By Sister Diane Heiss, SDSH
Picture of Sister Paula, Sister Gabrielle and Sister Micaela at our Easter Celebration in Beatitudes Hall.
“Jesus Christ is Risen Today, Alleluia…” Thus begins a traditional Easter Hymn which many of us will undoubtedly sing in our parishes throughout this Easter Season. Although numerous stores set up their Easter displays on February 15th, immediately after removing those from Valentine’s Day, Easter is so much more than Easter baskets, bunnies, and eggs.
Due to the supreme importance of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, with the consequent invitation to each of us to “Come Home” to an eternal dwelling where a loving Father awaits us, Easter Sunday lasts a week (Easter Week), followed by the Easter Season for a total of 6 weeks. The liturgical colors are gold or white, so we will see this color not only covering the altars and on banners, but it will also be the color the priest wears on his chasuble (the outer vestment).
Each of us wants to love and to be loved, since we were created out of love and are invited to live with love forever. In what greater way can love be expressed than by giving one’s life to save the Beloved? On Holy Thursday, the night before he died, Jesus, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity and Son of God, told the apostles, his closest friends, that “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13) Of course, Jesus could have accomplished our redemption in any number of other ways, even with a mere three words such as “You are saved”; or by shedding a few drops of blood at his circumcision; or as a small child falling and scraping his knee. On a larger scale, he could have given a considerable amount of blood when he sweat blood during his agony in the garden; or when flogged; or crowned with thorns; or nailed to the cross. Why did he give all his blood, every drop of it, when his side was pierced by the soldier’s lance and witnesses saw blood and water flowing from his side? Only one word, a small four-letter word, is sufficient to explain it: love, and we will need all eternity to just barely begin to comprehend such an infinite love.
Hopefully we have spent time with Jesus during these past six weeks of Lent and especially during Holy Week, expressing our love for him through prayer, penance and almsgiving (acts of kindness, love, and mercy to others) and thanking him for his goodness to us. If not, it is never too late to start. Should these Lenten practices and expressions of love cease now that Lent is over? By no means! Are we content if “the love of our life” says we are precious and loved for only one and a half months each year? Hopefully not. Jesus never tires of pouring out his infinite love for each of us, so let us not limit or tire of expressing our love for him through our thoughts, words, and deeds. Happy Easter!
For Your Family:
- Attend Mass as frequently as possible during the Easter Season, and especially during Easter Week.
- Pray for your deceased family and friends, asking Jesus, our Risen Lord, to bring them to share in the fullness of his Risen Life as soon as possible if they are not yet at home in heaven.
- Type ‘ideas for Catholic Easter crafts and activities’ in the search bar of your device to find ways to keep the Easter Season alive in your hearts and homes.
- Find special ways to celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday, the second Sunday of Easter.
Published in Orange County Catholic paper 4/2025
