Every Sunday Is Easter

 

Jesus Christ rose from the dead on a Sunday morning. Every Sunday since, believers have gathered to celebrate and re-live the joy of the resurrection. In fact, not one Sunday has passed since that day without Christians somewhere in the world getting together to read the Scriptures and break the bread of Eucharist. The resurrection is the center of our Sunday worship and gives meaning to what we do together.

 Every Mass is meant to be not only a commemoration of that first Easter Sunday but an experience of what heaven will be like. Every Sunday, Christians gather around the table of the Lord to hear His voice just as the disciples did. The Risen Lord speaks directly to us in the Scripture. He calls out to us to follow Him, to live as He did and to experience the joy that comes from giving ourselves over to Him.

 We also gather around the Lord’s table to share a meal with Him. He gives His Body and Blood to us in the form of bread and wine so that His Risen life can be ours. He gives Himself to nourish us. Every Sunday we not only remember the resurrection but we experience it for ourselves in a hidden way.

 We also experience the presence of the Risen Lord in the community that gathers for worship. At every Mass, the presence of Christ is palpable in the joy that fills the church, especially on Easter. Every Sunday may not be as festive as Easter is, however we still experience our Lord alive in the people who surround us.

 If we were to take a second to look around us, we would notice that the assembly at Mass is unlike any other we take part in. For the most part, we cannot tell who is wealthy and who is poor. There are no special seats for dignitaries or business leaders. In this place the poor sit next to the rich and the sinner rubs elbows with the saint. It is a foretaste of the life God wants for us in which the distinctions that normally separate us from one another melt away and we can experience real communion with others no matter how different from us they may be. We experience the longing of our hearts to be loved as we are and to be free to love others in return. The resurrection of Jesus from the dead was the first step in a long journey of bringing all people together in faith, hope and love.