Something Strange is Happening
“Something strange is happening- there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep.”
These sentences are the first lines of an ancient homily on Holy Saturday that is still used in the prayers of priests and religious for Holy Saturday. It is good for us now, even as we celebrate Easter Sunday to reflect on the day that Holy Saturday is, so that we can appreciate even more fully what we celebrate as we move through this Easter day that follows it. On Holy Saturday, like no other day, we are called to reflect on what it means to live between the already and the not yet, between “Christ has died” and “Christ is risen,” without yet knowing or even hoping that Christ is going to rise. How do we live when everything that makes sense to us disappears, when everything we know is turned upside down? What do we do, when friends and loved ones die, when we cannot see each other, when we are broken, and when God seems so far away, and it seems as though we are left with nothing but to sit in silence and contemplate that brokenness? Do we do as Judas, who hanged himself in great sorrow and despair, or do we do as Mary Magdalen who set out in her great sorrow to visit the grave of Jesus and witness the Resurrection? That is the question of Holy Saturday.
And yet what we also realize when we reflect upon on Holy Saturday, which is the ultimate “day after the day before,” is the very fact that we never ever really have to experience what the apostles experienced, what Mary experienced, what Judas experienced, and what Mary Magdalene experienced even in this time in which we are living now with all of its uncertainty. It is in fact, impossible for us to do so. Why? Because when all seemed lost, when all was lost God restored to us the Savior we thought was defeated and conquered. Mary Magdalene went to the tomb of Jesus and found that it was empty; that the stone had been rolled away. We need Him to help us empty ourselves of our self concern that we might see His hand in every failure and His victory in every defeat.
We will always remember the Passion, but we are not people of suffering, and torture and death. We are people of life and of hope. Jesus Christ is risen from the dead.
On October 22, 1978, Pope John Paul II began his pontifical ministry with these words: “Be not afraid. Be not afraid to welcome Christ and accept his power.” The world, he reflected, was afraid of itself and its future. To all those who were afraid, to all those who were caught up in the great loneliness of the modern world, the Holy Father said, “I beg you, let Christ speak to you. He alone has the words of life, real life; eternal life.”
We celebrate Easter this year full of fear and uncertainty. But while we do come to this Easter Day with plenty of fear to go around, we also come seeking hope and we must seek it. And hope is here. Jesus Christ is risen from the dead. All is not lost. All is won. He has won. We have won. Death has been conquered. The new world has begun. United with Christ, nothing can destroy us. The worst pains and uncertainties of life cannot rob us of the hope of His life. It can no longer be the first Holy Saturday. The celebration of the Resurrection of the Lord is the celebration of our hope, our joy, our sharing in the New Life of Christ.
We cannot allow ourselves to be defeated by the present darkness which unites the world. We need to celebrate and fully realize the only reality that truly matters is that which we celebrate today. Jesus Christ is Risen from the dead.
He is Risen and so are we! St. Paul’s letter to the Romans proclaims our hope. “Are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life; for if we have grown into union with him through a death like his, we shall also be united with him in the resurrection.”
Through our Baptism, Jesus has called us out of this darkness and death and given us each the ability to make his presence real for others. If we just allow God to work through us, if we just strive to be the unique reflection of his love which he created us to be, then we will come out of the tomb with Him and live eternally. Our lives have meaning, and purpose and beauty when they are united to His Life.
The tomb is empty, but the world is full. The Savior Lives. May we let His Life change the world.
But in order for us to be the unique and individual reflections of His love that we are called to be, in order for us to see that the tomb is empty we need to roll the stone away, just as it was rolled away that first Resurrection Day. We roll the stone away this Easter time by taking time to reflect, reflecting is the source of perspective. We need to take time to learn; learning is the source of wisdom. We must take time to pray, prayer is the greatest power on earth. We need to take time to love and be loved; love is God's gift to us. We need to be friendly; this will make us happy. We need to laugh; laughter is music for the soul. We need to take time to give; life is too short to be selfish. We need to work hard; hard work leads to success. We must serve the poor among us; Charity opens our door to Heaven. Pope Francis is calling us to serve in new and creative ways and we are learning to do just that. We must take time to listen; God is speaking to us.
And what God is saying to us is much like what Pope John Paul said to us back in October of 1978: “Do not be afraid.” There is every reason to hope. Jesus Christ is risen from the dead.
At the conclusion of that ancient homily that began this one, Jesus says to Adam, the first man and to us: “The throne formed by the cherubim awaits you, its bearers swift and eager. The bridal chamber is adorned, the banquet is ready, the eternal dwelling places are prepared, the treasure houses of all good things lie open. The kingdom of heaven has been prepared for you from all eternity.
People of God roll the stone away; it is no longer Holy Saturday. It’s Resurrection Day!
Fr. Joseph L. Maloney, Pastor
Saint Aloysius Church
Beach & Hanover Streets
Pottstown, PA 19464