Happy Easter

Resurrection by Fra Angelico AD 1440

A Happy Easter to one and all. St. Paul reminds us, "And if Christ be not risen again, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain." 1 Cor. 15:14. Indeed, He is risen, just as He said. Alleluia!!! Our pastor preached on how this reality impressed him when he went to Jerusalem as a seminarian. He had the opportunity to spend one night in prayer in the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, which is the largest church in Jerusalem encompassing the sites of both the Crucifixion and Burial and Resurrection of our Lord Jesus. This isn't just a story, but real. All that we profess in the Nicene Creed really happened. And if that's the case, then nothing else is more important. Our lives must take the shape of the Cross in Imitation of Christ. The saints point the way. How blessed are we to have these companions on our journey to heaven! Deo gratias!

I love what Ven. Ap. Fulton Sheen says about the Resurrection in Archbishop Fulton Sheen on St. Therese: A Treasured Love Story: "We are guilty of the death of Christ and when Christ is raised from the dead gloriously on Easter Sunday, we who are guilty of His death can say, “See? See? He’s alive! I’m free!” That’s the complete transference of guilt to Himself and the conquest of it by His Resurrection." This is the heart and soul of Christianity. More on this book in my post A Writing Retreat with Ap. Fulton Sheen and St. Therese. I leave you with this iris that bloomed just for Easter, pictures from the Holy Sacrifice of Mass (the sanctuary smelled of incense and lilies), and this beautiful hymn: I know that my Redeemer lives.