Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord

Happy Easter! First, on behalf of Fr. Szolack, Fr. Olszewski, and myself, as well as Deacon Andy, Deacon Bob, and Deacon Toby, and the staff of both the parish and Our Lady of Hope Regional School, I’d like to welcome all of you to our celebration of Easter, here at Saint Agnes Church … Our Lady of Hope Parish, Blackwood …  a special welcome to any guests or family members who may be visiting us today … and welcome to all of our college students who may be home for Easter Break or Spring Break. For those of you who do not know me my name is Fr. Larry Polansky.

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Entrance Antiphon: Lk 24:34 – “The Lord has indeed risen, alleluia. Glory and kingship be His forever and ever.”

First Reading: Acts 10:34a, 37-43 – We ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead. 

Responsorial Psalm: Ps 118:1-2, 16-17, 22-23 – “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad.”

Second Reading: Col 3:1-4 – “Seek what is above, where Christ is.” 

Sequence – Victimæ paschali laudes

Alleluia: 1 Cor 5:7b-8a – “Christ, our paschal lamb, has been sacrificed; let us then feast with joy in the Lord.”

Gospel: Jn 20:1-9 – “He had to rise from the dead.”

Communion Antiphon: 1 Cor 5:7-8 – “Christ has become our paschal sacrifice; let us feast with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth, alleluia.”

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Many of you know that I love trivia … so here I go once again. And I ask that, for right now, please keep your answer to yourself. One of the Easter Gospels is referred to as the “Gospel of the Empty Tomb.” We have four to choose from, but which one is it? I’ll give you a couple of hints … It’s the one where we accompany two heartbroken women as they go to Jesus’ tomb, only to find it empty. And they notice that the burial cloths are placed in a neat pile. And the final hint … we heard part of it this morning. Well, if you are still wondering … it is the Gospel of Saint John … It would seem that today, Jesus has kicked the covers off of death. And I think, “kicking off the covers of death,” is a good way to portray or describe the meaning of this day. Easter is a restless feast … a day of great energy. Just think about the Easter Egg hunts and children looking for what the bunny has left them. The weather is getting warmer and everything getting green. Tulips and daffodils, pansies, forsythia, and red bud trees are busting out in color …And talking about being restless, the women in our story this morning rush off excitedly to tell the disciples what has happened, and, on the way, they bump into Peter and the beloved disciple who are themselves on the way to visit the tomb. Upon hearing what the women had to say, Peter and the beloved disciple shift from a slow, sad-paced walk to a run.

As we heard the story, shift back to the scene of the women when they first found the tomb empty and decided to quickly tell the disciples. Imagine that as they turned around and begin their way back, they can’t believe their eyes. Because instead of just seeing Peter and John, they see an enormous crowd on the way to the tomb … and today … that crowd … all those people … are us. Today is a huge day for the Church. This is our greatest feast … this is our biggest gathering. The news of Jesus’ resurrection has reached all the corners of the world. Look around. Isn’t this a great crowd? People of all ages … people of all walks of life are here to rejoice at the resurrection of Jesus. And I’d like to think that your joy and the joy of everyone in church today is all the greater because you remember that Jesus Christ died for each and every one of you out of love.

So perhaps Easter is such a crowd-pleaser and crowd-bringer because of what happened to Jesus and ultimately … it will happen to us as well. Saint Paul puts all his Christian eggs into one basket: “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile.” Jesus is, in the words of Saint Paul, “the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.” “Because I live,” Jesus said, “you also shall live.” Easter isn’t just an in-house celebration of Jesus’ personal good fortune … He doesn’t just come back for His mother Mary and the disciples in that upper room … but rather the Resurrection is a proclamation of Good News to the entire world. Jesus’ Resurrection tells us that death is not the end but rather it is the doorway … resurrection tells us that death is not a final something we are all marching towards … because of Jesus and the love of God, death is something we are simply passing through … time isn’t running out … it is barely started because we follow Jesus … we will be resurrected and join the eternal banquet.

Easter is our day, too. Easter shouts that Jesus lives. We shout by our lives that He lives in us. We, standing here today … believing in Jesus and the story of the next few days … are the proof of Easter that carries more weight than an empty tomb. Don’t you feel proud that you outrank an empty tomb?

Easter is not limited to good news about the future. I think it’s great to believe that death isn’t the end. It’s also great to believe that Easter gives us the power to overcome in the struggles that are part of daily living. Saint. Augustine told the early Christians that they are “Easter” people and “Alleluia” is their song. As Easter people, our lives should be different, and our lifestyles should be also. Our actions should reflect this, and our language should also be transformed. I ask all of you to consider this … the name of this new language, like the song of the Easter people is “Alleluia.” And it may be translated in various ways … For example … [pause] sometimes it sounds like … “Mom, that was great meal. Thanks” or “Dad, thank you for your support and your guidance.” or “I sure admire the way you are always in a great mood” or “I sure admire the way you never let anyone get under your skin” or “I sure admire the way … and you fill in the blank ...” Other ways to translate it could be “Can I help?” or “I’m so proud of you.” or “I love you.” or “Thank you.” But how about to save time, you can abbreviate your message by saying “Alleluia” to Dad or to Mom, to your spouse, to your brother or sister, or to the person standing next to you as you offer them the sign of peace later on during the liturgy.

A Dutch navigator sailing the high seas in 1722 happened to come across an uncharted island in the Pacific. He was thrilled to land on it. And this discovery happened on Easter Sunday. Not surprisingly, the island was named “Easter Island.” A few years later, a well-known preacher used this bit of history to make a point. He pointed out that we make a huge mistake if we regard Easter merely as an island … a nice place to visit once a year and then spend the other 364 days back to the mainland. Rather, he stressed Easter belongs on the mainland. He stressed that after considering all the things that God did for us … sending us His only Son … becoming human and like us in all things but sin … for suffering and dying for all … for doing it all out of love … all to renew and restore our relationship with Him … ask yourselves this … doesn’t He deserve a visit more than just once a year?

One of Jesus’ Easter appearances was to surprise His disciples as they shared a meal together … a story we will hear in two weeks. And as we begin the Liturgy of the Eucharist, Jesus joins His disciples of the twenty-first century to share a meal with Him, now … in this moment … Christ is Risen! Christ is Risen Indeed! Alleluia!