Blast from the Pastor: April 4, 2021: Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord

New Creation Now
Easter Sunday
of the Resurrection of the Lord

Announcements for April 3, 2021:

  1. For Lent, we raised more than $27,000 to pay off our neighbors' medical debt to the tune of $2.7M! Check out the initiative here.

  2. You can find all of our announcements online in our Parishioner Portal.

  3. Please be in touch with me if you need anything at all, or if you'd like to share any questions or concerns.

Dear Saints,

We're making our final preparations for the weekend, and excitement is building here towards tonight's Vigil Mass, the Mother of All Vigils (8:00pm in the church and streamed live).

Is someone bringing the champagne? We have a lot to celebrate!

What Jesus' rising from the dead means is that God has begun his work of new creation. "The power that has tyrannized the old creation," offers NT Wright in his Simply Jesus, "has been broken, defeated, overthrown. God's kingdom is now launched, and launched in power and glory, on earth as in heaven."

Power and glory, indeed! Take a look at the image below from the Shroud of Turin, formed by the energy at work in Jesus' resurrection:

ShroudOfTurin02_20210404.jpg

The old creation, marred by the corrupting power of sin and death, lives by pride and retribution. But now, Jesus has opened up a new world, and made possible a new way to live (a way that was always intended by our creator God in whose image and likeness we are made): a way of love and reconciliation, a way of mercy, healing, and hope.

We find our place in God's new-creation project by trusting and following Jesus. Especially in these challenging times, we make Jesus' way of life our own when we - through him, and with him, and in him - live the way of self-giving love all the way through and all the way to the end!

Love has defeated death, my friends. Love is now on the march - in and through Jesus' foot-washing army - to renew the face of the earth.

I love you, and I look forward to seeing you soon!

In the Peace of the Risen Christ,
Father Daniel
δοῦλος Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ

PS Check out this brief essay of mine from 2019 on the Resurrection and its meaning, and let me know what you think!

Preparing for Mass?
Check out this weekend's readings:
The Easter Vigil
Easter Sunday

St. John and St. Peter at Christ's Tomb
Giovanni Francesco Romanelli, c.1640

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