Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord
The Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ, the most solemn commemoration of the liturgical year, is the feast of the absolute victory of good over evil, which gives meaning to all of history. For God, who is outside of time, it is an eternal present; for us, the present celebration of a past victory, which guarantees future and definitive triumph.
This is undoubtedly the pledge of our own resurrection, but above all it is the demonstration that God always wins, filling us with the certainty of the fulfilment of His plan for creation.
How is this certainty formed in us?
In the first reading (Acts 10:34, 37-43) St. Peter insists on the importance of witness. What testimonies does he offer? First of all, the works that Jesus performed, which attest to the fact that the Father had sent Him (cf. Jn 5:36); then, those who accompanied Our Lord, and who had witnessed the accomplishment of these works; finally, the immense procession of souls faithful to the tradition of the Church, and by this means a continuity is established throughout the centuries, from witness to witness, passing through us until reaching the end of the world.
In the Gospel (Jn 20:1-9) we find some of the historical circumstances of the Resurrection, proven by many people whose testimony initiated this immense trail of light.
Thus, if we have merit in believing in Christ’s Resurrection by adhering to the Church’s Faith, Christ’s victory over evil is merely a logical consequence of that same Faith, since He claimed to have already overcome the world (cf. Jn 16:33).
This triumph will undoubtedly only become definitive at the Last Judgement. Until then, there will be ongoing vicissitudes, and God’s conquests will seem ephemeral… But they are not, when considered in the wider context of history. In fact, a war is made up of several battles, each with different episodes. There are successes and failures, but at the end of the battles, there is only one victor: having defeated the adversary, the worst setbacks he suffered will now be his greatest glory!
Seeing evil rampant on earth, we could doubt this final victory of God. But Our Lord’s Resurrection proclaims the opposite: no human power has been able to defeat Him, nor has even death been able to overpower Him. Who will be able to resist Him?
Now, everything that has been said about Christ’s “invincibility” can and should be applied to the Church, by virtue of the promise of immortality that assists her (cf. Mt 16:18), proven countless times throughout history. How can we doubt that He is capable of fulfilling it?
In this way, the feast of Easter is a source of valour and pride for us as Christians, helping us to fight with vigour to the end and to share, with Christ, in His victory! ◊
