In one of the hymns for Easter season, we sing; “We are an Easter people, ours is an Easter faith.”  It is an invitation to live our lives with hope and joy in our hearts. It is true that in every Eucharistic celebration we proclaim the mystery of Jesus’ death and resurrection. Nevertheless, the image of Christ on the Cross often dominates our minds. There is no doubt that the Cross, which evokes the suffering and death of Christ, is the most important symbol of our faith. It speaks to the heart of suffering humanity. And yet, the cross is not God’s last word to humankind.

The Risen Lord is the symbol of new life. He is the source of our hope and our joy. He has won the victory over suffering and death. Indeed, the cross has no meaning without the risen Christ. St. Paul refers to the importance of our faith in the resurrection of Jesus, when he writes: “if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain (1 Cor.15:14).” It is the resurrection of Jesus that makes Jesus and His message trustworthy.

The convincing proof of the resurrection of Jesus is the manner in which the lives of the apostles were transformed after encountering the Risen Lord. After the death of Jesus, the situation of the disciples was very sad. When Jesus had called them, they left everything and followed him. They had put all their hope in him. Yet after the death of Jesus the disciples fled or hid themselves behind locked doors. But after encountering the Risen Lord, we find them altogether different. The encounter with the risen Christ freed them from their fear and filled them with an enthusiastic faith in Jesus Christ, the Lord of life and death.

The German poet Fredrich Schiller said: “Anyone who has heard the Easter proclamation can no longer go around with a tragic expression on his face and lead the humorless existence of a man who has no hope.”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the Lutheran theologian and resistance fighter against Hitler who was put to death in the concentration camp, said: “Anyone who knows Easter cannot despair.”

St. Paul exhorts us: “Rejoice in the Lord always. I shall say it again: rejoice!” (Phil.4:4). And yet joy does not seem to be one of the more obvious characteristics of many Christians.  In this Easter season let us try to really encounter the risen Lord, in our prayer, in the Word of God, in the Eucharist and lead our life as an Easter people.

About the Author:

Fr. Binoy Puthusery, C.M. is a Vincentian priest belonging to the Southern Indian Province. He was ordained as priest on December 27, 2008 and soon after served as an assistant parish priest in Tanzania.  In 2011, after two years of ministry, he was appointed as Spiritual Director to the Vincentian Sisters of Mercy, Mbinga Tanzania. He currently lives in Barakaldo (Spain), and is a teacher in the Masters in Vincentian Studies.