Canterbury Community, Happy Easter!

Easter is the center and core of Christian faith. Christian faith is Resurrection faith; the Risen Christ, having conquered sin and death, remains with us across the ages. When we celebrate the “Triduum”—the great feasts of Holy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter—we recall and reenact through words and worship the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of the Lord. 

The Easter message offers something universally resonant: the gift of hope. Because the Risen Christ remains with us personally and collectively, we are reminded that we never face life’s challenges alone. Christian hope teaches that we are destined for eternal life and that this hope sustains us in the concrete and complex realities we face each day.

The Easter story invites reflection and renewal. The Lord is inviting us to emerge from the tomb along with Him. When we emerge from the tomb and step into the light, we realize in a powerful way that the world can never be the same because Jesus has conquered sin and death for us all. In our own lives, no matter how far we are from the Lord, Easter is an invitation to draw near to gaze into the empty tomb, to put our fingers in the place of the nails, to renew our baptismal promises, and know that we are indeed a part of God’s family. For Christians, Easter is an invitation to new life, to a new beginning. For all, Easter can be a reminder that life and love are forever, and nothing else matters. 

If Easter is about being surprised by joy, it’s also about sharing the Good News and the joy that our Redeemer lives. On that first Easter morning, Mary Magdalene ran to tell the apostles that the Lord was alive. Perhaps Easter is a good time for each of us to break our own stride. Because sometimes, to get where we really want to be, like Mary Magdalene, we need to run. 

God bless you and your family abundantly during this joyous season.

Rev. Brendan Horan, S.J.
Chaplain