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April 27, 2022
Sadly, for many people Easter is a one-day celebration. Beginning early in the morning with the great then search for what Peter Rabbit left in the Easter basket hidden somewhere in the house or out in the yard, then Mass—perhaps an Easter egg hunt followed by a meal with family and friends. On Monday all the Easter decorations are packed up until next year.
But for the Church—and for all peoples—Easter is a long, powerful celebration of 50 days of remembrances of the Love of God who raised His Son from the dead so that we, the sinners, may be healed and live for all Eternity with God in His Kingdom. Somewhere between the chocolate Easter bunnies, the peeps, jellybeans and the Easter bread, God has given us something much more powerful, much more transformative, something completely and totally e-v-e-r-l-a-s-t-i-n-g. And that deserves much more than a one-day tribute or
party...thus the 50 days of Easter is a time for us to contemplate just how much God loves us and wants us to love Him in return in-and-through the ways we serve one another. That our lived-experience of faith calls us to imitate the life of Jesus Christ.
In the first reading of daily Mass on the Friday Octave of Easter, the first Friday after Easter, the Acts of the Apostles, 4:1-12, states “...then all of you and all the people of Israel should know that it was in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead; in his name this man stands before you healed. He is the stone rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved.”
As real Christian disciples of Christ we have to come to not just “know” that it is only through Christ that we are saved but we must come to believe it, and the act of believing it means that we have to make it part and parcel of our daily activities of life. We must come to believe that it is only in Christ that we shall see God and come to live in the Kingdom of Heaven—something we all claim to want but something we might not all live out in reality. I think it is a good thing for all of us to take an accounting of our lived faith experience. What do I actually do that makes me a Christian disciple? How do I live out Monday through Saturday? What choices do I make that prove that I am a Catholic?
These 50 days of Easter are a good time for us all to take stock of our faith: what do I believe and how do I live it out? What kind of effort do I put into to making my faith beliefs an active part of my daily life? There is no time like the present to recommit to faith and find new ways to grow and deepen our spirituality. Here are some questions to consider in this “taking stock” exercise to move forward in faith these fifty days of Easter.- How well do I understand the teachings of Christ and His Church? (The meaning of the Sanctity of human life; theteachings on Love and the meaning of human love; the meaning and purpose of marriage; social justice and what I can do to secure it; and, my role in the greater meaning of the Church’s action?)
- Do I fully believe in His Word as absolute Truth, and do I understand its applicability in everyday life? (Do I understand how the Church has interpreted Christ’s Word and do I know the meaning of the Magisterium of the Church?)
- Do I understand the obligations of the Catholic Church in the world—feeding the hungry, building hospitals andschools, homeless shelters, and more—and the RIGHT of the Church to have a say in the creation of public policy to address these societal issues?
- What do I do to support and build-up my parish and archdiocese in their efforts (ministries)?
- Do I illustrate my commitment to my faith and parish through the actions of my life
and His desire for us, so that we may chart a course leading us into Eternal Life with the God of Love. Happy and Blessed Easter!
