Happy Easter!

04-11-2020Weekly ReflectionFr. James Aboyi

The Lenten Season this year was one that most of us will always remember for our inability to worship publicly. If someone were to tell us at the beginning of Lent, just six weeks ago, that we would all be celebrating Easter from our homes, none of us would have believed. But here we are this weekend, celebrating Easter behind our closed doors. It may seem like Lent has no conclusion this year. However, we can still make sense of the situation we find ourselves in right now, especially in the light of the passion and resurrection of Jesus Christ that we commemorate this weekend. Now we find ourselves humbly placed in the shoes of the Apostles and the Blessed Mother during the passion and death of Jesus Christ. I imagine how they wrestled with their helplessness through the three days and nights leading to the resurrection of Jesus. I imagine them facing the unknown future, not knowing how to move forward in their lives. We all know the story well. In an instant, their sadness was turned into an unimaginable joy and happiness when they witnessed the risen Christ. Their experience gives us a reason to remain hopeful, placing our trust in God that there will be a light at the end of this tunnel.

I have asked myself a question several times this week, and I wonder if you feel the same: “Given the situation we find ourselves in right now, can we still rejoice, celebrate and sing Alleluia this Easter?” The answer is YES, we can! One of the Bible passages that gives me strength during moments of adversity is from the book of Lamentation 3:17-23, “My life is deprived of peace, I have forgotten what happiness is; My enduring hope, I said, has perished before the Lord. The thought of my wretched homelessness is wormwood and poison; Remembering it over and over, my soul is downcast. But this I will call to mind; therefore, I will hope: The faithfulness of the Lord is never exhausted, his compassion is not spent; They are renewed each morning, great is your faithfulness!”

There is a saying that tough times don’t last, but tough people do. This tough time must come to pass. Relying on the grace of God, we will go through this unprecedented challenging time in our lives to witness the joy and peace that God has prepared for us at the end of this journey. The end of every movie, every story and every journey is more important than the beginning and so it will be of our story. After all, we are an Easter people! Praise the Lord, Alleluia! Alleluia!

Thank you and remain blessed,

Fr. James