The Gospel tells us that the disciples had no idea what ‘risen from the dead’ even meant. Do we? Wisdom from Pope Francis…and from children in an African tribe may just open our eyes in a new way so that we can better see how we are connected in our call to make all things new. And that Easter tells us that through the life, death and resurrection of Christ, love wins out over death every time and therefore nothing dies forever and that all that has died in love will be reborn into an even larger love – into the Body of Christ. Check it out…

1. 04 April 2021 Easter Sunday Princeton, NJ
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Christ is Risen! He is risen Indeed! - this call and response greeting is known as the
Paschal Greeting which goes back through many centuries and cultures.
So, let’s try that again! Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed! – Amen to that! So, as we
gather, in person as well as online, to celebrate the Resurrection - if we look at the last
line of the Gospel it would seem that the disciples did not understand what rising from
the dead even meant. So, the question I ask us this morning is, “What does Easter and
the Resurrection mean for you and me?
Keeping in mind that we will celebrate Easter over the next 50 days in order to unwrap
its full breadth and depth… in short - with the dawn of Easter we celebrate that light that
has been brought into our darkness; we are reminded that eternal life wins out over
death; it is a celebration that Christ is ever present in all of us, without exceptions. It is
mandate that where two or three are gathered, here, at home, or wherever you may be,
Christ is always present. For the Resurrection sets a new foundation for all eternity that
all things can be made new!
Christ is Risen! He is risen Indeed!
Yes indeed! - But we know that there are no shortcuts in the quintessential pattern of
life, death and rebirth. That is, there is no rebirth, no resurrection unless one has
experienced life and death, which we all do time and time again in our lives – which
includes this global crisis of this past year. Therefore, throughout this joyous celebration
we can’t forget and be blinded to the loss, grief and death that this pandemic has
opened our eyes to this past year. We can’t lose sight that this new light that shines
brightly today has revealed so many things that we have ignored or simply accepted
which have been deeply rooted in the darkness of our society for far too long.
All the more reason why this Easter – this celebration of the Resurrection has to mean
so much more for us in this COVID-19 moment – it screams for us to be fully engaged
so that you and I, through the risen Christ, will leave here knowing that we can’t go back
to what we thought was ‘normal’, rather we are called to make all things new, which is
not only a personal, individual commitment, but a communal activity as well.
Christ is Risen! He is risen Indeed!
The presence of the risen Christ calls for us to come together, to make the right
decisions for others, to make the changes needed and to take the actions required to
make all things new! Understanding and experiencing the Resurrection must be a lived
experience – it needs to take root within us, among us and with new eyes to be
sensitive and alert to the presence of the risen Lord in our midst, in our families and in
the world. We are called to give birth to God in our own life so we can be stewards of
God’s love in this world that is changing so rapidly.
Pope Francis this past year said, “We have realized that we are all on the same boat, all
of us fragile and disoriented, but at the same time important and needed, all of us called
to row together, each of us in need of comforting the other.”

2. 04 April 2021 Easter Sunday Princeton, NJ
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Christ is Risen! He is risen Indeed!
So even though the disciples did not fully understand what rising from the dead meant –
we need to remember that the resurrection of Christ makes us members of that one
body – existing to share God’s love with each other – and such a notion is brought to
light by the following story:
One day an anthropologist who invited the children from the African tribe to play a
game, placed a basket of fruit near the tree and announced to the children: “The one of
you who reaches the tree first will be rewarded with all sweet fruits.” When he signaled
to the children to start the race, they locked their hands tightly and ran together, and
then they all sat together and enjoyed the delicious fruit.
The astonished anthropologist asked the children why they all ran together because
each of them could have enjoyed the fruit for himself. To which the children replied:
“Obonato”. Is it possible for one to be happy if everyone else is sad? “Obonato” in their
language means: “I exist because we exist.”
You see - if the pandemic has taught us anything this past year it has shown us how
important it is to be connected to each other for our mental and physical health. But
even more importantly the same holds true for our spiritual health and wellbeing – for
we are all the body of the Risen Christ – and despite what some will say – there are no
exceptions to that membership. Thus, our faith is a communal activity whereas bearers
of Christ we are called to make all things new.
So, in closing I know that the losses that some of us still carry may somewhat
overshadow this joyous celebration of renewal and rebirth. But God always makes all
things new and so we are called to rise each day to be made new, clean and changed
in order to become one with God – the God who came to us in human form to teach us,
show us and reveal to us God’s unconditional love. And that through the life, death and
resurrection of Christ, love wins out over death every time and therefore nothing dies
forever and therefore all that has died in love will be reborn into an even larger love –
into the Body of Christ.
For….Christ is Risen – He is risen Indeed.