Pastor's Corner

31st March, 2024

The prayers that the celebrant offers this Easter Sunday at Mass proclaim that Christ has opened for us the gates of eternal life, because he has conquered death. In the readings today, we hear the testimony of Peter in the Book of Acts, Paul’s exhortation to place our hearts on the things of heaven because we have been raised in Christ, and the Gospel narrative that places Mary Magdalene as the first disciple who became aware that the tomb was empty. All of these texts are beautifully summarized in the Easter Sequence that is highly recommended for our choirs and assemblies to sing (or at least recite in two alternating groups) before the proclamation of the Gospel.

The resurrection of Christ transformed the way in which Christ’s disciples saw themselves and the world before them. It transformed human history, and the lives of many men and women who searched for God, and came to know his unconditional love and mercy through a reversal of the social order: slaves and free people broke bread together in the Eucharist, even calling each other “brothers” and “sisters”. Do we consider those who join us at Mass as our own brothers and sisters? Let us remember this question as we consider our own divided society, where we may be separated by academic or economic status, ethnic background, or even our race. Let us remember the early Christian community and how they united together in one love, one baptism and one Lord.

Rev. Juan J. Sosa
Pastor