March 30, 2013 Cycle C
And then, “Happy Easter to our Christian friends. Happy Passover to our Jewish friends. Happy Ramadan to our Muslim friends. And to our atheist friends, Good luck.”
We’ve gathered for this beautiful Easter Vigil to truly be a people who celebrate the Resurrected Lord. We invite all to join in our common joy for we know that the Resurrection is the central story of our faith and our evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, --- all of them --- reported so. There is sameness in their approach. One: they all say the tomb was empty. Two: that the Resurrection took place in the early hours of Sunday morning. And three: that Mary Magdalene was the one who made the greatest discovery of all time.
But there is one more fact that is reported by all four evangelists in each of the four gospel stories. And you might think it unimportant but they do tell us that there were angels present. St. Luke tells us that the angel asks Mary Magdalene and the other woman present at the tomb a question, “Why are you looking for the living one among the dead?” In other’s word, “If you’re looking for the Risen Jesus, you’re looking in the wrong place.”
The angels are with us tonight, and I think they might just be asking us this question, or at least a question that is very similar. “Why do you and I tend to look for God in all the wrong places?”
We’ve gathered together tonight on the holiest night of the year. We’ve blessed the fire, but the fire we’ve blessed is not the Lord, it only leads us to God. We’ll be blessing water too. The water isn’t God; it only leads us to Him. And in a few moments we’ll renew our Baptismal promises. We’ve held the fire in our hands and we’ll be feeling water running down the heads of those of our elect. But these promises we make only stand as a reminder of God.
I think we are sophisticated enough to know all that. I think we probably know where to look for God --- but it’s what we want from Him when we find Him. And maybe that’s the problem?
Tonight we are happy for our adult candidates for Confirmation, Jordan and Jesus, who now will be entering into the fullness of the Catholic communion with the reception of the Holy Spirit. And our three unbaptized “elect” for the Sacrament of Baptism are truly also in our prayers tonight. For our friends Keri, Jerrica and Michael, this is truly a special night where they have made the choice to follow their hearts desire and to know where to find the Lord. Not only within their hearts, but also manifested within the Christian community that they have chosen to enter into. Through the Waters of Baptism tonight, they will find anew a home, here in our parish, and the in the universal Catholic Christian community. This prayer evening for Michael, Jerrica and Keri is a very special time and one that I hope will be marked long in their memory.
Every one of us here tonight has in some way or the other been touched by the grace of God. Or else no doubt we would not be here. We’ve all experienced the closeness of God, sometimes more evident than others. For example, when someone we love is diagnosed with cancer, we know that God is close to us, and when we find God what do we want? We want explanations. And when we are having trouble with our children, or our parents, or our in-laws, our boss, we know that Jesus is close to us. Though when we find Him what do we want? We often want solutions. When someone dies we know that the Risen Lord is near, but when we find Him, what do we end up asking for? We ask for answers.
The Risen Lord does not provide answers to our questions or solutions to our problems, or explanations about our suffering. The Risen Lord does not provide answers, for He is the answer. The Risen Lord doesn’t provide explanations: He is the explanation. And the Risen Lord doesn’t provide solutions --- simply because He is the solution.
Many have come looking for the Lord and we’ve come to the right place. For we are here to celebrate the fact that we already have the answer, all has been explained, and the solution is already in our grasp. Revisit those beautiful lessons from the Hebrew Scriptures that we heard earlier as well as the New Testament teachings. The solution is already in our grasp and let that be the greatest gift of Easter for this year.
For as we renew our Baptismal promises, remember that we truly have found the Lord, simply because we stopped looking for Him in all the wrong places.
Amen. Amen. Msgr. Tom Adrians, Pastor Christ the King