You seek Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified. He has been raised; he is not here

 

The scripture readings for the Easter Vigil Mass can be found at Holy SaturdayAt the Easter Vigil in the Holy Night of Easter | USCCB

Happy Easter! Our 40 days of penance and sacrifice has come to an end with the glorious resurrection of Jesus on Easter Sunday morning.

In the gospel of Mark that was read during the Easter Vigil Mass, we hear of Mary of Magdalene, Mary, the mother of James, and Salome going to the tomb of Jesus in order to bring spices in order to anoint his body. Wondering how they were going to roll the large stone from the tomb, they were surprised to see the stone already removed and a young man dressed in white on the right side announcing the good news of Jesus’ resurrection to them. They were given the instructions to bring this good news to Peter and the other disciples. What a special honor and grace for these women to be able to bring the good news of Jesus’ resurrection to the disciples!

After this the apostles will encounter the risen Jesus and, as a result, shared the good news of His resurrection with the rest of the world. They preached that the One who suffered death on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins, also rose again on the third day. This belief in the crucifixion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ is central to who we are as Christians.

We have, as Catholic Christians, a responsibility to bring this good news of the Lord’s Death and Resurrection to all those in our lives: to our spouses, to our children, to our families, and to all those we may meet on a daily basis. We are to live our lives as those who have come to know and believe that Jesus Christ is Lord, and to share that faith always. We are to live always with the love of God in our hearts and love of those that God has placed in our lives.