Good Friday - 2024

Brothers and Sisters, on this great and glorious day, on behalf of myself and the parish, I would like to wish you a happy and blessed Feast of the Resurrection of Our Lord. Christ is Risen, Qimleh Maran!

There are many people who have lived in history who have given their life for a cause. Even so we see people who for any cause—good or bad— give up their life and die for their cause.

So even when we look at Jesus’ death, he is numbered among those who have died for their cause. Jesus’ death yes, is the greatest witness of His love for us. It shows how far Divine love extends to humanity. But it’s not the proof of the truth of Christianity.

It’s a bold statement but we have to acknowledge that “The faith of Christians is the resurrection of Christ. It is no great thing to believe that Jesus died—even non-believers believe this, everyone believes it. The truly great things is to believe that he is risen.” This makes all the difference.

There is a different life that must be lived when someone has “seen the risen Lord.”

Mary Magdalene ran to tell the disciples. The disciples ran to the tomb to see if it was true. When they found out it was true, they dedicated the rest of their lives to live and preach truth because they knew the words of Jesus were proved true by this death. They had no choice but to listen, hear and follow.

When they saw Christ had left His grave in the Resurrection, they knew they now had to leave their own living graves.

They had to leave the living graves of hopelessness and despair. Because they know now Christ has overcome the greatest evil.

They had to leave the living graves of unforgiveness and holding grudges. Because they knew now Christ had the power to forgive them and give them power to forgive others.

They had to leave the living graves of slavery to sinful lifestyles. Because they knew they had a choice to either live with the Risen Jesus or die in their graves of sin.

We have to leave the grave and make time to meet him at the altar where we meet the Risen Christ, His Living and Resurrected Body Blood Soul and Divinity here on the Altar.

So today, I want us all to ask ourselves: are we living like Christ is still in the grave or that Christ is Risen and sitting at the right hand of the Father in Heaven?

So many of us want to believe in this and cling to this hope there is a grave we all have to leave.

We have to make time for Christ. We have to prioritize him.

If he indeed is Risen, then it matters what you prioritize and how you spend your time.

Without giving the hour a week to worship him, it would be hard to believe His death and resurrection really matters and holds a place in our life.

Until you leave that grave, you cannot taste the freedom, light, and love that Christ so wishes to pour upon you. To you he may just be another dead man of history. Let us join Mary Magdalene, the Repentant Peter, Dismas the Good Thief, and the whole host of the saints in heaven who can testify to seeing Christ, that He Died to save us from death and Risen for us to live eternally for Him, beginning now.

The question to begin this journey you must ask yourself, “Have you seen the Lord?” Amen.