Easter Joy Overcomes the
Sufferings of Life
Dear Friend,
It is my great honor to wish you and your families a most
blessed Easter, not only on this day of the Resurrection itself but
for the entire 40-day season which we are beginning
today.
May the Lord bless you with an abundance of light and
spiritual fruitfulness in this holy
season!
In the face of such losses, I had to look beyond the
losses to the Resurrection that far surpasses the pain and
suffering. Just as Easter stands on the other side of Good
Friday, so also joy is only found on the other side of the sorrows of
life and death. We only really understand the Resurrection when we go
through our trials and arrive at the peace and joy that lies
beyond.
And this message is not only for me. It is the universal
message of the three-day journey of our blessed Lord from the
sufferings of Calvary to His glorious
Resurrection!
In short, although we are not exempt from the sufferings of
life, but as Christians, we know that pain and sorrow are not the last
word. We cannot allow the Enemy to steal our
joy!
The joy of the Resurrection of Christ is a permanent fixture
on the horizon of humanity now. No one, absolutely no one can take
that from us. Which is to say: we know how this story
ends.
The Resurrection gives us hope for the dawn after the
darkness of the night. It gives us strength to remain faithful during
the hard times knowing that, no matter how difficult they might be for
us, they are also temporary. The Resurrection alone is
eternal.
The Psalmist spoke of this long ago as a kind of
foreshadowing of the Paschal Mystery:
I praise you, LORD, for you raised me
up
and did not let my enemies rejoice over
me.
At dusk weeping comes for the
night;
but at dawn there is
rejoicing.
You changed my mourning into
dancing;
you took off my sackcloth
and clothed me with gladness. (Ps
30:2.6.12)
Yes, suffering endures for a day. Light comes with the dawn.
What a beautiful Easter message for all of
us!
So now, as we move into the Easter season, we remind
ourselves that we are partakers in the Cross and Resurrection of
Christ for the redemption of the whole world. If we share in the
sufferings, we also share in the victory.
And that is why we proclaim Christ Crucified and Christ
Glorified. It is the Church’s everlasting
proclamation!
Again, it is my great privilege to offer you and your
families Easter greetings today together with a promise of ongoing
intercession for you in our daily Catholic Action Holy Masses and
prayers.
In the Resurrected
Christ!
Thomas J. McKenna
Founder and President
Catholic
Action for Faith and Family
P.S. For the first
time, His Eminence, Raymond Cardinal Burke will offer the Operation
Storm Heaven Holy Mass and Rosary at the Institute of Christ the King
Sovereign Priest’s International Seminary of St. Philip Neri in
Gricigliano, Italy, which will be live streamed on Easter
Monday, April 1. If you have not submitted
your intentions for Operation Storm Heaven
April 1, please take this
opportunity to do so now.
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