March 27, 2016 – Easter Sunday of the Resurrection of the Lord Click on the previous “link” to get some interesting facts about today’s celebration along with some suggestions to make this special “octave” have more meaning for you and your family.

Scripture Readings for the Easter Sunday Liturgy:

Acts 10:34a 37-43

Psalm 118

Colossians 3:1-4

John 20:1-9

“I have risen, and I am with you still, alleluia. You have laid your hand upon me, alleluia. Too wonderful for me, this knowledge, alleluia, alleluia!” (Today’s Entrance Antiphon based on Psalm 139)

Here at St. Dominic’s in San Francisco are schedule was a little different from what I am used to in other places. We celebrated the Holy Week “Morning Prayer” – called Tenebrae – Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Holy Saturday and I was surprised at the numbers of lay people who took part in this very beautiful reflection of our call to faith. The priests in our community were available for the Sacrament of Reconciliation after the Good Friday Liturgy. It was the first time I’d seen all 7 confessionals used for more than three hours non-stop! It just goes to show that when you make the sacraments and liturgies available the people will come!

Our Easter Vigil will began on Holy Saturday at 8 o’clock when we welcomed more than 40 people into full communion with the Catholic Church. Some have never been baptized and others will make a Profession of Faith since they were validly baptized before.

It’s been a busy week and I’m still going at full speed and need to step back to assimilate all that has happened in these last three holy days of the Paschal Triduum. It’s hard to be totally spiritual when you are responsible for so much of the mechanics of the celebrations. Yet there is always need for someone to set things up. Even the apostles, needed to do some physical work to prepare the “the Lord’s Passover” celebration. Things like this don’t just drop out of the sky “ready made!” And still, we are called to “look beyond the bread you eat…” and seek ways to recognize The Resurrected Lord when we encounter Him along the Way.

I know that I must constantly catch myself when I’m like Martha and “busy about many things.” I need to hear Jesus say, “only one thing is necessary and [you] need to sit at the feet of Jesus and …listen to Him.” If we’re not listening to the Lord then there’s no point to our going to all the trouble putting together these special liturgies. We need to meet the resurrected Jesus – most often not in a way that we are familiar with: Mary Magdalen didn’t recognize Him in the garden; the disciples on the road to Emmaus didn’t recognize him until He broke the bread in their presence. So, we need to “seek the Lord while He may be found” and He’s most often very close but our eyes are clouded and He most often doesn’t fit our image of what the Risen Lord Jesus should look like. Sit back. Take time to be with the Lord and don’t be surprised when He calls out your name from right behind you. Happy Easter! Enjoy it as fully as you can for these next seven weeks! Amen!