Easter blessings to you!

It is with the joy of the Risen Lord that I greet you this month. Of course, we are always an Easter people, but the celebration of the great feast of the resurrection always brings this into sharper focus for us.

It’s good to ask ourselves now, what does this mean for us as we seek to live a missionary life?

To be an Easter people means that we are compelled through sheer joy to share the Good News of Jesus Christ with all. How can we not? Our Lord is risen from the dead. He has defeated death! This is news to be shared!

And don’t we sorely need this Good News? In a world in which we see so many people still living in poverty, without access to clean water, good sanitation, education and jobs, the bright light of Easter is needed more than ever. It is also needed for people who struggle with addiction, illness, dislocation and despair.

For many of these people, the reality of the Risen Lord is yet to be perceived, yet to be experienced.

And this is where we can all come in as Easter people. We know that simply by accompanying people who live on the margins, we can bring them a glimpse of the Risen Lord. By reaching out and caring for the sick, the homeless, by helping to create development which brings food, education, employment; all of these things help restore human dignity and to plant in people’s hearts that great sign of Easter - hope.

This weekend, all eyes will turn to St Peter’s Square in Rome, where two of the most popular Popes of modern times, Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II will be canonised. As we ponder what it means to be an Easter people, we need look no further than these two fine and holy examples.

Pope John XXIII threw open the windows and doors of the Church in the 1960s when he called on the Second Vatican Council to “read the signs of the times” and to reach out with Christ’s love to the needs of the modern world. Pope John Paul II, over the course of a long pontificate, took up that challenge himself, becoming the most travelled Pope in history and reaching out in person to people all around the world, including to our own Aboriginal Australians during his visit here in 1986.

These two Popes will be canonised by Pope Francis, who is becoming known for his vision of a missionary church, a Church which lives with the people on the margins.

So, this weekend, let these three leaders in faith show us what it is to be Easter people. In a nutshell, it is about “going out”. It is about leaving our own comforts behind and reaching out to others with the love of the Risen Lord. And it is not a task only for some. It is for all. This is God’s Mission. And it is our Mission too.

Yours in the Word,

Fr Henry Adler SVD

Provincial