by Fr Raymond Raj
Genesis 1:1-2:2
Psalm 103
Exodus 14:15-15:1
Canticle: Exodus 15
Ezekiel 36:16-28
Canticle: Isaiah 12
Epistle: Romans 6:3-11
Psalm 117
Luke 24:1-12
Theme: Christ is Risen and Alive
My dear friends in the blessed Lord, today is the most glorious day in the life of every baptised Christians. Because today, we celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Brothers and sisters, Easter, speaking of Easter, Easter can only be meaningful with one condition. This Easter, 2025, can be meaningful only with one condition. And the condition is provided you and I have prepared ourselves well during Lent.
There is a saying in English: If you fail to prepare, you must be prepared to fail.
Brothers and sisters in the Lord, Saint Paul in his letters to the Corinthians says:
If Christ is not risen, then all our preaching and rituals is useless, is empty.
On the same breath, Bishop Baron from United States, he will say:
If Christ is not risen, then the Catholic church has no meaning at all.
All of us can close shop and go back home. If Christ is not risen, close the church, go back home and sleep.
Brothers and sisters, the resurrection of Jesus is the pinnacle, is the climax of our Christian faith.
So speaking of resurrection, a little story comes to my mind.
John and his wife married for 50 years. They were married for 50 years. To celebrate their 50th wedding anniversary, John decided to bring his wife to Holy Land, Jerusalem, for a second honeymoon. Unfortunately, during their holiday at Holy Land John’s wife passed away.
So the undertaker of Jerusalem approached John and asked him,
“Sir, will you like your wife to be buried here in Jerusalem, Holy Land, or do you want us to ship her body back to Malaysia?”
“Sir, if you choose to bury her here in Jerusalem, Holy Land, it will cost you $500. But if you choose to ship her body back to Malaysia, it will cost you $5,000.”
$500 or $5,000? John thought for a while and said,
“Mr Undertaker, I prefer that you ship her body back to Malaysia. Don’t bury her here.”
The undertaker was rather surprised and asked John,
“Why don’t you just bury her here in Holy Land? It will only cost you $500.”
John said, “Since my wife is dead, I am thinking of marry another woman, my ex-girlfriend, 50 years ex-girlfriend. Since she is dead, I have all the license as a Catholic to marry another one, provided your spouse is dead.”
John said, “I don’t want to take the risk.” He told the undertaker,
“Since I am going to marry another woman, I am not willing to take the risk.”
The undertaker was shocked and asked, “What do you mean by not taking the risk?”
“You see, Mr Undertaker, 2,000 years ago, a young man by the name of Jesus died here in Jerusalem. But after 3 days, He rose again. Therefore, I am not willing to take the risk. I want to remarry.”
Please don’t quote me. If you are thinking of remarrying, for heaven’s sake, please don’t quote me at all.
Brothers and sisters, in today’s Gospel, Mary Magdalene was shocked, was stunned because the body of Jesus was missing in action. Instead of encountering the dead body of Jesus, Mary Magdalene encountered two men in brilliant clothes standing by the side of the tomb.
And these two men asked Mary Magdalene a profound question. And the question was,
Why look among the dead for someone who is alive?
Brothers and sisters, my dear friends, this very question, the very same question passed to Mary Magdalene 2,000 years ago, God is also asking you and me today.
Why are you looking among the dead for someone who is alive?
Yes, my dear friends, Jesus Christ is alive! Risen! Which ultimately means you and I have hope. The resurrection of Jesus in a nutshell means you and I have HOPE!
Brothers and sisters, if Jesus did not rise from the dead, Jesus would remain as a religious teacher like all the other religious teachers in the world who are buried safely inside their tomb.
So my dear friends, Jesus rose from the dead to give you and me hope. The love of God the Father did not only send Jesus to the Cross but it also raised Jesus to life.
Similarly my dear friends, God intends that you and I live a life that is worthy of the resurrection of Jesus.
However, all said and done, it is very sad today because most of us here, most of us, sometimes including myself, we look dead, long ago before we even die. Most of us here look dead long ago even before we die. Because you know why?
Most of us have lost our hope to live.
Brothers and sisters in the Lord, if Jesus is the center of your life, then you and I have all the reason to be alive, to be hopeful.
Therefore, my message for you today is,
As disciples of Jesus Christ, be hopeful. Christ is risen despite all the pain, torture and suffering imposed on Him.
No matter how heavy is our Cross, my dear friends, Christ has promised us that He is always with us. And the proof of His presence is His resurrection.
So brothers and sisters, remember this always: Even death has no power to separate us from the love of Christ.
So today, let us pray for the grace to be a hopeful disciple of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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Click to live-stream Mass on 19 April 2025