From the Pastor's Pen - Happy Easter
HAPPY EASTER!! We had a special four days last week delving into the mystery of darkness, and the light of God that comes from darkness. Jesus fed the apostles and Mary—and us—at the Last Supper, and has been feeding us ever since. Fr. John talked Good Friday about the darkness Jesus was in, but always seeing the light of his Father. Holy Saturday, and Easter Sunday, we reveled in God bringing new life and even joy out of nothingness, like a black hole that emits radiation and creates worlds. Celebrating New Life with Jessica, Bella, Robert, Mary, and Stephanie made the joy so tangible.
So Easter is about, not only the resurrection of Jesus itself; but how it’s changed and blessed all creation and all people. We can’t look at the marvel of creation in clouds, mountains, forests, streams, and stars, without seeing and feeling the joy and faith of Jesus. We will inevitably feel joy—each one of us—the more we let this reality sink in, as Pope Francis said, “even in the greatest distress.” Joy, in fact, is what I want to keep calling our parish to, especially during this Easter Season.
It was striking to Fr. Nickolai and I what strong crowds we had at church to celebrate the special days of Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Each night there were more than a couple of hundred people, from seniors to whole families with babies. This kind of attendance and participation is a very strong statement about the strong spirit of our parish in Christ.
A great number of ministers performed essential services: our deacons, lectors, Eucharistic ministers, ushers, greeters, and especially our environmental artists, creating atmosphere in the church and the school chapel.
Our servers were plentiful, very helpful, and a real delight. And our music personnel again did very generous service to prepare and to lead us in song prayer.
We now have 50 days to celebrate Easter, in the longest season of the year. Look for recordings and texts of our Triduum/Holy Week homilies on our website, if you wish. And REJOICE! Look to our bulletins or website if you need help to do that.
-Fr. Tom