Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

 

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ, 

Happy and Blessed Easter! May all hearts and minds rejoice in the Risen Lord Jesus Christ! Just as a long, hard winter eventually gives way to the new life of spring and a pandemic succumbs to vaccine, so Lent must surrender to Easter.

Many have endured much these last several months, by way of pandemic effects and self-imposed penance. Hearts are heavy with the loss of loved ones, jobs and homes.

There are those among us who are suffering an array of illnesses—physical, emotional, mental and spiritual—while others are experiencing various forms of oppression.

Just as that first Easter Sunday morning did not dispel all aspects of human misery, violence and injustice, so our celebration of Easter in 2021 is not without the realization of hardships, disease, cruelty, pain and struggle that continue to plague humanity. All that led to the passion and death of Jesus is still felt by both believers and unbelievers.

The Proclamation of Easter, however, exhorts us to realize and embrace the way of life that has been won for us in and through Jesus Christ. It is a life that exists for us even now and lasting long after all the challenges of worldly existence are no longer. His resurrection points to a divine reality beyond human imagination.

Just as condemnation and execution could not sever God the Son from God the Father, so no power on Earth can separate us from the love of Christ.

The Resurrection of Jesus Christ points to the fact that it is the Empty Tomb rather than what took place on Calvary that has the ultimate word in God’s plan of salvation for those who trust in His Son as Savior of the World. Those who bear the Cross in faith and hope, despite what they might endure in this life, always have cause for rejoicing.

We share in the Cross of Jesus Christ in order that we may share in His Crown of Victory over sin and death. He has risen from the dead so that humanity might rise above a sense of pride, fear, guilt, shame, disobedience, vengeance and despair to new and enduring life everlasting.

Let us not allow ourselves to be denied the gospel joy of the Resurrection. The radiance of the Risen Lord Jesus Christ dispels the dark shadows of the cross.

Living in the freedom of God’s children, we have cause to rejoice. May our witness, as missionary disciples of the Risen Lord, be cause for the world to rejoice in a personal encounter with Him. Indeed, He lives and reigns forever!

Yours in the Risen Lord Jesus Christ,

Archbishop Charles C. Thompson