In the Eastern Church, there is a customary Easter greeting. As Christians greet one another on Easter morning, they make a call and response in Greek (the language of their liturgy): “Christos anesti” - “alithos anesti!” which translates as the greeting: “Christ is risen!” to which the response “He is risen, indeed!” is made. The joy of Easter morning is so palpable, so powerful, so profound, that even the manner in which Christians greet one another is changed to reflect the transforming power of the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of the Son of God, our Savior. With the resurrection, nothing is the same. Life is changed forever: it no longer ends in death. Death has become a dramatic procession that leads into life for the one who has faith in Jesus Christ and lives in imitation of Him in all things. In Christ, the powers of hell have been conquered, and the Gates of Heaven have been opened to us – sin and death no longer have their sting for the one who has died and risen with Christ, whose life has been turned from sin and who lives always striving for the Heaven He died to win for us. Alleluia! Praise God! In days such as ours, the life-changing power of Easter morning should be a source of strength and comfort, courage and joy; we know and believe that, in the end, because Christ has risen from the dead, there is nothing in this world that can conquer the unconquerable Christ and anyone who “remains hidden with Him in God” (cf. Col. 3:3). Though we must “dwell for a time in this valley of tears, we fear no evil because He is at our side, strengthening us and encouraging us” (cf. Psalm 23:4) as we follow Him through the trial of the cross to the glory of the resurrection. He is our joy, and in Him our joy is complete, and because of the Resurrection, our joy can never be taken from us. And that changes everything.
To always possess this Easter joy, we must keep Christ at the center of our lives, where He belongs and where He truly deserves to be; if we have Him, we have everything. This “keeping Christ at the center” must be both interior and exterior – it must be concretely clear that we keep Him in the center! As a way of expressing concretely our desire to keep Christ at the center of our lives, in the coming weeks we will be transferring the Blessed Sacrament from the east side of St. Henry’s sanctuary to the center, beneath the crucifix. Many parishioners have expressed this longing, and of course, it’s where He truly belongs: at the center. As we rejoice together this Easter morning and throughout these fifty Easter days, may we each consider how the joy of the resurrection changes everything, and strive to keep the Risen Lord at the center of all we are and everything we do. There is abundant joy to be had because Christ is risen – He is risen, indeed! May God bless you in the week ahead and may Mother Mary lead you more deeply into the Sacred and Merciful Heart of Jesus. I remain,
Affectionately yours in Christ,
Fr. Hess
