“HE LORD IS RISEN!”
“HE IS RISEN INDEED!”
This is the traditional joyful greeting Christians share with each other on this Easter Day, celebrating the very heart of our faith. Through his death and resurrection, Jesus has conquered sin and death. And we share in his victory. In baptism, we die with Christ and rise with him to new life.
Easter is not a day. It is a fifty-day-long season! We begin by celebrating the “Octave of Easter.” We celebrate the next eight days as though they were one day, Easter Sunday. Then we continue to celebrate Easter up to the Solemnity of Pentecost, which this year is on June 9th. The joy of Easter is so abundant that a mere twenty-four hours cannot contain it! Please join us to celebrate this awesome feast throughout the season.
The Easter Season is sometimes referred to as the “Season of the Holy Spirit.” The first reading at most Masses during this season are from the Acts of the Apostles, relating how the Holy Spirit animated the first Christians to live and share their faith. They preached their faith with great joy. They loved one another. They shared things in common They cared for those in need.
This is a reminder that Jesus is alive because his Spirit continues to live in his disciples. I constantly encounter Christ’s presence in the people of St. Isidore parish as they CONNECT with God, REACH others, and BUILD community. For instance, consider the generous outreach of our parishioners during this Lent alone: nearly 300 bags of food were donated to our Christian Service Bag Drive for the St. Francis-Saint Maximilian Kolbe food pantry; through Food for the Poor, we helped to purchase several water wells and homes for those in need in third world countries; through the Knights of Columbus Baby Bottle Drive for Abigayle Ministries, we donated approximately seven thousand dollars to help provide for homeless pregnant women and their children; over thirty units of blood were donated at our April 7 Blood Drive; since Ash Wednesday, our St. Vincent De Paul Society helped to feed fifty-eight families, totaling two hundred twenty-eight individuals; the students in our Faith Formation Program provided household items for thirty-seven disadvantaged families; our Baby Pantry provided diapers, formula, wipes, etc. for thirty families; donations to our Lenten Giving Tree, supporting overseas humanitarian aid, are still coming in, and appear to be approaching last year’s total of $9,800; our Comfort Crafters have provided thirty prayer blankets and shawls to thirty ailing parishioners and friends. This has all taken place during this season of Lent. As I write this, there is still a week of Lent remaining! (Keep in mind that throughout the year our St. Vincent DePaul Society and Baby Pantry each typically serve twenty-five to thirty families every month. This all due to the generous sacrifices of our parish people).
Jesus is alive because his Spirit lives in Christ’s disciples.
“HE IS RISEN INDEED!”
Happy Easter!
Fr. Ron
