EASTER PASTORAL: Jesus Christ is among us! (03/24/02)

EASTER PASTORAL

Jesus Christ is among us!

Easter pastoral message of Metropolitan Stefan Soroka to the reverend clergy, religious, seminarians and faithful of the Ukrainian Catholic Church in the United States of America.

Christ is risen! Indeed He is risen!

"Peace be with you!" I greet you with the words with which Jesus Christ greeted His apostles on the day of His resurrection, and with the promise of joy He extended to the myrrh-bearing women at the empty tomb. The accounts of Jesus' resurrection appearances are among the most joyful and moving in the Gospels, and are truly inspiring and instructive.

The devoted women were rewarded for their persevering dedication. They are the first to meet the Risen Lord, with Mary Magdalene "called by name," and given a poignant personal encounter.

The apostles assembled in the upper room receive the breath of the Spirit from Jesus, and the authorization to continue His mission from the Father, with the authority to forgive sins.

The doubting Thomas is given the opportunity to touch the Lord and to be convinced of the resurrection, and to proclaim his faith, "My Lord and my God."

The downcast disciples on the road to Emmaus ask the Lord to stay with them and then recognize Him, very meaningfully, at the breaking of the bread. Then they run to Jerusalem to share the news with the other apostles, their hearts aflame from their intimate encounter with Jesus.

The apostle Peter experiences the kindness and forgiveness of Jesus, who simply asks him, "Do you love me?" Peter's threefold "yes" makes up for his threefold denial of Jesus. He is given his pastoral authority: "Feed my lamb, feed my sheep."

Before Jesus leaves the apostles at His ascension, He entrusts them with His mission to the world: make disciples, baptize and teach. He gives them the assurance of His presence with them to the end of time. With that assurance the apostles go out into the world fearlessly and perseveringly to establish the kingdom of God.

How powerful an influence the appearance of the Risen Christ had on the lives of the apostles and the women who went to the empty tomb. They were transformed! They were renewed! They were empowered with complete trust in the Risen Lord and a complete surrender to serve Him.

Easter means the same thing for you and for me! The resurrection of Jesus Christ is more than a historical reality. Jesus lives! Jesus Christ is among us! And Jesus invites us to live in a higher realm of existence! St. Paul said to the Colossians: "You have been raised up in company with Christ." He spoke of the resurrection, not as a future prospect, but as a present reality. They had already been raised up with Christ. You and I have already been raised up with Christ! The Risen Christ is among us and helps us!

I certainly can share that I have known the Risen Christ, and am growing in my own awareness of His presence - not in physical form before my eyes, but with the touch of caring and compassionate hearts that He has sent in times when I have been saddened or burdened; with His mystical presence offering me the words and courage needed to face difficult challenges; and in helping me to serve people who presented themselves with particularly great needs. And on more than a few occasions, receiving a divine hug of love that no words could ever describe, but only tears of realizing His joyful presence could express.

Each of you could add your own testimony to the growing awareness of the presence of the Risen Christ in our lives. And, once the Risen Christ has become real to us, we then have the responsibility to make Him visible in and through our lives. This is our challenge and our invitation for all of us sharing together in the royal priesthood of Christ. The Risen Christ is to be realized in and through the lives of His followers (you and me) through our love for one another, forgiving one another, genuinely wanting the best of ourselves and for one another, reaching out of our own personal fears for ourselves and for our security, and going broke with our emotions for the welfare of others, bonding together as a Church family to do works of charity for the poor and the disadvantaged, and in building our parish family spirit. In short, doing as Jesus did as He walked among mankind.

Christ is risen my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, and is among us! Devote time to realize His loving presence among you! Allow Him to be seen in and through your lives in all you say and do!

A most blessed Easter to all of you, filled with His presence within you and among you!

Christ is risen! Indeed He is risen!

The Most Rev. Stefan Soroka
Archbishop of the Philadelphia Archeparchy
Metropolitan for Ukrainian Catholics in the U.S.A.

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