Saturday, April 11, 2009
EASTER SUNDAY
EASTER SUNDAY – B
ACTS 10:34A, 37-43
Peter proceeded to speak and said: "You know what has happened all
over Judea, beginning in Galilee after the baptism that John preached,
how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power. He
went about doing good and healing all those oppressed by the devil,
for God was with him. We are witnesses of all that he did both in the
country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging
him on a tree. This man God raised on the third day and granted that
he be visible, not to all the people, but to us, the witnesses chosen
by God in advance, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the
dead. He commissioned us to preach to the people and testify that he
is the one appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead. To
him all the prophets bear witness, that everyone who believes in him
will receive forgiveness of sins through his name."
COLOSSIANS 3:1-4
Brothers and sisters: If then you were raised with Christ, seek what
is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Think of
what is above, not of what is on earth. For you have died, and your
life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ your life appears, then
you too will appear with him in glory.
JOHN 20:1-9
On the first day of the week, Mary of Magdala came to the tomb early
in the morning, while it was still dark, and saw the stone removed
from the tomb. So she ran and went to Simon Peter and to the other
disciple whom Jesus loved, and told them, "They have taken the Lord
from the tomb, and we don't know where they put him." So Peter and the
other disciple went out and came to the tomb. They both ran, but the
other disciple ran faster than Peter and arrived at the tomb first; he
bent down and saw the burial cloths there, but did not go in. When
Simon Peter arrived after him, he went into the tomb and saw the
burial cloths there, and the cloth that had covered his head, not with
the burial cloths but rolled up in a separate place. Then the other
disciple also went in, the one who had arrived at the tomb first, and
he saw and believed. For they did not yet understand the Scripture
that he had to rise from the dead.
REFLECTION
Sometimes in the Gospels, there is a single detail that tells the
whole story. There is such a detail in today's Gospel reading that
goes to the heart of Easter.
The Gospel says that the women came to the tomb and the stone was
rolled away. The stone was rolled away. The Resurrection of Jesus
means that the huge stone that separated the human race from God, the
stone that stood like a wall between humanity and God was rolled away
and now Jesus Christ, the way to the father is once more wide open. It
is as though a room was shrouded in darkness and Jesus rises to pull
aside the curtain and flood the room with God's light.
Easter is the time to discover a personal relationship with the risen
Christ within the life of the Church. It is a relationship that no one
can ever take away from us. It will make us better and greater than we
are and will never end. We will come to see that all the promises of
Jesus and all the parables of Jesus are for us and about us.
What happened to the first disciples who experienced a re-creation and
came to know new life powered by the Holy Spirit, can happen to each
one of us. Because of the Resurrection of Jesus, Easter is the Sunday,
the season, when the stone in our life will roll away. Christ's
victory at Easter breaks all the chains of sin that we have ever made
for ourselves.
Easter calls us to celebrate the fact that the light of Christ has
come into the darkness of our world providing us with hope for a
future greater than we dare believe. It challenges us to share a kind
of living that goes beyond the expectation of this earth. This is not
possible unless we rise above the things that keep us entombed and
imprisoned and become people of the resurrection.
Easter has no meaning for us if Jesus has emptied his tomb and we are
afraid to come forth and put the darkness of sin to flight by exposing
ourselves to his light. All our hopes and happiness come from Jesus'
resurrection. It announces that love is present in our world and is
more powerful that the evil any individual may carry out. The good
news is that in all the dark and despairing moments of life, the
possibility of resurrection exists because no defeat is final and no
life is written off as hopeless. We are the builders or destroyers of
our own destiny. The choice is ours.
The message of Easter is this: We have sinned and a long list of
future sins still awaits us. But despite all this, we continue to
hope, to remain a hope-filled people. And this because with Jesus'
Resurrection, we have become heirs of his resurrection.
A blessed Easter to one and all of you.
PRAYER REQUESTS
We pray …
… for a deep and profound respect for life, especially for the
unborn.
… for the healing and strength of:
- Sophia Gonzalez
- Ester Marcelo
- Lisa
- Christy Chin
… for the speedy recovery of:
- Gaudencio
- Cora C.
… for the safety of Johnson Cuiting
… for the personal intentions of Pauline
… for the eternal repose of the soul of Ramon K. Meneses. Eternal rest
grant unto him and may perpetual light shine upon him. May he and all
the dearly departed rest in peace.
… for all the prayer intentions in the MTQ Dailyprayer Diary.
- Birthday: Annabel Uy-Braganza
- Birthday: Joseph Comon
- Birthday: Ana Melissa Yao Bate
- Thanksgiving: Castillo Family
- Wedding Anniversary: Jose Sr. & Lilia Lim
- Priestly Ordination: Fr. J. Cesar R. Marin, S.J.
… for the healing and peace of all families
Finally, we pray for one another, for those who have asked our prayers
and for those who need our prayers the most.
Have a good day!
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