You are here: home >> archbishops >> archbishop john f. donoghue

Dear Friends in Christ,

For forty days, throughout the season of Lent, we have fasted and prayed, we have made sacrifices for the sake of the poor, we have kept our usual Christian joy restrained, in contemplation of the events that marked the last days of our Lord's life as a man.

And now, the veil of our penance is lifted - the recounting of His trials is past - the remembrance of the last, bittersweet hours with the Apostles takes its place in the bigger picture - the picture of our Lord's hard, but victorious ascent to life through death, to resurrection by way of the tomb.

And as it has always been, from the angels, the first to welcome the believers into the fact of our Lord's risen life - from the women, who returned with the unbelievable, but most longed-for of all news - from the mouth of Christ Himself - as it has always been, our Lord's followers begin and fill this day with the sound of greeting, with the music of the best proclamation imaginable: the Lord is risen, the Lord is truly risen.

It is my greeting to you, this early morning of Easter day, and it comes not only from my heart, but across the centuries, from the hearts of the Apostles, the first bishops, who were soon to carry this news into a death-filled world, a world all-too ready for the good news of life. It is the greeting of those ordained to he Faithful, for what is the meaning of the lives of priests, deacons, sisters, brothers, but to live to tell the story of the Risen Christ, so that the hopes of all the Faithful may be renewed, from day to day, as the life of the Church unfolds. And it is the greeting of men and women of faith and love to one another - for what can faithful love and loving faith do better, than to issue this supreme proclamation: the Lord is risen, the Lord is truly risen.

Other greetings were heard that day, and on the days that followed: Do not be amazed - do not be afraid - Peace be with you. And greetings were to be given, not by words, but in signs - in the breaking of the bread, in the illumination of the word, in a meal shared upon the misty shores of a lake, where humble fishermen awaited their Lord's risen visitation. And greetings persist, even to this day, in the morning hymn of the Church's joy, as she turns to the world, and sings, and tells, like Mary, what she has seen:

The tomb of Christ who is living - the glory of Jesus' resurrection

Tonight, remembering this joy as it first came upon the Faithful, we the living Faithful have labored with love, to offer in our liturgy, as complete an offering of thanksgiving as the world has veer conceived - for truly, in the realm of prayer, this night, this vigil surpasses all other memorials, and we are uplifted, and yet made humble, to celebrate it, year after year, in the hope that one day, we will celebrate it forever in Heaven.

Bit it is our song, the psalm of our hearts, and from the midst of this hour, dark in the world outside, we send forth the light that has been enkindled, the fire of Christ's love, and the day of His resurrection. And everywhere in the world, in an incredible spiral of human effort, that rises from the parishes of North Georgia, to the summit of the Church's temples, to the Basilica built upon the bones of St. peter in Rome - everywhere in the world, this song goes forth: the Lord is risen, the Lord is truly risen.

And now, as we complete our joy in the moments to come, by greeting our Lord in that most precious gift of His Last Supper, the gift of His Body and Blood, let us think and pray about who we will become, if we choose, remade by the power unleashed by our Lord on this holy night.

St. Paul says:

As to his death, he died to sin once and for all; as to his life, he lives for God; consequently, you too must think of yourselves as being dead to sin and living for God in Christ Jesus.

That is our hope - to live for God. And if we know all to well, that sin is not forever dead in us - if we know all too well, that we will fail, in some way, and every day, to live up to the perfect love of our Risen Lord, then let us still take comfort in the fact, that we can choose, even upon the moment of failing, to turn back to God, to confess our helplessness to God, and bathed in His mercy, to once more, live for God.

The angel told Mary and the women: "He is going before to Galilee; there you will see him, as he told you."

He has gone before us - the Lord has gone before us to be with the Father - He could not remain in death, the Son barred from the Father's love, the Spirit languishing in the darkness of the tomb. His death was overcome, his life lifted up, His Spirit freed to remake the world. He has gone before us, but the miracle of His life remains with us.

Return to Archbishop's section.
Return to Home Page of the Archdiocese of Atlanta.