We are entering the most important liturgical time for the people of God: we celebrate the passion of Jesus Christ, the death that begets life and confirms the commitment of God the Father to His Son Jesus Christ and to all humanity through Him.

In celebrating the Paschal Triduum, the Church recalls the victory of Christ, the triumph of life over death, of good over evil. All of us believers from different cultural backgrounds now prepare to renew our lives through the remembrance of Jesus Christ’s sacrifice. The cross would have no meaning without the resurrection. St. Paul says: “If Christ has not been raised, then empty is our preaching; empty, too, your faith… If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are the most pitiable people of all” (1 Cor 15: 14,19).

Our feeling is the same as that of the Universal Church: for us Vincentians, and for many others in our universal Church, the poor continue bearing crosses from which we should free them, so that the Kingdom of God may continue to be built, in justice and truth, in our land. The Church is committed to serving humanity, but in concrete, this real humanity that divides human beings worldwide, resulting in “the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer.” In the face of this harsh reality, the Church must not remain indifferent; rather, she must offer Gospel-inspired solutions by making a clear “option for the poor,” by taking the side of the losers, excluded and marginalized, by becoming the Church that is at the service of the “no humanity,” the dehumanized. To believe in the resurrection of Jesus is to believe that evil is not omnipotent.

We Vincentians find in the mystery of the death and resurrection of Christ the essence of our being and acting. Because Christ rose from the dead, we stand firm in the hope of a tomorrow where justice and fairness, love and brotherhood reign:

Vincentians live their calling and mission in the Church and as Church. As citizens of the People of God, members of the Body of Christ, and living stones of the temple of the Spirit, we feel we are a dynamic force within the Church.  We value fraternal life and teamwork. We are attentive to the Social Doctrine of the Church, so that we may understand critically the reality of the world and develop criteria and principles of action for social and charitable work. (Brochure “The Vincentian charism in the Church“—in Spanish)

Easter is, therefore, a privileged time to renew our commitment to the poor, knowing that the Spirit’s power is among us and that Christ’s resurrection is the guarantee that this work will come to fruition.

It is also a challenge—the challenge to make real in our parish, neighborhood, city… the presence of the Kingdom, the growth of Gospel seeds into strong, flourishing and fruitful plants.

Collaboration within the Vincentian Family, between its branches and members, is a clear sign of communion. If, among ourselves and with the universal Church, we are able to live in unity and cooperation, we will be giving signs that the resurrection continues to be a real event today and that it is a challenge that we must meet through concrete actions on behalf of those who remain crucified because of hate, greed and selfishness.

Javier F. Chento
@javierchento
JavierChento