Christ is Risen! Alleluia!
April 16, 2017
By Mico Pacheco
By Mico Pacheco
"MAY THE MORNING STAR FIND THIS FLAME STILL BURNING"
We find this line from the last part of the English version of the Proclamation of Easter. Yesterday during the Easter Vigil, in the darkness of night we blessed fire and from this fire we lit the Paschal Candle while solely illumined the Church during part of the liturgy. We know that this light and this candle represent Christ - light of the world that shines in the midst of darkness. We know that as we go on our 50-day celebration of Christ's resurrection, this candle will be found at the sanctuary to remind us that Christ is our light, but a light for what?
Today, we celebrate the great feast of the resurrection. We remind ourselves of Christ's triumph over death and our redemption for sin. Christ has made his salvific act on the cross for our sake to give us true and lasting redemption. That makes it easier then, we may say. If Christ has already died for us, the our slot in heaven has already been guaranteed by him! While it is true that Christ released us from the bondage of sin, it does not mean to say that by merely professing our faith, we are already saved. Similar to what took place in today's liturgy - we renewed our baptismal promises but there were people who attended the Eucharist today who, after Mass, returned to a life in love with worldliness, power and prestige. St. Paul tells us that not only faith but works too! By our actions, tempered by the free will given also by God, we are to take part in the affairs of the world - the challenge here however is to avoid sin and most importantly work not only for the benefit of the self but also in the name of charity. Before his death on the cross, all there was was darkness enveloping man and his affairs but by his offering of self culminated by his glorious resurrection, he showed us the path to the Father - a path cannot be traversed in darkness but can be seen only if illumined by LIGHT.
CHRIST IS THE LIGHT. He shows us the way for he illumines the way! He shows us the way for he himself is the way! In the midst of a world in darkness, in order for us to reach our ultimate end is to stay close to the light for us to see. Christ's light gives us a lens through which we can see the world in the light of faith and how through this faith we can work to serve the poorest of the poor and l the weakest of the weak who are the closest to the heart of Jesus.
Returning to the light of the Paschal Candle, the Easter Proclamation includes the line " May this flame be found still burning by the Morning Star". We began vigil at the Holy Night of Easter. All is darkness except for the Paschal Light. Let us look at the darkness as the world we live in and the sole source of illumination is Christ himself. When daybreak comes, the light of Christ will remain burning for the brightness of day represents a new beginning - the fullness of life in Christ upon meeting our heavenly reward.
Christ is risen! Alleluia! Alleluia! A blessed Easter!
We find this line from the last part of the English version of the Proclamation of Easter. Yesterday during the Easter Vigil, in the darkness of night we blessed fire and from this fire we lit the Paschal Candle while solely illumined the Church during part of the liturgy. We know that this light and this candle represent Christ - light of the world that shines in the midst of darkness. We know that as we go on our 50-day celebration of Christ's resurrection, this candle will be found at the sanctuary to remind us that Christ is our light, but a light for what?
Today, we celebrate the great feast of the resurrection. We remind ourselves of Christ's triumph over death and our redemption for sin. Christ has made his salvific act on the cross for our sake to give us true and lasting redemption. That makes it easier then, we may say. If Christ has already died for us, the our slot in heaven has already been guaranteed by him! While it is true that Christ released us from the bondage of sin, it does not mean to say that by merely professing our faith, we are already saved. Similar to what took place in today's liturgy - we renewed our baptismal promises but there were people who attended the Eucharist today who, after Mass, returned to a life in love with worldliness, power and prestige. St. Paul tells us that not only faith but works too! By our actions, tempered by the free will given also by God, we are to take part in the affairs of the world - the challenge here however is to avoid sin and most importantly work not only for the benefit of the self but also in the name of charity. Before his death on the cross, all there was was darkness enveloping man and his affairs but by his offering of self culminated by his glorious resurrection, he showed us the path to the Father - a path cannot be traversed in darkness but can be seen only if illumined by LIGHT.
CHRIST IS THE LIGHT. He shows us the way for he illumines the way! He shows us the way for he himself is the way! In the midst of a world in darkness, in order for us to reach our ultimate end is to stay close to the light for us to see. Christ's light gives us a lens through which we can see the world in the light of faith and how through this faith we can work to serve the poorest of the poor and l the weakest of the weak who are the closest to the heart of Jesus.
Returning to the light of the Paschal Candle, the Easter Proclamation includes the line " May this flame be found still burning by the Morning Star". We began vigil at the Holy Night of Easter. All is darkness except for the Paschal Light. Let us look at the darkness as the world we live in and the sole source of illumination is Christ himself. When daybreak comes, the light of Christ will remain burning for the brightness of day represents a new beginning - the fullness of life in Christ upon meeting our heavenly reward.
Christ is risen! Alleluia! Alleluia! A blessed Easter!