaze to Jesus, who reveals himself as King of Peace, even as war looms around him. He remains steadfast in meekness, while others are stirring up violence. He offers himself to embrace humanity, even as others raise swords and clubs. He is the light of the world, though darkness is about to engulf the earth. He came to bring life, even as plans unfold to condemn him to death.
As you receive this edition of ‘In the Word’, we are embarking on Holy Week, with all the solemnity and beauty of the Paschal Triduum just a couple of days away.
Beginning on Holy Thursday with the Mass of the Lord’s Supper and concluding with the Resurrection joy of the Easter Vigil on Saturday evening, the Triduum invites us to truly enter into the commemoration of the passion, death and resurrection of Our Lord, Jesus.
Love is a word that we always hear. Every time we hear the word love our eyes lit up and somehow our heart beats just a little bit faster. However, the word love is one of the most misunderstood and one of the most abused words, in my opinion.
The commissioning of Peter and the disciples by the Risen Christ resembles the first commissioning by Jesus when he began his ministry by the Sea of Galilee.
Pope Francis's final words spoken in public were to give the Easter Urbi et Orbi blessing, to the City and the World, from the loggia of St Peter’s Basilica.
He then passed on the text of his Easter Message to be read by Archbishop Diego Ravelli, the Master of Pontifical Liturgical Celebrations, and the Pope’s words rang out proclaiming: “Christ is risen”.
Happy Easter to all! As we continue to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus in this Easter season, I pray that the joy of the empty tomb becomes a reality in your daily life, and through you, to the life of all you meet.
Our Easter Octave was tinged with deep sadness at the death of Pope Francis, but his death also gave us the opportunity to once again focus on the joy of the resurrection which follows a life lived in the joy of the Gospel.
