Bishop O'Connell's HOMILY FOR EASTER VIGIL
July 29, 2019 at 12:37 p.m.
Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption, Trenton, March 30, 2013
It often takes our minds a moment or two for things to sink in. When we find ourselves in situations we do not expect, our minds rarely grasp what has happened right away. That first Easer Sunday morning at the tomb was just such an occasion. All four Gospel accounts describe the women coming to the tomb but finding it empty. The stone had been rolled back. They arrived to mourn and to anoint Jesus’ body but it was not there.
Luke tells us "they were puzzling … they were terrified (Luke 24: 5-6)." We can be sure a thousand thoughts raced through their confused and frightened minds in an instant as they peered into the burial space to see the funeral cloths lying there but no body. "They have taken the Lord from the tomb and we do not know where they put him (John 20: 2)," the women exclaimed.
They had to be reminded by an angel or two of what Jesus himself had foretold before his death on Good Friday. "Why do you seek the Living One among the dead? He is not here. He has been raised up just as he said. Remember what he told you (Luke 24: 5-6)." And they remembered his words (Luke 24: 8)."
Each year at this time, as spring makes its presence felt in new life all around us, we "remember his words." In fact, for over two thousand years, the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection has been remembered and retold, sung and proclaimed every day in every language by Christian believers everywhere. "He has been raised up just as he said (Luke 24:6)."
And we "remember his words." Words are powerful. Once uttered or written or read, some words are never forgotten. We know that well, when someone says something nice but even more so when words are hurtful. It is not simply the author or the speaker who gives words the power to endure, although in Jesus’ case, no greater or more powerful source could be identified.
It is, in the end, the power of truth that prevails, a power beyond any attempt on our part to give it expression in words. The truth of Jesus’ rising from the dead --- indeed, the power of his resurrection --- is far greater and far more convincing than any words that we could speak about it.
And, yet, something within us moves us at Easter to "remember his words" --- that he would rise from the dead --- and we want to shout from them from the mountaintops: Jesus Christ is risen!
Our Epistle to the Romans tonight reminds us: "Christ, once raised from the dead, shall never die again; death has no more power over him. His death was death to sin, once for all and his life is life for God (Romans 6: 9-10)!" That is our faith. That is the reason for our baptism, so that we can be part of that faith. That is the reason for our confirmation, so that the Holy Spirit can confirm and strengthen us with his gifts to live that faith. That is the reason we receive our sisters and brothers into the Church and share the Holy Eucharist, so that we can all be one in that faith.
For all of us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, Easter is the heart of our faith --- its life, its breath, its everything. There is no more significant human expression than faith in Jesus’ resurrection. He didn’t just die and come back to life. He was not revived or resuscitated. Jesus’ resurrection is about new life, transformed life, a completely different order of existence. He rose from the dead leaving death behind him. The tomb is empty. This is about glory and triumph. And the source of our Easter joy is that he offers the same triumph and glory to us who believe in him. That is the meaning of our baptism when we say we die in Christ only to rise in him, new, changed, different, filled with grace and light and life.
Jesus Christ, the Word made Flesh, risen from the dead, speaks his word to us once more this Easter: a word of triumph, a word of victory, a word of life. "And we remember." The truth and the power of his word shatter the darkness of death and give rise to the bright promise of eternal life. That promise is offered to us. That offer is simply an invitation to believe. And that belief, that Easter faith changes our lives forever.
The stone has been rolled back. The tomb is empty. He has gone ahead of you. Let that sink in. Let us go home, as the Gospel concludes, "amazed at what happened" as we "remember his words." Happy Easter!
Most Reverend David M. O’Connell, C.M.
Bishop of Trenton
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Cathedral of St. Mary of the Assumption, Trenton, March 30, 2013
It often takes our minds a moment or two for things to sink in. When we find ourselves in situations we do not expect, our minds rarely grasp what has happened right away. That first Easer Sunday morning at the tomb was just such an occasion. All four Gospel accounts describe the women coming to the tomb but finding it empty. The stone had been rolled back. They arrived to mourn and to anoint Jesus’ body but it was not there.
Luke tells us "they were puzzling … they were terrified (Luke 24: 5-6)." We can be sure a thousand thoughts raced through their confused and frightened minds in an instant as they peered into the burial space to see the funeral cloths lying there but no body. "They have taken the Lord from the tomb and we do not know where they put him (John 20: 2)," the women exclaimed.
They had to be reminded by an angel or two of what Jesus himself had foretold before his death on Good Friday. "Why do you seek the Living One among the dead? He is not here. He has been raised up just as he said. Remember what he told you (Luke 24: 5-6)." And they remembered his words (Luke 24: 8)."
Each year at this time, as spring makes its presence felt in new life all around us, we "remember his words." In fact, for over two thousand years, the story of Jesus’ death and resurrection has been remembered and retold, sung and proclaimed every day in every language by Christian believers everywhere. "He has been raised up just as he said (Luke 24:6)."
And we "remember his words." Words are powerful. Once uttered or written or read, some words are never forgotten. We know that well, when someone says something nice but even more so when words are hurtful. It is not simply the author or the speaker who gives words the power to endure, although in Jesus’ case, no greater or more powerful source could be identified.
It is, in the end, the power of truth that prevails, a power beyond any attempt on our part to give it expression in words. The truth of Jesus’ rising from the dead --- indeed, the power of his resurrection --- is far greater and far more convincing than any words that we could speak about it.
And, yet, something within us moves us at Easter to "remember his words" --- that he would rise from the dead --- and we want to shout from them from the mountaintops: Jesus Christ is risen!
Our Epistle to the Romans tonight reminds us: "Christ, once raised from the dead, shall never die again; death has no more power over him. His death was death to sin, once for all and his life is life for God (Romans 6: 9-10)!" That is our faith. That is the reason for our baptism, so that we can be part of that faith. That is the reason for our confirmation, so that the Holy Spirit can confirm and strengthen us with his gifts to live that faith. That is the reason we receive our sisters and brothers into the Church and share the Holy Eucharist, so that we can all be one in that faith.
For all of us who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, Easter is the heart of our faith --- its life, its breath, its everything. There is no more significant human expression than faith in Jesus’ resurrection. He didn’t just die and come back to life. He was not revived or resuscitated. Jesus’ resurrection is about new life, transformed life, a completely different order of existence. He rose from the dead leaving death behind him. The tomb is empty. This is about glory and triumph. And the source of our Easter joy is that he offers the same triumph and glory to us who believe in him. That is the meaning of our baptism when we say we die in Christ only to rise in him, new, changed, different, filled with grace and light and life.
Jesus Christ, the Word made Flesh, risen from the dead, speaks his word to us once more this Easter: a word of triumph, a word of victory, a word of life. "And we remember." The truth and the power of his word shatter the darkness of death and give rise to the bright promise of eternal life. That promise is offered to us. That offer is simply an invitation to believe. And that belief, that Easter faith changes our lives forever.
The stone has been rolled back. The tomb is empty. He has gone ahead of you. Let that sink in. Let us go home, as the Gospel concludes, "amazed at what happened" as we "remember his words." Happy Easter!
Most Reverend David M. O’Connell, C.M.
Bishop of Trenton