“O Christ, Thou hast abolished the curse of the tree by Thy Cross; Thou hast destroyed the power of death by Thy burial, and Thou didst enlighten the human race by Thy Resurrection. Therefore, we cry out to Thee: O God and Benefactor, glory to Thee!”

— Paschal Vespers

      One of the worst things that any of us can imagine is a loved one suffering and dying. The pain, the questions, the doubts, the fear, all weigh heavily upon us. Death is the enemy. It robs us of so much. We despise it, and rightly so, for it was not part of God’s plan for us. It was brought about by our own disobedience, and so, it became an ugly part of our lives.

     But despite the fact that man had chosen to separate himself from God, God never gave up on us. He watched over us, sent his messengers to guide us, and when the time had come, sent His Son to save us. He couldn’t bear to have his creation live apart from Him for all eternity, and so He sent His Son to make right what we had made wrong.

     This is true love. A love that bears no resentment and doesn’t hold our past against us. A love that is so unique that it caused an innocent man to give up His life so that we could be freed from captivity and be able to live with Him for all eternity.

     Today, while death still causes pain, it no longer needs to cause us fear because we know that it is only a death to the mortal world and a door to eternal joy in a blessed life. As we celebrate the Resurrection today, let us take a moment to meditate on the magnitude of what has been done for us. Today, Christ has set us free, He has healed the wounds of old, He has opened the doors to paradise, and He has filled our hearts with joy. With the joy and love of the Resurrection in our hearts, let us go out into the world and share that love and joy with those we meet, and let us celebrate this victory until our last breath.

     With the bestowal of our blessings and prayers for all of you, we remain

     Sincerely in the Risen Christ,